Carr accounts for five touchdowns as No. 3 Notre Dame tops North Carolina 37-26

CJ Carr threw four touchdown passes and ran for another as No. 3 Notre Dame improved to 5-0 by pulling away from North Carolina after halftime in Chapel Hill.

No. 3 Notre Dame stayed unbeaten on Saturday with a 37-26 victory over North Carolina in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Quarterback CJ Carr threw four touchdown passes and ran for a fifth score as the Fighting Irish moved to 5-0 and stretched their winning streak to 15 games. The loss dropped the Tar Heels to 2-2.

Notre Dame took a 21-14 lead into the locker room after a late first-half swing went North Carolina's way. The Tar Heels turned away the Irish on a goal-line stand, then marched the length of the field for a touchdown just before halftime.

The momentum flipped again to start the third quarter, when Jaden Jefferson returned the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown in the rain. Notre Dame answered with the first of two long, punishing drives, going 75 yards in 17 plays over more than nine minutes before Carr scored on a fourth-down keeper to the right side.

After the Irish defense forced a three-and-out, the offense went back to work. Nolan James Jr. shouldered most of the rushing load on the ensuing drive, then took a short Carr pass in the left flat, sidestepped a defender and scored on a 6-yard catch that made it 34-20 to open the fourth quarter.

Notre Dame rushed for a season-high 241 yards, 122 of them in the third quarter alone, using the ground game to sustain drives and slow the Tar Heels' push. Freshman Jonaz Walton ran for a team-leading 120 yards, with James adding 65. Carr passed for 234 yards, connecting with Jordan Faison eight times for 132 yards and two touchdowns.

Billy Edwards Jr. threw three touchdown passes for North Carolina but was intercepted twice. The Tar Heels managed only 77 rushing yards on 23 carries. Jordan Shipp led the receiving corps with seven catches for 109 yards, while Jelani Thurman had five receptions for 50 yards and two scores.

North Carolina opened the year 2-0, then squandered a two-touchdown lead in a loss at Clemson on Sept. 19 before using an open week to prepare for the Irish. Generating more gains downfield was a point of emphasis coming out of the bye, and Edwards had more success in that area. The near-upset bid came in the second college season for Bill Belichick, the longtime NFL coach now leading the Tar Heels.

Notre Dame's defense entered the game ranked first nationally in total defense at 199.3 yards allowed per game and second in scoring defense at 8.3 points per game. The group was uneven on Saturday: North Carolina's 26 points fell just seven short of what the Irish had allowed across their first four games combined.

Notre Dame hosts Stanford next Saturday. North Carolina visits Pittsburgh the same day, beginning a stretch of back-to-back road games against opponents that are a combined 9-0.