It wasn’t the prettiest performance for Notre Dame football, but the Fighting Irish still left Chapel Hill with a 37-26 victory over the North Carolina Tar Heels. 

The game had its miscues. Notre Dame’s elite secondary gave up several explosive plays, and the Irish allowed a kickoff return for a touchdown to begin the second half.

Despite that, head coach Marcus Freeman and this Notre Dame squad have plenty of positives to build on after moving to 5-0 in the 2026 college football season. Several players impressed for the blue and gold, while others struggled or underwhelmed.

Here are the winners and losers from Notre Dame’s trip to take on the Bill Belichick-led Tar Heels.

Winners

Quarterback CJ Carr

It was another good day for quarterback CJ Carr. He completed 21-of-29 passes for 234 yards and four touchdown passes. Carr also ran for 15 yards, including a rushing touchdown.

He was cool, calm, and collected while commanding the Notre Dame offense. The 6-2, 215-pound quarterback continues to be a major bright spot for the Irish through five games.

The run game emergence

This was Notre Dame’s best rushing attack of the season so far. As a group, the Irish ran 45 times for 241 yards and a touchdown, an average of 5.4 yards per carry.

Freshman running back Jonaz Walton led the way with 120 yards on 23 carries, a solid 5.2 yards per carry. Nolan James Jr. added 65 yards on just nine carries, while Aneyas Williams chipped in 42 yards on eight carries. 

All three averaged more than five yards per carry against a UNC defense that had been strong against the run.

WR Jordan Faison

Wide receiver Jordan Faison had arguably the best game of his Notre Dame career. He hauled in eight receptions for 132 yards and two touchdowns, an average of 16.5 yards per reception.

Both touchdowns showcased his fluidity as a route runner and his ability to make impressive plays. Faison continues to be the premier player in this passing game, especially on a day when the other wide receivers were fairly average.

EDGE Boubacar Traore

This was arguably Boubacar Traore’s best game of the season. He finished with six total tackles, a tackle for loss, and a pass breakup.

The box score doesn’t tell the full story, though. Traore had several key pressures, including one that led to an interception. The 6-5, 250-pound pass rusher has been tremendous over the last couple of weeks. 

Notre Dame’s defensive line has been very good in general, but Traore remains its best asset in terms of pass rush.

Safety Luke Talich

The senior safety made his return against North Carolina, and he was fantastic. The 6-4, 220-pound defender recorded three total tackles, a tackle for loss, and an interception. His range toward the sideline on that pick stood out. Talich also blocked an extra point.

[[FLAG:injury]]Breontae Johnson, who should be back somewhat soon, and Adon Shuler get a lot of the headlines.[[/FLAG]] Talich, however, continues to look like a draftable player in the 2027 NFL Draft.

LB Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa

It was another modest stat line for linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, who had just three total tackles. If you watched the game, though, he was incredibly active. He came away with the interception off Traore’s pressure and added a couple of key pressures of his own.

The 6-3, 230-pound linebacker continues to be a major impact player for this Notre Dame team.

DT Armel Mukam

Defensive tackle Armel Mukam finished with three total tackles and a tackle for loss, but he was incredibly impactful. He has quietly been a productive player over the last few weeks, especially since moving into a backup role after starting the year as a starter.

At 6-3 and 305 pounds, Mukam is a swift athlete who keeps making plays behind the line of scrimmage. If his ascension continues, this defensive tackle room has a chance to be tremendous.

Losers

Notre Dame secondary

Talich made a nice impact, but the Irish secondary gave up too many big plays overall. North Carolina wide receiver Jordan Shipp had seven receptions for 109 yards. Talented tight end Jelani Thurman added five catches for 50 yards and two touchdowns.

Notre Dame’s secondary has built a reputation for limiting explosive plays. That did not happen in Chapel Hill.

The middle eight

Freeman often talks about the middle eight, which covers the last four minutes of the first half and the first four minutes of the second half. Notre Dame did not handle that stretch well.

The Irish allowed a touchdown near the end of the first half and then gave up the kickoff return to open the second. That was a major swing in the game, and it needs to be better.

Kick coverage

Special teams coordinator Marty Biagi has been tremendous for Notre Dame, and the kick coverage units have mostly been very good this season. That makes the kickoff return touchdown stand out even more.

It was a big momentum shift. Notre Dame managed to recapture it and close out an 11-point victory, but that kind of sloppiness could hurt the Irish in bigger games.

The slot position

The slot position, led by Jaden Greathouse and Mylan Graham, continues to be a problem. Greathouse caught two passes for 18 yards and a touchdown, while Graham went without a catch once again.

Two receptions for 18 yards is not nearly good enough. Notre Dame will need much more from that spot if this offense is going to reach its ceiling.