1993 Florida State vs. Notre Dame football game

1993 Florida State vs. Notre Dame football game

NCAAFootballSingleGameHeader
Name=1993 Florida State vs. Notre Dame
Year=1993
Type=nc


Date=November 13, 1993
Stadium=Notre Dame Stadium
City=Notre Dame, Indiana
Visitor Name Short=Florida State
Visitor Nickname=Seminoles
Home Name Short=Notre Dame
Home Nickname=Fighting Irish
Visitor Record=9-0
Home Record=9-0
Visitor Coach=Bobby Bowden
Home Coach=Lou Holtz
Visitor1=7
Visitor2=0
Visitor3=7
Visitor4=10
Home1=7
Home2=14
Home3=3
Home4=7
Visitor

Visitor Coaches=1
Visitor BCS=
Home

Home Coaches=2
Home BCS=
MVP=
Odds=
Anthem=
Referee=
Halftime=
Attendance=
US Network=NBC
US Announcers=
Ratings=
Intl Network=
Intl Announcers=

November 13, 1993: In a matchup of unbeatens, Florida State University was ranked Number 1, and Notre Dame was ranked Number 2. The winner of this game, at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana, was certain to play Number 3 Nebraska (which would then move up to Number 2) in the Orange Bowl for the National Championship. [http://www-tech.mit.edu/V113/N59/argue.59s.html Fighting Irish Win Game of the Century] The Tech (MIT newspaper) Mike Duffy and Andrew Heitner. Volume 113, Issue 59 : Friday, November 19, 1993]

The game

Florida State had quarterback Charlie Ward, who would win the Heisman Trophy. Notre Dame was an underdog, but had the home-field advantage and the Notre Dame mystique on its side. They also had the mystique of having played in so many great games, including the 1946 and 1966 "Games of the Century."

NBC television coverage

It was a game between the most-hyped program of the era and the most-hyped program in college football history, and NBC, which had exclusive rights to Fighting Irish home games (and was thus mocked by some as the "Notre Dame Broadcasting Company," much as CBS was ripped as the "Cowboys Broadcasting System" by Dallas Cowboys-haters in the 1970s and 1980s), tried to market this matchup as the "Game of the Century." There was considerable media discussion as to whether the game would live up to the hype, and, if not, how bad NBC would look. ESPN would also hype the game, showing FSU players touring the Notre Dame campus that week wearing green hats with shamrocks and gold-embroidered FSU initials on the front, and having the first on-campus edition of College GameDay from South Bend. The Peacock Network did not have to worry, because they got the classic they hoped for.

coring

The Irish appeared to be riding those mystiques the entire game, leading 31-17 as the Seminoles got the ball with 1:39 to play. But Ward drove the 'Noles down the field, and hit Kez McCorvey on 4th-and-20 for a touchdown that bounced off Irish safety Brian McGee. Notre Dame got the ball back, but went three-and-out, giving FSU one last shot. In just three plays, they got to the Irish 14 with three seconds to play. Ward rolled out and had a wide open receiver in the end zone, but did not see him, and his pass was batted down. Notre Dame won, 31-24, and a sellout crowd stormed the field.

Aftermath

The Irish were now Number 1, but surprisingly Florida State was only dropped to Number 2, setting up a rematch in the Fiesta Bowl. All Notre Dame had to do was beat Boston College the next week. But BC won on a last-second field goal, and the Irish were knocked out of the top spot. Nebraska advanced to Number 2 and Florida State to Number 1, and their National Championship showdown was set. Ironically, having blown potential National Championships by missing last-second field goals in their games against the University of Miami in each of the two previous seasons, Florida State won the game, 18-16, after hitting a last-minute field goal and Nebraska's miss of a last-second field goal try. After several close calls in the Bobby Bowden era, Seminole fans finally had their first National Championship.

Cornhusker fans, having had several close calls since their last title in 1971, would have to wait one more year. Fighting Irish fans still burn over this one, claiming that they should have been given the Orange Bowl berth because of their win over FSU. West Virginia also believes they got slighted, believing that the chain of succession that the Mountaineers beat Boston College, who beat Notre Dame, who beat Florida State was sufficient enough to land them in the Orange Bowl. West Virginia did get a spot in the USF&G Sugar Bowl, where they lost to Florida (who lost to Florida State) by a score of 41-7.

References

Books

*Whittingham, Richard. (December 1985). "Saturday Afternoon: College Football and the Men Who Made the Day": Workman Pub Co. ISBN 0894809334 (Synopsis of several of the listed games)

ee also

Game of the Century (college football)


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