SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Leonard Moore had two of Notre Dame’s four interceptions in his return from injury and the 21st-ranked Fighting Irish beat Boise State 28-7 on Saturday.
CJ Carr was 15-of-23 passing for 189 yards and threw touchdowns to Will Pauling and Malachi Fields.
Moore, a preseason All-America selection at cornerback, missed Notre Dame’s previous two games with a high ankle sprain. Tae Johnson and Luke Talich had the other two interceptions for the Fighting Irish (3-2).
Notre Dame star running back Jeremiyah Love briefly left the game in the first half, but returned and finished with 103 yards rushing and a 4-yard TD run. Jadarian Price rushed for 83 yards and scored on a 49-yard run.
Notre Dame’s four picks matched the Fighting Irish total through its first four games.
“To think where that defense was and how they felt two weeks ago, so after week two, A&M, after week three versus Purdue, to think about how … it was a low point for us all,” said Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman, whose team led the nation in takeaways (33) last season.
“And to see the way (the Notre Dame defense) stayed committed, stayed together. They worked tirelessly to come up with a better output. And I’m so proud of them. They worked hard.”
Moore had three career interceptions entering Saturday’s game.
“It comes down to technique and practice reps,” Moore said of the interceptions. “It definitely feels good. Seeing anybody get an interception on the team unites the team.
“I feel like we’re just getting our identity, going out there and playing fast, playing violent,” Moore said of the improvement by the Notre Dame defense.
Maddux Madsen, who threw the four picks, scored the lone touchdown for Boise State (3-2) on a 1-yard plunge in the second quarter.
“Early on, we got explosive plays given up on defense,” Boise State coach Spencer Danielson said. “Offensively, we were moving the ball very similar to South Florida (a 34-7 loss), but we shot ourselves in the foot. We get explosive plays, get a penalty. We had four turnovers … you can’t beat hardly any team when you have four turnovers and they have none.”
Marquee matchup
This was the first football game between Boise State and Notre Dame. The Broncos rank No. 1 in all-time winning percentage in the FBS (76.7%) and the Fighting Irish rank No. 5 (72.5%). Both schools qualified for the College Football Playoff last season, making this matchup the third time two returning CFP participants played the following season in a non-conference game.
Getting defensive
Notre Dame’s defense took heat in its first three games for allowing 32.7 points a game. In their last two, the Fighting Irish have held their opponents to 13 points (Arkansas) and now seven.
The takeaway
Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish defense slowed down what had been a high-octane Broncos offense in their past three games. Despite this, the Irish probably will not see much improvement in the AP poll this week.
Boise State: The Broncos hurt themselves with double-digit penalties. They racked up 13 penalties for 112 yards.
Up next
Notre Dame hosts N.C. State next Saturday.
Boise State hosts New Mexico next Saturday.
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