Notre Dame football pulled away from the Michigan State Spartans on Saturday night, winning 27-10 at Notre Dame Stadium behind a breakout performance from wide receiver Micah Gilbert and another efficient outing from quarterback CJ Carr.

The Fighting Irish held just a 17-10 edge at halftime before second half adjustments on both sides of the ball put the game away in convincing fashion. The win featured some massive individual performances and feel-good moments, but also some lingering concerns about the run game, coverage busts, and a static offensive approach that could become problematic against tougher competition.

Here are the winners and losers from the victory.

Winners

WR Micah Gilbert

The biggest winner of the night has to start and end with third-year wide receiver Micah Gilbert. The 6-2, 205-pound pass catcher earned the starting role as the boundary receiver going into the year and had shown some pleasant signs over the first couple of weeks. Saturday night, however, was the culmination of what could be a massive breakout for the North Carolina native.

Gilbert was Carr’s favorite target by a substantial margin, hauling in eight receptions for 170 yards on the night.

That is the best performance by a Notre Dame wide receiver in quite some time, averaging 21.3 yards per catch and kicking the game off with a 61-yard reception on the very first play. If Gilbert is anything close to what he showcased on Saturday night, Notre Dame’s passing offense has a chance to take a substantial step. Offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock’s offense runs heavily through the boundary position, and seeing that kind of impact from Gilbert should unlock the upside of this offense.

QB CJ Carr

The junior signal caller had another standout performance during the victory, completing 18 of 24 passes for 234 yards. Carr also added a rushing touchdown on the ground. He was in control, calm, collected, and accurate throughout the night, connecting on a couple of deeper passes to the aforementioned Gilbert. Carr continues to ascend as a second-year starting quarterback in 2026.

Second half Nolan James Jr.

The rushing attack in the first half was the same old story for Notre Dame, struggling to consistently churn out yardage. James, however, had a big second half for the Notre Dame rushing attack. With the struggles from Aneyas Williams, it wouldn’t be shocking to see James ascend to the top overall running back for this team. He was able to consistently churn out yardage in the second half and turn a whole lot of nothing into something, even when the run blocking did not seem overly good.

James ended the night with 121 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries.

‘The Feel-Good Stories’

Another game, another huge impact from former walk-ons wide receiver Jordan Faison and safety Luke Talich. Faison ended the night with five catches for 38 yards, and while those numbers are modest, he was the consistent chain mover for this Notre Dame offense. That provided a good pairing with the big-play ability from Gilbert.

Talich, filling in for the injured Breontae Johnson, had a tremendous interception in the first half where he showed range and ball skills for his fifth career interception. The 6-4, 220-pound safety continues to be a major asset for this Notre Dame defense, which is incredibly deep on the back end in the secondary. He also recorded a sack in the second half.

Third-year wide receiver Matt Jeffery also deserves mention. Like Faison, Jeffrey has taken a lacrosse path to Notre Dame. He blocked a punt early in the game, and whether it’s flashing on offense a week ago or making big plays on special teams, Jeffrey continues to be a player Notre Dame depends on.

Halftime adjustments

For whatever reason, Notre Dame’s first half outputs have been extremely up and down and typically a little bit frustrating during Marcus Freeman’s tenure. The second half performance, however, has typically been outstanding. We saw that again against Michigan State. From a defensive perspective, Notre Dame turned up the heat and got much more pressure on the Spartans’ passing attack. On offense, the staff found some answers in the running game and became a more efficient unit overall.

Notre Dame’s defensive line

The second half was where Notre Dame’s defensive line under defensive line coach Charlie Partridge turned up the heat. Players like Boubacar Traore, Tionne Gray, Loghan Thomas, Rodney Dunham, and Armel Mukam all made tremendous plays as pass rushers. This is a deep and talented defensive line, and Saturday night was the perfect example of that quality depth. They consistently put Michigan State’s passing game into bad positions, forced turnovers, and halted any momentum in the second half.

Cooper Flanagan’s blocking

While Notre Dame’s offensive line didn’t seem to have a great day, the fourth-year tight end seemed to have one of his better outings. At 6-6 and 255 pounds, Flanagan has not developed into the pass catcher that some maybe had hoped for. In the run game, however, he consistently gets after it. He had some key blocks near the goal line, and Flanagan’s dirty work has become a huge asset for this Notre Dame team.

The losers

The run game . . .

Notre Dame’s running game was once again an extremely mixed bag. It was much better in the second half, but overall it continues to be a problem. On the day, the Irish ran the ball 43 times for 161 yards and three touchdowns, a 3.7-yard-per-carry average. When Notre Dame plays the better teams on its schedule and potentially makes a deep playoff run, it will need to consistently churn out efficient yardage on the ground. That is just not something this team is doing right now.

Coverage busts

Notre Dame’s pass defense looks great on paper, and the defense made a tremendous amount of plays, including a couple of interceptions during the contest. There were, however, a couple of troubling coverage busts that need to be answered for. Michigan State had a missed touchdown opportunity earlier in the game, and wide receiver Rodney Bullard Jr. ripped off a 53-yard explosive play in the passing game that seemed to be a huge miscommunication between safeties Adon Shuler and Luke Talich. Those breakdowns cannot happen against the better teams on Notre Dame’s schedule.

Static offense

The lack of movement from a pre-snap perspective under coordinator Denbrock continues to be troubling. This is a team that prioritizes getting into the “perfect play,” but you see barely any sort of motion, no trades. The approach is slow and static. Notre Dame’s run game would probably be a whole lot better if there was some eye candy to put second- and third-level defenders in bad positions while keeping players guessing in general. More implementation of motion as the season progresses would go a long way.