SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly challenged his team to play to a higher standard after a sloppy first half Saturday against Massachusetts.

Running back C.J. Prosise and his teammates responded.

"After half, the offense was getting the ball first, and we had to go down and score," Prosise said. "That's what we did. After that, it just kind of took off. We got our confidence up, and we knew, 'OK, we can score every time now.'"

They almost did. Prosise led the way, rushing for 149 yards and two touchdowns as No. 6 Notre Dame rolled to a 62-27 win.

Quarterback DeShone Kizer passed for two touchdowns and ran for one more in his second career start. Notre Dame (4-0) compiled 681 yards, including 457 on the ground.

The Fighting Irish topped 60 points for the first time since beating Rutgers 62-0 in 1996.

"Their varsity was better than our varsity, and their JV was better than our JV," Massachusetts coach Mark Whipple said. "We put a little shock into them and woke them up, I guess, at the end of the second quarter. Their offensive line just manhandled us."

Massachusetts (0-3) trailed 21-20 late in the second quarter before Notre Dame reeled off 41 consecutive points. The Minutemen have lost six of their last seven games, dating to last season.

Kelly credited his players for keeping their focus throughout the game and the season. A slew of early-season injuries forced several young players into action ahead of schedule, and Kelly acknowledged that his coaching staff continued to learn about players such as Kizer and Prosise.

Kizer completed 15 of 22 passes for 207 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

"It wasn't a flat team today," Kelly said. "It was an excited team that played with a lot of energy. But I do agree that we're still sorting out the certain roles for the players on this football team."

Prosise notched a 57-yard rushing touchdown to give Notre Dame a 7-0 lead.

Kizer increased the lead to 14-0 on a 7-yard scoring run with 19 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

Running back Marquis Young brought Massachusetts back with an 83-yard touchdown run as time expired in the first quarter. Notre Dame defensive lineman Romeo Okwara blocked the extra-point attempt.

On Massachusetts' next possession, running back Sekai Lindsay rushed for a 1-yard touchdown to slice the deficit to 14-13.

Notre Dame extended its lead to 21-13 on a 26-yard touchdown pass from Kizer to wide receiver Will Fuller.

Massachusetts quickly answered with a 1-yard rushing touchdown by running back Jamal Wilson to pull to within 21-20 with 6:44 remaining in the second quarter.

A 50-yard punt return touchdown by C.J. Sanders increased Notre Dame's lead to 28-20 with 3:21 remaining in the quarter. Sanders became the first Notre Dame player to return a punt for a touchdown since Golden Tate in 2009.

"It was a big play in the game," Kelly said. "(It) kind of turned the tide a little bit for us."

Notre Dame made it 35-20 when Kizer found wide receiver Chris Brown for a 7-yard touchdown pass with six seconds remaining in the half.

Notre Dame added to the lead with a 16-yard touchdown run by Prosise and a 14-yard touchdown run by running back Dexter Williams to begin the third quarter.

Brandon Wimbush relieved Kizer at quarterback with the score out of hand in the third quarter. Wimbush scored his first career touchdown -- a 58-yarder that increased the lead to 55-20.

A 70-yard touchdown run by Notre Dame running back Josh Adams made it 62-20.

Massachusetts wide receiver Shakur Nesmith hauled in a 33-yard touchdown pass to end the scoring.

Kizer said he and his teammates will carry the lessons learned from a 4-0 start into next week's matchup against No. 11 Clemson.

"I can assure you one thing: We're going to prepare the same way," Kizer said. "I have complete confidence that we're going to put together a great game plan for Clemson."

NOTES: Notre Dame S Matthias Farley started his first game of the season in place of S Drue Tranquill, who suffered a torn ACL in his right knee last week against Georgia Tech. ... Massachusetts WR Tajae Sharpe caught at least one pass for the 38th consecutive game. That marks the third-longest streak in the nation, trailing only D.J. Foster of Arizona State (43) and Alonzo Russell of Toledo (40). ... Notre Dame RB C.J. Prosise eclipsed 100 rushing yards for the third consecutive game. ... Massachusetts QB Blake Frohnapfel surpassed 4,000 career passing yards. ... Notre Dame WR Corey Robinson suffered a sprained knee during warmups and will be evaluated Sunday, coach Brian Kelly said.