Pitt (2-11 ACC, 3-4 overall), gave all it had against No. 5 Notre Dame (7-0) but they were unable to pull off the upset bid. Notre Dame took their first lead of the game on what ended up being game-winning score when quarterback Ian Book hit wide receiver Miles Boykin for a 35-yard touchdown and a 19-14 lead with 5:43 left in the game.

FIRST QUARTER

Pitt totally owned the first quarter of this game. After forcing Notre Dame to punt, the Panthers took over for their second possession. The Panthers were then bailed out of a punting situation after a Notre Dame lineman jumped offsides, giving them a first down. Several plays later, Qadree Ollison ran it in from the 9-yard line to give Pitt a 7-0 lead. Pitt's defense stepped up on Notre Dame's next possession as Panther defensive back Jason Pinnock intercepted an Ian Book pass to send the first quarter.

SECOND QUARTER

Notre Dame's offense would still have trouble getting into any type of rhythm as Pitt's pass defense forced Book into settling for short throws. The Panthers were also able to get good pressure on Cook and made him really uncomfortable in the pocket. Notre Dame turned great starting field position (Pitt's 48-yard line) and a personal foul by Pitt defensive line Dwayne Hendrix into their first points of the game. Notre Dame kicker Justin Yoon connected on a 22-yard field goal to pull the Fighting Irish within 7-3 of the Panthers with 4:34 left in the second quarter.

Notre Dame's best chance to score a touchdown came on the last drive of the first half. After driving down to the Pitt 9-yard line to get a first and goal situation, Notre Dame's Book would be sacked two times (once by Rashad Weaver and once by Dennis Briggs). The Fighting Irish had to settle for a Justin Yoon 41-yard field goal, his second of the game, to make the score 7-6 in favor of Pitt headed into halftime.

THIRD QUARTER

Pitt's Maurice Ffrench would take the second-half kickoff 99-yards to give the Panthers a 14-6 lead. Notre Dame would drive the football deep into Pitt's territory before the Panthers would force another Notre Dame turnover. This time, Pitt defensive back Jazzee Stocker would intercept Notre Dame's Book and end what was a promising Notre Dame drive up to that point.

Notre Dame finally got on the board on their second drive of the quarter with a 17-yard touchdown pass from Book to wide receiver Chase Claypool. Notre Dame failed to convert the 2-point attempt and still trailed Pitt 14-12 with 2:09 left in the third quarter.

FOURTH QUARTER

Pitt continued a drive that started in the third quarter and got deep into Notre Dame's territory. After calling a conservative play on 3rd and 13, Pitt kicker Alex Klessman missed his second kick of the day from 37 yards out. Notre Dame wouldn't get their first lead of the game until their fourth possession of the fourth quarter. The Fighting Irish capped off a five-play, 80-yard drive with a 35-yard touchdown pass from Book to Boykin to take a 19-14 lead with 5:03 left to play in the game.

Pitt had one more chance to win the game after stopping Notre Dame on a fourth-and-two deep in Pitt's territory with 2:36 left in the game. Notre Dame defensive lineman Ashan Kareem sacked Pickett for a 17-yard loss and basically killed any hopes of Pitt obtaining the game-winning score. Pitt's last-gasp attempt failed when Panthers wide receiver Tre Tipton caught a pass out-of-bounds on fourth down.

FINAL INDIVIDUAL STATS

Pittsburgh

Darrin Hall: nine carries for 62 yards

Qadree Ollison: 16 carries for 50 yards and one touchdown

Kenny Pickett: 19 out of 28 passes completed for 126 yards.

Rafael Araujo-Lopes: six catches for 32 yards

Aaron Mathews: four catches for 47 yards.

Damar Hamlin: nine total tackles (5 solo)

Notre Dame

Ian Book: 16 carries for 66 yards, 26 out of 32 passes completed for 264 yards and two touchdowns.

Chase Claypool: five catches for 61 yards and one touchdown.

Miles Boykin: four catches for 84 yards and one touchdown.

Khalid Kareem: four solo tackles and one sack.

Te'Von Coney: eight total tackles (four solo).

Tariq Bracey: seven total tackles (six sol0).

FINAL TEAM STATS