Notre Dame football dropped to 0-2 on the season, following a loss Saturday. The Fighting Irish bowed to Texas A&M at home, in a 41-40 game. It was a heartbreaking loss for a team hoping to go to the College Football Playoff in 2025.
There are several reasons why Notre Dame lost the game. The squad had leads in both the first half and second half, but couldn't finish. Following the contest, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman was honest about his team's effort in the loss.
“It's not good enough. Not good enough in the run and pass, not good enough getting pressure on the quarterback,” Freeman said afterward, per Sports Illustrated. “We had some unexpected injuries but it doesn't matter. You're on the field we've got to put you in position to make plays.”
Notre Dame's season is now dangerously close to being lost. The Fighting Irish started the year with a loss to Miami, and this loss to Texas A&M nearly obliterates their chances to earn a CFP berth. The squad must essentially win every single game remaining on the schedule in order to have any chance.
Here are some reasons why Notre Dame is most to blame for this loss to the Aggies.
Notre Dame's defense got smoked
The Fighting Irish struggled to stop Texas A&M all night. The final stats don't paint a kind picture. Notre Dame football allowed the Aggies to roll up 488 total yards of offense in the contest.
Notre Dame allowed 360 passing yards in the game, to Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed. The Fighting Irish really struggled in the second quarter, allowing 21 points in that period alone.
The dagger occurred though in the fourth period, with just seconds remaining on the clock. Notre Dame led by a 40-34 score at that time. The Notre Dame secondary once again had a breakdown, as the team allowed an 11-yard touchdown pass from Reed to Nate Boerkircher.
“You’ve got to go to work and practice and get better,” Notre Dame coach Freeman said, per the Associated Press. “We’re 0-2. So what do you control? You control getting better and getting ready for the next one. I can’t sit here and dwell on being 0-2 as much as I need to dwell on how do we find ways to improve.”
There's another reason why Notre Dame is most to blame for this loss.
A botched extra-point attempt proved costly
Notre Dame had a late fourth-quarter touchdown, that might have been the deciding factor. The Fighting Irish went ahead 40-34 with under three minutes left, when Jeremiyah Love ran it in for a 12-yard score.
The extra point attempt went horribly awry for Notre Dame. A botched snap led to the Fighting Irish having to gamble and try for a two point conversion. An improvised pass attempt failed, and the lead remained at just six points. That entire sequence came with about two minutes and change to go.
Notre Dame fumbles the snap on the PAT!
Absolutely MASSIVE for Texas A&M +6.5 pic.twitter.com/HztfxsaaaP
— Breton (@BretonPicks) September 14, 2025
Had the squad been able to connect on the extra point, who knows what could have then happened. Notre Dame would not have lost when they did, unless Texas A&M went on to convert a two-point conversion there with seconds remaining. The game would instead likely have gone to overtime.
“I don’t know that anything went to script in terms of how you want to go about winning a game on the road,” said Texas A&M coach Mike Elko, per the Associated Press. “We just kept fighting, kept battling, kept scrapping. Ultimately, we made one more play than they did.”
Notre Dame plays Purdue on Saturday, in an absolute must-win game. The Fighting Irish are still in the AP Top 25, despite the 0-2 start to the year.
