Quarter-by-quarter breakdown of the game,

A look back at how it all happened:

FIRST QUARTER

Notre Dame 14,Texas 0 — An up-tempo system works best when yards are gained. The Longhorns stayed true to their promise of moving quickly, but the pace appeared to cause confusion. Two Tyrone Swoopes-led possessions produced nothing, so Jerrod Heard got a crack right before the quarter ended. Tackling was poor. And Texas didn’t get off blocks. Bad combination. Still, it was an impressive debut for Malik Jefferson. He had two tackles on the opening drive, both coming near the line of scrimmage.

ND: Will Fuller 16-yard TD pass from Malik Zaire (Justin Yoon PAT), 6:29 left

The drive: 7 plays, 55 yards,

3:28

Key play: Tarean Folston’s 15yard run sparked a series of nice gains. It also was his last run; he was injured on the play, then ruled out for the game soon after.

ND: Josh Adams 14-yard run (Yoon PAT), 1:02

The drive: 9 plays, 95 yards,

3:50

Key play: Naashon Hughes’ 15-yard horse collar penalty coming off a nice gain set the Irish up at the 14. Adams scored on the next play.

SECOND QUARTER

Halftime: Notre Dame 17,

Texas 0 — Texas’ front five was overpowered. Armanti Foreman lost 10 yards. Heard, under pressure, ran into Johnathan Gray and was dropped at Texas’ 1. Later, Taylor Doyle blew a block and Swoopes was sacked. Nick Rose was 2 for 3 on the same field goal attempt from 52 yards. He drilled the first two, but each time, Irish coach Brian Kelly called a timeout to ice him. The third time was a charm for Kelly; Rose’s third attempt went wide left right before halftime.

ND: Yoon 38-yard field goal, 7:53

The drive: 4 plays, 29 yards,

1:29

Key play: Avery Sebastian’s 10-yard run set up the field goal, taking it to the 24-yard line.

THIRD QUARTER

Notre Dame 31,Texas 3 — A big question coming into the night was who would defend Notre Dame receiver Will Fuller. Turns out no one was up for the challenge. He blew past cornerback Duke Thomas, who received no deep help from safety Dylan Haines, and the result was a 66-yard score.

UT: Nick Rose 41-yard field goal, 8:36

The drive: 5 plays, 49 yards,

1:29

Key play: Texas went vertical when Swoopes hit John Burt for a 48-yard pass downfield on a post pattern.

ND: Fuller 66-yard TD pass from Zaire (Yoon kick), 5:50

The drive: 5 plays, 90 yards,

2:46

Key play: C.J. Prosise’s 12yard run required a handful of Longhorns to take him down.

ND: Adams 25-yard TD run (Yoon kick), 2:00

The drive: 5 plays, 56 yards,

2:18

Key play: The Irish converted a third-and-5 from Texas’36, as Zaire hit Torii Hunter Jr. for an 11-yard gain down to Texas’25. Adams scored on the next play.

FOURTH QUARTER

Final: Notre Dame 38,Texas

3— Zaire was superb all night, with three TD passes and three incompletions. He exited the game with 10:55 to go, and sophomore backup DeShone Kizer attempted only one pass as the Irish melted the clock. Breckyn Hager’s debut will live in infamy; the freshman linebacker was pulled from the game after he stood over and taunted a Notre Dame ball carrier. Linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary was furious. And there was a bad sign for Texas’ receiving corps — Marcus Johnson missed the entire second half with an ankle injury and was seen leaving the field wearing a protective boot.

ND: Chris Brown 6-yard TD pass from Zaire (Yoon kick), 11:46

The drive: 8 plays, 60 yards,

3:30

Key play: Zaire, facing a thirdand-15, hit Corey Robinson for a 20-yard gain over the middle that brought the Irish into field goal range.