DUBLIN – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Notre Dame’s QB Sam Hartman threw for four touchdowns in his Notre Dame debut as the 13th-ranked Fighting Irish crushed Navy, 42-3, in Ireland on Saturday afternoon in the season opener for both teams.
Hartman spent the last five seasons at Wake Forest, where he threw for an Atlantic Coast Conference record 110 touchdowns. He looked right at home with his new program on Saturday, completing 19 of 23 passes for 266 yards.
Jaden Greathouse had three catches for 68 yards and two TDs for Notre Dame, which improved to 3-0 against the Midshipmen in games played in Ireland. Jayden Thomas added 78 yards on four receptions.
Alex Tecza had 38 rushing yards and Daba Fofana recorded 32 on 16 carries for Navy, which saw quarterback Tai Lavatai complete 3 of 6 passes for 43 yards.
The Midshipmen finished with 169 yards of total offense and made just two trips to the red zone.
The Fighting Irish put together a 13-play, 81-yard drive to open the game, taking a 7-0 lead on Audric Estime’s 1-yard rushing touchdown. Estime ended up with 95 yards on 16 touches for the game.
After the Midshipmen failed to convert a fourth-and-3 on their ensuing drive, Notre Dame doubled its advantage when Jadarian Price scored on the ground from 19 yards out with 1:03 left in the opening quarter.
Hartman made it 21-0 when he recorded his first TD as a member of the Fighting Irish, a 35-yard strike to Greathouse with 10 minutes left in the first half.
Evan Warren’s 36-yard field-goal attempt with 1:55 to play until the break went wide right, and Notre Dame capitalized on the miss when Hartman found Thomas for a 14-yard TD 1:42 later to send the Irish into halftime up 28-0.
Navy went three-and-out to begin the second half. The Fighting Irish took less than three minutes to tack on to their lead, as Greathouse was on the receiving end of a 20-yard touchdown that made it 35-0.
Hartman connected with Deion Colzie for a 25-yard TD with 11:54 remaining in the game before Warren broke the shutout by making good on a 31-yard field goal.
–Field Level Media