Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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60 NOV. 12, 2018 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI M any a longtime Notre Dame follower will tell you the most recent epic, "one for the ages" football victory oc- curred versus No. 1 Florida State on Nov. 13, 1993. That was when the 10-0 and No. 2-ranked Fighting Irish returned to the summit (for one week anyway). It has also become a form of a demar- cation point in the program's history. In the 25 years hence from 1994-2018, Notre Dame has failed to win a major bowl (it won 10 from 1970-93, the most in that span) and is 10-31 versus teams in the top 10 at the time of the game. How anticipated was the 1993 "Game Of The Century" contest be- tween No. 1 Florida State and No. 2 Notre Dame? • For the first time ever, ESPN moved its "College GameDay" show from its studio in Bristol, Conn., to an on-campus site, Notre Dame. • A loose and confident Irish head coach Lou Holtz hosted the media in his own home the Thursday night be- fore the game. • Notre Dame issued 810 press passes, even though the press box seated only 300. It broke the 1988 Mi- ami game record of 650, and no other game has come close since then. GREATEST TEAM EVER? It was not a debate to many that Florida State, led by Heisman Trophy- winning quarterback Charlie Ward, was the greatest college football team in 1993. The issue was whether it was pos- sibly the greatest college football team ever. The Seminoles outscored their first nine opponents by an average of 44.3- 6.4, including a 57-0 annihilation of No. 17 Clemson, a 51-0 slaughter of Georgia Tech (which had shared the national title just three years earlier), and a 28- 10 whipping of No. 3 and longtime nemesis Miami. Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden also was complimentary of 9-0 Notre Dame — but his players didn't get the memo about speaking respect- fully of the opponent. A couple of his players, including star receiver Kez Mc- Corvey, referred to Notre Dame l918-30 head coach and legend Knute Rockne as "Rock Knuteny." "Mystique? There is no mystique," FSU wide receiver Kevin Knox said of Notre Dame. "How are they going to stop us?" "The Four Horsemen, Knute Rockne — or whatever his name is — they won't be playing," defensive back Clif- ton Abraham added. "… They need to play the most perfect game Notre Dame has ever played if they plan on beating us." The 1993 season was supposed to be a "rebuilding" year for Notre Dame be- cause the 1992 backfield lost first-round picks in quarterback Rick Mirer and fullback Jerome "The Bus" Bettis, plus standout tailback Reggie Brooks in the second round. First-round tight end Irv Smith also graduated, and first-round cornerback Tom Carter joined Bettis as an early entrant into the NFL Draft. Two strengths made the Irish a sur- prising 9-0 and No. 2. One was line play, led by Lombardi Award winner Aaron Taylor on offense and fellow first-round pick and future All-Pro Bryant Young on defense. The other was protecting the foot- ball. Notre Dame entered the contest with no turnovers in its previous three games — and would also have zero against Florida State. (It finished with a school-record low 10 for the season.) Senior quarterback Kevin McDougal ran the offense with precision, while tailback Lee Becton and fullback Ray Zellars were augmented by freshmen Randy Kinder and Marc Edwards. THE GAME On the eve of the game, Holtz held his "visualization session." To the sur- prise of his players, Holtz told them SILVER ANNIVERSARY; GOLDEN MOMENT PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME MEDIA RELATIONS The No. 1 versus No. 2 showdown between Florida State and Notre Dame in 1993 still resonates