Notre Dame's win over NC State moved it one step closer to the CFP, and these are the five numbers that told the story of Saturday's victory.

Notre Dame's defense flexes its muscles, holds NC State to 233 total yards en route to 36-7 win in South Bend.

Notre Dame point guard Hannah Hidalgo has spent the better part of the last seven months contemplating what went wrong down the stretch last season — and how to make sure it doesn’t happen

Notre Dame wide receiver Jaden Greathouse warms up during the Notre Dame Blue-Gold spring football game at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, April 12, 2025, in South Bend. / MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Royals struck quickly, finding the end zone on two of their first four plays from scrimmage. Zac Anderson opened the scoring with a 69-yard touchdown run on the third play of the game, and Joey Kopec followed with an 80-yard scoring sprint on the first play of CVCA’s second drive after Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin missed a 51-yard field goal.

Of all the complaints about the Notre Dame defense in the first five games of the season, they seem to have evaporated. Here are our takeaways from Notre Dame’s romp over N.C. State on Saturday, where the defense began to rise.

CJ Carr and Will Pauling combined to rip through the NC State defense on this touchdown that made it 24-7 Notre Dame over NC State.