College Football Old School Game of the Week: Irish Knock off Seminoles in "Game of the Century"

Florida State and Notre Dame took part in the 1993 version of the "Game of the Century".

It seems like every time the #1 and #2 teams play in a college football game, that game gets dubbed the "Game of the Century".

That was the case on November 13, 1993 when the #1 ranked Florida State Seminoles traveled to South Bend to face off with the #2 ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

The Seminoles had been ranked #1 all year long and been dominating their opponents as they had beaten  their nine previous opponents by a combined score of 399-58!

With a high-powered offense led by eventual Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward at quarterback and a defense anchored by All-American linebacker Derrick Brooks, which had shut out four teams up to this point, this was certainly Bobby Bowden's best chance at winning his first national title as he was in his 18th season as the head coach of the Seminoles.

However, the Seminoles' biggest obstacle of getting Bowden that elusive first national championship were the Fighting Irish, who also entered the game with a 9-0 record as they had defeated their opponents by a combined score of 333-129.

Led by head coach Lou Holtz, the Irish had used a ground control offense that averaged nearly 260 yards per game to help Notre Dame its 9-0 record.

As the two undefeated teams prepared to meet in South Bend, the hype for the game was enormous.

NBC, which would broadcast the game, had Bob Costas host the pregame while ESPN's College Gameday made its first ever road trip as they broadcast from South Bend, starting the tradition of the pregame show broadcasting from a campus site before a big game.

As millions of viewers from across the country tuned in to watch the game, many were wondering if the game could live up to the hype.

Three and a half hours later, many of these viewers would be left wanting more.

 The Irish got the ball to start the game at their 33-yard-line and were quickly in Seminoles territory as quarterback Kevin McDougal hit running back Lee Becton for 24 yards on 3rd & 8 to give Notre Dame a 1st down at the FSU 41-yard-line.

However, the Irish would pick up only five more yards and be forced to put the ball to the Seminoles, who would begin their opening drive of the game from their 11-yard-line.

The Seminoles would put together a 10-play, 89-yard drive which had Ward account for all but 16 of the yards on the drive as he scrambled on two occasions, picking up 34 yards and completing all four of his passes for 45 yards, with the last completion being a 12-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Knox to give FSU a 7-0 with 7:09 left in the 1st quarter.

Florida State quarterback Charlie Ward accounted for 345 yards of total offense(297 passing, 38 rushing, 10 receiving) and three touchdowns.

The Irish would respond by driving 80 yards in seven plays, culminating with a 32-yard touchdown run by Adrian Jarrell off a reverse that tied the game at 7 with 4:23 to go in the 1st quarter.

The game had the appearances of a shootout as the Seminoles took over at their 32-yard-line on their next possession and were quickly at the 27-yard-line as Ward completed three of five passes for 41 yards.

But after two incomplete passes and a quarterback sack, the Seminoles decided to call on Scott Bentley to attempt a 54-yard field goal.

Bentley's kick was long enough, but it sailed wide right, keeping the game tied with 2:27 left in the opening quarter.

The Irish took over at their 36-yard-line and drove to the Seminoles' 29-yard-line where they faced a 4th & 1 situation.

Holtz decided to go for the 1st down, but the gamble backfired as McDougal was stopped at the line of scrimmage by FSU defensive lineman Chris Cowart to give the Seminoles offense the ball back, 52 seconds into the second quarter.

But after the Seminoles went three-and-out, the Irish got the ball back at their 40-yard-line as they put together a six-play, 60-yard drive that was capped off by a 26-yard touchdown run by Becton to give the Irish a 14-7 lead, marking only the second time all season that the Seminoles had faced a deficit.

Things did not improve for the Noles on their next drive as Ward was intercepted by Notre Dame defensive back John Covington, whose seven-yard return plus 15-yard penalty on Florida State after the interception, gave the Irish the ball at the Seminoles' 23-yard-line.

After McDougal hit wide receiver Michael Miller for 15 yards on 3rd & 8 to give the Irish a 1st & goal at the six-yard-line, Holtz put in his jumbo running package which included free safety Jeff Burris.

On 1st & goal, Burris got the handoff and punched it in for the six-yard touchdown to extend the Irish's lead to 21-7 with 7:48 left in the first half.

After both teams went three-and-out on their next possessions, the Seminoles took over at their 20-yard-line and quickly drove to their 49-yard-line thanks to a 18-yard run by William Floyd and a 11-yard run by Sean Jackson on back-to-back plays.

But when the drive would end on the next play as Ward completed a pass to Knox, only to have Knox lose the football when he was hit by Irish linebacker Justin Goheen, resulting in a fumble that was recovered by Burris at the Notre Dame 33-yard-line.

After that, neither team would mount another scoring threat for the rest of the half as the #2 Irish went into the locker room with a 21-7 halftime lead.

Notre Dame running back Lee Becton would carry the ball 26 times for 122 yards and score one touchdown.

Following a three-and-out by the Seminoles on their opening possession of the second half, the Irish would get the ball at their 37-yard-line and would call on Becton to put together their best drive since midway their last touchdown.

Becton carried the ball five times for 30 yards on a nine-play, 33-yard drive that ended with a 47-yard field goal by Jeff Pendergast to extend the Irish's lead to 24-7 with 9:41 left in the third quarter.

After being held in check since their opening drive of the game, the Seminoles offense finally got going on its next possession as Ward would account for 65 of the 80 yards on the 10-play touchdown drive as Ward completed five of six passes for 40 yards, ran it twice for 15 yards, and even caught a pass for 10 yards on a halfback pass from Sean Jackson on 3rd & 2 from the Irish 24-yard-line.

The drive ended with a six-yard touchdown pass from Ward to freshman running back Warrick Dunn to cut the Notre Dame lead to 24-14 with 4:45 left in the third quarter.

Both teams would trade punts for the rest of the third quarter until the Noles got the ball at their 40-yard-line with 14:51 left in the 4th quarter and drove down to the Irish 14-yard-line as Ward hit five of six passes.

But one play after Ward hit Tamarick Vanover for seven yards to set up 2nd & 3 from the seven-yard-line, Dunn was dropped for a four-yard loss when he took a direct snap from center and was brought down by Notre Dame defensive lineman Jim Flanigan.

The Noles settled for a 24-yard field goal by Bentley to make it a one-score game at 24-17 with 10:40 remaining in the game.

With their once 17-point lead down to seven, the Irish took over at their 20-yard-line when they decided to go to the passing game to try and drive down for another score.

On the first play from scrimmage, McDougal hit Becton for 15 yards, then after a two-yard run by Ray Zellars, McDougal found Michael Miller for 15 yards and a 1st down at the FSU 48-yard-line.

Then on 3rd & 7 at the FSU 45-yard-line, McDougal was able to dodge the Seminoles' blitz and hit tight end Lake Dawson for 14 more yards.

After that completion, the Irish would run the ball on the next three plays with the last one being a 11-yard touchdown run by Burris that pushed Notre Dame's lead to two touchdowns at 31-17 with 6:53 left in the game.

Following another exchange of punts, the Seminoles got the ball back at the Notre Dame 45-yard-line with 4:05 left, desperately needing a touchdown.

Ward hit Floyd for five yards that became a 20-yard play when Notre Dame was hit with a 15-yard penalty, giving the Noles a 1st down at the 25-yard-line.

Then after Ward scrambled for 10 yards and Notre Dame was called for holding, the Noles had a 1st & goal at the five-yard-line.

But after two FSU penalties, the Noles were faced with a do & die 4th & goal at the Irish 20-yard-line.

That is when Ward fired a pass that bounced off the hands of Notre Dame safety Brian McGee and into the arms of Kez McCovery for a 20-yard touchdown.

Bowden decided to go for the extra point and after Bentley made the kick, it was a 31-24 game with 2:26 to play.

Notre Dame free safety Jeff Burris scored on two touchdown runs and recovered a fumble for the Irish.

The Noles attempted an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff but Notre Dame cornerback Shawn Wooden recovered the kick for the Irish at the Florida State 47-yard-line.

It would not be the last big play of the game made by Wooden.

Needing a 1st down to win the game, the Irish could pick up only five yards and forced to punt the ball back to the Seminoles, hopefully in their minds deep in their territory.

But Jarrell shanked the kick only going five yards, giving the Seminoles the ball at their 37-yard-line with 51 seconds left and a chance to drive for the touchdown then decide whether or not to go for two(There was no overtime in FBS Football in 1993).

The drive started with Ward hitting McCovery for nine yards, then was followed by a four-yard pass to Dunn to give FSU a 1st down at the Notre Dame 49-yard-line.

Then Ward hit McCovery on back-to-back completions that were 18 yards each, giving the Noles a 1st down at the Irish 13-yard-line with 10 seconds to go.

Ward and the Seminoles hurried up to the line to get the ball snapped which they did only to have Ward's pass get knocked down at the line of scrimmage by Notre Dame defensive lineman Thomas Knight, leaving three seconds left on the clock and time for one more play.

The Irish called timeout to set up their defense as Ward lined up in the shotgun for the final play of the game.

Ward took the snap and scrambled to his left, then fired a pass for the left corner of the end zone, only to have Wooden knock it down at the goal line to preserve the 31-24 victory for the Irish, setting up off a wild celebration as Notre Dame fans came onto the field to celebrate the win.

The next day, Notre Dame would be vaulted into the #1 spot while Florida State dropped only one spot to #2.

This setup had college football media pundits and fans believing that if the two teams won out, then a rematch would occur in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year's Day.

But those plans would be shattered the following week as #1 Notre Dame was stunned by Boston College 41-39 on David Gordon's 41-yard field goal as time expired while the Seminoles won their last two games of the regular season to reclaim the #1 ranking.

The Seminoles ended up in the Orange Bowl where they faced off with #2 and undefeated Nebraska while Notre Dame went on to the Cotton Bowl to face Texas A&M.

The Irish would defeat the Aggies 24-21 while the Noles would knock off Nebraska 18-16 as both games occurred on New Year's Day.

The following day, Florida State would finish #1 in the final AP and coaches polls to claim the school's first national championship while Notre Dame finished ranked #2, much to the chagrin of Irish fans.

Notre Dame fans celebrate on the field after their Irish knocked off #1 Florida State.