2008 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team

The 2008 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame in the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Charlie Weis and played its home games at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana. This was Weis's fourth season as Notre Dame's head coach, who entered the season with a 22–15 record, coming off a 3–9 season after posting back-to-back BCS seasons.

2008 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
Hawaii Bowl champion
Hawaii Bowl, W 49–21 vs. Hawaii
Conference	Independent
Record	7–6
Head coach	Charlie Weis (4th season)
Offensive coordinator	Michael Haywood (4th season)
Offensive scheme	Pro-style
Defensive coordinator	Corwin Brown (2nd season)
Base defense	3–4
Captains	Maurice Crum Jr. David Grimes David Bruton
Home stadium	Notre Dame Stadium (c. 80,795, grass)
Seasons ← 2007 2009 →

2008 NCAA Division I FBS independents football records
v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Navy			–						8	–	5
Notre Dame			–						7	–	6
Army			–						3	–	9
WKU			–						2	–	10
Rankings from AP Poll

The Irish started 4–1, but completed the regular season with a 6–6 record, including a 24–23 loss to Syracuse, the first time that Notre Dame had fallen to an eight-loss team. The combined 15 losses from 2007–08 marks the most losses for any two-year span. Despite speculation the university might fire Weis, it was announced shortly after the conclusion of the regular season that he would remain head coach in 2009.^[1] Notre Dame ended the season on a positive note, finally ending their NCAA record nine-game bowl losing streak by beating Hawaii 49–21.^[2] In the process, Notre Dame scored its highest point total of the season, its highest point total ever in a bowl game, and broke 8 other bowl records.^[2] The bowl win also helped Notre Dame to a 7–6 final record, its 102nd winning season in 120 years of football.^[2]

Pre-season

 

Two-Time Captain Maurice Crum Jr.

Coaching changes

Despite the turmoil of the previous football season, head coach Charlie Weis did not make many changes to the coaching staff. The one major change to the staff was the addition of Jon Tenuta, former defensive coordinator of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, as the new linebackers coach and assistant head coach.^[3] Tetuna became responsible for the day-to-day operations of the team with Weis retaining responsibility only for recruiting.^[4] Tenuta's addition followed the retirement of Bill Lewis from active coaching.^[4] Other changes included reassignment of football duties. Weis announced that he would be turning over control of the offense, including game day play calling, to offensive coordinator Michael Haywood.^[5] On defense, Corwin Brown switched from coaching linebackers to coaching defensive backs following Lewis' retirement.^[5] Tenuta assumed coaching the linebackers.^[5] Finally, citing the poor play on special teams, Weis made Brian Polian the sole special teams coach and announced that he would be helping Polian when needed.^[5] The previous year, all coaches had a hand in helping with special teams.

Roster changes

Graduating players

Seniors tight end John Carlson, defensive end Trevor Laws, safety Tom Zbikowski and center John Sullivan were all drafted by NFL teams. Three players that were not drafted quickly signed with NFL teams as free agents following the NFL Draft: linebacker Joe Brockington, long snapper J. J. Jansen and running back Travis Thomas.^[6] Quarterbacks Darrin Bragg and Justin Gillett, defensive end Dwight Stephenson Jr., cornerback Ambrose Wooden and punter Geoff Price also graduated and exhausted their remaining eligibility. Notre Dame also had several players who graduated and decided not to apply for a fifth year of eligibility: running back Junior Jabbie, cornerback Leo Ferine and linebacker Anthony Vernaglia.

Transfers

After the end of the spring practice session, sophomore-to-be linebacker Aaron Nagel transferred from Notre Dame to the Northwestern Wildcats.^[7] In July, wide receiver D.J. Hord announced he was transferring from Notre Dame to a yet unnamed Division I Football Championship Subdivision school, where he would have two years eligibility remaining.^[8] Once a highly touted recruit, injuries had hampered his progress and he left with 2 catches for 7 yards in his Notre Dame career.^[8] It was also announced the same day that starting cornerback Darin Walls would not enroll and play football this season for undisclosed personal reasons, but would return the following spring.^[8] On August, 15, several days into fall practice, reserve wide receiver Richard Jackson announced he would be leaving Notre Dame for a school closer to his home in Florida.^[9]

Recruiting

The Irish added 23 players to its roster with high school recruits. Included in the class were five-star wide receiver recruit Michael Floyd, five-star quarterback recruit Dayne Crist, and five-star defensive lineman Ethan Johnson. Five-star tight end Kyle Rudolph also bolstered a class that included six four star recruits on offense, and nine four star recruits on defense. The class was named No. 2 by both Rivals and Scout. Rivals revised Notre Dame's ranking to No. 1 after factoring in players recruited by other schools that did not enroll with their classmates.^[10]

US college sports recruiting information for 2008 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	40^‡	Commit date
Robert Blanton CB	Matthews, NC	David W Butler HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	176 lb (80 kg)	4.5	Jun 20, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 76
Braxston Cave C	Mishawaka, IN	Penn HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	293 lb (133 kg)	5.09	Mar 3, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 81
Lane Clelland OG	Owings Mills, MD	Mc Donogh HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	267 lb (121 kg)	4.9	May 3, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Dayne Crist QB	Sherman Oaks, CA	Notre Dame HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	226 lb (103 kg)	4.68	Apr 19, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 84
Sean Cwynar DT	Woodstock, IL	Marian Central Catholic HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	283.5 lb (128.6 kg)	NA	Mar 6, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Joseph Fauria TE	Encino, CA	Crespi Carmelite HS	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	4.75	Jul 24, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Steve Filer LB	Chicago, IL	Mount Carmel HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	4.65	Apr 21, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 81
Darius Fleming SLB	Chicago, IL	St. Rita HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	4.57	Apr 21, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 81
Michael Floyd WR	St. Paul, MN	Cretin Derham Hall	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	197 lb (89 kg)	4.55	Oct 21, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 83
Michael Golic Jr. OG	West Hartford, CT	Northwest Catholic HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	263 lb (119 kg)	5.1	Feb 19, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
John Goodman WR	Fort Wayne, IN	Bishop Dwenger HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	189 lb (86 kg)	4.5	Mar 3, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Jonas Gray RB	Beverly Hills, MI	Detroit Country Day School	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	214 lb (97 kg)	4.40	Oct 22, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 82
Ethan Johnson DE	Portland, OR	Lincoln HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	265 lb (120 kg)	4.85	Jun 27, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 82
Kapron Lewis-Moore DE	Weatherford, TX	Weatherford HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	4.83	Feb 6, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A
Dan McCarthy S	Youngstown, OH	Cardinal Mooney HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	4.49	Jul 16, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 80
Anthony McDonald MLB	Sherman Oaks, CA	Notre Dame HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	4.53	Apr 11, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Brandon Newman DT	Louisville, KY	Pleasure Ridge Park HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	302 lb (137 kg)	5.07	May 26, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
David Posluszny WLB	Aliquippa, PA	Hopewell Senior HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	4.61	Apr 6, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Trevor Robinson OG	Elkhorn, NE	Elkhorn Secondary School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	304 lb (138 kg)	5.20	Dec 14, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 80
Kyle Rudolph TE	Cincinnati, OH	Elder HS	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	4.55	Mar 26, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 81
Jamoris Slaughter S	Tucker, GA	Tucker HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	183 lb (83 kg)	4.50	Jun 27, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 82
Deion Walker WR	Christchurch, VA	Christchurch School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	4.44	Jan 5, 2008
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 81
Hafis Williams DT	Elizabeth, NJ	Elizabeth HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	290 lb (130 kg)	May 2, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 79
Adam Wisbrock TE	Palatine, IL	Palatine HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	4.52	Jun 21, 2007
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 81
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: #2   Rivals: #1
‡ Refers to 40 yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Notre Dame Commit List 2008". Rivals.com. Retrieved 2008-07-06. "Scout.com Football Recruiting: Notre Dame". Scout.com. Retrieved 2008-07-06. "2008 Player Commitments – Notre Dame". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2008-07-06. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved 2008-07-06. "2008 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved 2008-07-06.

Award candidates

The following players were announced to award watch lists prior to the start of the 2008 season:

• David Bruton – Bronko Nagurski Trophy^[11]
• Jimmy Clausen – Maxwell Award^[12]
• Maurice Crum Jr. – Bronko Nagurski Trophy,^[11] Chuck Bednarik Award^[13]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 6	3:30 p.m.	San Diego State	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN	NBC	W 21–13	80,795
September 13	3:30 p.m.	Michigan	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (rivalry)	NBC	W 35–17	80,795
September 20	3:30 p.m.	at Michigan State	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI (Megaphone Trophy)	ABC/ESPN	L 7–23	76,366
September 27	3:30 p.m.	Purdue	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (Shillelagh Trophy)	NBC	W 38–21	80,795
October 4	2:30 p.m.	Stanford	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (Legends Trophy)	NBC	W 28–21	80,795
October 11	3:30 p.m.	at No. 22 North Carolina	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC	ABC/ESPN2	L 24–29	60,500
October 25	8:00 p.m.	at Washington	Husky Stadium Seattle, WA	ESPN2	W 33–7	70,437
November 1	2:30 p.m.	Pittsburgh	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (rivalry)	NBC	L 33–36 ^4OT	80,795
November 8	8:00 p.m.	at Boston College	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA (Holy War)	ESPN	L 0–17	44,500
November 15	12:00 p.m.	at Navy	M&T Bank Stadium Baltimore, MD (rivalry)	CBS	W 27–21	70,932
November 22	2:30 p.m.	Syracuse	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN	NBC	L 23–24	80,795
November 29	8:00 p.m.	at No. 5 USC	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (Jeweled Shillelagh)	ESPN	L 3–38	90,689
December 24	8:00 p.m.	at Hawaii	Aloha Stadium Honolulu, HI (Hawaii Bowl)	ESPN	W 49–21	43,487
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Roster

Roster

Quarterback  7 Jimmy Clausen – Sophomore 10 Dayne Crist – Freshman 12 Nick Lezynski(w) Sophomore 13 Evan Sharpley – Senior 15 Brian Castello(w) – Sophomore 16 Nate Montana(w) – Freshman Tailback  5 Armando Allen – Sophomore 21 Barry Gallup Jr. – Junior 25 Jonas Gray – Freshman 33 Robert Hughes – Sophomore 34 James Aldridge – Junior 37 Eras Noel(w) – Sophomore 41 Nick Rodriguez(w) – Senior Fullback 30 Steve Paskorz – Sophomore 32 Luke Schmidt – Junior 44 Asaph Schwapp – Senior 46 Joe Vittoria(w) – Senior' 47 Mike Narvaez(w) – Junior Wide Receiver 1 Deion Walker – Freshman  3 Michael Floyd – Freshman 11 David Grimes – Senior – Captain 18 Duval Kamara – Sophomore 19 George West – Junior 23 Golden Tate – Sophomore 24 Brian Coughlin(w) – Junior 29 Michael Garcia(w) – Freshman 38 Chris Gurries(w) – Sophomore 42 Dan Franco(w) – Junior 45 Kris Patterson(w) – Senior 81 John Goodman – Freshman 82 Robby Parris – Junior 85 Sam Vos(w) – Freshman Tight End  9 Kyle Rudolph – Freshman 39 Kevin Brooks(w) – Junior 83 Mike Ragone – Sophomore 84 Will Yeatman – Junior 86 Paul Kuppich(w) – Senior 87 Joe Fauria – Freshman Center 51 Dan Wenger – Junior 52 Braxston Cave – Freshman 57 Mike Golic Jr. – Freshman 62 Bill Flavin(w) – Sophomore 67 Thomas Bemenderfer – Senior Offensive Guard 55 Eric Olsen – Junior 59 Chris Stewart – Junior 69 Carl Brophy(w) – Freshman 70 Matt Romine – Sophomore 71 Dennis Mahoney(w) – Freshman 73 Matt Carufel – Junior 78 Trevor Robinson – Freshman Offensive Tackle 63 Jeff Tisak(w) – Sophomore 65 Mike Hernandez(w) – Freshman 72 Paul Duncan – Senior 73 Lane Clelland – Freshman 74 Sam Young – Junior 75 Taylor Dever – Sophomore 76 Andrew Nuss – Sophomore 77 Mike Turkovich – Senior Nose Tackle 79 Hafis Williams – Freshman 93 Paddy Mullen – Junior 96 Pat Kuntz – Senior 95 Ian Williams – Sophomore 99 Brandon Newman – Freshman Defensive Line  9 Ethan Johnson – Freshman 53 Morrice Richardson – Junior 61 Martin Quintana(w) – Junior 89 Kapron Lewis-Moore – Freshman 90 John Ryan – Junior 91 Emeka Nwankwo – Sophomore 92 Derrell Hand – Senior 94 Justin Brown – Senior 98 Sean Cwynar – Freshman Cornerback  4 Gary Gray – Sophomore  8 Raeshon McNeil – Junior 12 Robert Blanton – Freshman 20 Terrail Lambert – Senior 26 Jamoris Slaughter – Freshman 37 Mike Anello – Senior 31 Zion Azuma Losi- Junior Strong Safety  6 Ray Herring – Senior 24 Leonard Gordon – Junior 28 Kyle McCarthy – Senior 29 Jashaad Gaines – Junior 30 Harrison Smith – Sophomore 80 Vincent Toya(w) – Freshman Free Safety 15 Dan McCarthy – Freshman 27 David Bruton – Senior – Captain 31 Sergio Brown(Nickel) – Junior 38 Chris Bathon(w) – Junior 43 John Leonis(w) – Senior Linebacker 35 Kevin Smith – Senior 36 David Posluszny – Freshman 40 Maurice Crum Jr. – Senior – Captain 41 Scott Smith – Senior 42 Kevin Washington – Senior 45 Darius Fleming – Freshman 46 Steve Filer – Freshman 48 Steve Quinn – Senior 49 Toryan Smith – Junior 54 Anthony McDonald – Freshman 56 Kerry Neal – Sophomore 58 Brian Smith – Sophomore 64 Tom Burke(w) – Junior 97 Kallen Wade – Junior Long Snapper Kick Off 39 Ryan Burkhart – Junior Punter 43 Eric Maust – Junior Place Kicker 14 Brandon Walker – Sophomore 32 David Ruffer(w)(a) – Sophomore 36 Joe Bizjak – Junior

Sources: http://und.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/nd-m-footbl-mtt.html 2007-01-28 at the Wayback Machine, http://notredame.rivals.com/croster.asp?team=NOTREDAME Bold denotes starter (w) denotes non scholarship walk-on (a) denotes player added to roster mid-season Players who left or were dismissed from the team are struck out

Coaching staff

Name	Position	Year at Notre Dame	Alma Mater (Year)
Charlie Weis	Head coach	4th	Notre Dame (1978)
John Latina	Assistant head coach (offense), offensive line	4th	Virginia Tech (1981)
Michael Haywood	Offensive coordinator, running backs	4th	Notre Dame (1986)
Rob Ianello	Recruiting coordinator, receivers	4th	Catholic (1987)
Brian Polian	Special teams	4th	John Carroll (1997)
Corwin Brown	Defensive coordinator, defensive backs	2nd	Michigan (1993)
Jon Tenuta	Assistant head coach (defense), linebackers	1st	Virginia (1982)
Bernie Parmalee	Tight ends	4th	Ball State (1990)
Jerome "Jappy" Oliver	Defensive line	4th	Purdue (1978)
Ron Powlus	Quarterbacks	2nd	Notre Dame (1997)

Game summaries

San Diego State

See also: 2008 San Diego State Aztecs football team

1 2 3 4 Total San Diego St 0 7 6 0 13 • Notre Dame 0 7 0 14 21 Date: September 6 Location: Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, IN Game start: 3:30 p.m. EST

Scoring summary 2 5:32 SDSU Ryan Lindley 1-yard run (Lane Yoshida kick) San Diego St 7–0 2 1:14 ND Michael Floyd 22-yard pass from Jimmy Clausen (Brandon Walker kick) Tie 7–7 3 8:31 SDSU Darren Mougey 15-yard pass from Ryan Lindley (kick failed) San Diego St 13–7 4 9:43 ND Golden Tate 38-yard pass from Jimmy Clausen (Brandon Walker kick) Notre Dame 14–13 4 2:08 ND David Grimes 6-yard pass from Jimmy Clausen (Brandon Walker kick) Notre Dame 21–13

Notre Dame able to put up 14 unanswered points in the 4th quarter to down San Diego State. Notre Dame stalled out multiple times throughout the game due to turnovers, but the Notre Dame defense stood up to Ryan Lindley and the Aztec offense forcing the Aztecs to fumble inside the ND 5 yard line while they were leading by 6 in the 4th quarter. The Irish only allowed 13 points through the entire game and came back in the fourth to open the season with a win.^[14]

Michigan

See also: 2008 Michigan Wolverines football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wolverines	7	10	0	0	17
Fighting Irish	21	7	0	7	35

Turnovers were the name of the game, as Notre Dame jumped out to a 21-point lead off of 2 early Michigan turnovers and went on to beat Michigan 35–17.^[15] Despite Michigan out-gaining the Irish 387 yards to 260 yards, Notre Dame won the turnover battle 6 to 2. Jimmy Clausen connected on touchdown passes of 10 yards and 48 yards to wide receivers Duval Kamara and Golden Tate, respectively. Michigan came to life after the 21 points, when Sam McGuffie turned a short pass from quarterback Steven Threet into a 40-yard touchdown. Michigan kicker K.C. Lopata's 23 yard field goal cut the lead to 21–10. The Irish then answered with an 87-yard touchdown drive, highlighted by a 60-yard pass from Clausen to Tate, who broke three tackles before being caught at the 25 yard line. Robert Hughes scored his second rushing touchdown of the day, a 1-yard run to make it 28–10.

Irish linebacker Brian Smith also returned a fumble 35 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter to put the game away. Notre Dame didn't come away completely unscathed, however, as coach Charlie Weis was knocked over on the sideline by defensive end John Ryan, who was being run out of bounds. Weis spent the remainder of the game on crutches with his left leg wrapped. It was determined during halftime that Weis had torn his ACL and his MCL.^[16] Coach Lou Holtz and the 1988 National Title team were also honored, with a statue of Coach Holtz unveiled outside of the stadium before the game.^[17]

Michigan State

See also: 2008 Michigan State Spartans football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Irish	0	0	0	7	7
Spartans	3	7	3	10	23

Purdue

See also: 2008 Purdue Boilermakers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Boilermakers	7	7	7	0	21
Fighting Irish	0	14	21	3	38

Notre Dame improved to 3–1, matching its win total from a year ago with a 38–21 victory over Purdue. ^[18] Jimmy Clausen threw for a career-high 275 yards and three touchdowns and Notre Dame running backs ran for 201 yards. The Irish offense improved on the 16 rushing yards gained against MSU, with starting running back Armando Allen Jr. running for a career-best 134 yards and a touchdown against the Boilermakers. After Purdue took a 7–0 lead on a Kory Sheets run, freshman cornerback Robert J. Blanton started the Irish scoring on a 47-yard interception return for a touchdown. Purdue answered back when Aaron Valentin scored on a 3-yard pass from Curtis Painter to make it 14–7. Jimmy Clausen threw his first touchdown pass to Golden Tate to tie it 14–14 heading into half-time.

The Irish, who hadn't scored in the third quarter in their first three games, scored on their first two possessions of the second half to open a 28–14 lead. The Boilermakers cut the lead to 28–21 four plays later when Painter threw a pass that Desmond Tardy caught at the Notre Dame 30 and raced up the left sideline for a touchdown. The Irish answered immediately, however, when Clausen threw a 30-yard TD pass to captain David Grimes on a fourth-and-7. Freshman wide receiver Michael Floyd added six catches for 100 yards and freshman tight end Kyle Rudolph also had a touchdown catch. The Boilermakers fell to 1–15 at Notre Dame Stadium since 1976. The loss also left Purdue coach Joe Tiller, who is retiring after the season, with a 5–7 record against the Irish.

Stanford

See also: 2008 Stanford Cardinal football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cardinal	0	7	0	14	21
Fighting Irish	7	14	7	0	28

Notre Dame got off to a quick start against Stanford, scoring 3 touchdowns in the first half to hold on to beat Stanford 28–21.^[19] Jimmy Clausen threw for a career-high 347 yards, completing 73% of his passes and three touchdown passes and leading Notre Dame to its seventh straight win over the Cardinal. Stanford, however, made a game of it, scoring twice in the fourth quarter to cut Notre Dame's lead to 7. Cardinal quarterback Tavita Pritchard threw a 1-yard pass to Jim Dray and a 10-yard TD pass to Doug Baldwin with 6 minutes left in the game. The Cardinal got the ball back on their own 2-yard line with 3:34 left, but could not mount a drive. They had one last chance with 8 seconds left, but fumbled the ball and defensive end Pat Kuntz recovered to end the game. Kuntz also had an interception and two sacks in the game.

Freshman and Sophomores again accounted for all of Notre Dame's scoring, highlighted by a second straight 100 -yard game by Michael Floyd, who had 5 catches for 115 yards and a 48-yard touchdown catch. Sophomore running back Armando Allen amassed 153 total yards, including scoring a 3-yard rushing touchdown and a 21-yard touchdown pass from Clausen. Freshman tight end Kyle Rudolph also had 5 catches for 70 yards and a touchdown. Running back Toby Gerhart had a great day running the ball for the Cardinal, compiling 104 yards on 13 carries. Tavita Pritchard, however, turned the ball over 3 times, throwing interceptions to Notre Dame safeties David Bruton and Kyle McCarthy in addition to Kuntz. Before the game, Stanford offensive lineman Chris Marinelli made some controversial comments about Notre Dame (which he later apologized for), saying that "I hate it, playing [Notre Dame] up there. The field, excuse my language, the field sucks. The stadium sucks. I think the area sucks."^[20] Stanford has not won at Notre Dame stadium since 1992.^[19]

North Carolina

See also: 2008 North Carolina Tar Heels football team

Notre Dame at North Carolina

1 2 3 4 Total Notre Dame 7 10 7 0 24 • North Carolina 3 6 13 7 29 Date: October 11 Location: Kenan Stadium, Chapel Hill, North Carolina Game start: 3:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 60,500

Scoring summary 1 10:27 ND Golden Tate 19-yard pass from Jimmy Clausen (Brandon Walker kick) Notre Dame 7–0 1 2:49 UNC Casey Barth 41-yard field goal Notre Dame 7–3 2 12:53 ND Brandon Walker 42-yard field goal Notre Dame 10–3 2 5:22 UNC Casey Barth 34-yard field goal Notre Dame 10–6 2 0:52 ND Michael Floyd 7-yard pass from Jimmy Clausen (Brandon Walker kick) Notre Dame 17–6 2 0:09 UNC Casey Barth 42-yard field goal Notre Dame 17–9 3 14:48 UNC Quan Sturdivant 32-yard interception return (Casey Barth kick) Notre Dame 17–16 3 10:43 ND James Aldridge 2-yard run (Brandon Walker kick) Notre Dame 24–16 3 5:14 UNC Ryan Houston 1-yard run (pass failed) Notre Dame 24–22 4 14:55 UNC Cam Sexton 4-yard run (Casey Barth kick) North Carolina 29–24

^[21]

Washington

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Irish	14	3	10	6	33
Huskies	0	0	0	7	7

See also: 2008 Washington Huskies football team

 

Jimmy Clausen directs the ND offense

James Aldridge ran for 84 yards and a career-high 2 touchdowns to help the Irish defeat Ty Willingham's winless Huskies 33–7.^[22] The Irish, coming off a bye week, scored touchdowns on their first two possessions of the game. On the third play from scrimmage, Jimmy Clausen connected with Michael Floyd for a 51-yard touchdown. On Notre Dame's next series, Golden Tate capped off a 9 play drive with a 21-yard rushing touchdown, the first of his career. Clausen completed 14 of 26 passes for 201 yards and interception in addition to his touchdown to Floyd. Clausen missed on 10 of his first 16 passes against a team ranked last in the nation in pass efficiency defense. Notre Dame had no problem creating offense, though, outgaining UW 238 yards to 38 yards in the first half and leading 17–0.^[23]

On the first offensive series of the third quarter, the Irish turned to Aldridge, who scored the first of his two touchdowns to put Notre Dame up 24–0. Aldridge led a running back corps that gained 252 yards on the ground. Notre Dame also relied on a stout defense, which held Washington to 124 yards of offense after allowing an average of 368 yards on the season. Washington did not cross midfield until the 6:05 mark in the fourth quarter against ND’s second string defense. Huskie quarterback Ronnie Fouch connected with D'Andre Goodwin for a 6-yard touchdown with four minutes left in the game to avoid UW’s first shutout loss at Husky Stadium since 1976 (a 7–0 loss against Cal).

Notre Dame’s defeat dropped Willingham to 11–32 in three-plus seasons at Washington. It was announced the next day that UW would not be renewing Willingham’s contract at the end of the season.^[24]

Pittsburgh

See also: 2008 Pittsburgh Panthers football team

	1	2	3	4	OT	2OT	3OT	4OT	Total
Panthers	3	0	7	14	3	3	3	3	36
Fighting Irish	3	14	0	7	3	3	3	0	33

In what became the longest game in Notre Dame Stadium history, the Irish came up short against the Panthers, losing 36–33 in quadruple overtime.^[25] The game looked to be a defensive struggle early, with the game tied at 3–3 with a little over four minutes remaining before half time. Late in the second quarter on 3rd down and 12, Golden Tate made a 47-yard catch of a tipped ball to get the Irish offense to the Pitt 32-yard line. Jimmy Clausen hit Michael Floyd 4 plays later to put the Irish up 10–3. With 1:27 left, Panthers quarterback Pat Bostick threw the first of his three interceptions on the day; a 43-yard interception return by Raeshon McNeil. Clausen hit Floyd again for an Irish touchdown with :04 remaining, putting ND up 17–3 at the half.

Despite the Irish's offensive spark in the second quarter, the Panthers held Notre Dame to a mere 7 yards in the third quarter. The Panthers also answered the call on offense scoring 14 unanswered points to tie the game at 17–17. After the second Panther score, Notre Dame's offense came alive again, driving 75 yards in 12 plays and culminating in a third Clausen touchdown, this time to Golden Tate. The late drive by Notre Dame was for nought, however, as Pitt forced overtime when they tied the score at 24 with 2:22 left on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Bostick to Jonathan Baldwin on fourth-and-6. The Panthers ran the same play three straight times before Bostick beat Irish cornerback McNeil for the score.

Neither team could get into the end zone in overtime, and Pitt's Connor Lee won the kicking contest. Notre Dame's kicker, Brandon Walker, who started the season by making just 1-of-7 field goals, made his first four attempts to run his consecutive made field goal streak to seven. But his 38-yard attempt narrowly missed wide left in the fourth overtime, giving Pitt the chance kick the winning field goal.

In the defeat, Notre Dame's Michael Floyd broke the record for catches by a Notre Dame freshman, with 10 catches for 100 yards.^[25]

Boston College

See also: 2008 Boston College Eagles football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Irish	0	0	0	0	0
Eagles	3	7	7	0	17

Navy

See also: 2008 Navy Midshipmen football team

1 2 3 4 Total • Notre Dame 7 3 14 3 27 Navy 0 7 0 14 21 Date: November 15 Location: M&T Bank Stadium • Baltimore, Maryland Game start: 12:00 p.m. EST

Scoring summary 1 6:03 ND Toryan Smith 14-yard blocked punt return (Brandon Walker kick) Notre Dame 7–0 2 2:39 NAVY Cory Finnerty 22-yard run (Matt Harmon kick) Tie 7–7 2 :00 ND Brandon Walker 28-yard field goal Notre Dame 10–7 3 9:31 ND Armando Allen 11-yard run (Brandon Walker kick) Notre Dame 17–7 3 3:29 ND Robert Hughes 7-yard run (Brandon Walker kick) Notre Dame 24–7 4 11:17 ND Brandon Walker 36-yard field goal Notre Dame 27–7 4 1:39 NAVY Shun White 24-yard run (Matt Harmon kick) Notre Dame 27–14 4 1:21 NAVY Ricky Dobbs 1-yard run (Matt Harmon kick) Notre Dame 27–21

^[26]

Syracuse

See also: 2008 Syracuse Orange football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Orange	3	7	0	14	24
Fighting Irish	3	10	10	0	23

USC

See also: 2008 USC Trojans football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Irish	0	0	0	3	3
Trojans	7	17	7	7	38

Hawaii Bowl

Main article: 2008 Hawaii Bowl

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Irish	7	21	21	0	49
Warriors	0	7	7	7	21

Notre Dame beat Hawaii 49–21 in its first bowl victory since the Irish defeated Texas A&M in the 1994 Cotton Bowl Classic to end the 1993 season. Irish quarterback Jimmy Clausen broke school bowl game records after passing for 401 yards and five touchdowns, and his 84.6% completion rate was the second-best completion percentage for any player in any bowl game in NCAA history.^[27] Wide receiver Golden Tate also set Irish bowl records upon catching for 177 yards and three touchdowns.^[28] Both players were named co-MVPs of the game.^[29]

In all, Notre Dame broke 9 bowl records in the victory.^[2] In addition to Clausen and Tate's record day, Notre Dame set bowl records in total offense (481 yards), scoring (49 points), and longest kick return (96 yards by Allen).^[2] Clausen's 69-yard connection to Tate is also a new record.^[2] The defense also had a good day for the Irish, registering 8 sacks and an interception.^[29] The victory also ties the 1978 Cotton Bowl Classic for Notre Dame's largest margin of victory in a bowl game at 28 points.

Statistics

Team

Team Opp Scoring       Points per Game     First Downs       Rushing       Passing       Penalty     Total Offense       Avg per Play       Avg per Game     Fumbles-Lost     Penalties-Yards       Avg per Game

Team Opp Punts-Yards       Avg per Punt     Time of Possession/Game     3rd Down Conversions     4th Down Conversions     Touchdowns Scored     Field Goals-Attempts-Long     PAT-Attempts     Attendance       Games/Avg per Game

Scores by quarter

1 2 3 4 OT 2OT 3OT 4OT Total Notre Dame 69 103 90 50 3 3 3 0 321 Opponents 36 89 57 94 3 3 3 3 288

Offense

Rushing

Name	GP	Att	Yards	Avg	TD	Long
Armando Allen	13	134	585	4.4	3	21
Robert Hughes	12	112	382	3.4	4	18
James Aldridge	12	91	357	3.9	3	19
Jonas Gray	4	21	90	4.3	0	19
Harrison Smith	12	2	58	29.0	0	35
Golden Tate	13	5	37	7.4	1	24
David Grimes	9	2	15	7.5	0	10
Asaph Schwapp	2	1	2	2.0	0	2
Evan Sharpley	3	4	1	0.3	0	2
Eric Maust	13	1	−8	−8.0	0	0
Jimmy Clausen	13	54	−73	−1.4	0	10
Total		436	1426	3.3	11	35
Opponents

Passing

Name	GP-GS	Effic	Att-Cmp-Int	Pct	Yds	TD	Lng	Avg/G
Jimmy Clausen	12–12	132.49	440–268–17	60.9%	3,172	25	69 (TD)	264
Evan Sharpley	3–0	90.2	5–3–0	60.0%	18	0	6	6
Total	–	131.4	447–271–17	60.6%	3,190	25	69 (TD)	245.4
Opponents

Receiving

Name	GP	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
Golden Tate	13	58	1080	18.6	10	69 (TD)	83.0
Michael Floyd	9	48	719	15.0	7	51 (TD)	79.8
Armando Allen	13	50	355	7.1	2	41	29.6
Kyle Rudolph	13	29	340	11.7	2	29	26.1
David Grimes	8	35	321	9.2	3	31	40.1
Duval Kamara	13	20	206	10.1	1	28	15.8
Robert Hughes	12	14	93	6.6	0	15	7.8
Robby Parris	4	9	50	5.6	0	12
Asaph Schwapp		2	13	6.5	0	10
George West	1	1	6	6.0	0	6
Will Yeatman	3	2	6	3.0	0	4
James Aldridge	12	3	1	0.3	0	6
Total		271	3190	11.8	25	69 (TD)	231.4
Opponents

Defense

Name	GP	TKL	SKS	SOLO	PD	INT	FF	BK	TD	AVG
Zion Azuma Losi	16	168	10	7	18	10	8	3	4	87.5
Total

Special teams

Name	Punting								Kickoffs
	No.	Yds	Avg	Long	TB	FC	I20	Blkd	No.	Yds	Avg	TB	OB
Total

Name	Punt Returns					Kick Returns
	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long
Total

Post season

Awards

Freshman Tight End Kyle Rudolph would earn Freshman All-America First-Team honors for his play as the starting tight end from Sporting News, CollegeFootballNews.com and Phil Steele. Rudolph set freshman school records for receptions and receiving yards logging 25 receptions for 262 yards and two touchdowns. Freshman Receiver Michael Floyd also earned all-freshman second-team honors from Sporting News, CollegeFootballNews.com, Rivals.com and Phil Steele.^[30] Offensive guard Trevor Robinson was named to the All-Freshman second team by CollegeFootballNews.com, while wide receiver Golden Tate was a sophomore honorable mention selection.^[31]

NFL Draft

David Bruton was the only player drafted from the team, going in the fourth round to the Denver Broncos as the 114th pick overall.^[32] Five more players would sign quickly after the draft, including David Grimes with Broncos, Pat Kuntz with the Colts, Terrail Lambert with the 49ers, and fullback Asaph Schwapp and offensive lineman Mike Turkovich with the Cowboys.^[33]

References

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