No. 8 BYU held off No. 2 Notre Dame for a 28-24 win Saturday night at LaVell Edwards Stadium, but the Big 12 later said officials erred on the final play and the Fighting Irish should have gotten one more chance.
Notre Dame had first-and-goal from the 8-yard line with four seconds left, trailing by four points. Quarterback CJ Carr’s pass toward Jaden Greathouse fell incomplete in the end zone amid close contact from BYU cornerback Evan Johnson. No defensive pass interference flag was thrown.
Multiple replays showed the ball hitting the turf with one second remaining on the clock. Officials instead ruled the game over as fans rushed the field.
The Big 12 released a statement hours afterward.
“Following the Big 12’s review of the final play of Saturday’s Notre Dame-BYU game, it was determined that time remained on the clock when the ball hit the ground and the play was incorrectly cleared by the replay officiating crew,” the conference said. “The Conference will conduct a complete review of its end-of-game officiating process in advance of next week’s games.”
ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit, who called the game on ABC with Chris Fowler, posted on social media Sunday.
“Another week, another wild finish! A lot of talk about the ending, but let’s not lose sight of what BYU did to put themselves in position to win this ballgame. Tremendous effort by the Cougars to find a way to get it done. And of course don’t count Notre Dame out… Still a lot of football left to be played!” Herbstreit wrote.
The result was BYU’s first victory over Notre Dame since 2004 and its highest-ranked win since beating No. 1 Miami in 1990. The Cougars improved to 6-0. Notre Dame dropped to 6-1, ending a 16-game winning streak.
Bear Bachmeier accounted for all four BYU touchdowns. He completed 23 of 36 passes for 224 yards and one score, ran 13 times for 45 yards and two touchdowns, and caught a 15-yard touchdown on a trick play. It marked the first time an FBS player recorded a rushing, passing and receiving touchdown against an AP Top-5 opponent in the past 30 years.
Carr finished 27 of 49 for 261 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. Nolan James Jr. rushed for 77 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. Greathouse caught eight passes for 125 yards.
Notre Dame outgained BYU 376 yards to 360 and went 4 for 4 on fourth downs. The Cougars converted 8 of 12 third downs.
BYU took the lead for good when Bachmeier connected with Walker Lyons on a six-yard touchdown pass with 1:47 remaining, capping a 10-play, 55-yard drive.
Notre Dame responded with a late march that included multiple fourth-down conversions before the final incomplete pass.
The game drew a sellout crowd of 65,179. Notre Dame entered as roughly a 10.5-point favorite.
The Irish loss, paired with No. 1 Georgia’s earlier defeat, meant the nation’s top two teams fell on the same day.
Herbstreit had recently called Notre Dame’s schedule an “embarrassment” for featuring only two major tests, this one and a home game against Miami. He had picked the Irish as his preseason national champion.
The final score stands while the Big 12 reviews its end-of-game procedures ahead of next week.
