Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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68 MARCH 2021 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED standard of 29 from 1990-94 under head coach Lou Holtz. Alabama is far and away the cur- rent leader with an NCAA-record 98 such triumphs that began in 2007, head coach Nick Saban's first year with the Crimson Tide after his squad was stunned at home by Louisiana-Monroe. Last year, Notre Dame had its third consecutive unbeaten season at home, thereby extending its winning streak to 24. Since the opening of Notre Dame Stadium, the longest winning streak is 28 in 1942-50. Only Clemson with 28 owns a longer current winning streak at home. Consider that in the 22 years from 1990-2011, the Fighting Irish finished unbeaten at home only once (1998). Next year 's senior class at Notre Dame could be the first since the afore- mentioned 1950 graduates to never experience a defeat at home. Both of these streaks speak to consis- tency, which is what creates a program and overall winning culture. It's a far cry from the 2007-16 days when the Irish lost home games to Navy (twice), Air Force, Tulsa, a 2-8 Syracuse team, Connecticut, Northwestern and Louis- ville in back-to-back weeks in 2014 (the Wildcats had lost four in a row enter- ing the contest), or even a Michigan State unit in 2016 that would finish 3-9. BACK ON SCHEDULE Notre Dame's one-year deal as a full football member in the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2020, because of the pandemic, came with some perks. Among them was a much lighter schedule because of the overall down season in the ACC. Five of the nine league opponents during the regular season finished with losing records, while Pitt and Boston College each were 6-5. The lone non-conference opponent Notre Dame faced was South Florida, which ended up 1-8. The won-lost record for the 2020 regular season op- position was 44-63 (.411), one of the worst ever faced by the Fighting Irish. The 2021 slate is projected to be much more challenging (see page 69). In its "Way Too Early" top 25 for next season, ESPN featured four Notre Dame opponents: North Carolina (No. 7), USC (No. 9), Cincinnati (No. 11) and Wisconsin (No. 17), with the Irish ranked at No. 15. The good news is the first three are all at home — where the Irish have not lost in three years — while the outing with the Badgers will be in Chicago, a friendly home to Notre Dame. An "upset special" also could be lurking at Florida State in the Labor Day Sunday opener. The last time Notre Dame opened a season on a Sunday night was at Texas in 2016. The once-powerful Longhorns were trying to bounce back from a 5-7 sea- son the year prior (including a 38-3 loss at Notre Dame) and needed a marquee win against the Irish to set a better tone. Likewise, the once-powerful Semi- noles are attempting to rebound from a 3-6 finish (including a 42-26 defeat at Notre Dame) and return to power. While Notre Dame is still likely to be favored in most (if not all) 12 reg- ular-season games, a few more sched- uling land mines appear to be in place for 2021. FOR THE RECORD For 90 years, Knute Rockne's 105 career wins —105-12-5 from 1918-30 — have remained the most at Notre Dame, and sacred. Both Lou Holtz with 100 victories and Ara Parseghian with 95 stepped down after 11 years. Entering 2021 with a 102-39 record (.723 winning percentage), 12th-year head coach Brian Kelly is on the cusp of eclipsing the total and thereafter be- ing labeled the "winningest" coach at Notre Dame. Some will take umbrage to that be- cause it might imply that he was the The Fighting Irish have won 24 consecutive games at Notre Dame Stadium, the second-longest streak behind the 28 achieved from 1942-50. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS