1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team

1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
National champion (Berryman, Eck, FACT, Sagarin), Orange Bowl champion
Orange Bowl, W 21–6 vs. Colorado
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 3
AP	No. 2
Record	12–1
Head coach	Lou Holtz (4th season)
Offensive coordinator	Jim Strong (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Barry Alvarez (2nd season)
Home stadium	Notre Dame Stadium (c. 59,075, grass)

1989 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Miami (FL)			–					11	–	1	–	0
No. 2 Notre Dame			–					12	–	1	–	0
No. 3 Florida State			–					10	–	2	–	0
Northern Illinois			–					9	–	2	–	0
No. 15 Penn State			–					8	–	3	–	1
No. 17 Pittsburgh			–					8	–	3	–	1
No. 21 West Virginia			–					8	–	3	–	1
Syracuse			–					8	–	4	–	0
Southwestern Louisiana			–					7	–	4	–	0
Akron			–					6	–	4	–	1
South Carolina			–					6	–	4	–	1
Virginia Tech			–					6	–	4	–	1
Louisiana Tech			–					5	–	4	–	1
Army			–					6	–	5	–	0
Louisville			–					6	–	5	–	0
East Carolina			–					5	–	5	–	1
Tulsa			–					6	–	6	–	0
Southern Miss			–					5	–	6	–	0
Tulane			–					4	–	8	–	0
Navy			–					3	–	8	–	0
Rutgers			–					2	–	7	–	2
Boston College			–					2	–	9	–	0
Memphis State			–					2	–	9	–	0
Cincinnati			–					1	–	9	–	1
Temple			–					1	–	10	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame in the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Lou Holtz and played its home games at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 31	8:00 p.m.	vs. Virginia	No. 2	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ (Kickoff Classic)	Raycom, WGN	W 36–13	77,323
September 16	3:30 p.m.	at No. 2 Michigan	No. 1	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)	ABC	W 24–19	105,912
September 23	2:30 p.m.	Michigan State	No. 1	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (Megaphone Trophy)	CBS	W 21–13	59,075
September 30	12:00 p.m.	at Purdue	No. 1	Ross–Ade Stadium West Lafayette, IN (Shillelagh Trophy)	ABC	W 40–7	67,861
October 7	4:00 p.m.	at Stanford	No. 1	Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA (Legends Trophy)		W 27–17	86,019
October 14	7:00 p.m.	at No. 17 Air Force	No. 1	Falcon Stadium Colorado Springs, CO	ESPN	W 41–27	53,533
October 21	3:30 p.m.	No. 9 USC	No. 1	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (Jeweled Shillelagh)	CBS	W 28–24	59,075
October 28	5:00 p.m.	No. 7 Pittsburgh	No. 1	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (rivalry)	ESPN	W 45–7	59,075
November 4	12:00 p.m.	Navy	No. 1	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN (rivalry)	SportsChannel	W 41–0	59,075
November 11	12:00 p.m.	SMU	No. 1	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN	SportsChannel	W 59–6	59,075
November 18	2:30 p.m.	at No. 17 Penn State	No. 1	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA	CBS	W 34–23	86,025
November 25	6:30 p.m.	at No. 7 Miami (FL)	No. 1	Orange Bowl Miami, FL	CBS	L 10–27	81,634
January 1, 1990	8:00 p.m.	vs. No. 1 Colorado	No. 4	Orange Bowl Miami, FL (Orange Bowl)	NBC	W 21–6	81,191
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Personnel

1989 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB Steve Belles RB Walter Boyd OL Mike Brennan RB Reggie Brooks OT 71 Dean Brown TE 86 Derek Brown So RB 5 Rodney Culver So WR 13 Pat Eilers QB Pete Graham WR Ray Griggs G 75 Tim Grunhard Sr RB 25 Raghib Ismail Jr WR Adrian Jarrell RB 22 Anthony Johnson (C) Sr RB Craig Lanigan RB Dorsey Levens C 76 Gene McGuire So RB Ted McNamara RB 35 Ryan Mihalko Jr QB 3 Rick Mirer Fr WR William Pollard QB 9 Tony Rice (C) Sr G 52 Tim Ryan Jr RB Rusty Setzer TE Irv Smith WR Tony Smith RB 12 Ricky Watters Jr TE Rod West	Defense Pos. # Name Class DT 90 Jeff Alm Sr LB 47 Ned Bolcar (C) Sr DT 93 Bob Dahl Jr DB 32 D'Juan Francisco LB 37 Scott Kowalkowski Jr LB 36 Donn Grimm LB 7 Andre Jones LB Scott Kowalkowski CB 1 Todd Lyght Jr LB Devon McDonald CB 29 Stan Smagala DB 21 Rod Smith So LB 42 Mike Stonebreaker Jr S 15 Pat Terrell Sr DL 50 Chris Zorich Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K Billy Hackett K 28 Craig Hentrich P 16 Jim Sexton Jr	Head coach Lou Holtz Coordinators/assistant coaches Barry Alvarez (DC) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Season summary

vs. Virginia

Kickoff Classic: #2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (0–0) vs. Virginia Cavaliers (0–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Virginia	0	0	0	13	13
Notre Dame	19	14	0	3	36

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

• Date: August 31
• Game time: 8:00 p.m. EDT
• Game attendance: 77,323
• Recap/Box Score

Game information

First quarter ND – Ricky Watters 2-yard run (Billy Hackett kick), 10:46. Notre Dame 7–0. ND – Anthony Johnson 1-yard run (kick failed), 4:38. Notre Dame 13–0. ND – Rodney Culver 2-yard run (run failed), 1:28. Notre Dame 19–0. Second quarter ND – Anthony Johnson 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 8:47. Notre Dame 26–0. ND – Tony Rice 3-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 5:11. Notre Dame 33–0. Third quarter No scoring Fourth quarter UVA – Derek Dooley 6-yard pass from Shawn Moore (Jake McInerney kick), 12:41. Notre Dame 33–7. UVA – Bruce McGonnigal 2-yard pass from Shawn Moore. Notre Dame 33–13. ND – Craig Hentrich 32-yard field goal, 1:46. Notre Dame 36–13. Top passers UVA – Shawn Moore – 10/22, 85 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT ND – Tony Rice – 7/11, 147 yards Top rushers UVA – Marcus Wilson – 15 rushes, 80 yards ND – Ricky Watters – 12 rushes, 80 yards, TD Top receivers UVA – Herman Moore – 2 receptions, 30 yards ND – Raghib Ismail – 5 recptions, 121 yards

Largest crowd for college football game at Giants Stadium

at Michigan

See also: Michigan–Notre Dame football rivalry

#1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1–0) at #2 Michigan Wolverines (0–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Notre Dame	0	7	10	7	24
Michigan	0	6	0	13	19

at Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan

• Date: September 16
• Game time: 2:30 p.m. CDT
• Game weather: Rain
• Game attendance: 105,912
• TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson and Bob Griese
• Recap/Box Score

Game information

First quarter No scoring Second quarter ND – Anthony Johnson 6-yard pass from Tony Rice (Craig Hentrich kick), 5:05. Notre Dame 7–0. Drive: 24 yards. MICH – Chris Calloway 9-yard pass from Michael Taylor (kick failed), 0:25. Notre Dame 7–6. Drive: 50 yards. Third quarter ND – Raghib Ismail 89-yard kickoff return (Craig Hentrich kick), 14:49. Notre Dame 14–6. ND – Craig Hentrich 30-yard field goal, 4:28. Notre Dame 17–6. Fourth quarter MICH – Derrick Walker 5-yard pass from Elvis Grbac (pass failed), 12:58. Notre Dame 17–12. Drive: 12 plays. ND – Raghib Ismail 92-yard kickoff return (Craig Hentrich kick), 12:46. Notre Dame 24–13. MICH – Greg McMurtry 4-yard pass from Elvis Grbac (J.D. Carlson kick), 4:08. Notre Dame 24–19. Drive: 13 plays, 67 yards. Top passers ND – Tony Rice – 1/2, 6 yards, TD MICH – Elvis Grbac – 17/21, 134 yards, 2 TD Top rushers ND – Anthony Johnson – 20 rushes, 80 yards MICH – Leroy Hoard – 15 rushes, 56 yards Top receivers ND – Anthony Johnson – 1 reception, 6 yards, TD MICH – Greg McMurtry – 4 receptions, 51 yards, TD

Michigan State

See also: Michigan State–Notre Dame football rivalry and Megaphone Trophy

Michigan State Spartans (1–0) at #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (2–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Michigan St	0	6	7	0	13
Notre Dame	7	7	0	7	21

at Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, Indiana

• Date: September 23
• Game time: 2:30 p.m. CDT
• Game attendance: 59,075
• TV: CBS
• Recap/Box Score

Game information

First quarter ND – Ricky Watters 2-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 4:54. Notre Dame 7–0. Drive: 14 plays, 72 yards, 6:16. Second quarter ND – Ricky Watters 53-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 9:10. Notre Dame 14–0. MSU – John Langeloh 36-yard field goal, 2:54. Notre Dame 14–3. MSU – John Langeloh 38-yard field goal, 0:00. Notre Dame 14–6. Third quarter MSU – James Bradley 30-yard pass from Dan Enos (John Langeloh kick), 6:36. Notre Dame 14–13. Fourth quarter ND – Anthony Johnson 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 8:16. Notre Dame 21–13. Drive: 9 plays, 62 yards. Top passers MSU – Dan Enos – 18/28, 200 yards, TD ND – Tony Rice – 8/15, 90 yards Top rushers MSU – Hyland Hickson – 26 rushes, 84 yards ND – Ricky Watters – 16 rushes, 89 yards, 2 TD Top receivers MSU – Courtney Hawkins – 6 receptions, 83 yards ND – Raghib Ismail – 2 receptions, 27 yards

at Purdue

See also: Notre Dame–Purdue football rivalry

#1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (3–0) at Purdue Boilermakers (1–1)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Notre Dame	14	20	0	6	40
Purdue	0	0	0	7	7

at Ross–Ade Stadium, West Lafayette, Indiana

• Date: September 30
• Game time: 12:00 p.m. CDT
• Game attendance: 67,861
• TV: ABC
• Recap/Box Score

Game information

First quarter ND – Anthony Johnson 6-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 6:38. Notre Dame 7–0. Drive: 55 yards. ND – Tony Rice 4-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 2:04. Notre Dame 14–0. Drive: 57 yards. Second quarter ND – Jeff Alm 16-yard interception return (Craig Hentrich kick), 14:44. Notre Dame 21–0. ND – Anthony Johnson 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 6:35. Notre Dame 28–0. ND – Ricky Watters 1-yard run (kick failed), 0:14. Notre Dame 34–0. Third quarter No scoring Fourth quarter ND – Craig Hentrich 19-yard field goal, 9:47. Notre Dame 37–0. ND – Craig Hentrich 22-yard field goal, 6:18. Notre Dame 40–0. PUR – Rodney Dennis 3-yard pass from Steve Letnich (Larry Sullivan kick), 0:33. Notre Dame 40–7. Top passers ND – Tony Rice – 12/15, 270 yards PUR – Steve Letnich – 11/28, 89 yards, INT Top rushers ND – Tony Rice – 12 rushes, 67 yards, TD PUR – Steve Letnich – 13 rushes, 50 yards Top receivers ND – Derek Brown – 4 receptions, 101 yards PUR – Earl Coleman – 2 receptions, 32 yards

at Stanford

See also: Notre Dame–Stanford football rivalry

#1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4–0) at Stanford Cardinal (1–3)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Notre Dame	0	14	7	6	27
Stanford	6	0	8	3	17

at Stanford Stadium, Stanford, California

• Date: October 7
• Game attendance: 86,019
• Recap/Box Score

Game information

First quarter STAN – John Hopkins 34-yard field goal, 5:14. Stanford 3–0. Drive: 14 plays. STAN – John Hopkins 42-yard field goal, 2:40. Stanford 6–0. Second quarter ND – Anthony Johnson 7-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 12:24. Notre Dame 7–6. Drive: 4 plays, 64 yards. ND – Rodney Culver 2-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 1:15. Notre Dame 14–6. Drive: 9 plays. Third quarter STAN – Ed McCaffrey 2-yard pass from Smith (run good), Tie 14–14. Drive: 79 yards. ND – Anthony Johnson 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 7:28. Notre Dame 21–14. Fourth quarter ND – Craig Hentrich 20-yard field goal, 12:42. Notre Dame 24–14. STAN – John Hopkins 27-yard field goal, 8:14. Notre Dame 24–17. Drive: 12 plays, 70 yards. ND – Craig Hentrich 18-yard field goal, 1:27. Notre Dame 27–17. Top passers ND – Tony Rice – 7/17, 102 yards STAN – Steve Smith – 39/68, 282 yards, TD, 3 INT Top rushers ND – Anthony Johnson – 15 rushes, 75 yards, 2 TD STAN – Tommy Vardell – 9 rushes, 22 yards Top receivers ND – Raghib Ismail – 3 receptions, 67 yards STAN – Jim Price – 14 receptions, 98 yards

at Air Force

#1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5–0) at #17 Air Force Falcons (6–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Notre Dame	14	21	3	3	41
Air Force	0	14	0	13	27

at Falcon Stadium, Colorado Springs, Colorado

• Date: October 14, 1989
• Game attendance: 53,533
• TV: ESPN
• Recap/Box Score

Game information

First quarter ND – Anthony Johnson 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 9:41. Notre Dame 7–0. Drive: 80 yards. ND – Ricky Watters 5-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 0:51. Notre Dame 14–0. Drive: 14 plays, 69 yards. Second quarter ND – Raghib Ismail 56-yard punt return (Craig Hentrich kick), 14:42. Notre Dame 21–0. AFA – Greg Johnson 61-yard pass from Dee Dowis (Joe Wood kick), 13:36. Notre Dame 21–7. ND – Anthony Johnson 27-yard pass from Tony Rice (Craig Hentrich kick), 9:46. Notre Dame 28–7. AFA – Steve Senn 26-yard pass from Dee Dowis (Joe Wood kick). Notre Dame 28–14. ND – Raghib Ismail 24-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 0:30. Notre Dame 35–14. Third quarter ND – Craig Hentrich 20-yard field goal, 8:24. Notre Dame 38–14. Fourth quarter ND – Craig Hentrich 38-yard field goal, 12:42. Notre Dame 41–14. AFA – Steven Wilson 23-yard run (run failed), 9:35. Notre Dame 41–20. AFA – Rodney Lewis 1-yard run (Joe Wood kick), 3:22. Notre Dame 41–27. Top passers ND – Tony Rice – 9/13, 123 yards, TD AFA – Dee Dowis – 15/24, 306 yards, 2 TD, INT Top rushers ND – Ricky Watters – 11 rushes, 96 yards, TD AFA – Rodney Lewis – 13 rushes, 58 yards, TD Top receivers ND – Raghib Ismail – 3 receptions, 25 yards AFA – Steve Senn – 6 receptions, 101 yards, TD

• Raghib Ismail 180 all-purpose yards

External videos
1989 Notre Dame at Air Force – Television broadcast

USC

See also: Notre Dame–USC football rivalry and Jeweled Shillelagh

#9 USC Trojans (5–1) at #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
USC	14	3	0	7	24
Notre Dame	7	0	7	14	28

at Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, Indiana

• Date: October 21, 1989
• Game attendance: 59,075
• TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz
• Recap/Box Score

Game information

First quarter USC – Larry Wallace 12-yard pass from Todd Marinovich (Quin Rodriguez kick), 12:47. USC 7–0. ND – Tony Rice 7-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 9:10. Tie 7–7. USC – John Jackson 15-yard pass from Todd Marinovich (Quin Rodriguez kick), 7:47. USC 14–7. Second quarter USC – Quin Rodriguez 25-yard field goal, 10:22. USC 17–7. Third quarter ND – Ricky Watters 2-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 9:17. USC 17–14. Drive: 8 plays. Fourth quarter ND – Anthony Johnson 35-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 13:51. Notre Dame 21–17. Drive: 80 yards. USC – Gary Wellman 16-yard pass from Todd Marinovich (Quin Rodriguez kick), 9:01. USC 24–21. Drive: 4 plays. ND – Tony Rice 15-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 5:18. Notre Dame 28–24. Drive: 80 yards. Top passers USC – Todd Marinovich – 33/55, 333 yards, 3 TD, 3 INT ND – Tony Rice – 5/16, 91 yards Top rushers USC – Ricky Ervins – 12 rushes, 64 yards ND – Tony Rice – 18 rushes, 99 yards, 2 TD Top receivers USC – John Jackson – 14 receptions, 200 yards, TD ND – Raghib Ismail – 2 receptions, 62 yards

• Pregame fight in tunnel

External videos
1989 USC at Notre Dame – Television broadcast
1989 USC at Notre Dame – Highlights

Pittsburgh

#7 Pittsburgh Panthers (5–0–1) at #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Pittsburgh	7	0	0	0	7
Notre Dame	2	15	21	7	45

at Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, Indiana

• Date: October 28, 1989
• Game time: 5:00 p.m.
• Game attendance: 59,075
• TV: ESPN
• Recap/Box

Game information

First quarter PITT – Ronald Redmon 8-yard pass from Alex Van Pelt (Ed Frazier kick), 9:32. Pittsburgh 7–0. Drive: 12 plays, 68 yards. ND – Safety, Alex Van Pelt downed in end zone, 6:07. Pittsburgh 7–2. Second quarter ND – Rodney Culver 1-yard run (run good), 13:22. Notre Dame 10–7. Drive: 36 yards. ND – Pat Terrell 54-yard interception return (Craig Hentrich kick), 3:05. Notre Dame 17–7. Third quarter ND – Ricky Watters 2-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 8:15. Notre Dame 24–7. ND – Raghib Ismail 50-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 4:53. Notre Dame 31–7. ND – Rodney Culver 1-yard run (Billy Hackett kick), 0:49. Notre Dame 38–7. Fourth quarter ND – Steve Belles 13-yard run (Billy Hackett kick), 4:12. Notre Dame 45–7. Top passers PITT – Alex Van Pelt – 16/33, 170 yards ND – Tony Rice – 1/7, 29 yards Top rushers PITT – Curvin Richards – 15 rushes, 47 yards ND – Raghib Ismail – 18 rushes, 74 yards, TD Top receivers PITT – Lionel Sykes – 6 receptions, 65 yards ND – Raghib Ismail – 1 reception, 29 yards

Navy

Navy Midshipmen (2–5) at #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (8–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Navy	0	0	0	0	0
Notre Dame	14	10	3	14	41

at Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, Indiana

• Date: November 4, 1989
• Game attendance: 59,075
• Recap/Box Score

Game information

First quarter ND – Tony Rice 6-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 11:49. Notre Dame 7–0. Drive: 64 yards. ND – Rodney Culver 11-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 3:18. Notre Dame 14–0. Drive: 64 yards. Second quarter ND – Ricky Watters 48-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 8:36. Notre Dame 21–0. ND – Billy Hackett 27-yard field goal, 0:16. Notre Dame 24–0. Drive: 14 plays, 50 yards. Third quarter ND – Billy Hackett 39-yard field goal, 11:58. Notre Dame 27–0. Fourth quarter ND – Dorsey Levens 2-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 14:38. Notre Dame 34–0. ND – Ted McNamara 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 4:40. Notre Dame 41–0. Top passers NAVY – Alton Grizzard – 8/14, 94 yards ND – Rick Mirer – 8/12, 64 yards Top rushers NAVY – Rodney Purifoy – 11 rushes, 50 yards ND – Ricky Watters – 9 rushes, 134 yards, TD Top receivers NAVY – Shane Smith – 3 receptions, 50 yards ND – Adrian Jarrell – 3 receptins, 28 yards

External videos
Full game

SMU

SMU Mustangs (2–6) at #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (9–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
SMU	0	6	0	0	6
Notre Dame	7	35	10	7	59

at Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, Indiana

• Date: November 11, 1989
• Game attendance: 59,075
• Recap/Box Score

Game information

First quarter ND – Ricky Watters 35-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 6:54. Notre Dame 7–0. Drive: 6 plays, 79 yards. Second quarter ND – Pete Graham 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 14:22. Notre Dame 14–0. SMU – Andy Bergfeld 5-yard pass from Mike Romo (kick blocked), 11:37. Notre Dame 14–6. Drive: 3 plays, 19 yards. ND – Andre Jones blocked extra point return, 11:37. Notre Dame 16–6. ND – Billy Hackett 34-yard field goal, 8:16. Notre Dame 19–6. ND – Ricky Watters 97-yard punt return (Craig Hentrich kick), 7:04. Notre Dame 26–6. ND – Anthony Johnson 4-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 4:02. Notre Dame 33–6. Drive: 64 yards. ND – Safety, Casey Clyce steps out of end zone, 3:00. Notre Dame 35–6. ND – Walter Boyd 14-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 0:15. Notre Dame 42–6. Drive: 75 yards. Third quarter ND – Rusty Setzer 2-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 10:51. Notre Dame 49–6. ND – Billy Hackett 32-yard field goal, 5:45. Notre Dame 52–6. Fourth quarter ND – Rod West 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 3:22. Notre Dame 59–6. Top passers SMU – Mike Romo – 28/54, 194 yards ND – Tony Rice – 5/8, 83 yards Top rushers SMU – Kevin Love – 4 rushes, 5 yards ND – Ricky Watters – 7 rushes, 69 yards, TD Top receivers SMU – Jason Wolf – 9 receptions, 63 yards ND – Raghib Ismail – 4 receptions, 65 yards

External videos
Full game

at Penn State

#1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (10–0) at #17 Penn State Nittany Lions (6–2–1)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Notre Dame	7	14	7	6	34
Penn St	7	3	7	6	23

at Beaver Stadium, State College, Pennsylvania

• Date: November 18, 1989
• Game time: 2:30 p.m.
• Game attendance: 86,025
• TV: CBS
• Recap/Box

Game information

First quarter PSU – Blair Thomas 2-yard run (Ray Tarasi kick), 8:04. Penn St 7–0. Drive: 79 yards. ND – Tony Rice 5-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 2:19. Tie 7–7. Drive: 13 plays, 65 yards. Second quarter PSU – Ray Tarasi 38-yard field goal, 13:46. Penn St 10–7. ND – Ricky Watters 12-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 11:35. Notre Dame 14–10. Drive: 6 plays, 58 yards. ND – Anthony Johnson 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 5:27. Notre Dame 21–10. Third quarter ND – Tony Rice 1-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 8:42. Notre Dame 28–10. Drive: 6 plays. PSU – Blair Thomas 3-yard run (Ray Tarasi kick), 4:49. Notre Dame 28–17. Drive: 79 yards. Fourth quarter ND – Billy Hackett 22-yard field goal, 13:33. Notre Dame 31–17. ND – Billy Hackett 19-yard field goal, 6:53. Notre Dame 34–17. PSU – Terry Smith 5-yard pass from Tom Bill (run failed), 4:31. Notre Dame 34–23. Top passers ND – Tony Rice – 5/10, 47 yards, INT PSU – Tom Bill – 6/14, 56 yards, TD Top rushers ND – Tony Rice – 26 rushes, 141 yards, 2 TD PSU – Blair Thomas – 26 rushes, 133 yards, 2 TD Top receivers ND – Raghib Ismail – 2 receptions, 27 yards PSU – O.J. McDuffie – 2 receptions, 37 yards

Notre Dame's first win in school history at Beaver Stadium

External videos
Full game (part 1)
Full game (part 2)
Full game (part 3)
Game highlights

at Miami (FL)

#1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (11–0) at #7 Miami (FL) Hurricanes (9–1)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Notre Dame	0	10	0	0	10
Miami (FL)	10	7	7	3	27

at Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

• Date: November 25, 1989
• Game weather: Overcast, 77 °F (25 °C)
• Game attendance: 81,634
• Referee: Jimmy Harper
• TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz, Pat Haden, and John Dockery
• Recap/Box

Game information

'First quarter UM – Carlos Huerta 35-yard field goal, 9:41. Miami (FL) 3–0. UM – Dale Dawkins 55-yard pass from Craig Erickson (Carlos Huerta kick), 0:04. Miami (FL) 10–0. Drive: 4 plays. Second quarter ND – Billy Hackett 22-yard field goal, 8:23. Miami (FL) 10–3. ND – Ned Bolcar 49-yard interception return (Billy Hackett kick), 2:08. Tie 10–10. UM – Stephen McGuire 5-yard run (Carlos Huerta kick), 0:24. Miami (FL) 17–10. Drive: 3 plays. Third quarter UM – Dale Dawkins 5-yard pass from Craig Erickson (Carlos Huerta kick), 4:13. Miami (FL) 24–10. Drive: 22 plays, 80 yards, 10:47. Fourth quarter UM – Carlos Huerta 32-yard field goal, 1:44. Miami (FL) 27–10. Top passers ND – Tony Rice – 7/15, 106 yards, 2 INT UM – Craig Erickson – 16/26, 210 yards, 2 TD Top rushers ND – Tony Rice – 20 rushes, 50 yards UM – Stephen McGuire – 21 rushes, 83 yards, TD Top receivers ND – Derek Brown – 2 receptions, 19 yards UM – Dale Dawkins – 4 receptions, 123 yards, 2 TD

External videos
Full game
Game highlights
3rd and 43

Orange Bowl (vs Colorado)

Main article: 1990 Orange Bowl

#1 Colorado Buffaloes (11–0) vs. #4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (11–1)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Notre Dame	0	0	14	7	21
Colorado	0	0	6	0	6

at Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

• Date: January 1, 1990
• Game attendance: 81,190
• TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Bill Walsh
• Recap/Box

Game information

First quarter No scoring Second quarter No scoring Third quarter ND – Anthony Johnson 2-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 11:48. Notre Dame 7–0. ND – Raghib Ismail 35-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 7:19. Notre Dame 14–0. CU – Darian Hagan 39-yard run (kick failed), 0:01. Notre Dame 14–6. Fourth quarter ND – Anthony Johnson 7-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 1:32. Notre Dame 21–6. Top passers ND – Tony Rice – 5/9, 99 yards CU – Darian Hagan – 4/13, 65 yards Top rushers ND – Anthony Johnson – 15 rushes, 89 yards, 2 TD CU – Eric Bieniemy – 11 rushes, 66 yards Top receivers ND – Pat Eilers – 2 receptions, 47 yards CU – Eric Kissick – 2 receptions, 33 yards

Team players drafted into the NFL

The following players were drafted into professional football following the season.

Player	Position	Round	Pick	Franchise
Anthony Johnson	Running Back	2	36	Indianapolis Colts
Tim Grunhard	Tackle	2	40	Kansas City Chiefs
Jeff Alm	Defensive Tackle	2	41	Houston Oilers
Pat Terrell	Defensive Back	2	49	Los Angeles Rams
Mike Brennan	Tackle	4	91	Cincinnati Bengals
Stan Smagala	Defensive Back	5	123	Dallas Cowboys
Ned Bolcar	Linebacker	6	146	Seattle Seahawks
D’Juan Francisco	Defensive Back	10	262	Washington Redskins
Dean Brown	Guard	12	316	Indianapolis Colts

Awards and honors

• Tony Rice, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award
• Tony Rice finished 4th in voting for the Heisman Trophy.
• Raghib Ismail finished in a tie for 10th in voting for the Heisman Trophy.