FOOTBALL

Notre Dame football vs Virginia Tech live updates: scores and highlights from Saturday night

ND Insider

The 14th-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish traveled to Blacksburg, Va. Saturday night and survived a back-and-forth game with the Virginia Tech Hokies at Lane Stadium.

Jack Coan started at quarterback for the Irish but struggled. Tyler Buchner came in and rallied Notre Dame to a halftime lead. Then Buchner struggled with a pair of interceptions and Coan re-entered late in the fourth to lead the Irish to a 32-29 victory that was capped by a Jonathan Doerer 48-yard field goal.

The Irish (5-1) avoided their first back-to-back losses since 2016.

ND Insider beat writers @EHansenNDI, @TJamesNDI and @tnoieNDI covered the game and will have complete postgame coverage, along with South Bend Tribune photographer @TheRobFranklin.

Meanwhile, here's a transcript of how it all transpired.

► Instant observations: Notre Dame's latest flavors of the week at QB carry Irish to win

Notre Dame’s Jack Coan (17) looks to throw against Virginia Tech Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021, in Blacksburg, Va. Coan, started the game, was benched, then returned in the final minutes to lead the Irish to a 32-29 win over the Hokies.

► Scoring summary: No. 14 Notre Dame 32, Virginia Tech 29

Notre Dame’s Kevin Austin Jr. (4) makes a deep catch in front of Virginia Tech's Jermaine Waller (2) during the Notre Dame-Virginia Tech NCAA college football game on Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021, in Blacksburg, Va.

► Noie: Who is this Notre Dame team? We still don't know, but they're 5-1

Notre Dame’s Kyren Williams (23) celebrates his touchdown during Notre Dame’s 32-29 win over Virginia Tech in an NCAA college football game on Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021, in Blacksburg, Va.

11:08 p.m. FINAL: Notre Dame 32, Virginia Tech 29

FOURTH QUARTER

► Virginia Tech 29, Notre Dame 21

Score: Burmeister 19 run (Romo kick) at 3:55.

Drive: Eight plays, 56 yards, 3:43 elapsed following Nasir Peoples interception

Key plays: Virginia Tech converted three third downs, including a Blumrick 10-yard run on third-and-nine, a Burmeister to Turner pass for 14 yards on third-and-six and the Burmeister touchdown run.

► Notre Dame 29, Virginia Tech 29

Score: Davis 4 pass from Coan (Coan to Austin, two-point conversion) at 2:26.

Drive: Seven plays, 70 yards, 1:29 elapsed following Virginia Tech kickoff.

Key plays: Coan completed two big passes to keep the drive moving – to Davis for 38 yards and to Braden Lenzy for 11.

► Notre Dame 32, Virginia Tech 29

Score: Doerer 48 field goal at 0:22.

Drive: Seven plays, 45 yards, 1:39 elapsed following Virginia Tech punt.

Key plays: Coan again completed two big passes to keep another scoring drive moving – to Lenzy for 20 yards and to backup tight end George Takacs for 15.

11:05 p.m. — SCORE ALERT: Notre Dame 32, Virginia Tech 29

Jonathan Doerer with a 48-yard field goal to give Notre Dame the lead.

10:54 p.m. — Score alert: Notre Dame 29, Virginia Tech 29

10:47 p.m. — Jack Coan back in the game with 3:55 to play

Notre Dame’s Jack Coan (17) throws the ball during the Notre Dame-Virginia Tech NCAA college football game on Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021, in Blacksburg, Va.

10:42 p.m. — Score update: Virginia Tech 29, Notre Dame 21

10:32 p.m. — Buchner throws his second interception of the half

10:10 p.m. — Fourth quarter: Virginia Tech 22, Notre Dame 21

THIRD QUARTER

► Virginia Tech 16, Notre Dame 14

Score: Romo 26 field goal at 8:53.

Drive: Eleven plays, 61 yards, 6:01 elapsed following Notre Dame second half kickoff.

Key plays: Burmeister found Blackshear on third-and-seven for 25 yards. A Burmeister to Robinson touchdown pass was called back by two illegal men downfield.

► Notre Dame 21, Virginia Tech 16

Score: Williams 10 run (Doerer kick) at 4:27.

Drive: Four plays, 29 yards, 1:56 elapsed following TaRiq Bracy interception.

Key play: Buchner rushed for 11 yards on first down following Bracy interception. Williams added a five-yard run before Irish were in end zone two plays later.

► Virginia Tech 22, Notre Dame 21

Score: Jermaine Waller 26 yard interception return (Burmeister two-point conversion pass intercepted) at 0:50

10:03 p.m. — Score update: Virginia Tech 22, Notre Dame 21

9:51 p.m. — Score alert: Notre Dame 21, Virginia Tech 16

♦ Drive set up by a Tariq Bracy interception.

9:36 p.m. — Score update: Virginia Tech 16, Notre Dame 14

♦Virginia Tech goes 61 yards on 11 plays to open the second half.

9:27 p.m. — The second half is underway in Blacksburg

► More:Tyler Buchner replaces Notre Dame quarterback Jack Coan and flips first half momentum

Notre Dame’s Tyler Buchner (12) at quarterback during the Notre Dame-Virginia Tech NCAA college football game on Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021, in Blacksburg, Va.

SECOND QUARTER

► Virginia Tech 10, Notre Dame 0

Score: Parker 19 field goal at 10:35.

Drive: Fourteen plays, 59 yards, 6:17 elapsed time following Notre Dame punt.

Key plays: Burmeister scrambled for 10 yards on third-and-seven. Turner also took a jet sweep and scampered 11 yards on one carry, then picked up 15 on a second run.

► Virginia Tech 10, Notre Dame 7

Score: Tyler Buchner 3 run (Jonathan Doerer kick) at 6:51.

Drive: Seven plays, 75 yards, 3:44 elapsed time following Virginia Tech kickoff.

Key plays: Kyren Williams ran for 10 yards on the first play of the drive before Tyler Buchner, in for Jack Coan, added an eight-yard run on second down. Buchner then hit Kevin Austin for 46 yards and first-and-goal from the Hokie 4.

► Notre Dame 14, Virginia Tech 10

Score: Kyren Williams 8 pass from Buchner (Doerer kick) at :32.

Drive: Nine plays, 80 yards,:0:59 elapsed following Virginia Tech punt.

Key plays: Buchner hit Avery Davis on crossing route for 37 yards, then later ran 10 yards to give the Irish first and goal at the Virginia Tech 8. Notre Dame scored on the next play.

► Notre Dame 14, Virginia Tech 13

Score: Parker 52 field goal at 0:00.

Drive: Five plays, 46 yards, 0:24 elapsed following Notre Dame kickoff.

Key plays: Two passes in 15 seconds from Burmeister to Tayvion Robinson pulled Virginia Tech into field goal position. Burmeister and Robinson connected for 23 yards on their own 29, then again for 13 yards with three second remaining.

9:06 p.m. — Halftime: Notre Dame 14, Virginia Tech 13

♦ John Parker Romo nails a 52-yard field goal as the half expires.

♦ Tyler Buchner comes in at quarterback in the second quarter and promptly leads two touchdown drives to bring Notre Dame from a 10-0 deficit to a 14-10 lead just before halftime. He is 5-of-8 passing for 101 yards and 26 yards rushing on five carries. Buchner has both a passing and rushing touchdown.

► More:How Tyler Buchner prepared to be the next-level quarterback Notre Dame covets

♦ Brian Kelly: "You'll see (Buchner) in the second half."

9:01 p.m. — Score alert: Notre Dame 14, Virginia Tech 10

8:33 p.m. — Score alert: Virginia Tech 10, Notre Dame 7

Key play at 46-yard pass from Buchner to Kevin Austin

8:27 p.m. — The freshman Tyler Buchner is in at QB for Notre Dame

Notre Dame’s Tyler Buchner (12) runs the ball during the Notre Dame vs. Cincinnati NCAA football game Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021 at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend.

8:23 p.m. — Virginia Tech 10, Notre Dame 0

And ....

And ... has headed to the locker room

8:12 p.m. — End of 1st Q: Virginia Tech 7, Notre Dame 0

FIRST QUARTER

► Virginia Tech 7, Notre Dame 0

Score: Raheem Blackshear 7 run (John Parker kick) at 3:21

Drive: Seven plays, 80 yards, 3:54 elapsed time following Notre Dame punt.

Key plays: Backup quarterback Connor Blumrick checked in on the drive's third play and promptly ran for 16 yards and a first down. On the next play, starter Braxton Burmeister returned at quarterback and found wide receiver Tre Turner for 18 yards. Four of Virginia Tech's eight plays gained at least 10 yards.

7:58 p.m. — Score alert: Virginia Tech 7, Notre Dame 0, 1Q

7:53 p.m. — Mayer on the sidelines

Michael Mayer, who led the Irish passing attack through the first five games with 32 catches for 360 yards and three touchdowns, did not start for the No. 14 Irish (4-1). Junior George Takacs started in the absence of Mayer, a sophomore.

► More:Tight end Michael Mayer's hip injury keeps him out of Notre Dame's starting lineup

7:45 p.m. — Coan in for his second series without leading receiver Michael Mayer

7:37 p.m. — We're underway. Notre Dame takes over at its own 25

7:17 p.m. EDT — Jack Coan to start for Notre Dame at QB

Wisconsin graduate transfer Jack Coan will remain No. 14 Notre Dame’s starting quarterback for the sixth consecutive game.

Head coach Brian Kelly refused to announce a starting quarterback ahead of the game at Virginia Tech (3-1), but Coan took the majority of the warmup reps with the starting offense in Lane Stadium prior to kickoff.

► More:Jack Coan remains Notre Dame's starting QB against Virginia Tech after week of secrecy

How to watch? If you have Comcast you might be surprised

Saturday’s prime-time matchup between No. 14 Notre Dame and the Hokies will be televised on the ACC Network, which has agreements with many services and providers, but not with Comcast/Xfinity, the major provider in both the Indiana and Virginia markets.

Here are some of your options on how to watch the game.

Kicking it off

Preview coverage from this week:

Coming off his team's first loss in 2021, Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly faced a lot of questions - and maybe some concerns - heading into Saturday's game at Virginia Tech.