Notre Dame forces five turnovers, beats Prairie Ridge

By Sam Brief | For Sun-Times Media | @sambrief

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Notre Dame 44, Prairie Ridge 21

THE SKINNY: The Notre Dame football team manned the driver’s seat all afternoon, forcing five Prairie Ridge turnovers Saturday in Niles and racking up 218 rushing yards to down the Wolves.

TURNING POINT: After a Zack Greenberg rushing touchdown brought Prairie Ridge to within 10 points, senior running back Dan Dietz took a kickoff 96 yards to the end zone, extending the Notre Dame lead to 30-14. Dietz’s touchdown came with 3:14 left in first half. The Dons missed the extra point.

THE STAR: Notre Dame senior running back Chris James, who is mulling offers from Michigan State, Pittsburgh and Tennessee, had 20 carries for 146 yards and three touchdowns, including a 38-yarder in the fourth quarter.

BY THE NUMBERS: Efficiency was Notre Dame’s forte. Senior quarterback Ryan Greene completed 11 of 12 passes (91.7 percent) for 131 yards and ran for a touchdown as the Dons outgained Prairie Ridge 349-265.

QUOTABLE: “It feels great,” James said of starting 1-0. “Our team worked their butts off this offseason. We came here every day, even when it was 100 degrees, and it feels great to win today.”

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