Notre Dame news: Fighting Irish's game vs. Wisconsin accomplishes neat viewership feat
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The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Wisconsin Badgers made impressive viewership history following their Week 1 clash on Sept. 6.
Notre Dame is gearing up for a big season, making a case for the College Football Playoffs. They stand out as one of the best teams in the country, having recently finished as national runners-up behind Ohio State in the 2024-25 national championship game.
The then-No. 4 Fighting Irish began their 2026 campaign with a duel against the Badgers. That matchup ended up breaking viewership records as many fans tuned in to the game, per NBC Sports.
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“The audience for the No. 4 Fighting Irish’s 41-13 victory peaked at 9.7 million viewers in the second quarter (9:15-9:30 p.m. ET) as Notre Dame led 13-10. Viewership for the full game (7:43-11:02 p.m. ET) ranks third among Notre Dame Football games on NBC since 2005’s “Bush Push” game vs. USC, trailing a pair of thrillers (10.6 million viewers for No. 6 Ohio State at No. 9 Notre Dame in 2023, and 10.4 million for No. 1 Clemson and No. 3 Notre Dame double OT matchup in 2020). Additionally, Wisconsin-Notre Dame was the most-watched college football game of the weekend across all networks (7.4 million linear viewers; 683,000 streaming),” the article read.
How Notre Dame played against Wisconsin
It was a great feat for Notre Dame to achieve, coasting to a 41-13 beatdown over the Wisconsin Badgers.
The game started out as competitive, seeing the Badgers trade blows with the Fighting Irish. Then the second half arrived as the hosts took full control, outscoring Wisconsin 28-3 in the last 30 minutes of regulation.
CJ Carr had a solid night leading the Notre Dame attack at quarterback. He completed 19 out of 29 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns.
Aneyas Williams was the standalone star in the run game for this matchup. He racked up 20 of the team’s 32 carries for 90 yards and two touchdowns. As for the receiving corps, Jordan Faison caught four passes for 81 yards. Meanwhile, Nolan James Jr. and James Flanigan were the players to catch touchdown passes from Carr.
The No. 3 Fighting Irish will look forward to their next matchup, remaining at home. They host the Rice Owls in Week 2 on Sept. 12 at 3;30 p.m. ET.
Related: Brian Kelly urges Michigan to change offense to fit Bryce Underwood after Week 1 nightmare
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