No. 8 BYU pulled off one of several stunning upsets in the college football world on Saturday, taking down No. 2 Notre Dame in dramatic fashion in Provo.
The Cougars held a 28–24 lead in the final minute, with the Irish driving for a potential game-winning touchdown while racing against the clock. At least, that’s what most football fans believed the Irish were doing.
But in the broadcast booth, ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit had a different read on the situation. As Notre Dame got set for the snap on third-and-3 from the 30-yard line, Herbstreit expressed a bit of surprise that the Irish were playing so aggressively.
“They’re still thinking of trying to win this thing in regulation,” Herbstreit said.
“Gotta get the end zone, down four,” Chris Fowler said in the booth next him.
“They’re still thinking of trying to win this thing in regulation.”
Kirk Herbstreit as Notre Dame trailed BYU by 4 with 34 seconds remaining. https://t.co/tUiHXthzge
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 18, 2026
It seems like Herbstreit got his wires slightly crossed and believed the margin between the two sides was only three points, at least for a brief moment. It’s the type of slip-up that would be mostly unremarkable in regular conversation at a bar watching the game in the background, but stands out like a flashing red light when you’re the one calling the game for a national audience.
Unsurprisingly, fans took notice, and gave Herbstreit a bit of a hard time over the apparent mistake.
It was good thinking!! Better than trying to lose in regulation, for sure
— OfficiatingObserver17 (@RefObserver17) October 18, 2026
They thought about just going to two safeties in :34 seconds, but thought better of it.
— Jay Zawaski (@jayzawaski) October 18, 2026
This is really bad im sorry… let Kirk get some rest. One game a week. Less hits on other shows. Hes gotta get right.
— Mikey Hot Takez (@Mikelly_12) October 18, 2026
In Herbstreit’s defense, he was on hand as BYU hosted College GameDay this morning, which means he was potentially nearing 20 hours straight of football brain.
Between that, and calling Thursday Night Football alongside Al Michaels, and all of the travel and study work that goes into preparing for those shows, a momentary lapse is easy to forgive. We’ve all been working a late shift far from the top of our game but powering through nonetheless. Also, we must shout out the extremely professional move by Fowler, who suggested the necessity to get in the end zone without outright correcting his broadcast partner.
Ultimately, Herbstreit was right — Notre Dame was trying to win the game in regulation. They fell just short, thanks to a tough no-call on what proved to be the final play of the game, and a phantom second ticking off of the clock that maybe should have allowed for one more play.
But the result is the result, and the loss stands. Who knows, maybe the Irish should have tried to kick the field goal after all.
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