The Miami Hurricanes took the field on Saturday night as the top-ranked team in the country, standing in the exclusive club of undefeated college football programs entering Nov. 7. On the other side, a Notre Dame Fighting Irish team that desperately needed a win to make the College Football Playoff and had something to prove to a committee.

Let’s dive into our winners and losers from Miami vs Notre Dame, with the Fighting Irish coming out on top 31-24 thanks to a dominant first half (17-3 halftime lead).

Winner: C.J. Carr, QB, Notre Dame Fighting Irish

This is what NFL scouts and Notre Dame fans have been waiting to see from C.J. Carr. The Fighting Irish quarterback had five games this season with 200-plus passing yards and multiple touchdowns, but there wasn’t often that dominant performance. At home on Saturday night in front of a national audience, Carr put up 205 passing yards with two touchdowns alone in the first half. The chemistry with Jordan Faison and Micah Gilbert was on full display, and Carr showed both tremendous poise in the pocket and delivered dimes to all areas of the field. Carr is the biggest reason why Notre Dame beat Miami.

Loser: Miami Hurricanes Defense

While Miami was the top-ranked team coming into the night, everyone around the country knew how bad this Hurricanes defense has been as of late. In the last three games, this unit allowed opponents to average 417.7 total yards and 31 points per game. That’s exactly the defense we got on Saturday night at Notre Dame Stadium. Excluding the kneel down to end the first half, the Fighting Irish offense put up 281 total yards en route to a 24-3 lead early in the third quarter. On the night, Miami allowed 412 total yards and 31 points. That’s just par for the course for this group evidently.

Winner: Jordan Faison, WR, Notre Dame Fighting Irish

C.J. Carr was the star of the show at Notre Dame Stadium, but his go-to man Jordan Faison was equally impressive. Faison put up 68 receiving yards in the first half with a sensational toe-tap touchdown grab early in the game. He didn’t just make big plays in the passing game. Faison delivered his longest punt return of the season at the perfect moment, catching it at the 14-yard line and returning it all the way to the Hurricanes’ 30-yard line for a 56-yard gain. Three plays later, Notre Dame found the end zone. That’s winning football.

Loser: Aneyas Williams, RB, Notre Dame Fighting Irish

On a night when there were many standouts from Notre Dame’s offense, running back Aneyas Williams became an afterthought. He handled just one carry on the night, just the latest in his involvement in this game plan progressively evaporating as the season has moved forward. Realistically, given how things have gone in 2026, Williams will probably need to find a new program for the 2027 campaign.

Winner: Cooper Barkate, WR, Miami Hurricanes

Darian Mensah needed someone to step up for him with All-American receiver Malachi Toney out. Fittingly, it was his former Duke Blue Devils teammate Cooper Barkate. Miami kept Barkate away from Leonard Moore and the plan worked to perfection. Barkate went off in his second half with a pair of scores, all the while delivering his first 100-yard performance of 2026 with season-highs in receptions (10) and receiving yards (118). With Toney poised to miss more time, it’s good to see that Miami has a No. 1 receiver at the ready who has great rapport with Mensah.

Loser: Notre Dame Letting Spencer Porath Attempt 53-Yard FIeld Goal

Spencer Porath has made a 53-yard field goal in his collegiate career, and he has converted on 75 percent of his field-goal attempts from 50-plus yards. However, only 10.3 percent of his career attempts have come from that distance. Notre Dame had the choice of punting the football away, likely requiring the Hurricanes offense to travel 85-plus yards for a game-tying touchdown, or gambling on a field goal and either giving Miami possession at the 35-yard line or making it a 10-point game. The Fighting Irish took the riskier option, and Porath’s attempt never came close. Fortunately for Notre Dame, free safety Luke Talich reached in and knocked the football out of Elija Lofton’s hands in the end zone on fourth down to get the stop instead of giving up the potential game-tying score.

Winner: Micah Gilbert, WR, Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Both of Notre Dame’s receivers came up big tonight. Faison made his presence felt early, but it was Micah Gilbert who helped the Fighting Irish jump out to a three-touchdown lead. Coming into the night with just three touchdowns, the junior’s two trips to the end zone on practically consecutive possessions got the atmosphere rocking even louder on Saturday night at Notre Dame Stadium. He finished with team-highs in receptions (nine) and receiving yards (98). Considering the stakes of this matchup, we’d say this is even better than his 170-yard performance against Michigan State.