Notre Dame defeated North Carolina 37-26 at Kenan Stadium, improving to 5-0 while the Tar Heels fell to 2-2, Fox News reported Oct. 3, 2026.
Fox News said rainy conditions marked the game. Notre Dame quarterback C.J. Carr completed 21 of 29 passes for 234 yards and four touchdown passes and added a rushing touchdown. Wide receiver Jordan Faison had eight catches for 132 yards and two TDs, the outlet reported.
UNC opened the scoring on a six-play drive capped by a 6-yard touchdown pass from Billy Edwards Jr. to Shamar Easter. Notre Dame responded with 21 straight points, aided by interceptions of Edwards and a 39-yard touchdown pass from Carr to Faison, Fox News reported.
With about 7 1/2 minutes left in the second quarter Notre Dame went for it on fourth-and-goal at the UNC 3 but failed to convert. UNC then drove 97 yards in 15 plays and scored on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Edwards to Jelani Thurman just before halftime, the outlet said.
UNC returned the second-half kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown by Jaden Jefferson but missed the extra point after an errant long snap, leaving the score 21-20. Notre Dame answered with a 17-play, 75-yard drive that included three fourth-down conversions and a 3-yard scramble by Carr on fourth-and-goal, according to Fox News.
Early in the fourth quarter Carr threw a 6-yard touchdown to Nolan James Jr., and kicker Spencer Porath later added a 31-yard field goal to make it 37-20. Thurman scored a late touchdown for UNC to finish the game 37-26, the report said.
Fox News reported Notre Dame improved to 5-0 and will host Stanford (2-3) on Oct. 10, 2026. North Carolina fell to 2-2 and will visit Pittsburgh on Oct. 10, 2026, the outlet said.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
