Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM SEPT. 9, 2023 15 UNDER THE DOME 35 Years Ago: Sept. 17, 1988 For the second week in a row, No. 8 Notre Dame was carried by superb defense and special teams play, this time to defeat defending Big Ten and Rose Bowl champion Michigan State 20-3 in Spartan Stadium. The Irish battled to a 6-3 halftime lead on the strength of two Reggie Ho field goals (making him 6 of 6 on the year), one of them set up by a blocked punt from freshman Raghib "Rocket" Ismail. Defensively, linebacker Michael Stone- breaker headlined the charge with 17 tackles and 2 interceptions, the latter returned for a touchdown in the closing minutes. Despite no threat of the pass on offense (2 of 9 at MSU, and 5 of 21 through two games), the Irish racked up 195 rushing yards in the second half against the vaunted "Gang Green" defense that finished No. 1 against the run a year earlier. Quarterback Tony Rice scored the team's first touchdown on offense this year in the third quar- ter on a 9-yard run. Senior Mark Green finished with 125 yards on 21 carries, and sophomore Tony Brooks — stepping in for injured fullbacks Anthony Johnson and Braxston Banks — totaled 66 yards on 11 attempts. 30 Years Ago: Sept. 18, 1993 Elevated from No. 11 to No. 4 after winning at No. 3 Michigan a week earlier, the Irish momen- tum continued with a 36-14 win at home versus Michigan State. Senior quarterback Kevin McDougal completed 17 of 23 passes for 185 yards with 2 touchdowns — to running backs Ray Zellars and Lee Becton — while the powerful ground game amassed 269 yards, led by freshman and East Lansing native Randy Kinder's 94 yards on 12 carries. Two other freshmen, tailback Robert Farmer and fullback Marc Edwards, tallied their first career touchdowns. 20 Years Ago: Sept. 20, 2003 Michigan State kept a recent tradition going by beating the Fighting Irish for the fourth straight time at Notre Dame Stadium, winning 22-16. Jaren Hayes scored on a 71-yard run and Greg Taplin returned an interception 40 yards for a touchdown for the Spartans in their sixth victory in the past seven games against the Irish. Freshman quarterback Brady Quinn came off the bench to breathe some life into a stagnant Irish offense, completing 7 of 17 throws for 99 yards. He threw a 29-yard scoring pass to Rhema McKnight with 2:29 remaining in the game, but Michigan State backup quarterback Drew Stanton recovered the Irish's onside kick attempt to end their hopes of a comeback. 10 Years Ago: Sept. 14, 2013 The Fighting Irish scored three fourth-quarter touchdowns in a span of 3:29 to rally for a 31-24 victory at Purdue. Senior quarterback Tommy Rees and junior wide receiver DaVaris Daniels ignited the comeback with a pair of scoring con- nections. The first came with the Irish trailing 17-10 in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter when Daniels made a leaping catch in the back of the end zone on third-and-goal from the 9-yard line. After the Irish forced a Purdue punt, Daniels reeled in a Rees pass, fought off a defender and stayed in bounds while breaking away for an 82- yard touchdown and 24-17 advantage. On Purdue's possession following the 82-yard catch and run, the Irish defense seized its own opportunity while clinging to a 24-17 lead. On third-and-three from the Boilermakers' 32-yard line, senior cornerback Bennett Jackson inter- cepted quarterback Rob Henry's pass and scam- pered 34 yards to hand the Irish a two-score lead, 31-17. Daniels finished the game with 8 receptions for 167 yards and the 2 touchdowns, while Rees completed 20 of 33 passes for 309 yards with 2 touchdowns and no interceptions. 5 Years Ago: Sept. 14, 2018 Notre Dame notched a hard-fought home vic- tory versus SEC foe Vanderbilt on the strength of its ground attack. The Irish outgained the Com- modores 245-94 in rushing yards, led by junior Tony Jones Jr.'s career-high 118 on 17 carries. He also caught 2 passes for 56 yards. Senior quarterback Brandon Wimbush added 84 yards on 19 carries and a score to go with 13- of-23 passing for 122 yards. The Irish defense sealed the win, getting a fourth-down stop on the Irish 31-yard line with just more than a minute left. The win was sealed with a 63-yard punt from Tyler Newsome be- fore Julian Love recovered a fumble after an at- tempted hook-and-ladder play by Vandy resulted in a scrum. Anniversaries In Notre Dame Football History: Sept. 14-20 UNDER THE DOME Senior quarterback Kevin McDougal connected on 17 of 23 throws for 185 yards with 2 touchdowns in Notre Dame's 36-14 win over Michigan in 1993. FILE PHOTO