Game Notes vs Notre Dame: frantic details from the BYU football's monumental victory

They did it. It happened. That was real. BYU hosted the second-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish in LaVell Edwards Stadium and did the unthinkable: won the football game.

Even with all the Irish's prestige. All their acclaim. The Cougars played the better football game and took home a 28-24 victory against one of the best football programs in the nation.

And I've got a lot to say about it. You watched the game, you rewatched the highlights, and you've relived this night countless times over. BYU beat Notre Dame; here are my notes from one of the most important and successful nights in the program's history.

Relevance, thy name is Brigham

BYU, as a program, has been desperate for a marquee victory. They were snubbed from the College Football Playoff in 2024 despite having a road victory against an at-large participant in SMU. Then again in 2025 despite their only losses coming to a Texas Tech team that earned a first-round bye.

2026 has been much of the same for BYU's national perception.

It didn't matter that they were unbeaten on the field through their first five games. It didn't matter that the Cougars' continuity from last season's 12-2 team put them in a uniquely strong position in the transfer portal era. It didn't matter that BYU football was undefeated this season against the betting lines. Even with home field advantage, Kalani Sitake's program was a double-digit underdog against Notre Dame as the eighth-ranked team in the nation.

BYU left no doubt by toppling the second-ranked Irish, replacing their fallen foes in the same place.

Say hello to the newest number-two team in the AP Poll: the BYU Cougars.

It's a really weird feeling to see BYU ranked so highly, and twice as strange to know that they've earned that spot.

Last year's ranking reached single digits before getting curb-stomped in Lubbock. The previous season, they climbed to 6 before an agonizing upset against Kansas. In both seasons, I waited anxiously to see if and when BYU would be exposed as fraudulent. This year is different.

This small fish has eaten their way up the food chain, and they have a taste for blue bloods. They're not infallible, and I'm not about to proclaim this team to be college football's ultimate life-form just six games into the season -- but they're legitimate.

No LJ? No problem

Learning that BYU would have to square off in a top-10 matchup without their workhorse running back felt like helplessly watching the Grim Reaper wind up to slash through Cosmo's heart. BYU's running back room had been torn to shreds with injury, but losing one of the nation's best running backs was a particularly tall hurdle to clear.

And even with a "running back by committee" game plan, Preston Rex stepped up in a massive way to fill the void left by Martin.

Rex averaged 6.6 yards per carry and led all rushers with 66 total yards, including an explosive 23-yard burst down the sideline that breathed life into a running back room previously underwhelming. But it doesn't matter who did and didn't deliver in the running game. What matters is that even without arguably the team's best player, the Cougars beat the Irish outright.

That's a huge confidence boost for this team.

Bear Bachmeier is a certified winner

How does AP National Player of the Week sound? Bear Bachmeier accounted for each of BYU's four touchdowns and pushed the ball over the goal line in a wide variety of ways. Passing, rushing, and even receiving, Bachmeier lived in the endzone for BYU -- he was the closer.

He may not be the most remarkable athlete on the field, but he makes winning plays so often it makes me question whether he knows how not to win football games. He's lost just 2 games compared to his 18 career victories, and boasts the best winning percentage of any starting QB in BYU history.

Was he perfect? No. Was he revolutionary? I wouldn't go that far. Does he lift his team to win after win after win? Undoubtedly.

Insane poise for a true sophomore quarterback on the biggest stage of his career.

Get that asterisk off this victory

Much has been said about the final moments of this football game.

Some believe that BYU cornerback Evan Johnson is guilty of defensive pass interference on Notre Dame's final play of the game. Others will claim that there was one second remaining on the clock and the Irish are therefore entitled to one final play from the 9-yard line.

They say Notre Dame was cheated. They say this game was robbed from the Fighiting Irish. They say that BYU was bailed out at the final moment.

Argue all you want, but here are the facts as history will remember them: BYU football led for the majority of the game and won 28-24. Notre Dame had numerous chances to score a touchdown and take the lead, but was stopped short repeatedly and forced to settle for field goals. Even with a 3-point lead under the 2-minute timeout, Notre Dame wasn't able to keep BYU out of the endzone and failed to score on their final possession.

So say what you want about this football game, but BYU deserves this victory. Take any asterisks off the final result.

Lining up a Holy War for the ages

I'm not sure if you've been paying close attention, but the Big 12 currently has three undefeated representatives in BYU (of course), Texas Tech, and... Utah. And as is tradition around the Beehive State, the Cougars and Utes are scheduled to clash later this season.

It's a game that carries suffocating stakes even when one or both programs are on the decline. Assuming both teams can escape next weekend with a W, though, this year's Holy War will almost certainly be a clash of top-10 teams.

That would be an all-time first for a series that spans over 100 meetings from the 19th to the 21st century.

The most high-profile and historic meeting in one of college football's most celebrated rivalries. BYU's win over Notre Dame and subsequent leap near the top of the rankings only raised the stakes. A ticket to the College Football Playoff is a virtual certainty if the Cougars can win out in all five of their other regular season games -- but sealing the deal with a win in Salt Lake City would be euphoric.

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