With a running game that showed some improvement and a steady performance from quarterback Jack Coan, the Irish captured their sixth win of the year, beating arch-rival Southern California last week in South Bend in a sold out ND stadium.

The victory came as 114 recruits watched from the stands in an outstanding atmosphere that was created by the long-time ND and USC rivalry.

The offensive line is starting to look like it is getting past the growing pains it was going through early in the season The fourth quarter extended drive to seal the 31-16 victory by the Irish in which all but one play was a run had to please head coach Brian Kelly and the offensive staff. One game, of course, does not make a season and the offensive line still has a way to go, but the signs are there that the group is coming together.

The defensive unit played another solid game, but still has some problems to solve. Tonight, the defense will be tested by North Carolina, who is ranked 18th in the nation in total offense. The Tar Heels’ passing attack against a revamped Irish secondary is a real cause for concern at ND goes for its seventh win of the season.

Coan finished 20 of 28 passing for 189 yards and a touchdown and one interception. He was sacked twice but was responsible for two rushing first downs on sneaks. Tyler Buchner came in but never played a full series. He completed two passes for 24 yards and ran three times for 11 yards and a TD. Coan and Buchner did have season best eight of 12 on third-down conversions. ND came into the game ranked 104th in the nation in third-down conversions.

ND also used a up-tempo offense which had USC on it heeds a lot of the time. However, in the final drive, when USC had cut the Irish lead to 24-16, ND slowed the pace down and got physical. After going up 31-16 the Irish defense took over and eventually ended any USC hopes with a sack and forced fumble. Isaiah Foskey sacked QB Kedon Slovis and defensive back TaRiq Bracy fell on the fumble to end all hopes for the Trojans. The sack was Foskey’s eighth of the season putting him on track to beak Justin Tuck’s 18-year-old, ND single-season record of 13.5. More game stats later.

Tonight, the Irish face a very good North Carolina Tar Heels team that enters at 4-3 and has one of the best offenses in the country.

UNC has wins over Georgia State, 59-17; Virginia, 59-39; Duke, 38-7 and Miami, 45-42. The three losses have been to Virginia Tech, 17-10; Georgia Tech, 45-22 and Florida State, 35-25. The Florida State loss was a big surprise. If you noticed all the UNC wins came when the Tar Heels scored 30 or more points.

This will be the 21st game between the two schools with ND leading the overall series, 18-2.

The game will be televised nationally by NBC-TV with a 7:40 p.m. kickoff.

IRISH NOTES ... Kyren Williams had a big day last week. He finished with 138 yards rushing on 25 carries and two TDs. He also caught six passes for 42 yards. Chris Tyree, who backs up Williams, missed the game due to injury but should be in the lineup tonight. Tight end Michael Mayer returned from an injury and caught five for 54 yards with Kevin Austin catching four for 39 yards. Lorenzo Styles Jr, caught three for 57, as he gets more looks in the lineup. Defensively DJ Brown, JD Bertrand and Bracy all had seven tackles followed by Clarence Lewis and Jack Kiser with six each, and Isaiah Foskey and Drew White with five apiece. ND had 170 yards rushing and 213 passing. ... As we mentioned earlier there were 114 recruits at the game for the 2022, 2023 and 2024 classes - with 29 of them still uncommitted ...All-American free safety Kyle Hamilton will not be in the lineup tonight due to a knee injury suffered in the first quarter last week. Senior safety DJ Brown and Bracy will be filling in for Hamilton at various times in the game. Kelly said he didn’t think Hamilton’s injury is a “long term thing” ... Three players missed the USC game with injuries. They were offensive lineman Zeke Correll, defensive end Alexander Ehrensberger and linebacker Adam Shibley. Correll is working his way back from a concussion. Ehrensberger is dealing with back spasms. Shibley, a walk-on graduate transfer from Michigan, was a special teams contributor in the first six games, but his season was cut short by surgery on his rotator cuff ... With the loss of Hamilton, ND will have issues to face tonight. The Tar Heels passing attack is ranked No. 29 in the FBS at 272.1 yards per game. Quarterback Sam Howell is the engine of North Carolina’s offense, though his offensive line has struggled to protect him. Howell’s number one target is Josh Downs, ranked among the top receivers in the country. Downs ranks third in the nation in receptions per game (8.6), fifth in receiving yards per game (119.6) and seventh in overall receiving yards (837). He also averages nearly 11 yards per punt return and leads the Tar Heels in all-purpose yards (951) ... The Tar Heels have allowed 3.86 sacks per game and are one of only four teams allowing more sacks per game than the Irish, who are at 3.71. Notre Dame sacked Howell six times last November in a 31-17 win at then-No. 19 North Carolina. The Irish limited Howell to 17-of-27 passing for 211 yards and one touchdown in that game during which Hamilton was ejected in the first half for a targeting penalty. Both Brown and Griffith contributed to the safety effort that day ... The Irish are just a seven plus point favorite tonight meaning the bookies still don’t have a lot of respect for them. In my preseason picks, I have Irish winning tonight. I will stay with that but caution that ND has to do a better job on pass defense and get pressure on the UNC quarterback to get the victory.