Hartman, No. 13 Notre Dame overwhelm Navy in college football opener from Dublin (2024)

After an uninspiring 0-2 start to the 2022 season, this year's Notre Dame squad left the 30,000 Irish fans traveling to Dublin far more assured after a 42-3 drubbing of Navy on Saturday in the first game of the college football season.

The Irish navigated a bit of early trouble, as running back Audric Estime slipped through tackles to ensure a pair of third-and-long conversions on the opening drive. Estime would score the game's opening touchdown from a yard out and nearly eclipse the century mark on the ground.

Jadarian Price followed a gaping hole to surge into the end zone, doubling Notre Dame's advantage late in the first quarter, from where coach Marcus Freeman dropped the reins on quarterback Sam Hartman. The Wake Forest transfer arrived in South Bend this offseason as one of the most coveted gunslingers in the country, and early questions about his adjustment to the pro system were assuaged by a dominant performance — the ACC's all-time passing touchdown leader threw for over 250 yards and four touchdowns and managed Notre Dame` to a punt-free performance.

Notre Dame's defense was equally dominant, holding the Midshipmen scoreless before a late-game, consolation field goal and preventing their opposition from crossing midfield in a stifling 25-minute stretch of game time.

Each team will tangle with FCS opposition next time out, as Notre Dame faces Tennessee State in Week 1 while Navy waits until Week 2 before playing Wagner.

A DUB IN DUBLIN#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/55C8moojAm

See Also

No. 21 Notre Dame shines on defense, dominates No. 10 USC 48-20College football rankings: ESPN reveals 2024 preseason pollNotre Dame vs. Duke final score, result: Irish, Sam Hartman rally back for last-minute victory over Blue Devils | Sporting NewsNotre Dame vs. USC score, takeaways: Irish defense dismantles Trojans, Caleb Williams in bounce-back win

— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) August 26, 2023

Another swift Notre Dame drive saw the Irish total 81 yards in just 1:45, all but two of which came courtesy of Sam Hartman. The ND quarterback misplaced just two passes the entire quarter and picked apart the Navy defense, ultimately finding receiver Jayden Thomas on a 15-yard dig route to go up 28-0 seconds before halftime.

The Notre Dame offense has been nearly flawless in Dublin, effectively mixing Hartman and its two-headed rushing attack to rack up 300 total yards and score a touchdown on each of its four drives.

WR Jayden Thomas 14-yard touchdown! #BeatNavy ☘️

(🎥: NBC) pic.twitter.com/ne1yvfA7v1

— Notre Dame Fighting Irish (@Insidetheirish) August 26, 2023

Notre Dame's freshman wide receiver Jaden Greathouse gained a bit of separation running up the seam before a perfectly lofted throw from Sam Hartman led the Texas native straight into the end zone.

The Irish are starting to pull away here in Dublin, as Greathouse's grab capped off an incisive four-play, 78-yard drive to give ND a 21-0 lead.

Sam Hartman ⏩ Jaden Greathouse!#NotreDame up BIG against Navy.

📺 @nbc and @peaco*ck pic.twitter.com/IXnF0pa9Zn

— Notre Dame on NBC (@NDonNBC) August 26, 2023

Norte Dame's hog mollies are gashing the vaunted Navy front seven, racking up nearly 100 rushing yards in just the first quarter. Audric Estime and Gi'Bran Payne have been a lethal duo so far in the Irish backfield, but it was Jadarian Price who took his first carry 19 yards nearly untouched into the end zone to double the ND advantage.

SEE YA! 💨

Jadarian Price gives #NotreDame a 14-0 lead!

📺 @nbc and @peaco*ck pic.twitter.com/YnEDSvcw0G

— Notre Dame on NBC (@NDonNBC) August 26, 2023

In one of the offseason's biggest transfer sagas, all-time ACC touchdown leader Sam Hartman opted to spend his final season of eligibility with the Fighting Irish. The former Wake Forest gunslinger, who totaled nearly 3,500 yards last year, will hope to rejuvenate a Notre Dame passing offense that finished 98th in the country with just 207 yards a contest.

The Fighting Irish failed to complete a touchdown pass through the first 119 minutes of action in 2022 and will hope Hartman's stewardship provides more immediate success in Dublin.

No guts

No glory#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/Fwwe89VDzh

— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) August 26, 2023

Under Armour worked a bit of Irish flare into the historically immalleable jerseys of Notre Dame and Navy, printing a distinct variation of the Gaelic knot along the shoulders of each kit. Fittingly, the Midshipmen sport a sailor's knot, a means for the seafaring Irish to remember their loved ones, while the ND jersey features a Dara, or oak tree, knot to symbolize inner strength.

The Notre Dame jersey also features a shamrock on the back collar and an Irish flag at the base of the helmet.

Take a look at the custom uniforms @ndfootball and @navyfb will be wearing in Dublin at the 2023 Aer Lingus College Football Classic!

They’re incredible. 🔥🏈

Images via: @uafootball #muchmorethanagame | #touchdownireland pic.twitter.com/XGTHkZMksL

— Aer Lingus College Football Classic (@cfbireland) August 6, 2023

• Who:No. 13Notre Damevs. Navy
• When:2:30p.m. ETSaturday, Aug. 26
• Where:Dublin, Ireland| Aviva Stadium
• How to watch:NBC/Peaco*ck

With a recent resurgence via the Aer Lingus College Football Classic, Ireland now trails only Japan as the sport's most frequent destination outside of North America. Dublin has hosted seven FBS/Division I-A games since Boston College bested Army in 1988, and the 35th anniversary coincides with a promising moment for football in the country — a 2024 matchup between Georgia Tech and Florida State ensures that Dublin will host college football in three consecutive seasons for the first time.

Notre Dame and Navy are the only teams to match up on multiple occasions in Ireland, with Notre Dame winning 54-27 in 1996 and 50-10 in 2012.

Here's a look at the history of college football in Ireland:

The winding story of college football has left the Irish and Midshipmen deeply familiar with one another, mashing their chrome-gold helmets together a total of 95 times since the teams first met in 1927. Notre Dame and Navy managed to play each subsequent year, creating the longest continuous rivalry in college football, before a COVID-shortened 2020 season broke the streak — the schools' rivalry even continued through the Second World War, with Notre Dame repaying a "debt of honor" for the Naval Academy's assistance during the conflict.

Navy's triple option has found relative recent success despite Notre Dame's dominant 79-13-1 all-time record, besting their storied opposition four times in the 15 years. The 2022 game offered an epic installment of the century-old rivalry, as a furious Midshipmen rally fell just short in Baltimore.

Check out the last 10 Notre Dame-Navy contests below: