The Longhorns and Fighting Irish have played on the gridiron 10 times prior to tomorrow’s matchup in South Bend. Notre Dame owns an 8-2 overall record against Texas and claims a current four game winning streak against the ‘Horns.
On Saturday night these two storied programs meet again in South Bend, Indiana, where the Longhorns last won in 1934 under head coach and former Notre Dame player and coach Jack Chevigny.
–History Recaps —
November 27, 1913 – Austin, Texas
In Knute Rockne’s last game as a player for Notre Dame, the Irish brought a perfect 6-0 record to Austin to play 27 year-old head Coach Dave Allerdice’s undefeated Longhorns on Thanksgiving Day. The Fighting Irish completed 10 passes and rushed 77 times to leave Austin with an undefeated season. Notre Dame became the first school north of the Mason-Dixon line to play The University of Texas in football.
FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame – 30, Texas – 7
November 25, 1915 – Austin, Texas
After losing to Notre Dame in 1913, Texas head coach Dave Allerdice looked to even the score with the Irish. The Longhorns couldn’t muster much on the offensive side of the ball and turned the ball over four times. Notre Dame’s ground attack was the story of the game as Irish players rushed 66 times for a total of 463 yards. Notre Dame wins its second straight against Texas.
FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame – 36, Texas – 7
October 6, 1934 – South Bend, Indiana
Former Notre Dame halfback Jack Chevigny was hired to coach the Longhorns in 1934. Chevigny, an assistant coach under Knute Rockne, was coaching at nearby Saint Edwards University ( a Notre Dame sister school) when the Longhorns extended him the head coaching offer. During the opening kickoff, the Longhorns recovered a Notre Dame fumble. Longhorn halfback Bohn Hilliard, the Orange Flash, later rumbled 8 yards into the Notre Dame end zone scoring the game’s only touchdown. Hilliard kicked the extra point as well and sealed a Texas victory, their first ever over the Fighting Irish.
FINAL SCORE: Texas – 7, Notre Dame- 6
October 4, 1952– Austin, Texas
Notre Dame football made its first trip back to Austin since the 1915 season and brought with it a #19 national ranking. The Longhorns were ranked 5th and were cautious favorites to beat the Irish. Gib Dawson managed a field goal for the Longhorns in the 2nd quarter to take a 3-0 lead over the Irish, but Notre Dame would rush for touchdowns in the 3rd and 4th quarters to beat the Longhorns for the third time in school history.
FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame – 14, Texas- 3
September 25, 1954 – South Bend, Indiana
Turnovers were the storyline in the 4th ranked Longhorns’ second trip to South Bend. Texas fumbled 5 times, losing 4 of them to #2 Notre Dame. The Irish would throw for a touchdown and rush for two more in a lopsided shutout over the Longhorns.
FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame – 21, Texas- 0
January 1, 1970 – Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas
Notre Dame makes its first bowl appearance in 45 years (last was in 1925) against the top-ranked team in the country: The Texas Longhorns. Joe Theismann’s passing attack kept the Irish in the game until the very end but it was Texas quarterback James Street’s 8 yard pass to Cotton Speyrer on 4th and 2 late in the game that set the Longhorns up for the win. Billy Dale would cap off the successful 4th down conversion with a 1-yard scamper in the end zone. Texas would claim its 2nd national championship under head coach Darrell Royal with the win.
FINAL SCORE: Texas – 21, Notre Dame – 17
January 1, 1971 – Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas
#6 Notre Dame jumped on #1 Texas early in this contest, scoring 24 points in the first half. The Longhorns mustered up a field goal and a touchdown before the half, trailing 24-11. Neither team would put points on the scoreboard in the second half, and Notre Dame would leave Dallas with a 24-11 win over Texas. Texas fumbled nine times in the contest and All-American quarterback Joe Theismann threw for 176 yards and 3 touchdowns. The loss to the Irish, however, wasn’t enough to preclude the Longhorns from the national championship. Texas would go on to claim its 3rd national championship with a final season record of 10-1.
FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame – 24, Texas – 11
January 2, 1978 – Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas
#5 Notre Dame would amass 400 yards of total offense against the top-ranked Longhorns, who would turn the ball over 3 times in the contest. Joe Montana threw for 111 yards and a touchdown in what proved to be a huge upset for Notre Dame over Texas. Despite #3 Alabama’s thrashing of Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl and #2 Oklahoma’s loss to Arkansas, the win over Texas was enough for the pollsters to push the Fighting Irish into the #1 spot. Notre Dame would claim the 1977 national championship.
FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame – 38, Texas – 10
September 23, 1995 – South Bend, Indiana
41 years since they last played at Notre Dame Stadium, the Texas Longhorns made a return appearance to South Bend. Current Texas head coach Charlie Strong was the defensive line coach for the Irish at the time under head coach Lou Holtz. Texas quarterback James Brown would hit Steve Bradley for a touchdown with 8:43 left in the 3rd quarter to give the Longhorns their first lead (20-19) over Notre Dame. The lead wouldn’t last long, as Notre Dame’s Randy Kinder added a rushing touchdown to the scoreboard three and a half minutes later. The 4th quarter saw Marc Edwards score 3 touchdowns and Allen Rossum return an interception for a touchdown for the Irish. Ricky Williams led Texas in rushing with 73 yards in the loss.
FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame – 55, Texas – 27
September 21, 1996 – Austin, Texas
The last meeting between the two teams took place at Darrell K. Royal – Texas Memorial Stadium in front of 83,312 spectators. Texas jumped out to an early lead on a James Brown to Mike Adams touchdown pass and Notre Dame would add a field goal to cut the lead to 7-3 after the first quarter. Priest Holmes’ 3-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter to give the Longhorns a 14-3 lead gave Texas reason for optimism. But Notre Dame scored two touchdowns in the final five minutes of the half to take a 17-14 lead into the locker room at the half. The Longhorns tied the game at 17-17 with the only scoring in the 3rd quarter, which was Phil Dawson’s 47-yard field goal. Ricky Williams’ 1-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter gave the ‘Horns a 24-17 lead. With a little under three minutes left in the game and on 4th down, Irish running back Autry Denson would take a pitch from Ron Pawlus 6 yards into the Texas end zone. Notre Dame would own the last possession and win the game on a 39-yard field goal by Irish placekicker Jim Sanson as time expired.
FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame – 27, Texas – 24
