WATCH: Luck of the Irish? Notre Dame keeps Vandy out of the end zone on wild goal-line play

Vanderbilt nearly scored its first touchdown of the game on Saturday when Kyle Shurmur completed a pass to Randall Haynie that had the ball just before the goal line.

Then, a wild play ensued.

As Haynie tried to muscle his way into the end zone against a pair of Notre Dame defenders, one of them yanked the ball out of Haynie’s hands, which sent it flying into the air. Nobody fielded it cleanly, but a Commodores player bumped into the ball, making it bounce into the end zone.

The Vanderbilt player couldn’t land on the ball, and when he nearly did, a Notre Dame player slid in and recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchback.

It was nearly a great play for the Commodores, but it ended as a positive for the Fighting Irish. Overall, it was just a wild, crazy turn of events.

Watch the play below:

The Fighting Irish led the Commodores, 13-0, at the time of the play in the second quarter. Shortly before halftime, they had extended their lead to 16-0.

Vanderbilt will certainly need to perform better — and perhaps have a little better luck — if it hopes to upset No. 8 Notre Dame

Jake Rill

Jake Rill contributes to news coverage for Saturday Down South. He has covered the SEC since 2016.