Notre Dame-Pittsburgh Countdown: 10 To 1

10 Games in a row won by Notre Dame, dating back to last Nov. 2, the longest winning streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision. It is the 17th time in the program’s history it has won at least 10 straight.

9 Games Pitt had last year (out of 13) that were determined by one score or less, with the Panthers posting a 6-3 mark. This year three of the first six also have been determined by one score, defeating Louisville (23-20) but then losing back-to-back one-pointers to North Carolina State (30-29 in the closing minute) and Boston College (31-30 in overtime on a missed extra point).

8 Games played between Notre Dame and Pitt since 2008, and seven of them were determined by one score or less, most recently a 19-14 Irish win in 2018. The one exception occurred in 2015, a 42-30 Notre Dame conquest in which two late Panther touchdowns made the margin more respectable.

7 Ranking nationally of Pitt in total defense by allowing only 274.7 yards per game, highlighted by No. 1 versus the run (61.5 yards per game), No. 2 in quarterback sacks (29, or 4.83 per game) and No. 3 in tackles for loss (11.2).

Notre Dame counters with a No. 11 ranking in total defense (300.8), highlighted by No. 2 in lowest percentage of third-down conversions (.208) and No. 4 in scoring defense (11.5).

6 Games played by Pitt (3-3) this year — one of only seven teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision to tee it up that many times this season. The others are Army West Point (5-1), 3-3 Arkansas State and UTSA, and 1-5 Duke, Texas State and Middle Tennessee. Pitt and Duke are the lone Power 5 conference representatives.

5 Straight games a Notre Dame running back has rushed for more than 100 yards in a game, all with Tommy Rees as a first-time offensive coordinator. Three of the four this year have been by sophomore Kyren Williams.

Meanwhile, Pitt ranks No. 1 nationally in rushing defense with a 61.5 average through the first six games.

4 Different Pitt head coaches that Fighting Irish boss Brian Kelly has defeated while compiling a 5-1 record versus Pitt since taking the position in 2010: Dave Wannstedt (23-17 in 2010), Todd Graham (15-12 in 2011), Paul Chryst (29-26 in triple overtime in 2012, but a 28-21 loss the next season) and Pat Narduzzi (42-30 in 2015 and 19-14 in 2018).

3 Consecutive conference losses by Pitt, a first in Narduzzi’s six seasons with the Panthers. They are attempting to avoid their first four-game losing streak within the same season since 2007 — the year they upset No. 2-ranked West Virginia in the finale to prevent the Mountaineers from playing for the national title.

2 More wins needed by Notre Dame — at Pitt and next week at Georgia Tech — to set the school record for most consecutive victories against unranked teams with 30, eclipsing the standard of 29 from 1990-94.

Yes, we get it: everyone would rather win “the big ones.” But this is not as easy as it sounds, with only Alabama’s streak since 2007 longer. Plus, under Narduzzi Pitt defeated both No. 2 and national champ Clemson in 2016 and 10-0 and No. 2 Miami in 2017, ending the Hurricanes' 15-game winning streak.

1 Time in 16 previous tries that Pitt defeated a Notre Dame team ranked in the Associated Press top 5. That occurred when the unranked Panthers defeated 3-0 and the No. 4 ranked Fighting Irish in 1987 by a 30-22 count after taking a 27-0 lead on their first four possessions.

The most recent such encounter was 2018, when the No. 5 Irish rallied in the fourth quarter for a 19-14 win .

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