DeShon Kizer passed for two touchdowns, ran for one and pitched to Tarean Folston on an option play for another as Notre Dame rolled past Nevada by 39-10 on Saturday. The Irish overcame a shaky, mistake-filled start to dominate the line of scrimmage and stuff the Wolfpack attack until Brent Zuzo hit a field goal 41 minutes into the game. The victory lifts Notre Dame’s record to 1-1, but the loss of starting cornerback Shaun Crawford to a season-ending Achilles injury put a bit of a damper on the day.

After a series of penalties and missteps to begin the contest, the Irish finally opened the scoring early in the second quarter on a short field goal by Justin Yoon. The floodgates opened and Kizer led the hosts to touchdowns on three of the next four series, the last of which extended the lead to 25-0 with only seconds remaining in the half. A notable play during that stretch was an interception by defensive tackle Jarron Jones on a screen pass inside the Nevada ten yard line.

Notre Dame continued to have success in the third period, as a 43-yard burst by Josh Adams keyed an 85-yard touchdown march. Kizer departed at that point after completing 15 of 18 passes for 156 yards, with one interception on an underthrown deep ball. Malik Zaire took over at the helm with the Irish ahead by 32-3, and he immediately led a scoring drive that was capped by a Dexter Williams dive into the end zone. The Wolfpack added their lone touchdown in the final moments against the Irish reserves.

Let’s review the answers to the pregame questions:

Can Kizer’s receivers do a credible job even if Hunter is not in the lineup? Hunter did not play, but C.J. Sanders, Equanimeous St. Brown and Kevin Stepherson each had multiple receptions and played quite well.

Will Nevada be able to sustain a balanced attack or must they abandon the run early? The Irish pulled away in the second quarter and forced Nevada to open it up, but quarterback Tyler Stewart was not up to the task.

Can the Notre Dame secondary tighten up and prevent the big play? There were a couple of shaky plays and Crawford went down on one of them, but they coverage was definitely improved until Nick Coleman blew an assignment late in the fourth quarter to set up Nevada’s only touchdown.

Will the Irish defensive linemen be able to make plays in the backfield? Notre Dame had good pressure on the pocket and a few blitzes worked very nicely, but the Wolfpack line was not especially good.

Can Sanders and the special teams make some noise? A Sanders punt return to the Nevada 25 set up the first Irish score, and the Wolfpack handed Notre Dame two points on the ensuing kickoff when the return man exited the end zone before crossing back to take a knee.

When will ND deploy its own Texas-sized cannon and Jumbotron to assault and alienate the fan base? Not this week, but stay tuned.

The Irish return to the real world next week when the Michigan State Spartans come to town. This win was definitely needed to restore confidence to the defense and provide traction for both the offensive line and wide receiving corps.