STANFORD, Calif. — No. 21 Stanford was the winner in two games Saturday. Stanford quarterback K. J. Costello threw four touchdown passes and running back…
STANFORD, Calif. — No. 21 Stanford was the winner in two games Saturday.
Stanford quarterback K. J. Costello threw four touchdown passes and running back Bryce Love rushed for 125 yards to lead the Cardinal to a 38-20 victory over No. 8 Notre Dame .
More important to the Cardinal (9-3) was the game 800-plus miles away in Seattle, where Washington beat Washington State, giving Stanford a berth in next Friday’s Pac-12 championship game against USC in nearby Santa Clara, Calif.
The Cardinal and Washington wound up tied for the Pac-12 North title with 7-2 records. But Stanford gets the nod for the title game based on its head-to-head victory over the Huskies. Washington State would have been the Pac-12 North representative in the conference championship game if it had beaten Washington.
The game at Stanford meant more to the Irish, who seemed to be in line for a berth in one of the four major bowls not included in the College Football Playoffs (Orange, Fiesta, Cotton, Peach).
Now, with a 9-3 record and mediocre performances in the final three games, that is in question.
Three Notre Dame turnovers, all in the fourth quarter, ruined the Fighting Irish’s chances against Stanford.
Irish quarterback Brandon Wimbush threw touchdown passes of 83 and 75 yards, but he also threw two interceptions. Notre Dame running back Josh Adams, who entered the game needing 100 yards to match the school’s single-season rushing mark, was limited to 49 yards on 20 carries.
Notre Dame took a 17-14 lead on the first play of the second half — a 75-yard touchdown pass from Wimbush to Equanimeous St. Brown, with St. Brown doing most of the work after the catch.
Stanford tied the score 17-17 on Jet Toner’s 24-yard field goal.
A 41-yard Chris Finke punt return put Justin Yoon in position to boot a 38-yard field goal that put the Irish back on top 20-17 late in the third quarter.
However, Costello’s 20-yard scoring pass to Kaden Smith early in the fourth quarter put the Cardinal ahead to stay at 24-20.
An interception by Stanford’s Curtis Robinson led to Costello’s 12-yard touchdown pass to Dalton Schultz, increasing the Cardinal’s lead to 31-20. A fumble by C. J. Sanders on the ensuing kickoff gave Stanford the ball back on the Irish 18, and Cameron Scarlett cashed that in with a 3-yard scoring run that made it 38-20.
Neither standout running back did much in the first half, which ended with the Cardinal leading 14-10.
Adams had 27 yards on 12 first-half carries, and Love had 31 yards on 10 attempts.
Notre Dame got on the board first with an 83-yard touchdown pass from Wimbush to Kevin Stepherson, with Stepherson getting 71 of those yards after the catch.
Stanford tied the score 7-7 on its ensuing possession. A pass interference penalty against Notre Dame came immediately before Costello’s 29-yard touchdown pass to Trenton Irwin with 43 seconds left in the opening quarter.
The Cardinal took a 14-7 lead on a six-play, 56-yard drive that ended with Costello’s 4-yard scoring pass to JJ Arcega-Whiteside.
Notre Dame’s first sustained drive of the game ended with a 38-yard field goal by Justin Yoon, reducing the Irish’s deficit to 14-10 with 2:36 left in the half.
NOTES: Notre Dame RB Josh Adams began the day with 1,337 rushing yards, 100 shy of the school record set by Vagas Ferguson in 1979.… Irish WR Equanimeous St. Brown, who was listed as questionable after suffering a concussion last week, was in the starting lineup.… Stanford LB Joey Alfieri left the game in the first quarter with an apparent right arm or shoulder injury.… Stanford RB Bryce Love entered the weekend with 1,723 rushing yards, and he led the nation in yards per game at 172.3.
