Is undefeated BYU ready to put its perfect season, lofty ranking on the line against No. 2 Notre Dame?

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Hours after No. 8 BYU improved to 5-0 with a workmanlike 24-10 win over Iowa State on Friday night, football coach Kalani Sitake celebrated his 51st birthday on Saturday by eating a lot, in his own words, and watching his next opponent bury another overmatched foe.

What Sitake saw was a Notre Dame team that is absolutely embarrassing opponents, and ruined a lot of parties.

The Irish crushed Stanford 58-7 and look almost unbeatable heading into this Saturday’s 5:30 p.m. showdown of top 10 teams at LaVell Edwards Stadium (5:30 p.m., ABC). It will be the first top-10 matchup stadium history.

The Irish (6-0) return to Provo for the first time since 2004 — BYU won that game 20-17 — having won 16 straight games, all by double-digits.

That’s the longest active double-digit win streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision, the longest in program history, and the third-longest in college football history.

Notre Dame, which moved up to No. 2 in the AP Top 25 poll released Sunday, is expected to keep that streak intact against the Cougars, having been installed as 10.5-point favorites in Saturday’s game, a game many at BYU are calling the most important regular-season game in school history.

After calling BYU’s two-touchdown win over the mediocre Cyclones (3-3) somewhat unsatisfying because of some fourth-down failures and untimely penalties, Sitake said it is exciting to finally be able to turn all the team’s attention to Notre Dame.

“We got a big game coming up next week, and obviously, it is good to have it here in Provo,” Sitake said. “I’m looking forward to that game, but we’ll learn from this, and then if we can keep getting better and keep progressing, I’ll be really excited about what we can accomplish next week, and be ready for the game by the time Notre Dame comes into town.”

Notre Dame appears ready now. The Irish have defeated their six opponents by an average score of 44-11. All six of those opponents were unranked at the time of those games.

After putting up nearly 600 yards on Stanford, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman called his players “ultimate competitors,” and said they want to play the best in the country, putting BYU in that category.

“Next week they will get the opportunity to play a top-10 team, and they will be ready. But my job is to remind them to enjoy the fruits of (their) labor,” he said. “If you don’t enjoy this and you’re just looking to the next one, it’s miserable, miserable.”

With a fairly easy first-half schedule, Notre Dame was expected to be undefeated heading into BYU week. The Cougars were not, in some circles.

ESPN’s FPI gave BYU a 40% chance of being undefeated prior to Oct. 17, while giving the Irish a 75% chance.

“I’m excited. I’m ready for it. I think our guys are ready for it. We knew going into the season that we had some good talent. I want to show it off a little bit. Some of the talent is young, some of it needs to develop really quickly, even in the next few days, before we get to next week’s game,” Sitake said.

“I think when the lights are on and it’s time to shine, that’s where we’re going to see a lot of the game-breakers and I hope we got a lot of them in blue next week. It is going to be a lot of fun to see them work through it and prep for this week.”

Notre Dame enters the showdown as the healthier team. Cornerback Leonard Moore was questionable due to a concussion suffered late in the North Carolina game and did not play against Stanford.

His status will be worth keeping an eye on this week, as he’s one of Notre Dame’s best players.

BYU will be without its best player, reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year LJ Martin. The running back’s right foot is in a cast and he watched Friday’s game from the sidelines on a knee/foot scooter. He’s out for at least a month, according to ESPN.

The Cougars could get starting safety Raider Damuni back — the senior practiced most of last week — while starting nickel and standout punt returner Cannon DeVries was listed as doubtful last week and did not play Friday. DeVries has also been seen in a protective boot.

Having said last spring that Notre Dame was the opponent he was most looking forward to playing in 2026, BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier, a Catholic, said Friday night after throwing for 329 yards and running for 109 yards that it is finally time to turn his attention to the Irish.

“Yeah, I mean, that’s why you come to BYU, to play big-time ball,” he said. “Just keep the same process and just go out on Saturday and have some fun with the boys.”

In the last meeting, Notre Dame dumped BYU 28-20 in Las Vegas in 2022 to take a 7-2 lead in the series. BYU center Bruce Mitchell played in that game as a defensive lineman, recording one tackle at Allegiant Stadium.

The only other player on BYU’s roster who has faced Notre Dame is tight end Walker Lyons, a transfer from USC. Notre Dame beat USC 49-35 in 2024 in Los Angeles and 34-24 last year in South Bend.

He caught one pass for 25 yards last year and one pass for 11 yards in 2024.

“Yeah, I’ve played them twice. They’re a good team. They’re going to be prepared for us. But I feel ready with the group that we got, and I know that we can go play with anyone if we play to the abilities that we have,” Lyons said Friday after catching five passes for 61 yards against Iowa State.

“So I think we’re all really excited for this week. I think we’re all gonna have an extra little focus to us. But at the same time, it’s just another game on the schedule.”

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