This past Tuesday marked the 25th anniversary of arguably the most meaningful game in Notre Dame Stadium history, and it was against the very same opponents that the currently #3 Fighting Irish faced that evening: the Florida State Seminoles.
In terms of modern college football, it was probably the most impactful regular season contest you’ll ever see: #1 9-0 Florida State lost to 9-0 Notre Dame, 31-24, in what was billed “The Game of the Century.” It was one of those rare contests that actually lived up to the hype too; that’s how memorable is was. Tonight’s affair between Florida State and Notre Dame in South Bend? Eh, not so much.
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This one was pretty much decided in the first quarter. At the end of quarter one, ND was 32-6, By the time three quarters were completed, the Irish were up 35-13, on their way to a 42-13 final. This annihilation was also achieved under the direction of a back-up quarterback in Brandon Wimbush.
QB1 Ian Book missed the game due to a vague and an unspecified injury. In postgame, Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly tried, unconvincingly, to stir up a quarterback controversy. He was joking of course, but at least a couple reporters fell for it.
Kelly later made it absolutely clear that Book is the starter, and should be healthy for Syracuse. Watch below:
“All the signs are pointing towards that yes.”
Brian Kelly had some fun trying to “create a quarterback controversy” but in the end confirmed all signs right now point to Ian Book being good to go for next week vs Syracuse. pic.twitter.com/ruF9ibLzx6
— Angelo Di Carlo (@angdicarlo) November 11, 2018
Getting back to 1993, While Notre Dame won the battle with FSU, it was the Seminoles who ultimately won the war. ND fell to 12th-ranked Boston College the very next week. They did beat #7 Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl, Florida State took out undefeated #2 Nebraska in the Orange Bowl, with the Seminoles earning national championship honors via a close vote in the final polls. FSU quarterback Charlie Ward (memorabilia pictured below) would go on to win the Heisman trophy.
For those you younger than Generation X, this is how national titles were determined in the 1990s and earlier. This was also the kind of game that made GenXers into college football fans.
Getting back to tonight’s contest, which was really no contest at all, Notre Dame’s touchdown at just 1:15 into the first quarter marked the earliest Fighting Irish score of any game this season.
Heading into the final two weeks of the season, Notre Dame has now outscored its opposition in the first quarter by a margin of 99-23 on aggregate. The Irish took a 17-0 lead on Florida State heading into the second period.
Unlike the last time the two sides clashed in this venue, only Notre Dame would walk away from this match with national title bonafides still in tact (FSU of course had none upon entering the game).
“The whole gist of this game was really to send out our seniors the right way,” said Notre Dame DL Jaelin Hayes.
“Our seniors have done a lot to turn our program around; they endured a lot as the young guys, sophomores at that time, and the transition to being the team that we are today.”
On a 27 degree night (third coldest at Notre Dame Stadium since 1980) with a real feel temperature of 21, Notre Dame moved to 3-6 all time in the series with Florida State.
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Senior running back Dexter Williams ran up over 200 yards rushing before the fourth quarter was even over, and scored two touchdowns. ND finished with 365 on the ground.
“He doesn’t have a lot of miles on him, and I think that that helps as we go through later in the year,” said Kelly in response to a Dexter Williams “talk about…..” Not a William question, but a “talk about.”
Kelly continued: “Hasn’t played a lot. Backs that have a lot of carries that are banged up, especially here in the month of November, they have a tendency to wear down a little bit. He’s got fresh legs and he’s still learning.”
“So I think we’re seeing the effects of a back that is coming into his own and getting an opportunity now later in his career certainly, but seeing things, learning thing, and tapping into his potential.”
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, regularly appears as a guest pundit on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
He also contributes sociopolitical essays to Lineups.com and Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to his.