Fighting Irish (6-0) Look to Maintain College Football Playoff Aspirations
Mike Tirico, Doug Flutie, Kathryn Tappen and Terry McAulay to Call Matchup
Liam McHugh and Chris Simms Host Studio Coverage On-Site at Notre Dame Stadium
2018 Notre Dame Football on NBC Viewership Best in Six Years Through Four Games, Up 33% vs. 2017
STAMFORD, Conn. – October 10, 2018 – NBC Sports continues its coverage of the 2018 Notre Dame football season this Saturday at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, when QB Ian Book and the No. 5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-0) aim to maintain their undefeated season and College Football Playoff aspirations with a win against RB Qadree Ollison and the Pittsburgh Panthers (3-3) at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Ind.
The Fighting Irish enter Saturday’s matchup with Pitt following a 45-23 victory against then-ranked No. 24 Virginia Tech at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, Va., on Saturday night. RB Dexter Williams rushed for 178 yards and scored a career-high three touchdowns in the win, Ian Book passed for 271 yards and two touchdowns, and WR Miles Boykin hauled in eight catches for 117 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The Fighting Irish are one of only two teams (Ohio State) in FBS that have recorded five wins over teams from the Power Five conferences.
Pitt travels to South Bend this weekend following a 44-37 overtime win over fellow ACC foe Syracuse at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh last weekend. Ollison rushed for 192 yards and a touchdown in the win, his seventh 100-yard rushing effort of his career. Notre Dame won the most recent matchup between these two teams, 42-30, at Pittsburgh in 2015.
NBC Sports’ Notre Dame football commentary team is led by Mike Tirico, who is in his second full season as the voice of Notre Dame Football on NBC. He’s joined in the booth by Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie, who serves as lead analyst for Notre Dame Football on NBC, and sideline reporter Kathryn Tappen. Former NFL referee Terry McAulay, who recently joined NBC Sports following 20 years as an on-field NFL game official, joins the booth in his first season as an on-air rules analyst.
Liam McHugh will handle halftime coverage of Notre Dame Football on NBC alongside former college and NFL quarterback Chris Simms (studio analyst).
2018 NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL ON NBC REMAINING SCHEDULE
| DATE | TIME (ET) | GAME | NETWORK |
| Saturday, October 13 | 2:30 p.m. | Notre Dame vs. Pittsburgh | NBC |
| Saturday, November 10 | 7:30 p.m. | Notre Dame vs. Florida State | NBC |
| Saturday, November 17 | 2:30 p.m. | Notre Dame vs. Syracuse* | NBC |
*at Yankee Stadium
2018 NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL ON NBC VIEWERSHIP BEST IN SIX YEARS THROUGH FOUR GAMES, UP 33% VS. 2017
Through four games, Notre Dame Football on NBC has produced a Total Audience Delivery of 3.841 million average viewers, up 33% vs. the first four games of the 2017 season (2.879 million), marking the best viewership to this point on NBC since 2012 (4.477 million).
Notre Dame’s 38-17 win over Stanford on Saturday, Sept. 29, on NBC in primetime was the matchup’s second most-watched game on NBC in 24 years, producing a Total Audience Delivery of 3.479 million average viewers. Click here for more information.
NBC SPORTS GOLD TO OFFER DIRECT-TO-CONSUMER LIVE STREAMING PRODUCT FOR INTERNATIONAL NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL FANS
NBC Sports Gold – NBC Sports Digital’s direct-to-consumer live streaming product – is relaunching its international “Notre Dame Football Season Pass,” giving fans in 13 international countries access to every Fighting Irish home game during the 2018 season. Powered by NBC Sports’ Playmaker Media, the direct-to-consumer pass will offer fans abroad comprehensive coverage of seven Notre Dame football home games live and on-demand, available online, as well as on mobile devices and tablets.
NBC Sports Gold’s “Notre Dame Football Season Pass” is available for purchase now for $49.99, and features all seven home games in the 2018 season. The pass is available in 13 countries: Austria, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and UK. USD or local currency pricing is available. “Notre Dame Football Season Pass” is not available to customers in the U.S. Click here for more information.
INSIDE THE IRISH ON NBCSPORTS.COM
NBCSports.com will continue its Notre Dame Football coverage through its popular Inside The Irish blog, as Notre Dame Football insider Douglas Farmer covers the Irish from all angles throughout the 2018 season.
NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL ON NBCSPORTS.COM AND THE NBC SPORTS APP
NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming platforms for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will provide extensive live streaming coverage of the 2018 Notre Dame Football on NBC season via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value for their subscription service, and making high quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms.
NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app are powered by Playmaker Media and available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire.
--NBC SPORTS--