Notre Dame 52-0 Rice (Sep 12, 2026) Final Score

Team pages: Rice · Notre Dame

Rice1-10

No. 3 Notre Dame2-052Final

Sat, Sep 12 · Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame, Ind. · Crowd 77,622

No. 3 Notre Dame routed Rice 52-0.

We had Notre Dame favored. It won.

Next: Rice lost to Western Michigan 28-21, Sat Sep 19

Next: Notre Dame beat Michigan State 27-10, Sat Sep 19

Top comment in the game thread

Adon is a bad, bad man

Q1 14:46 · r/CFB game thread · Sat, Sep 12

How it swung

Before kickoff, our ratings gave Notre Dame a 99% chance, and the closing betting line (Notre Dame was a 44.5-point favorite) put it above 99%.

Notre Dame led by 21 after the first quarter and by 42 at the half.

Fumble return TD

Notre Dame · Q1 14:46

FinalNotre Dame 52-0 RiceNotre Dame wonMove across the chart, or tap a numbered swing, to see any play.

No single play moved the chance by 20 points.

What fans said, play by play

The line in bold above each quote is written by our model from the thread’s comments and the play-by-play.

Q1 14:46Traore returns fumble for touchdown as fans praise Adon's hitQuoted at the top of the page.
Q1 10:30Carr throws deep touchdown to Faison, making it 14-0 as fans declare Rice cookedLove me a Faison tuddier/CFB game thread
Q1 1:38Fans mock Rice's triple option defense and compare them to NavyAlways glad to have Navy around.r/CFB game threadThe way ND’s defense always seem to dominate these triple options so well since Freeman has been coachr/CFB game thread
Q2 5:55Notre Dame fans criticize Carr's hospital pass and Williams' run before puntCarr has 4 incompletions and they were all extremely catchabler/CFB game thread

Notre Dame’s chance to win after every play.

How to read this chart

Starts from the pregame line (Notre Dame -44.5), at 100% for Notre Dame (the play-by-play feed's kickoff number, moved to match the line; our model's and the betting line's own numbers are in “The betting line, and the fans”). Dots are the biggest swings; ticks under the chart are scores. Outlined diamonds mark rare plays. Under the scores, r/CFB comments per minute from fans with a Notre Dame or Rice flair (626 and 32); both sides share one scale, regulation only. A gold diamond marks a play fans were reacting to.

Every drive

Notre Dame scored on 7 of its 10 drives; Rice on 0 of its 11.

Notre Dame’s drives are teal, Rice’s amber. A line runs from where a drive started to where it ended; a filled dot means it scored.

“Man this string of made extra points is refreshing”

A Notre Dame fan

When fans got loud

Busy

Fans had the most to say in the opening quarter.

Jump to the loudest stretch

The jump was busy; the crowd was steady.

What it cost

Notre Dame’s chance to make the playoff fell from 72% to 69%.

Make the playoff

Rice · lost0% → 0%

Notre Dame · won72% → ▼69%

Win the title

Rice · lost0% → 0%

Notre Dame · won13% → ▼11%

Before the game (September 11, 2026) → after this result, in our model.

Box score

Notre Dame 52, Rice 0

Notre Dame covered −44.5 by 7.5. The total, 52, stayed under 54.5.

Team totals	Rice	Notre Dame
Total yards	128	478
Passing	8 of 12, 64 yds	25 of 33, 360 yds
Rushing	34 for 64 yds	32 for 118 yds
First downs	7	24
Third down	2 of 12	7 of 12
Fourth down	2 of 2	1 of 2
Turnovers	4	0
Penalties	4 for 37 yds	2 for 20 yds
Time of possession	27:42	32:18

Rice leaders

Passing Jacurri Brown 8 of 12, 64 yds
Rushing Jacurri Brown 16 for 32 yds; Tyvonn Byars 7 for 24 yds
Receiving Barry Jackson Jr. 1 for 30 yds; Chris Bruce 1 for 19 yds

Notre Dame leaders

Passing C.J. Carr 16 of 20, 253 yds, 4 TD
Rushing Jonaz Walton 8 for 48 yds; Nolan James Jr. 6 for 29 yds, 2 TD
Receiving Jerome Bettis Jr. 2 for 61 yds; Jordan Faison 4 for 54 yds, 2 TD

No rain and calm

85° at kickoff · no rain recorded · wind 8 mph from the west-southwest, mostly across the field, gusts to 20

Warmer than 9 in 10 of the 65 other games played at Notre Dame Stadium since 2016 (airport temperature during the game window). The usual here around this date is 71°, with about 7 in 10 games between 59° and 82°.

September game-day temperatures at Notre Dame Stadium

Drag along the chart, or step through the game.

First quarter, 14:55 left3:37 p.m.

Rice 0, Notre Dame 0 · Notre Dame 100% to win

no rain · wind 9 mph from the southwest, mostly at an angle to the field, gusts to 16 · 85°

Brown incomplete to Matthews

Where this weather comes from

Measured at South Bend airport, 4.3 miles away. Rain is NOAA's radar-and-gauge estimate at the stadium and wind is an airport reading; neither is measured on the field. Game times come from the play-by-play, good to a minute or two. Source: National Weather Service, through the Iowa Environmental Mesonet; rain radar from NOAA MRMS, through Iowa State University. Field direction from OpenStreetMap contributors.

Before kickoff

Recent games, the series and the betting line below are as they stood going in; the season profile is the season so far.

Recent games

Last three games · 2025 season

Rice · 5-8

Rated 181st in our preseason ratings, 178th now.

Three straight losses, each by 20 or more.

L 10-41 @ Texas State #41 of 667

lost by 31 as a 19.5-point underdog

L 3-52 @ South FloridaTop 25 #19 of 667

lost by 49 as a 28.5-point underdog

L 24-56 vs North TexasTop 25 #33 of 667

lost by 32 as an 18.5-point underdog

W 24-17 vs UAB #147 of 667

won by 7 as a 1.5-point favorite

L 14-38 vs MemphisTop 25 #36 of 667

lost by 24 as a 13.5-point underdog

W 37-34 vs UConn #76 of 667

won by 3 as a 9.5-point underdog

L 13-61 @ UTSA #55 of 667

lost by 48 as a 9.5-point underdog

L 21-27 vs Florida Atlantic #97 of 667

lost by 6 as a 4.5-point favorite

L 13-21 @ NavyTop 25 #80 of 667

lost by 8 as a 14.5-point underdog

W 28-17 @ Charlotte #176 of 667

won by 11 as a 1.5-point favorite

W 38-17 vs Prairie View A&M #181 of 667

won by 21 as a 29.5-point favorite

L 9-35 vs HoustonTop 25 #63 of 667

lost by 26 as a 13.5-point underdog

W 14-12 @ Louisiana #92 of 667

won by 2 as a 9.5-point underdog

Last three games · 2025 season

Notre Dame · 10-2

Rated 1st in our preseason ratings, 1st now.

Three straight wins, one over ranked or top-40 competition.

W 49-20 @ Stanford #100 of 667

won by 29 as a 33.5-point favorite

W 70-7 vs Syracuse #136 of 667

won by 63 as a 36.5-point favorite

W 37-15 @ PittsburghTop 25 #41 of 667

won by 22 as a 12.5-point favorite

W 49-10 vs NavyTop 25 #103 of 667

won by 39 as a 30.5-point favorite

W 25-10 @ Boston College #100 of 667

won by 15 as a 30.5-point favorite

W 34-24 vs USCTop 25 #12 of 667

won by 10 as a 10.5-point favorite

W 36-7 vs NC State #45 of 667

won by 29 as a 24.5-point favorite

W 28-7 vs Boise StateTop 25 #51 of 667

won by 21 as a 21.5-point favorite

W 56-13 @ Arkansas #22 of 667

won by 43 as a 5.5-point favorite

W 56-30 vs Purdue #88 of 667

won by 26 as a 24.5-point favorite

L 40-41 vs Texas A&MTop 25 #17 of 667

lost by 1 as a 7.5-point favorite

L 24-27 @ MiamiTop 25 #11 of 667

lost by 3 as a 2.5-point favorite

Week by week

Notre Dame

Wk 1Wvs Wisconsin41-13

Rice

Wk 1Wvs Houston Christian31-3

Matchups

Biggest mismatch: Rice’s EPA/play against Notre Dame, 82 points

Each row ranks the two sides among all teams. The longer the line, the bigger the mismatch.

Rice’s EPA/play against Notre Dame’s defense
Rice offense, 9th percentile · Notre Dame defense, 91st
Rice’s passing EPA against Notre Dame’s defense
Rice offense, 1st percentile · Notre Dame defense, 61st
Rice’s explosive plays against Notre Dame’s defense
Rice offense, 27th percentile · Notre Dame defense, 47th

Season profile, all the rows

Season profile

RiceNotre Dame

EPA/play, offense

EPA/play, defense

Success rate, offense

Success rate, defense

Explosive-play rate, offense

Explosive-play rate, defense

Rush EPA, offense

Rush EPA, defense

Pass EPA, offense

Pass EPA, defense

The series

Notre Dame leads the series 5-0

5 meetings since 1915 · Notre Dame has won the last 5

2014Notre Dame 48-17
1988Notre Dame 54-11
1974Notre Dame 10-3
1973Notre Dame 28-0
1915Notre Dame 55-2

Line, fans and home field

The betting line, and the fans

Notre Dame fans are feeling it more than most fanbases this week (69th among FBS fanbases), in line with the numbers.

Notre Dame favored by 44.5 · Total 54.5

How games like this usually go

Notre Dame by 44.5, and it went to form

Half of games8 in 10 gamesThis game

The band is where a favorite’s chance ran in the 411 games since 2025 with a favorite of 21.5 points or more.

The market

The total rose 2 points.

Weather at kickoff

Hot and dry. Feels like 86° at kickoff.

Rice at Notre Dame · Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026 · Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame

86°feels like at kickoff
Dryno rain at kickoff
71weather score, Rough
Tiedfor the roughest of the day's 7 kickoff times

At kickoff, Sept. 12, 2026.

Weather score: 0 to 100, higher is better, for the first 3 hours and 20 minutes of the game. Ideal is 100, Comfortable 90 to 99, Mixed 75 to 89, Rough 50 to 74, Harsh under 50.

Later kickoff times scored higher that Saturday

Games in this time zone used 7 kickoff times that day, local time (kickoffs within 30 minutes of each other count as one). This game, ringed, was tied for the roughest of the day's seven kickoff times. At Notre Dame Stadium that day, a 7:30 pm kickoff would have scored 100, against 71 at 3:30 pm.

The roughest kickoff time is the lowest of the day's times. It can still be Mixed or Comfortable.

noon: 74, Rough
1 pm: 71, Rough
2 pm: 70, Rough
3:30 pm: 71, Rough (this game)
6 pm: 90, Comfortable
7 pm: 98, Comfortable
7:30 pm: 100, Ideal

Weather score at each kickoff time.

Tap a dot to read that kickoff time.

At kickoff, Sept. 12, 2026. Wind is not drawn here; gusts are in each score.

Home field

Notre Dame is worth +3.7 points (±3.8) more at home than on the road since 2018 — middle of FBS, 41st percentile.

89% at home, 78% on the road against FBS opponents (48-6 home, 29-8 away).

Our model gives every stadium the same flat 2.3-point home edge (why); the books use about 3. Against the closing line this stadium reads -2.1 at home vs. away over 92 games — inside the ±6.5 noise, so the flat number is the honest one here.

The visitors travel about 974 miles to get here.

No. 3 Notre Dame routs Rice 52-0