No. 9 Notre Dame rebounds from Miami loss to edge Navy, 24-17
SOUTH BEND, IND. » Brandon Wimbush threw for 164 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a score as No. 9 Notre Dame rallied in the rain and wind to beat Navy 24-17 Saturday.
Wearing throwback uniforms with the name Rockne on the back of every player’s jersey and helmets designed to evoke the leather tops from the era of Knute Rockne, one of the Fighting Irish’s most famous names, Notre Dame (9-2, No. 8 College Football Playoff) kept their slim national championship hopes alive heading into their regular-season finale next Saturday at Stanford.
Wimbush, who threw two interceptions and lost a fumble in Notre Dame’s 41- 8 loss at No. 2 Miami two Saturdays ago, connected with Kevin Stepherson twice and added his 14th rushing TD of the year as the Irish scored on three straight possessions late in the longestrunning matchup between teams from different regions of the country, dating to 1927.
Running back Josh Adams, who was limited to 62 rushing yards by injuries in Notre Dame’s previous two games against Wake Forest and Miami, topped the century mark for the seventh time, fin- ishing with 106 yards on 18 carries.
The Irish outgained the Midshipmen (6- 4) 327-318, but Navy outrushed Notre Dame 277-163 and had a huge advantage in time of possession, 42:42 to 17:18.
Notre Dame didn’t secure the victory until there was 1:28 left in the game. After a timeout on a fourth- and- 5 at Notre Dame’s 25, Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo opted for some trickery.