Sometimes the numbers just don't add up the way you would think.

Notre Dame travels to Air Force Saturday with an offense ranked 86th in the nation in scoring (22.8 points a game). The Irish are even lower in total offense, with 293 yards a game, 113th out of 117 teams across the nation. Their quarterback, Carlyle Holiday is 94th with a passing efficiency rating of 102.74.

And yet, when it comes to the numbers that matter the most, the Irish are 6-0, which puts them No. 7 in the rankings.

Basketball can wait in Hoosierland

At Indiana, the start of basketball practice usually signals the end of the football season, and this year figured to be no exception. With Antwaan Randle El, who kept the Hoosiers from finishing in Hobart the last few seasons, gone to the Pittsburgh Steelers, new coach Gerry DiNardo seemed likely to be in for a rough ride. Instead, it's the Hoosiers who have grabbed the wheel. On the same weekend Mike Davis' national basketball runners-up opened practice, DiNardo's football Hoosiers not only put on an offensive show in scoring 22 points in the final 17 minutes to win 32-29 after trailing 29-10. The IU defense held Wisconsin to just 55 yards on its final four drives. "It tells you you're building a program,'' said DiNardo, who's battling the odds in a state that has two schools, Notre Dame and Purdue, with much stronger football tradition and not enough potential recruits to go around. "This keeps you going. When you work this hard, young people need a reward. What was so great was the way we won, the way we came back, instead of going in the tank.'' Improved red-zone efficiency is one explanation for Indiana's upset of Wisconsin, which had been expected to hand it to Indiana after being blown out by the Hoosiers 63-32 last season. In its first three games, IU came away with five touchdowns and one field goal on 11 trips inside its opponents' 20-yard line. In their last three games, the Hoosiers have scored seven touchdowns and one field goal on nine trips inside the 20, and their last two games have been against supposed Big Ten heavyweights Ohio State and Wisconsin. That's a credit to quarterback Gibran Hamden, who went into training camp an unknown backup, but wound up being the Big Ten offensive player of the week in throwing for 310 yards and four touchdowns against the Badgers. "I just tried to stay in the flow of the game,'' Hamden said. "I wanted to focus on letting the game come to me. We had guys making big plays on both sides of the ball, and our line play was solid all day. When you can do that, you give yourself a chance.'' One game does not a season make. But the Hoosiers go after their second straight win over a ranked team when Iowa comes to Bloomington this week. And with games against underachieving Illinois, Northwestern, Michigan State and Purdue --who have a combined conference record of 3-8 -- still to play, Indiana fans may be distracted from their first love, basketball, a little longer this fall. -- Herb Gould

That's a tribute to Notre Dame's opportunistic defense, to be sure. But it's also a credit to Holiday, who has gotten the job done when it counted most.

His highlights reel includes a phantom touchdown in which he scored the game-winner against Michigan on a play many believe should have been ruled a fumble.

Against Pittsburgh last Saturday, in his first start since he injured his left shoulder being tackled at Michigan State on Sept. 21, Holiday completed a modest 16-of-25 for 145 yards, with one touchdown and one interception.

What mattered, to him, though, was the win.

"That's real good, being 6-0,'' Holiday said. "I don't think a lot of people expected that.''

But there the Irish are. And if Holiday, a 6-foot-3, 214-pound junior who grew up in San Antonio, Texas, adoring everything Notre Dame, is no threat to give the Irish their fifth Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback yet, he's gaining respect for learning on the job.

"This is a complex offense,'' said receiver Arnaz Battle, a converted quarterback. "When he finally gets that grasp, a lot of people should watch out.''

New coach Tyrone Willingham has instituted a big change in the Irish offense, which has gone from an option approach to a West Coast-style passing attack.

That has put a lot of the burden on Holiday. Last season, he rushed for 666 yards, second on the team, on 156 carries, a 4.3-yard average, while starting ND's final eight games. This season, he has rushed for 45 net yards on 46 carries, an average of less than one yard. He has completed 52-of-108 for 659 yards, with two touchdowns, two interceptions and a modest 131.8 passing yards a game in five games.

Far from feeling out of place, Holiday said he's enjoying the switch to a West Coast passing game.

"It hasn't affected me that much,'' he said. "I wanted to be in this offense when I first got here. Throw the ball around and at the same time have a balanced offense. It's fun, a whole different comfort zone for me. That's what quarterbacks do. If you wanted to run the ball that many times, you'd be a running back.''

One adjustment Holiday has had to make is to curb his impulse to run, a point that was driven home when he injured his left shoulder being tackled at Michigan State.

"You start to scramble, then you pull up and you look downfield,'' said Holiday, who scrambled only once, for 12 yards, against Pitt. "You've got to learn to protect yourself better. I'm a competitor, so sometimes I'm going to take off. But right now, I think I need to slide.''

Battle saw evidence of Holiday's running restraint against the Panthers.

"There were a couple of situations where in the past he would have probably tucked it and tried to make something happen. But he got rid of the ball, and that's the smart play,'' Battle said. "Taking the shots he was taking the first couple of games, no one could last a whole season under those conditions. A lot of scrambling quarterbacks, when they're young, they need to scramble. But over time you realize your body can't take those hits. He learned the hard way against Michigan State that he has to protect himself.''

Irish offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Bill Diedrick also sees a quarterback who's learning to see the opportunities made possible by the pass-oriented attack Willingham has instituted.

"I would hope that each week,'' Diedrick said, "he will continue to improve, even if it's just a little bit, to where at the end of the season, he knows before it happens.''

If that takes place, Holiday might find himself at the controls of an offense that can deliver in the lofty situations that are starting to come Notre Dame's way.

Around the Big Ten

Illinois
Dustin Ward, who started Illinois' first two games before yielding to Jon Beutjer for four games, returned as Illinois defeated Purdue 38-31 in overtime. The game was a wild one as Illini blew a 24-0 second-quarter lead and trailed 31-24 until a one-yard touchdown by Antoineo Harris with three seconds left sent the game into overtime. ... Ward was a modest 15-of-30 for 202 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, but coach Ron Turner apparently prefers the way he runs the offense over Beutjer, who throws better but hasn't carried out Turner's calls. ... Harris rushed for a career-high 195 yards, including an 82-yard run in which he nearly went down for a safety, but used his free hand to steady himself and then broke free to the Purdue 17. ... Backup tailback Morris Virgil suffered a broken leg in the fourth quarter and is out for the season.

Indiana
The Hoosiers' 19-point comeback to beat Wisconsin 32-29 was the third biggest rally in school history. IU rallied back from a 23-point deficit to beat Iowa in 1979 and beat Illinois from 21 down in 1999. ... Quarterback Gibran Hamdan threw four touchdown passes against a Wisconsin defense that had not allowed a passing touchdown in five games. Three of the scoring throws came in the final 16 minutes for IU, which had been down 29-10 late in the third quarter.

Iowa
After winning nail-biters over Penn State and Purdue in its two previous games, Iowa didn't mess around, throttling Michigan State 44-16 as a pass defense that was ranked 116th in the nation ended Heisman candidate Charles Rogers' streak of 14 straight games with a touchdown catch. ... At 6-1, Iowa is off to its best start since 1991, when it wound up 10-1-1 after a 13-13 Holiday Bowl tie with BYU. ... Iowa yielded a season-low 194 passing yards, and picked off three passes. The Hawkeyes totalled five takeaways, their best turnover day since 1993. Iowa travels this week to Indiana, which is coming off a 32-29 upset of Wisconsin.

Michigan
Having outlasted Penn State 27-24 at home in overtime, the Wolverines now turn their attention to Purdue, where they haven't won since 1994. In two trips to West Lafayette since then, Michigan lost 32-31 in 2000 and 9-3 in 1996. ... Michigan, which beat the Nittany Lions for the sixth straight time, is now 7-3 all-time vs. Penn State. ... The fifth-largest home crowd in Michigan history (111,502) saw the Wolverines prevail in their first regular-season overtime game. In its only other overtime game, Michigan defeated Alabama 35-34 in the Orange Bowl on Jan. 1, 2000.

Michigan State
The Spartans, who were voted third behind Ohio State and Michigan in a preseason poll of conference media, continued to slide. A humbling 44-16 loss at Iowa, which scored 20 points off of five Michigan State turnovers, was the Spartans' third defeat in four games. ... Quarterback Jeff Smoker, who completed 17-of-33 for 169 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, was benched for three series in the third quarter. ... Charles Rogers' NCAA-record string of 14 straight games with a touchdown catch came to an end. Rogers had five catches for 78 yards against an Iowa pass defense that ranked 116th out of 117 Division-IA teams going into the game. ... In its three seasons under Bobby Williams, Michigan State is 1-8 in Big Ten road games.

Minnesota
The Gophers' 45-42 victory over Northwestern gave them a 6-1 start for the first time since 1967, the last time Minnesota grabbed at least a share of the Big Ten championship. The victory also makes the Gophers eligible for their third bowl trip in four seasons. The schedule gets rougher from here, though. Michigan State, Ohio State, Michigan, Iowa and Wisconsin all stack up as better teams than anyone Minnesota has played so far. ... Terry Jackson II rushed for a career-high 239 yards and two TDs and Thomas Tapeh had 176 yards and one TD as the Gophers piled up 418 rushing yards against Northwestern.

Northwestern
The Wildcats are allowing 321 rushing yards a game, last (117th) in the nation in run defense. That's a big reason they allowed 40 points or more for the fourth time in a 45-42 loss at Minnesota, which ran for 418 yards. ... The Cats are allowing 38.9 points a game, which puts them 110th nationally in scoring defense. ... Northwestern, which travels to Penn State this week, is 1-6 all-time vs. the Nittany Lions, picking up its only win 21-10 during its 1995 march to the Rose Bowl.

Ohio State
At most schools, seven straight wins out of the box is a rare achievement. But this is the fifth time in the last 10 years that Ohio State, which improved to 7-0 by beating San Jose State last Saturday, has started this fast. The Buckeyes started 8-0 in 1998, and wound up 11-1. They started 10-0 in 1996 and wound up 11-1. They started 11-0 in 1995 and finished 11-2. And they started 8-0 in 1993, when they finished 10-1-1. The Buckeyes travel to Wisconsin this week and play host to Penn State on Oct. 26 in two potentially difficult challenges to their unbeaten start.

Penn State
For the second time in three weeks, Penn State lost in overtime, falling 27-24 at Michigan after losing 42-35 to Iowa on Sept. 28. And for the second time in three weeks, coach Joe Paterno wound up expressing his frustration to an official at game's end. In the most difficult call for the Nittany Lions to swallow, receivers Tony Johnson was ruled out of bounds on a catch at the Michigan 22-yard line with the score tied 21-21 and 40 seconds left in regulation. Replays showed Johnson had both feet inbounds, even though college rules require only one. "You guys can see it better than I did,'' Paterno, who refused to let reporters talk to his players, said when asked about the call afterward.

Purdue
True freshman Brandon Kirsch, who replaced sophomore Kyle Orton with the Boilers down 24-0 and guided them to a 31-24 lead before they lost 38-31 in overtime at Illinois, could get his first start this week when Purdue plays host to Michigan. It was the second straight strong relief appearance for Kirsch, who passed for 161 yards and ran for 67 yards. ... Purdue wasted its comeback when it allowed Illinois an 80-yard, 17-play touchdown drive that tied the game 31-31 with three seconds left in regulation. ... All-Big Ten free safety Stuart Schweigert tried to play, but sat down early at Illinois with a calf injury that lingered from the Oct. 5 Iowa game.

Wisconsin
The Badgers, who dodged several bullets in their 5-0 non-league start, took one between the eyes for the second straight week, and their 32-29 loss at struggling Indiana was not as explainable as last week's 34-31 home loss to Penn State. Wisconsin, which had been blown out 63-32 in a home loss to IU last season, blew a 19-point lead at Indiana this time around, and cast serious doubts about its hopes of winning the Big Ten. "This is about as bad as it gets,'' said quarterback Brooks Bollinger. Wisconsin, touched for 436 yards by Penn State, gave up 405 yards to Indiana, which came into the game 10th in the Big Ten in total offense (337.4 yards a game). Wisconsin now must try to bounce back against unbeaten Ohio State, which looks like the class of the conference.

Around the Independents
Connecticut, after an open date, returns to action against Temple this week. Despite missing two games due to injury, freshman running back Terry Caulley already has rushed for 446 yards, more than any Huskies back had last season. Caulley has had three 100-yard games to lead UConn's 2-4 start, but because of his 5-7, 178-pound size, durability remains a concern. ... Navy's previously porous defense turned in its best effort of the season, but the Midshipmen fell 17-10 to Rice, which made the most of its 284 yards of offense. Navy, which had given up 205 points in its last four games, turned to a new look on defense, scrapping its 4-3 for a scheme using three defensive linemen and five defensive backs to contain the Owls' option attack. ... Notre Dame's remarkable defense -- which is third in the nation in points allowed (11.7), fifth in rushing defense (76.1 yards) and 17th in total defense (295 yards) -- faces a stern test this week at Air Force. The Falcons lead the nation in rushing (339.2 yards) and are eighth in scoring (40.5). The Irish (6-0) are off to their best start since 1993, Air Force (6-0) is off to its best start since 1997. ... South Florida served notice that it intends to be a tough competitor when it joins Conference USA next season by surprising Southern Miss 16-13 in Tampa. With no time remaining, Curt Jones was barely wide right on a 43-yard field goal that would have pulled Southern Miss, a traditional power in C-USA, into a tie. It was the 16th straight home win for USF, which had lost 41-7 at Southern Miss two years ago. ... Troy State fell at Mississippi State 11-8 as Hansell Bearden was intercepted five times, tying a school record for a quarterback. A sixth interception, thrown by wideout Jason Samples, saddled the Trojans with a school-record six picks. The struggling Bulldogs lost four fumbles in a mistake-prone contest. Troy State managed only 61 passing yards in its 197 yards of offense. The Trojans travel to high-scoring Marshall this week. ... Utah State receiver Kevin Curtis is having another fine year, but is unlikely to repeat as the national leader in receptions. The senior has 38 catches midway through the season, which puts him far behind the leader, Nevada's Nate Burleson (64). Curtis is averaging 97.1 receiving yards (18th in the nation) and 6.3 catches (14th nationally) a game. The Aggies, who are coming off a bye week, play New Mexico Saturday.

Herb Gould covers college football for the Chicago Sun-Times.