Series History: Notre Dame vs. Florida State

Notre Dame gets back to action this weekend when it hosts the Florida State Seminoles. Notre Dame will look to earn its second ACC win of the season, and the Seminoles will look for their first winning streak of the season.

Let’s kick off our coverage of the Fighting Irish and Seminoles with a look at the series history.

SERIES HISTORY

This will be the 10th meeting between the two schools, and Florida State currently holds a 6-3 advantage. Notre Dame will be looking for its first winning streak against the Seminoles.

2018 - Notre Dame 42, Florida State 13 (home)
2014 - Florida State 31, Notre Dame 27 (road)
2011 - Florida State 18, Notre Dame 14 (bowl)
2003 - Florida State 37, Notre Dame 0 (home)
2002 - Notre Dame 34, Florida State 24 (road)
1996 - Florida State 31, Notre Dame 26 (bowl)
1994 - Florida State 23, Notre Dame 16 (road)
1993 - Notre Dame 31, Florida State 24 (home)
1981 - Florida State 19, Notre Dame 13 (home)

NOTABLE GAMES

2018 — The last time these two teams met the Irish dominated from start to finish. Quarterback Brandon Wimbush threw a pair of first quarter touchdowns en route to Notre Dame grabbing a 32-6 halftime lead. Notre Dame rushed for 365 yards in the contest and out-gained Florida State 495-322. Running back Dexter Williams rushed for a career-high 202 yards and two touchdowns.

2014 — Notre Dame and Florida State have played in two epic games, and this was the most recent. The defending champion Seminoles came into the matchup ranked second in the nation and the Irish were ranked fifth.

Notre Dame struck first when Everett Golson hit wideout Corey Robinson for a score. The Irish took a 17-10 lead into halftime, but the Seminoles tied it up early in the third quarter. Golson hit Will Fuller for a touchdown to put the Irish back on top, but the Seminoles answered once again.

Florida State took a 31-27 fourth quarter lead, but the Irish got a final shot to win the game late in the fourth. Notre Dame got the ball all the way down to the 2-yard line when Golson hit Robinson for a 2-yard score on fourth down, but a highly questionable offensive pass interference penalty pushed the Irish back 15 yards. Golson was picked off on the next play to give the Seminoles the win.

2002 — The 6th-ranked Fighting Irish traveled to Tallahassee to square off against the 11th-ranked Seminoles, and the Irish came out on top to improve to 8-0. Notre Dame struck first when quarterback Carlyle Holiday hit wideout Arnaz Battle for a 65-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage.

Florida State out-gained Notre Dame 418-301, but the Irish defense forced four turnovers, including a Courtney Watson interception that set up a score. Cornerback Vontez Duff also recovered a fumble at the 2-yard line, and the Irish punched it into the end zone one play later. Notre Dame was also aided by Florida State committing 11 penalties.

1993 — This matchup was dubbed the “Game of the Century,” and it certainly lived up to the billing. The No. 1-ranked Seminoles brought their 16-game winning streak to South Bend to face the No. 2-ranked Fighting Irish.

It was Notre Dame’s physical football team against the fast-paced basketball on turf Florida State squad. It was power against speed, and power won.

Florida State struck first when eventual Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward hit Kevin Knox on their first drive of the game. Notre Dame responded with a physical, punishing drive that ended when with Adrian Jarrell went 32 yards for a score on a reverse.

Florida State missed a field goal and the Irish turned it over on downs, but following a Seminole punt the Irish ground attack, led by running back Lee Becton, started to take the game over. Becton raced 26 yards to put the Irish on top,

After a John Covington interception of Ward, the Irish drove the ball down and Jeff Burris scored from 6-yards out.

Notre Dame built a 24-7 lead, but Ward responded with a touchdown pass to Warrick Dunn, which cut into the Irish lead. Florida State made it a 24-17 game early in the fourth, but the Irish responded with a punishing drive that ended with Burris scoring from 11 yards out.

Ward led the Seminoles on another scoring drive to make it 31-24, and he got the Seminoles into the red zone once again on the final drive, but cornerback Shawn Wooden broke a pass near the goal line to seal the win. Becton finished the game with 122 yards.

This game marked the first time that ESPN’s College Game Day took its show on the road.

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