Game balls: Five standouts from a solid Notre Dame 28-20 win Saturday over BYU
On a day that provided plenty to choose from in an impressive 28-20 Notre Dame win over No. 16 BYU, these were the five Irish who stood out in the Shamrock Series win in Las Vegas.
TIGHT END MICHAEL MAYER
The All-American Irish tight end had the most memorable and historical night of his fine career with 11 catches — a single-game record for a Notre Dame tight end — for 118 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Mayer left Sin City as the career reception leader at “Tight End U” with 146.
Fittingly, Mayer broke former Irish great Tyler Eifert’s career reception mark on a 24-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter that gave the Irish a 10-6 lead it never relinquished.
RUNNING BACK AUDRIC ESTIME
For the second straight game, the bruising but nimble sophomore tailback provided great balance to a solid Irish passing game.
Estime went through, around and over BYU defenders on his way to 97 yards on 14 tries for a 6.9-yard per-carry average.
QUARTERBACK DREW PYNE
Pyne came off his fine performance in a 45-32 win on Sept. 24, over North Carolina with another terrific outing Saturday against BYU.
The Irish junior finished 22-of-28 passing for 262 yards with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception while improving to 3-0 as an Irish starter.
Pyne helped Notre Dame to three touchdowns on four drives through the second and third quarters that sparked a 22-0 Irish scoring run.
WIDE RECEIVER JAYDEN THOMAS
Even Pyne looked surprised when this sophomore wideout made a one-armed 30-yard circus touchdown catch late in the second quarter that gave the Irish an 18-6 halftime lead.
The memorable first career TD reception was part of a career night for Thomas that included 3 catches and 74 yards.
DEFENSIVE TACKLE JASON ADEMILOLA
Even on a night when Notre Dame did an adequate job collectively keeping star BYU junior quarterback Jalen Hall uncomfortable, it’s hard to pass out many defensive game balls.
But the fourth-down, fourth-quarter tackle by this graduate lineman ended a potential game-tying BYU drive at the Irish 27-yard line — the final offensive possession for the Cougars — that protected a 28-20 Irish lead and win.
