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Notre Dame Football: 3 takeaways from massive win over No. 18 Wisconsin

By Connor Muldowney

Sep 25, 2021; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr. (right) celebrates his touchdown with wide receiver Braden Lenzy (0) and tight end George Takacs (85) during the first half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 25, 2021; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr. (right) celebrates his touchdown with wide receiver Braden Lenzy (0) and tight end George Takacs (85) during the first half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 1, 2021; Notre Dame, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Drew Pyne (10) looks to throw in the first half of the Blue-Gold Game at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports
May 1, 2021; Notre Dame, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Drew Pyne (10) looks to throw in the first half of the Blue-Gold Game at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Drew Pyne has some serious guts

When Jack Coan left the game with an apparent leg injury in the third quarter in a tie game, Notre Dame fans were quick to panic. Tyler Buchner, the freshman phenom backup, was out with a hamstring injury and that left third-string quarterback Drew Pyne as the go-to guy in a crucial situation in the biggest game of the year.

Pyne was ice-cold, coming off the bench for his first action of the season, but didn’t shy away from the pressure and made some solid throws to gain some confidence.

I expected Brian Kelly to stick with the run game, but he trusted his third-string quarterback and it paid off. He led the Irish down the field on a touchdown drive after a Wisconsin fumble in the fourth quarter, hitting Kevin Austin with a beautiful strike across the middle of the field. He had some good throws on that drive to Austin and Michael Mayer which set up the score.

It’s not easy to come off the bench in a knotted-up ranked battle in the second half and do enough to lead your team to a win, but Pyne did just that.

He finished the day with 81 yards and a touchdown on 6-of-8 completions. He has some serious guts.

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