The Notre Dame-Florida State 1993 'What If?' Nobody Talks About

While I largely hate social media, there are times where something pops up and makes the entire experience seem worth it.

That happened Thursday night as I was scrolling the application formerly known as Twitter and came across a post from college football writer Chris Vannini.

Oh Chris, you went and done it.

College football fans of a certain age know exactly what you're talking about when you say "just around the corner from Main Street" nad Vannini went and posted the short hype video that sent the college football world into a frenzy in November of 1993.

Notre Dame vs. Florida State Hype Video from 1993 Showdown

Vannini posted the video of NBC's intro to the 1993 "Game of the Century" between No. 1 Florida State and No. 2 Notre Dame.

To this day it remains the most hyped college football game I can remember. For fun, take a little less than three minutes and watch it.

The 1993 Notre Dame vs. Florida State intro with Bob Costas makes me want to run through a wall. College football is almost back. pic.twitter.com/urHxOIekCT
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) August 6, 2026

Oh the feels, they're back almost 33 years later and seemingly as strong as ever.

Notre Dame of course went on to win the game 31-24, and lose to Boston College in stunning fashion the next week - allowing Florida State to ultimately be crowned national champions.

The Notre Dame vs. Florida State What-If That Needs Discussed

Notre Dame kicked the daylights out of Florida State that afternoon in South Bend.

When you go back and watch that game, its the type of contest you watch late and wonder, "how the heck does Florida State have a chance to tie or win this game right now?"

When you go back and watch that game, there are no less than three times a Charlie Ward pass hits Notre Dame safety Jeff Burris in the hands, but Burris can't pull down an interception.

Late in the game, with Notre Dame leading 31-17 and Florida State facing a fourth-and-goal from the 20 yard line, it's safety Brian Magee that gets a bit of the butterfingers.

The Ward pass hits Magee in the hands and its deflected up, right into the arms of a Florida State receiver for a touchdown.

Instead of game over, it's game on.

What if Magee picks that pass off and the final score ends up Notre Dame 31, Florida State 17?

Or if Florida State rallies to get the game within one score, instead of rallying to nearly tie it late?

Nick Shepkowski's Quick Thought

If the above happens, Notre Dame is your national champion in 1993.

Voters were looking for any reason to vote Florida State above Notre Dame at that point, as they wanted to give Bobby Bowden a lifetime achievement award of sorts, and they ultimately did so.

However, had Burris intercepted that pass and Notre Dame won the game by two scores, and Florida State not had a chance to tie it at the end, what happened a week later against Boston College wouldn't have mattered.

Notre Dame would have been voted No. 1 over Florida State in the final polls because a two-touchdown win would have been impossible to overlook, even though the way Notre Dame won the contest as is, should have been enough.

Even as I've passed 40 years of age this year, no single game in my lifetime matches the anticipation that 1993 contest between Notre Dame and Florida State brought.

To me, the closest thing had to have been unbeaten Ohio State and Michigan battling at the end of the 2006 regular season.

And with the College Football Playoff now at 12 teams and seemingly not far from expanding to even more, it's safe to say we'll never see as anticipated regular season college football game again.

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