Notre Dame managed to hold on last Saturday for a mini-upset of favored Miami in South Bend. The 30-27 victory lifted the Irish to 3-5 on a season that began with high expectations.

Although the Irish let a 20-0 lead slip away thanks to the special teams playing like it was the first game of the season, they managed to win.There were some bright spots in victory:• The offensive line play improved. The Irish averaged 5.1 yards per carry, led by Josh Adams' 41-yard burst to tie the game in the fourth quarter. The line also protected quarterback DeShone Kizer. Miami, who lost its fourth game in a row after winning the first four, was ranked No. 1 in the nation in team tackles for loss at 10.1 per game. Against the Irish, the Hurricanes only had four. Miami was also the best sacking team in the country entering the game and had only one against ND.• The defense actually came up with a pass rush as ND had five sacks in the game. ND's defense allowed Miami a grand total of 306 yards, the second-fewest for the Hurricanes this season. ND also broke up eight of QB Brad Kaaya's passes, Kaaya came into the game ranked 27th nationally in pass efficiency.• Nose guard Jarron Jones had seven total tackles in the game, with six being behind the line of scrimmage.• Kizer and Jones appeared to inject new life in the Irish team with their determined play and field leadership.All that might not have been enough, however, if not for a play that Kizer made on Notre Dame's final drive of the game. Kizer, who completed 25 of 38 passes for 263 yards and two touchdowns, recovered a Durham Smythe fumble at the goal line to preserve the victory. Smythe caught the ball about the three-yard line and headed to the end zone. He stretched out the ball in an attempt to break the plane of the goal line, but had the ball knocked out of his hands. The ball was first touched by a Miami player, but Kizer raced to the ball and recovered it. A few plays later, Justin Yoon kicked the winning field goal.More on the game later.Today the Irish face a very good Navy team that enters with a 5-2 record. The Midshipmen have wins over Fordham, 52-15; Connecticut, 28-24; Tulane, 21-14; Houston, 46-40; and Memphis, 42-28. The two losses were to Air Force, 28-14; and last week to USF, 52-45.Quarterback Will Worth leads the option attack of the Middies. He has carried the ball 161 times for 726 yards and 13 touchdowns. Backing him up is Chris High with 65 carries for 456 yards and five scores. Worth has completed 52 of 87 passes with three interceptions and six TDs. The top receiver is Jamis Tillman with 362 yards on 23 catches.ND leads the series, 76-12-1. ND won last year, 41-24 and has won five in a row in the series.The game will be televised nationally by CBS-TV with a 11:40 a.m. kickoff from Jacksonville, Florida.IRISH NOTES ... No doubt Jarron Jones had the game of his life last week. Kelly called him a "beast." Some other stats for the game: Adams had 94 total yards on 12 carries and score and Kizer added 36 yards on eight carries. Pass receiving had Equanimeous St. Brown with six catches for 72 yards and a score; Torri Hunter Jr., with 57 yards on five receptions and a score; and Kevin Stepherson with two catches for 78 yards. Defensively, in addition to Jones' play, Drue Tranquill and Nyles Morgan each had nine solo tackles. ND finished with 148 net rushing yards to 18 for Miami. Passing yardage had ND with a total of 263 and Miami with 288 ... Kicker Justin Yoon made three field goals in the game despite battling tendinitis. That was why Kelly had walk-on John Chereson handling the kickoffs .... ND's 12 tackles for loss last week were the most in a game for the Irish since the Syracuse game in 2005 ....Jones' six tackles for loss is the most by a FBS player this season and the most for an Irish player since at least 1997 .... Scouts for three bowls were at the game - the Pinstripe, Peach and Russel Athletic Bowls. ND must finish at least at 6-6 or better to be bowl-eligible ... Kelly is 42-6 at ND and 180-27-1 in his career when his teams outrush their opponents .... ND won all three games when they've won the rushing battle this season and lost all five when they haven't ... ND has lost five games by eight points or less this season. The eight point loss was to Michigan State ... Two of three Irish players who left last week's game with concussion symptoms have been cleared to play today. Greer Martini, a junior linebacker, and starting right guard Colin McGovern will play while the third, Daniel Cage, a nose guard, was not cleared to play. Martini is a key for the Irish, as he is the best defensive player against the triple-option attack run by Navy ... Navy announced its 2020 home game against the Irish will be played in MetLife stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The 2018 game is set for San Diego .... Today's game will be a homecoming for receiver Kevin Stepherson. He played his high school ball at First Coast High in Jacksonville....ND went to Jacksonville early this week which will give Kelly and his staff a chance to see and be seen on the recruiting trail at high school games in the talent-rich Jacksonville area .... Since ND's 35-17 loss to Navy in 2010, ND has won nine successive games against triple-option teams .... Today will be ND's 16th time playing in a NFL active stadium under Kelly. The Irish are 11-4 in such games with seven wins in the last eight contests. The site today is home of the Jacksonville Jaguars .... In my preseason picks I went with the Irish today against Navy. However, each game has to be re-evaluated this season for obvious reasons. ND is favored by six-plus points. Because the defense, although improving, still has a way to go and the offense is not back to normal, my pick today is Navy.