2010

EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- A far-from-perfect first season as Notre Dame coach could not have ended much better for Brian Kelly and his Fighting Irish. Freshman Tommy Rees passed for 201 yards and two touchdowns to Michael Floyd as Notre Dame beat Miami 33-17 in the Sun Bowl on Friday, making Kelly the first Fighting Irish coach to win a bowl game during his first season. The Irish started 1-3 under Kelly and consecutive October losses to Navy and Tulsa left them in precarious position to even get bowl eligible. But Notre Dame finished with four straight victories against Utah, Army, Southern California and Miami that should buoy hopes for the future of the program. "Clearly, we are gaining a lot of confidence," Kelly said. "We've beaten some good football teams late in the year as we've come together and found our identity. It's going to taste a whole lot better in the offseason talking about a win."

After a 20-year break, it was all Irish in the latest installment of a storied rivalry that became known during the 1980s as Catholics versus Convicts. Notre Dame (8-5) reached the end zone on three of its first four possessions. Rees tossed TD passes of 3 and 34 yards to Floyd and Cierre Wood broke free on a 34-yard scoring run before David Ruffer added field goals from 40, 50 and 19 yards. "It's not hard when you're throwing the ball to Mike," Rees said. "He's such a great player. I knew that if I threw it anywhere near him he was going to make the catch." There were tough moments for the Irish on the field and off this season. The week before the Tulsa loss at home, the team's student videographer was killed in an accident at practice.

Against Tulsa, Notre Dame lost quarterback Dayne Crist to a season-ending injury. Rees' interception in the end zone in the final seconds sealed the 28-27 defeat in South Bend, Ind. Notre Dame, however, recovered down the stretch, then handled Miami (7-6) easily. "There were some obstacles along the way but I think what showed with four wins to close the season was the progress we made," Ruffer said. "We kind of got a late jump with Coach Kelly coming in, but this last month or two months, we've made tremendous gains."

Notre Dame's 30th bowl appearance was a New Year's Eve fiesta in El Paso, a predominantly Roman Catholic city on the Mexican border that embraced the Irish with huge cheers from the first glimpse of a golden helmet coming from the locker rooms. "El Paso treated Notre Dame so very well," Kelly said. The Hurricanes trailed 30-3 going into the fourth quarter, completing a season in which their coach was fired with an ugly loss. Rees hardly looked like a freshman, completing 15 of 29 attempts without an interception. He struggled in the season-ending victory over USC but his performance against Miami marked the first time a first-year starting quarterback at Notre Dame won a bowl game.

"Those 15 practices from USC to now helped a lot," Rees said. "They took some of those mistakes out."

Floyd had a big day, too, with six catches for 109 yards receiving, and he was close to hauling into to more scores.

"I should have had four. That was all on me," Floyd said, laughing.

The game sold out in 21 hours, the fastest in the Sun Bowl's 77-year history, and the crowd of 54,021 set a bowl attendance record. Many fans wore Notre Dame jackets to ward off the 34-degree weather as a round of overnight snow dusted the Franklin Mountains.

The warm-weather Hurricanes - many wearing head covers under their helmets - struggled much of the afternoon.

"They call it football weather for a reason. You can't make any excuses," Miami center Tyler Horn said.

Miami scored twice in the fourth quarter when Stephen Morris threw a 6-yard TD pass to Leonard Hankerson and a 42-yard scoring play to Tommy Streeter, but it was too late by then. The Hurricanes also had 10 penalties for 106 yards.

"Interceptions and penalties," interim coach Jeff Stoutland said. "I really thought we worked hard and focused on that. It bit us again. It really made the difference in the whole game."

The Canes trailed 27-0 late in the first half and the player with the most catches from a Hurricanes quarterback was Irish safety Harrison Smith, who intercepted three passes. Robert Blanton also had an interception during Miami's turnover binge.

"It was a total defensive effort," Smith said. "When you knock the receivers off and mess up the timing with the quarterback, it really makes it easier for the safeties."

Not everything went perfectly for Notre Dame. Ruffer was wide right a 36-yard try late in the third quarter, his first miss on 24 career attempts. Linebacker Manti Te'o sat out most of the second half with a knee injury but could have played if needed.

"We were not going to risk a major injury," Kelly said.

It was a rough finish to a tough season for the Hurricanes, who saw coach Randy Shannon fired in November. Newly hired coach Al Golden watched from a Sun Bowl suite. He saw a team that needs a lot of work.

Jacory Harris started at quarterback for the Canes after Morris sprained an ankle in practice this week. Harris couldn't get anything going, completing just 4 of 7 with three interceptions. Morris took over the second quarter and finished 22-of-33 for 282 yards passing with two TDs.

Miami Postgame Quotes

Interim head coach Jeff Stoutland

Opening statement

We played a very, very good football team today, who executed on both sides of the ball. Unfortunately we weren’t able to stay with them. I really felt, I really, really felt going into halftime – I know it’s hard to believe – but I really felt like we would come out and do some good things and come back and win the game. I really, truly felt that way, but it didn’t happen.

Was the last month too much for the team to overcome?

If I say yes to that question; that’s just making excuses. I’m not an excuse man, I never have been. I always feel like I can overcome whatever situation is.  I always try to make a positive out of a negative. There were hurdles; everyday was a hurdle. I felt strong, I still do, about the group that we have here, the character of the group. It’s heartbreaking because I just feel like; I still wish we had another few minutes left in the game to play.

Can you talk about Stephen Morris giving the offense a lift?

He made some plays, which is what we needed to do, on both sides of the ball, we needed to make plays. We started to make plays in the second half. We had a couple of opportunities maybe get some interceptions. Stephen came in and did a great job. He moved a lot better than I thought he was going to. I thought he did a nice job and gave us a boost.

Thought on Jacory Harris?

I felt real strong about Jacory, coming in. I thought he was going to have a real good game, productive game. I just think he made a couple of mistakes that as a player at that position, it’s costly.

Was weather a factor?

I don’t know. I think, not really. Again, these are all things that you can say and use as an excuse. I wasn’t cold; I don’t know if the players were. I didn’t think it was a big deal.

Penalties have hurt you all season and they did in the first half.

I think there were seven or eight penalties in the first half. There were two things I talked about: interceptions and penalties. I thought we worked really hard and focused on that. It bit us again. It really made the difference in the whole game.

Junior defensive back, Brandon Harris

Talk about the weather conditions

Both teams played in the same conditions. Weather is weather; that’s football.

Thoughts on Michael Floyd?

He’s a big-time receiver.  Unfortunately he made some big-time plays on us. Coming into the game we knew who the best player on offense was.

Have you decided if you will be leaving or staying?

I haven’t really thought about it much. My main goal, here, was to come to the bowl game and enjoy the experience, enjoy the seniors and enjoy the coaches that won’t be here next year.

Junior offensive lineman, Tyler Horn

Talk about the weather conditions

They call it football weather for a reason. This is what football is supposed to be played in. You know; hardcore gridiron-type football.

Sophomore wide receiver, Leonard Hankerson

Can you talk about the touchdown reception and getting on the board? Why did it take the offense so long to get rolling?

I don’t want to say we weren’t focused, but we didn’t make plays. We needed to make more plays and we dropped some balls. We gave up some momentum.

Talk about Harrison Smith and his three interception day

They adjusted, rolled, coverage to where I was on the field. I guess he was just at the right place and at the right time.

Thoughts on Mike James playing in the game

He lifted everybody up because everybody wanted to win the game for him.

Freshman quarterback, Stephen Morris

Can you talk about your play?

I don’t really care about how I played.

Was it difficult to play on the injured ankle?

No, I didn’t feel anything at all. Coming in, I felt my ankle was fine, taped up.

Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly

Opening statement

For us, at the University of Notre Dame, it starts with being at a great site, at the Sun Bowl. El Paso treated Notre Dame so well. I can’t say enough about the bowl. I’ve been to the Sugar Bowl and I’ve taken a team to the Orange Bowl; this is just a great stop along the way.

We played well today. That’s really where I would start. We got off to a great start, getting the three scores early on. We felt like getting off to a great start was very important to us in the momentum of the game. From our standpoint, offensively and defensively, we played a complete game, especially in the first half. I think it really is about getting off to that great start.

And our guys, I’ve got to tell you, they prepared so well for this game. It was not like other bowl games that I’ve prepared for, in a sense that you’ve got to really push your guys to practice and prepare. These guys wanted to win this football game and it showed in the way they played in the first half.

Based on what you’ve seen from practices is this what you expected?

Obviously, Michael (Floyd) was healthy and Theo Riddick was healthy. The running game, obviously, had taken on an identity. We felt, offensively, good things were happening. We were just going to continue to feed off the confidence that our defensive group has. I expected us to play well. It was really going to come down to our quarterback’s ability to make some plays and get the ball to our playmakers.

Did you expect Harrison Smith to get three interceptions?

You know, he’s on a roll right now. I think he’s got four (interceptions) in his last three games. It’s just a matter of time. Harrison is just a complete football player. You saw the kind of hits that he’ll bring when he’s coming down, but he can also play off of the hash. A lot of people questioned his ability to play off the hash. I think he’s answered all of those critics quite well.

Does a one-point or multiple-point game amplify or carry over differently into next season?

No, I don’t think so. I don’t know that the one game really sets who you are and where you want to go. Clearly, we’re gaining a lot of confidence. Miami is a good football team. We’ve beaten some good football teams later on in the year as we’ve kind of come together and found our identity. Again, it’s going to taste a whole lot better talking about a win, eight wins.

You played wide open today, was that due to your team being healthy?

Again, our offense starts with Michael (Floyd) and the ability to get the football. He just allows us to do so many things when we can get him the football and make sure he gets touches. It opens up so many other things within our offense.

Do you feel you’ll have Michael Floyd for another year in your offense?

We have a man here at Notre Dame that has given everything to Notre Dame. If he decides that it is in his best interest to come back next year, we’ll be very, very happy for him. But we want what’s best for Mike Floyd. Today, he showed why he’s a championship football player in his performance.

Coach, do you have an update on Manti Te’o’s injury?

Yeah, he sprained his knee. We could have played him. We got clearance to put him back in, but we were not going to risk a major injury, especially at the time and place of the game. The same thing with Tommy (Rees). Tommy had a bit of a hyperextension of the knee cap, an injury that he had in high school.  Doctors evaluated him and put him in a knee brace. He played the whole second half with the knee brace on.

Did the last four games of the season earn the program credibility nationally?

It’s still a process for us, it still is. We still have more things that we have to get done, especially now that we’re going to have our players for a full year of weight training conditioning. You’re going to see a big jump from our football team, relative to their work volume and what they’re able to do for us. You’re going to see a huge difference in year two.

Senior safety, Harrison Smith

Talk about those three interceptions

It was really just kind of a total defensive effort. There were great reroutes. When you knock those receivers off and mess up the timing between the quarterback and the receiver, it really makes it easy for the safety.

When you got two interceptions, did you think about getting a third?

Not really, I was just trying to be one 11^th of the defense as we all like to say. When an opportunity comes your way, you’ve just got to make it. That’s just how I approached it.

Junior  wide receiver, Michael Floyd

Can you talk about Miami’s defensive backs?

All four DB’s (defensive backs) gave me a lot of strain, press coverage on me, trying to reroute me. We were just trying to take advantage of when they gave us one-on-one coverage.

Did you think you should have had three touchdowns like Harrison Smith had three interceptions?

Nah, actually, I should have had four. It was all on me though.

If this is your last game, what has this experience been like?

It’s just been a great season. It’s hard to come in with a new coach, trying to move into what they like and the whole team adjusting.

What did they do different following your two touchdowns, defensively?

I think the corners took kind of a different role to jamming me. As soon as the ball snapped they were just trying to launch their body at me, just to slow me down, down the field. So we tried to rotate everybody around and do different things on the field.

Can you talk about your injury, real quick?

It’s just my hamstring. It’s been irritating me a little bit. It just tires out throughout the game.

Notre Dame (8-5) vs. Univeristy of Miami (7-6)

Date: Dec 31, 2010 • Site: El Paso, Texas • Stadium: Sun Bowl • Attendance: 54021

77^th Annual Hyundai Sun Bowl Post Game Notes

The attendance for Friday afternoon’s Sun is 54,021. It is the largest crowd in Sun Bowl history. The second largest crowd (53,713) watched the Oklahoma versus Stanford in the 76^th Sun Bowl in 2009.

This is the first time both Miami and Notre Dame have appeared in the Sun Bowl game.

This year’s Sun Bowl was the fourth coldest game in Sun Bowl game history, with a kickoff temperature of 33 degrees. The coldest game, which was 24 degrees at kickoff, pitted Alabama against SMU on Dec. 24, 1983. The Crimson Tide defeated the Mustangs, 28-7.

Notre Dame’s 24-point lead against Miami was the second largest in Sun Bowl history. It was preceded by a Dec. 24, 1983 meeting between Alabama and SMU in which the Crimson Tide led, 28-0.

Harrison Smith’s (Notre Dame) three interceptions matches Buddy McClinton’s (Auburn) output in the 1968 Sun Bowl.

David Ruffer's NCAA leading streak of consecutive made field goals ends at 23. He missed a 36-yarder at the tail end of the third quarter

Notre Dame

This is Notre Dame’s 103^rd winning season in 121 years in the football program’s history.

Notre Dame’s last bowl appearance was in 2009 against Hawai’i in the Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl. The Irish defeated the Warriors 49-21, earning their first bowl win since the 1994 Cotton Bowl, where they defeated Texas A&M 24-21.

The last time Notre Dame won two consecutive postseason bowl games was 1993-1994 when they defeated Texas A&M both years, 28-3 and 24-21, respectively.

Michael Floyd’s two touchdown catches in Friday afternoon’s game broke Jeff Samardzija’s 27 career touchdowns at Notre Dame.

Robert Blanton recorded his fifth career interception when he picked off a pass from Jacory Harris.

Shane Walton was the last Irish player to perform the feat against Maryland (2002). The other players with three interception games for Notre Dame are Jayron Hosley against Virginia Tech and Marco Nelson against Tulsa.

David Ruffer holds the NCAA record for most consecutive field goals made (23). He is also one of three kickers in Notre Dame football history to make multiple field goals of 50 yards. His 12 points, in the 77^th Hyundai Sun Bowl, are the most for any kicker in a postseason bowl game.

The last time Notre Dame won two consecutive postseason bowl games was 1993-1994. They defeated Texas A&M both years in the Cotton Bowl, 28-3 and 24-21 respectively.

Miami

Miami’s last bowl appearance was in 2009 against Wisconsin in the Champs Sports Bowl. The Hurricane lost, 20-14.

Miami has appeared in a bowl game 24 times in the last 27 seasons.

Leonard Hankerson now has the most receiving yards by any Miami receiver after his 6 catch, 71 yard performance.

After passing for 37 yards, Jacory Harris is now in third place in single season passing yards in Miami history.