No. 20 Notre Dame Stuns No. 3 Michigan 17-10

Posted 4:51PM on Saturday 10th September 2005 ( 19 years ago )

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) -- A mere two games into his coaching career at Notre Dame, Charlie Weis has joined Knute Rockne in the record books - and has his team playing like the Fighting Irish of old. Brady Quinn threw two touchdown passes in the first half and the 20th-ranked Fighting Irish held on to beat No. 3 Michigan 17-10 Saturday, making Weis the first Notre Dame coach to win his first two games on the road since Rockne in 1918. Notre Dame (2-0), which won at then-No. 23 Pittsburgh last week, snapped the Wolverines' 16-game winning streak at Michigan Stadium and handed them their first loss against a nonconference team at home since 1998. The Irish - two years removed from losing 38-0 in Ann Arbor - also won at Michigan for the first time since 1993. Michigan (1-1) squandered several chances in the fourth quarter to pull within a touchdown before finally capitalizing on their third opportunity. On a fourth-and-3, Chad Henne lofted a 25-yard pass to Mario Manningham with 3:47 left to make it 17-10. The Wolverines then forced Notre Dame to punt, but four incomplete passes later, the Irish were celebrating on the sideline. Notre Dame didn't need much help to beat the Wolverines, but instant replay overturned two calls in its favor in the fourth quarter. On a sneak from inside Notre Dame's 1, Henne was ruled down, but a review showed that he fumbled and that the Irish's Chinedum Ndukwe recovered the ball in the end zone. On the ensuing possession, officials ruled that Quinn fumbled, but a review showed that his knee was down, allowing the Irish to keep the ball deep in their territory. Each time, Michigan's student section responded by throwing water bottles and other debris on the field. Quinn was 19-for-30 for 140 yards and Darius Walker ran for 104 yards for the Irish. D.J. Fitzpatrick's 43-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter gave Notre Dame a 17-3 lead. On its next possession, Walker fumbled, giving Michigan some hope The Wolverines drove to Notre Dame's 5, but were turned away after being stuffed on two runs and two passes that fell incomplete. They got inside Notre Dame's 1 on their next possession, before Henne's fumble. The game was a defensive struggle as the Wolverines were held to their lowest point total since Iowa beat them 34-9 in 2002. That game started a home-winning streak that Notre Dame snapped in front of 111,386 fans. Michigan running back Mike Hart and Notre Dame receiver Rhema McKnight were injured in the first half. Hart was limping after a hard hit by linebacker Corey Mays late in the first quarter. He left the game and had ice under his left hamstring on the bench. McKnight - who caught a 5-yard touchdown pass to give the Fighting Irish a 7-0 lead on the opening possession of the game - twisted his right knee after being tackled by Brandent Englemon on an incomplete pass in the second quarter. McKnight immediately held his knee and after a few minutes, he was able to walk off the field with the help of two trainers. A week after having three tight ends on its first play, the Irish used a shotgun formation and an empty backfield to open the game. They didn't use a huddle at times during the 12-play drive and didn't have a third down. The Wolverines held Notre Dame to a total of 16 yards on its next three possessions, before Steve Breatson's 30-yard reverse on the last play of the first quarter gave them the ball in Irish territory for the first time. Garrett Rivas' 38-yard field goal made it 7-3. Notre Dame responded with its second 12-play drive for a TD, capped by Quinn's 5-yard pass to Jeff Samardzija for a 14-3 lead with 4:24 left in the second quarter. © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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