Norman, OK – Notre Dame is relevant once again.
Everett Golson ran for a go-ahead 1-yard touchdown with 5:05 left in the fifth-ranked Fighting Irish's 30-13 victory over No. 8 Oklahoma.
Heisman hopeful and Irish linebacker Manti Te'o, who had 11 tackles -- two for loss -- and a sack, intercepted a Landry Jones pass on Oklahoma's ensuing possession to set up a Notre Dame field goal and make it a two-possession game with 3:22 remaining.
The Irish, who have four wins against Top 25 teams, are 8-0 for the first time since 2002.
"I'm just glad we got the win it was a great team effort. We came out and fought and I'm really proud of the team for doing that," Golson said. "We're definitely going to celebrate but we just have to take it one game at a time. You can't just stop and look up because if you do you'll miss your opportunity."
Golson threw for 177 yards on 13-of-25 efficiency and added 64 yards rushing on 11 carries for the Irish (8-0), who have won 8-of-9 meetings all-time against the Sooners.
Golson sat last week against BYU after suffering a concussion the previous Saturday against Stanford. Tommy Rees started against the Cougars and helped the Irish to a 17-14 win.
Jones was 35-of-51 for 356 yards with an interception for the Sooners (5-2), who had their three-game winning streak snapped.
Jalen Saunders caught 15 balls for 181 yards in the setback.
"What a heck of a football game. I told my players I was very proud of how they fought, how they competed, how hard they played and all of that. We just needed to be a few plays better in some areas," Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said.
After Blake Bell plunged in for a 1-yard score, the first rushing touchdown allowed by Notre Dame all season, to tie the contest at 13-13 with 9:10 left, the Irish countered and tallied the final 17 points of the game.
Calmly and cooly, the redshirt freshman Golson led the Irish 73 yards in seven plays for the go-ahead score.
Two plays into the trek, off a play-action fake, Golson lofted a deep pass to Chris Brown -- the freshman's first career reception -- in stride for a 50- yard gain. Two snaps later, Riddick took a pass in the flat and gained 12 yards down to the 3-yard line. Golson pushed the ball across the goal line on 3rd-and-goal via a quarterback draw.
Seemingly always around the football, Te'o intercepted Jones four plays into the Sooners' next trek.
Jones tried to hit Saunders on a slant pattern, but linebacker Dan Fox hit Saunders right as the ball arrived. The ball was tipped up into the air and Te'o was able to dive and get his hands underneath the ball.
Kyle Brindza's 46-yard field goal gave the Irish a 10-point margin.
Oklahoma turned the ball over on downs on its ensuing march and Theo Riddick scampered in from 15 yards out with 1:36 left to cap the scoring.
Earlier, the Sooners moved the ball effectively on their opening drive, but a botched snap on a 1st-and-10 at the Notre Dame 46-yard line led to a 19-yard loss. Oklahoma wound up punting two snaps later.
Following a Notre Dame three-and-out, Oklahoma was able to produce points on its second possession via a 28-yard Michael Hunnicutt field goal.
The Irish, though, quickly took the lead.
Just two plays into their next series, Cierre Wood broke through the middle of the line and galloped untouched for a 62-yard score.
Kyle Brzinda nailed a 28-yard field goal to give Notre Dame a 10-3 lead midway through the second.
The Sooners appeared to tie the game late in the first half on a 4-yard Bell TD run, but a holding penalty by Bronson Irwin negated the score. Hunnicutt then split the uprights from 30 yards out to cut the deficit to four points.
Notre Dame, which took 13:01 off the clock on its first two second-half possessions, were only able to tally three points.
Brindza missed a 35-yard field goal on the opening second-half touch, but split the uprights from 44 yards out to make it 13-6 early in the fourth.
Game Notes
The Irish last visited Norman in 1966 and won 38-0 en route to a national title ... The 2002 Irish finished 10-3 and lost to North Carolina State in the Gator Bowl.
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