Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1539020
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM SEPT. 13, 2025 15 45 Years Ago: Sept. 6, 1980 The earliest opener (at the time) ever for Notre Dame saw No. 9 Purdue ranked ahead of the No. 11 Fighting Irish in the Associated Press poll for only the third time in the series' 52-game history. Coming off its worst record (7-4) in 16 years, including a 28-22 loss at Purdue, needing to replace all-time leading rusher Vagas Fergu- son and with head coach Dan Devine consid- ered a lame duck after announcing he would step down at the end of the season, Notre Dame was expected to struggle again. However, a thumb injury suffered earlier in the week by Purdue senior quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate Mark Herrmann forced the Boilermakers to start freshman Scott Campbell. He completed 17 of 26 passes for 178 yards, but Notre Dame rolled to a 31-10 victory to move up to No. 8. Irish senior quarterback Mike Courey com- pleted 10 of 13 throws for 151 yards with a touchdown to split end Tony Hunter and added 59 yards on 9 rushing attempts, featur- ing a 14-yard score. Sophomore Phil Carter's 29 carries accumulated 142 yards. 30 Years Ago: Sept. 9, 1995 One week after the stunning loss at home versus 27-point underdog Northwestern (17-15) in the opener, 10th-year Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz recorded his 200th career victory in the collegiate ranks with a 35-28 triumph at Purdue. Junior quarterback Ron Powlus tied a Fighting Irish single-game record with 4 touchdown passes, all to different targets: 30 yards to Randy Kinder, 12 yards to Derrick Mayes, 15 yards to Scott Sollmann and 51 yards to Emmett Mosley. Kinder also rushed for 142 yards on only 14 carries, highlighted by a 52-yard scamper with 9:12 left in the game to break the 28-28 tie. Freshman Autry Denson, a reserve cornerback a week earlier, also made his debut at running back and totaled 72 yards on 9 carries. Two days later, Holtz was at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., preparing to undergo surgery to correct "a serious compression of the spinal cord in his neck." The four-and-a-half hour surgery on Sept. 12 sidelined Holtz from coaching activi- ties the next few weeks. First-year athletics director Mike Wadsworth promoted defensive coordinator Bob Davie to temporary head coach. Assistant head coach/receivers coach Tom Clements was placed in charge of handling administrative duties. 25 Years Ago: Sept. 2, 2000 Notre Dame entered a season unranked for the first time in 14 years — which was Lou Holtz's first season in 1986 — but posted a 24-10 victory at home versus No. 25 Texas A&M. On the proverbial hot seat after a 5-7 re- cord in his third season the year prior, head coach Bob Davie defeated the school where he excelled as a defensive coordinator before getting hired for the same position at Notre Dame in 1994. The heat was also felt inside the stadium when the on-field temperature was announced at 108 degrees. In his starting debut at quarterback, junior Arnaz Battle completed 10 of 16 passes for 133 yards with 2 touchdowns, the second a 46-yard heave to Javin Hunter in the third quarter to put the Irish ahead for good, 14-10. 20 Years Ago: Sept. 10, 2005 Unranked in the preseason, Notre Dame was directed by first-year head coach Charlie Weis to a 17-10 win at No. 3 Michigan one week after a 42-21 victory at Pitt. Notre Dame advertised it as the first time an Irish first-year coach opened with back-to- back wins at another team's on-campus sta- dium to start 2-0 since Knute Rockne in 1918. "If I dignified that [comment], [Bill] Parcells and [Bill] Belichick would just humiliate me," Weis said of what his mentors would say of the Rockne comparison. "I've coached two games … let's come back and revisit that about 10 years from now." 15 Years Ago: Sept. 4, 2010 In Brian Kelly's debut as the Irish head coach, senior running back Armando Allen Jr. (93 yards on 18 carries) scored the first touchdown on a 22-yard run in the first quarter of a 23-12 victory versus Purdue at Notre Dame Stadium. Allen also set up the second touchdown with a 38-yard punt return, while kicker Da- vid Ruffer converted all 3 of his field goal attempts, the longest from 46 yards. Junior quarterback Dayne Crist connected on 19 of 26 throws for 205 yards with a 5-yard touchdown toss to freshman wideout TJ Jones. Cornerbacks Darrin Walls and Gary Gray highlighted a strong defensive effort. UNDER THE DOME Anniversaries In Notre Dame Football History: Sept. 1-13 ✦ Your home address will be automatically changed to the mailing address on file with the US Postal Service? ALL addresses are cross-referenced with the USPS National Change of Address database. ✦ Your postal forwarding order expires in 60 days or less? Most forwarding requests expire in 60 days and DO NOT include periodical mail. Issues are discarded at their discretion. ✦ It can take up to 7 days for the USPS to update your address in their database? Don't assume the post office knows your vacation or moving schedule! To prevent missed issues, please notify the US Postal Service ASAP and verify your delivery address with your local post office. DID YOU KNOW... AVOID COSTLY DELAYS & REPLACEMENTS! Blue & Gold Illustrated Customer Service: 1–800–421–7751 (Monday – Friday, 10 am to 4 pm) We are happy to assist, but due to privacy laws all postal address changes must be completed by you. Junior quarterback Arnaz Battle connected on 10 of 16 throws for 133 yards with 2 touchdowns to lead the unranked Irish to a 24-10 win over No. 25 Texas A&M to open the 2000 season. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS