Notre Dame pounds Navy 50-10 in Dublin

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DUBLIN — Notre Dame scored touchdowns on its first three possessions and defensive end Stephon Tuitt returned a fumble 77 yards for another TD as the Fighting Irish routed Navy 50-10 in Saturday's season opener in Ireland.

A crowd of 49,000 filled Dublin's Aviva Stadium for the first U.S. college game in Ireland since 1996.

Theo Riddick and George Atkinson ran for first-quarter touchdowns, and tight end Tyler Eifert caught a 5-yard TD pass.

Tuitt scooped up quarterback Trey Miller's fumble and rumbled to the end zone to put the Irish up 27-0 in the second quarter.

Navy kicked a 26-yard field goal before halftime and opened the second half with a three-pass drive capped by Shawn Lynch's 25-yard grab to make it 27-10. Atkinson and Riddick replied with two of Notre Dame's three second-half touchdowns.