SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Kanon Woodill hit a 35-yard field goal with 31 seconds to play and Cade Haberman blocked a 62-yard try as time expired and Northern Illinois stunned No. 5 Notre Dame 16-14 on Saturday.
Haberman blocked the 62-yard attempt by Notre Dame’s Mitch Jeter, allowing the jubilant Huskies to claim their first non-conference victory against a ranked opponent since a 19-16 upset of No. 21 Alabama in 2003.
In a massive upset, Notre Dame fell as a 28.5-point favorite over Northern Illinois, according to ESPN BET. The Fighting Irish, who entered the day at 16-1 to win the national championship, dropped to 75-1 after the loss.
The Huskies’ win is the first ever by a Mid-American Conference team against an AP top-five team; the MAC was previously 0-51 against such opponents.
Notre Dame (1-1), on the heels of an impressive road win over Texas A&M, looked like it was in position to get some separation from Northern Illinois (2-0) as it clung to a 14-13 lead in the fourth quarter. The Fighting Irish gained possession after a punt with 7:49 left and drove from their 25 to the Northern Illinois 49.
Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard launched a pass deep up the middle intended for Kris Mitchell, but Amariyun Knighten made the interception and returned it 33 yards to the 50-yard line with 5:55 to play.
Knighten’s interception set up the winning field goal from Woodill, his third of the day.
Notre Dame struck first as Leonard side-stepped the Huskies defense for an 11-yard touchdown run with 8:28 left in the first quarter.
It only took five plays for Northern Illinois to answer as Antario Brown broke loose between two Notre Dame defensive backs for an 83-yard touchdown reception on a pass from Ethan Hampton.
A pair of Woodill field goals (42 and 21 yards) gave the Huskies a 13-7 halftime lead. Notre Dame had the chance to make it 13-10 before half, but Haberman blocked a 48-yard try from Jeter.
Woodill missed a 53-yard field-goal attempt on the first possession of the second half, and Notre Dame took advantage.
Jeremiyah Love broke loose for a 34-yard touchdown run, hurdling a Northern Illinois defender on the way to the end zone. Mitch Jeter’s extra point gave Notre Dame a 14-13 lead with 8:34 left in the third quarter.
ESPN Stats & Information and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
