Riley Leonard passed for two touchdowns and rushed for one more, and No. 12 Notre Dame rolled to a 51-14 win over No. 24 Navy on Saturday afternoon at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
Jeremiyah Love added 12 carries for 102 yards and two touchdowns for Notre Dame (7-1), which won its sixth game in a row. Beaux Collins and Kris Mitchell had one touchdown reception apiece, Kedren Young rushed for a score, and Jaylen Sneed had a fumble recovery for a defensive touchdown.
Blake Horvath completed seven of 13 passes for 88 yards and an interception for Navy (6-1), but he proved effective on the ground with 14 carries for 129 yards and a touchdown. Eli Heidenreich had 11 carries for 51 yards and a score.
Navy finished with six turnovers, compared with zero turnovers for Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish outgained the Midshipmen 466-310.
Notre Dame led 14-0 at the end of the first quarter and 31-7 at halftime.
Leonard played a key role in both of the Fighting Irish’s early scores. He rushed for a 1-yard touchdown and threw a 6-yard pass to Mitchell for a touchdown in the first quarter.
Horvath put Navy on the scoreboard with a 47-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter. That cut the deficit to 14-7.
Notre Dame answered with two more touchdowns and a field goal before the half. Love burst through a hole for a 64-yard touchdown and added a second score on a 2-yard run to make it 28-7 with 5:05 left before the break.
Zac Yoakam finished the first-half scoring with a 32-yard field goal.
Navy pulled within 31-14 on Heidenreich’s 1-yard touchdown with 8:44 remaining in the third quarter.
The Fighting Irish piled on three more touchdowns to put the score out of reach.
Leonard hit Collins for a 37-yard touchdown with 5:35 to go in the third quarter.
On the following drive, Horvath fumbled the ball near the end zone. Sneed spotted the loose ball as he rushed the passer and pounced on it for a touchdown to boost Notre Dame’s lead to 44-14.
Young put the Fighting Irish above the 50-point mark with 7:08 remaining. The freshman scored on a 4-yard rush for his first career touchdown.
–Field Level Media
