IRISH ROLL, badgers show promise: notre dame vs wisconsin game recap

A Sunday night game between two historic programs at a football stadium enriched with history, Lambeau Field, is all one could possibly ask for to start the year. The Fighting Irish certainly played by their 2026 mantra, Leave No Doubt, in the second half, outscoring Wisconsin 28-3. While the 41-13 final score looks great on paper for Marcus Freeman and his squad, there was a lot to learn from this performance in a game that was a dogfight in the first half. On the other sideline, as hard as it is to say after a 28-point defeat, Luke Fickell should be impressed by what he saw from his newly improved Wisconsin team.

The first two drives of the game consisted of 2 three-and-outs from both teams. However, the Notre Dame punt was blocked by Liam Danitz, who was left unblocked, a very uncharacteristic special teams lapse from the Fighting Irish. This marks the first time in the Freeman Era that a Notre Dame punt was blocked, the last blocked punt occurring in October of 2016 vs North Carolina State, during a game that was played in the middle of a literal hurricane. 

The blocked punt set up the Badgers in great field position, and a nine-play, 28 yard drive gave Wisconsin an early 3-0 lead. The Irish responded with a field goal of their own, a 52-yarder from Spencer Porath, which marked the first 50+ yard field goal made by a Notre Dame kicker since Spencer Shrader in 2023, and the first made field goal since game six of last season. 

A muffed kickoff by the Badgers gave Notre Dame possession in the red zone, a play that was ultimately reviewed and confirmed, despite video evidence looking like Notre Dame Linebacker Kahunu Kia did not have full possession of the football before his foot hit the sideline. Notre Dame ultimately scored on this possession on a 3-yard touchdown pass from CJ Carr to Tight End James Flanigan. 

Another three-and-out from the Badgers resulted in another punt, a 70-yard punt that trickled out of bounds right before the pylon. The Irish were forced to play conservatively to avoid a safety and punted the ball right back to the Badgers, setting them up at the Notre Dame 48 yard line. On the second play of the drive, Wide Receiver Malachi Coleman made a nice double move on transfer Cornerback Jayden Sanders, who had two pass deflections on the previous drive, to tie the game with a 28-yard touchdown pass from Badgers Quarterback Colton Joseph. 

Notre Dame responded with another field goal, this time a 26-yarder, after a great drive from CJ Carr, who completed three passes of 10+ yards during this possession. The rest of the half consisted of three more punts, and the Badgers would head into the locker room with only a 3-point deficit in a game where they were a 21-point underdog. 

Notre Dame would receive to start the second half, where they would finally establish the run in the way Marcus Freeman wants to all year, with authority. Two first-down passes to Running Backs Aneyes Williams and Nolan James would ultimately set up a 3-yard touchdown run from Williams. Just four plays into Wisconsin’s drive, Cornerback transfer from Colorado, DJ McKinney, would intercept Colton Joseph and return it all the way to give the Irish a 27-10 lead. Mckinney's pick-six was the dagger for the Badgers.

From there, Coach Freeman and his squad certainly left no doubt. Wisconsin responded with a field goal after a 14-play drive, but Notre Dame would score two touchdowns on their final two drives of the game. The first was another touchdown from Aneyes Williams, who finished the game with 90 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns off of 20 carries. The second a 28-yard receiving touchdown for Nolan James from CJ Carr. Carr would finish his season debut with 239 yards and 2 touchdowns on 19/29 passing. 

Hope in Madison?: For the Badgers, who had an unfortunate 2025 season, finishing 4-8, this was a moral victory. The Badgers were tough on both lines of scrimmage and quarterback transfer from Old Dominion, Colton Joseph, showed that he can be an elite quarterback down the road for Wisconsin. Joseph finished the game with 217 yards passing and a touchdown vs arguably the greatest secondary in the entire sport. Malachi Coleman showed that he can be an alpha receiver for the Badgers, totaling 76 yards and a touchdown. Star Linebacker Mason Posa led Wisconsin with 15 tackles, and Ohio State transfer Bryce West had two pass deflections. Wisconsin was losing just 13-10 at half and has shown that they have built on a year ago with great performances from Coleman, Posa, West, and the rest of the groups young core. Despite the miserable 4-8 record last season, the Badgers suffered from the injury bug and still managed to compete in big games, even beating Washington and Illinois. Wisconsin only trailed the National Champion Indiana Hoosiers 10-7 at halftime and lost to the No.5 ranked Oregon Ducks 21-7. Looking ahead, Luke Fickell’s team has a favorable Big Ten schedule, in which they do not play Indiana, Michigan, Ohio State or Oregon. Their toughest games are on the road vs Penn State and Iowa, along with a home game vs USC. An eight win season is certainly still achievable for Luke Fickell, who is viewed by many to be on the hot seat. 

As for Notre Dame, the second half certainly reassured many Fighting Irish fans. Notre Dame had a shaky start to the game with establishing the run, which was a worry heading into the season after losing two first round running backs in Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price. However, the run game picked up the slack in the second half, potentially thanks to Offensive Lineman Sullivan Absher replacing Styles Prescod at the break.

Wide Receiver Worries: The wide receiver room continues to be a worry for Notre Dame, as a receiver did not score a touchdown in Sunday’s game, and only one receiver achieved over 34 yards receiving (Jordan Faison; 4 receptions, 81 yards). Overall, CJ Carr had a relatively mistake-free game, outside of two near fumbles, where his arm was hit at release point after poor blocking from Offensive Tackles Will Black and Guerby Lambert. The offensive line as a whole didn’t look typical for the Irish, most likely due to the fact that four of the five starters were either new starters or were playing a different position from last year. Elite Offensive Lineman Anthonie Knapp moved from left tackle to left guard and Guerby Lambert moved from right guard to right tackle. Offensively, the concern for Notre Dame would be if they have enough talent in the wide receiver room and whether CJ Carr has enough time in the pocket to truly use Carr’s talents to their advantage in the deep ball game. Quincy Porter, the coveted receiver transfer from Ohio State, has not been practicing and was out for this game due to injury.

On the defensive side of the ball, Cornerback Leonard Moore showed why he is unanimously picked as the best cornerback in the nation, and DJ McKinney showed that he can be elite on the other side of Moore. Outside of one play, Michigan CB transfer Jayden Sanders also had a great game, and displayed his versatility, being able to play cornerback in the slot and on the outside. Star Safety Tae Johnson went down in the first half, and was shown on the sidelines in a walking boot. There is no official word on his status. 2-time Captain Linebacker Drayk Bowen led the Irish with nine tackles and 2-time Captain Safety Adon Schuler had seven of his own. The defensive line impressed with sacks coming from Edge Rusher Boubacar Traore and transfer Defensive Tackle Francis Brewu. Edge Rusher Bryce Young, a standout from offseason camp, had one tackle for a loss and caused the DJ McKinney pick-six, which gave the Irish a comfortable lead. The second half was impressive for Marcus Freeman’s team, who looked to bring the Irish their first National Championship since 1988. In order for this to happen, they need to get and remain healthy. Defensive Tackle Jason Onye was also ruled out during Sunday’s game, and star Linebacker Kyngston Villamu-Asa was ruled out for the game from an ACL tear from last year’s season finale. 

The Irish look to build on their momentum against Rice on Saturday while the Badgers look to get their season back on track against Western Illinois.