It wasn't pretty, but Notre Dame avoided a letdown to BYU with a 17-14 win Saturday in Notre Dame Stadium.
The No. 5 Irish (7-0) looked like they were falling apart in the second quarter when they gave up their first two offensive touchdowns in four games, but they rebounded in the second half to top the Cougars (4-4).
Notre Dame, which trailed BYU 14-10 after three quarters, took its first lead since the second quarter when George Atkinson III showed off his moves from BYU's 2-yard line.
Atkinson had one man to beat for a touchdown, and he juked his way by safety Joe Sampson for a touchdown that put the Irish up 17-14 with 12:52 to play.
The scoring drive was sparked by Tommy Rees' first completion since the opening quarter. Rees hit TJ Jones for a 31-yard gain late in the third on the drive that spanned the two quarters.
BYU threatened to come back when it converted three third-down plays on its next drive, but after Notre Dame forced a punt, the Irish kept the ball until there was only 22 seconds left.
Irish linebacker Danny Spond sealed the win by intercepting a pass with 2 seconds to play.
Notre Dame running backs Theo Riddick and Cierre Wood each rushed for more than 100 yards with Riddick going for 143 and Wood for 114. The Irish outgained BYU 389 to 243.
