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The Alma Mater Bowl
Kenneth Shouler
From the Print Edition:
Don Johnson, Mar/Apr 02
(continued from page 8)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish 36, Michigan Wolverines 34
Notre Dame is but a victory away from reclaiming championship glory, glory that has eluded it for more than a decade. In a game of ebb and flow momentum, bitter intersectional rivals Notre Dame and Michigan threw haymakers at each other for 60 minutes. But Notre Dame threw last, driving 80 yards in the last three minutes to win, 36-34, when Hunter Smith kicked an 18-yard field goal with 43 seconds left. Moments before Michigan had taken a 34-33 lead on a 24-yard slant from Brian Griese to Amani Toomer.
Both Griese and Steve Beuerlein threw for 300-plus yards in this shootout in the Louisiana Superdome. Michigan tied the game on the first play of the fourth quarter, but Notre Dame regained the lead on its next possession, capping a five-and-a-half-minute drive with a 24-yard field goal. After a long drive led to another Notre Dame field goal, Michigan took the lead on the Griese-to-Toomer connection. For the third straight time, Notre Dame launched a long drive that stalled in the red zone, and Smith had to convert his fifth field goal in the game's final minute.
Box Score:
Michigan Wolverines
3
17
0
14
34
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
3
17
7
9
36
Team Statistics:
First Downs
Rushes
Passes
Sacks
Fumbles
Penalties
Turnovers
Time
Third Down
Fourth Down
Net Offense
MIC
24
26-83
40-30-407
2-23
0
0-0
0
31:51
5-14
0-3
467
ND
26
21-183
39-24-314
3-17
1
7-62
1
28:09
4-10
0-0
480
Final:
Miami vs. Notre
Dame
Miami Hurricanes 27, Notre Dame Fighting Irish 14
Superior in passing, running and defense, the Miami Hurricanes were never challenged from the second quarter on and won easily, 27-14. Notre Dame's Steve Beuerlein and Vinny Testaverde, the hottest quarterbacks in the playoffs, were expected to shine in this war of real estate acquisition.
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