Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1529159
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 16, 2024 23 1st Interception by graduate student cor- nerback Jordan Clark in a Fighting Irish uniform, coming on the first possession of the third quarter. The transfer from Arizona State now has 4 career interceptions. 4 Times this season, senior quarterback Riley Leonard has scored multiple rushing touch- downs in a game for the Fighting Irish. He had 3 at Purdue Sept. 14, 2 versus Miami (Ohio) Sept. 21, 2 at Georgia Tech Oct. 19 and 2 against Florida State Nov. 9. Leonard now has 13 rushing scores through nine games, which is the second-best single-season total by an Irish quarterback (since 1940) behind only Brandon Wimbush, who tallied 14 in 2017. Through Week 11, Leonard's 32 career rushing touchdowns were tied for the most among active FBS quarter- backs with Dillon Gabriel of No. 1-ranked Oregon. 8 Sacks for Notre Dame against Florida State, which were a season high and are tied for the second most in school history. The Irish also re- corded 8 sacks in a 35-20 win over Virginia on Sept. 28, 2019 and in a 31-8 triumph over Michigan State on Sept. 19, 1987, with both games being played at Notre Dame Stadium. Per the official Notre Dame record book, the program recorded is 9 in a 21- 20 Irish win over Michigan State in East Lansing, Mich., on Sept. 17, 1994. (Blue & Gold Illustrated records show that the Irish also notched 9 sacks in a 62-0 win over Rutgers on Nov. 23, 1996.) 9 Straight games with a rushing touchdown for sophomore running back Jeremiyah Love after he scored from 1 yard out early in the fourth quarter. That tied Love for the fourth-longest streak in school history: Player Games Year(s) Wayne Bullock 11 1973-74 Jerome Bettis 10 1991 Autry Denson 10 1998 Vagas Ferguson 9 1979 Jeremiyah Love 9 2024 49 Points was the largest margin of victory (52-3) by either team in the series be- tween Notre Dame and Florida State. The previous high was a 37-0 win for the Seminoles in 2003. The previous high for the Fighting Irish was a 42-13 triumph in 2018. The 49-point defeat is also tied for the largest in Florida State football history, matching the 59-10 home loss to Clemson in 2018 and the 49-0 loss at Florida in 1973. The 52 points scored by the Irish are the most against Florida State since archrival Miami put 52 on them in 2020. The 1-9 Seminoles, who opened the season ranked No. 10 in the Associated Press poll, also became the first preseason top-10 team to lose nine games. Their 1-9 mark is their worst since they finished the 1974 campaign 1-10. 75 Yards on 16 plays (4.7 yards per play) for Florida State on its first offensive posses- sion against Notre Dame, which resulted in its only 3 points of the game. The Seminoles were shut out the rest of the way and managed only 133 yards on 43 plays (3.1 yards per play). 79 Yards on sophomore safety Luke Talich's interception return touchdown that closed out the scoring late in the fourth quarter. It marked his first career pick and touchdown in his Fighting Irish career. 157 Rushing yards on 18 carries for the Irish against the Seminoles in the first half alone. That marked the third time this season the Irish had racked up at least 150 yards on the ground in the first half of a game. Notre Dame also did it against Navy (23 for 161) Oct. 26 and Purdue (24 for 278) Sept. 14. The Irish finished the game against the Seminoles with 32 carries for 201 yards (6.3 yards per attempt) and 4 touchdowns. 208 Total yards for Florida State — the fifth time this season that the Fighting Irish have held an opponent to less than 250. Texas A&M (246), Purdue (162), Miami (229) and Stanford (200) are the others. Per Notre Dame media relations, the last time the Fighting Irish limited five opponents to 250 or fewer total yards was the national championship season of 1988. The last time an Irish team did it six times was in 1983. BY THE NUMBERS BY STEVE DOWNEY 399 D ays b et we e n touchdown re- ceptions for se- nior tight end MITCHELL EVANS. His 12- yard touchdown reception against Florida State from senior quarterback Riley Leonard was his first since he hauled in a 6-yard scoring pass from Sam Hartman in a 33-20 loss at Louisville on Oct. 7, 2023. Evans, who caught 2 passes for 21 yards against the Seminoles, now has 3 career touchdown receptions in his four seasons with the Fighting Irish. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER