Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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uel throughout the game, racking up five sacks against a young and inex- perienced Seminoles offensive line. The 6-5, 245-pound quarterback man- aged to weather the storm and throw for 249 yards, 154 of which came in the second half, to go along with his two touchdown passes. Dec. 29, 2011 ✦ Attendance: 68,305 Florida Citrus Bowl ✦ Orlando, Fla. FLORIDA STATE 18, NOTRE DAME 14 1st Florida State 0 Notre Dame 7 2nd 0 0 3rd 3 7 FirST QuArTer ND Motta 29-yard fumble return (Ruffer kick) 9:04 ThirD QuArTer ND Floyd 5-yard pass from Rees (Ruffer kick) 11:24 Drive: 9 plays, 62 yards, 3:36 FS Hopkins 42-yard field goal 9:03 3 14 Drive: 4 plays, -3 yards, 2:08 FOurTh QuArTer FS Reed 18-yard pass from Manuel (Manuel pass fail) 14:54 Drive: 10 plays, 84 yards, 4:10 FS Greene 15-yard pass from Manuel (Manuel rush fail) 13:18 Drive: 2 plays, 18 yards, 0:42 FS Hopkins 29-yard field goal 8:05 18 14 Drive: 9 plays, 71 yards, 3:23 Total First Downs Rushing Passing Penalty rushing Attempts Yards Gained rushing Yards Lost rushing Net Yards rushing Net Yards Passing Passes Attempted Passes Completed Had Intercepted Percent Completion Yards Per Attempt Yards Per Completion Total Offensive Plays Total Net Yards Avg. Gain Per Play Fumbles: No.-Lost Penalties: No.-Yards Punts: No.-Yards Avg. Per Punt Avg. Net Punt Punt returns: No.-Yards Kickoff returns: No.-Yards interception returns: No.-Yards Fumble returns: No.-Yards Miscellaneous Yards Possession Time Third-Down Conversions Percentage Fourth-Down Conversions Percentage Sacks By: No.-Yards 28 FEBRUARY 2012 FSu ND 13 19 4 8 1 9 9 1 29 35 87 133 46 40 41 93 249 187 31 35 20 19 0 3 64.5% 54.3% 8.0 5.3 12.4 9.8 60 70 290 280 4.8 4.0 1-1 1-0 5-44 5-39 8-378 7-285 47.2 40.7 36.6 38.1 2-18 3-45 2-101 5-94 3-39 0-0 0-0 1-29 0 0 29:51 30:09 3-14 7-15 21.4% 46.7% 0-1 0-0 0.0% 0.0% 4-28 5-44 15 14 9 14 0 14 FSu ND 0 7 4th 15 0 Tot. 18 14 Notre Dame's quarterbacks, the biggest storyline for the Irish through- out the past year and specifically the past month, posted equally mediocre numbers against a staunch Seminoles defense. Rees started the game and took the majority of the snaps. He completed 16 of 27 pass attempts for 163 yards with one touchdown that came with a hefty assist from senior wide receiver Michael Floyd. He was also sacked four times and threw two interceptions. "It's the most frustrating thing," Rees said. "The defense is playing so well, and you want to do your part and make sure that they know you have their back. You're unable to come up with a lot of points, espe- cially when they were playing so well and so hard. "It's a team game, and the offense had to be better tonight." Hendrix was competent in his slightly expanded role in Orlando, but did nothing worthy of knocking Rees out of his starting position just yet. He attempted only eight passes and completed three of them. He ran for 26 yards as well in a more bal- anced role than he had played in his brief appearances during the regular season. "I think we were committed to not putting Andrew in a package. We wanted him to run the offense," Kelly said. "We were just trying to get them in a flow as best we could. It's never easy when you play two quarterbacks." The Irish offense struggled to find its rhythm against the No. 4 scoring defense in the nation regardless of who was at the helm throughout the night. Notre Dame's two most ef- ficient looking drives were the first of each half. The Irish ran straight into the teeth of the Seminoles front seven on its first series of the game after a 41-yard punt return by Floyd put the offense in good field position. Rees and Co. worked the ball down to the 4-yard line before he was intercepted in the end zone for the first time by FSU safety Lamarcus Joyner. Florida State's offense bailed Rees out by returning the favor on the next play. Junior linebacker Manti Te'o pried the ball loose from freshman running back Devonta Moore and junior safety Zeke Motta scooped up the loose ball at the 29-yard line for an easy sprint across the goal line. Sophomore backup quarterback Andrew Hendrix rushed for 26 yards on four carries, but also threw a costly interception during Florida State's fourth-quarter comeback. PHOTO BY GREG OYSTER "It was an emotional play for me — it was my first touchdown in col- lege football," Motta said. "I made a good break, and Manti made a great play, made a heck of a hit and got the ball out. Fortunately I was there to scoop it and score." Motta's touchdown was the first fumble return for a score by a Notre Dame player since Brian Smith did it against Michigan in 2008 and the only points of any kind during the first half of the game. The Irish opened the second half on offense with another impressive drive. Kelly used both of his quar- terbacks' strengths during a nine- play, 62-yard scoring drive that was capped by Floyd's circus act touch- down catch. Rees threw a fade pass from the 5-yard line, which Floyd ripped from a defender's hands and then juggled for several seconds be- fore pulling it in. "It was a great catch," Rees said. "We tried to put a jump ball up there for him. It looked like it kind of got out of his hands coming down, but he's such a good player his concen- tration to find it and secure it was unbelievable." Floyd finished the game with five catches for 41 yards. The touchdown grab was his 100th catch of the sea- son and the final one of his career. The senior injured his chest later and was eventually confined to the side- lines to watch a victory slip away in his last game as a Notre Dame player. ✦ BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED