The 2014 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

in the

2014 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2014 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the highest level of college football competition in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The regular season began on August 27, 2014 and ended on D ...

. The team was coached by Brian Kelly and played its home games at

Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame Stadium is an outdoor football stadium in Notre Dame, Indiana, the home field of the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team. It was built in 1930 under the guidance of Knute Rockne, regarded as one of the greatest co ...

South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in and the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, St. Joseph County, Indiana, on the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. As of the 2020 United S ...

. They compete as an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

. The Irish started the season with a 6–0 record, ranked as high as No. 5 in both the

AP Poll The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broadca ...

and the

Coaches Poll The Coaches Poll is a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football, Division I college basketball, and Division I college baseball teams. The football version of the poll has been known officially ...

, but had a collapse in the second half of the season, losing five of their last six games to finish the regular season at 7–5. Notre Dame's defense suffered significant injuries and yielded over 41 points per game over those six games. For the first time in school history, the Irish gave up thirty points or more in seven consecutive contests. Despite the disappointing season the Irish finished on a high note, upsetting the heavily favored

LSU Tigers The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers are the athletic teams representing Louisiana State University (LSU), a state university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU competes in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a ...

(8 point favorites) in the

Music City Bowl The Music City Bowl is a post-season American college football bowl game certified by the NCAA that has been played in Nashville, Tennessee, since 1998. Since 2020, it has been sponsored by TransPerfect and is officially known as the ''TransPerf ...

, 31–28. Kicker Kyle Brindza kicked the game-winning field goal as time expired. This was the first win by Notre Dame over a

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

(SEC) team since beating the University of Tennessee Volunteers in 2005. This is also Notre Dame's first win over a ranked opponent in a bowl game since 1993, where they defeated No. 6

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

Before the season

Previous season

The Fighting Irish finished the 2013 regular season with an 8–4 record. They beat the

Rutgers Scarlet Knights The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are the athletic teams that represent Rutgers University's New Brunswick campus. In sports, Rutgers is famously known for being the "Birthplace of College Football", hosting the first ever intercollegiate football ...

29–16 in the

2013 Pinstripe Bowl The 2013 Pinstripe Bowl was an American college football bowl game that was played on December 28, 2013 at Yankee Stadium in the New York City borough of The Bronx. It was one of the 2013–14 bowl games that concluded the 2013 FBS football s ...

2014 NFL Draft

The following former Notre Dame players were selected in the

2014 NFL Draft The 2014 NFL draft was the 79th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players to the league. The draft, officially the "Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in New Y ...

Transfers out / departures

Stephon Tuitt Stephon Jakiel Tuitt (born May 23, 1993) is a former American football defensive end who played eight seasons, all with the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Steelers in the second round of the 2014 ...

, Louis Nix,

Troy Niklas Troy Niklas (born September 18, 1992) is a former American football tight end. He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Notre Dame. High school Niklas attended Servite ...

and

George Atkinson III George Henry Atkinson III (November 29, 1992 – December 2, 2019) was an American professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. He sign ...

all chose to forgo their final year of eligibility and enter the

. On April 4, 2014, sophomore

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

Rashad Kinlaw was dismissed from the team due to violation of team rules. He subsequently left the university following his dismissal from the football program.

Transfers in

Cody Riggs Cody Tyler Riggs (born December 30, 1991) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at Florida and Notre Dame. High school career Riggs attended St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He was p ...

, a

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, announced he would transfer to Notre Dame in June after he received his degree in May 2014. He would be enrolled in a graduate studies program while exhausting his final season of eligibility.

Coaching changes

Chuck Martin left to become the head coach of the

Miami RedHawks The Miami RedHawks are the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Miami is a member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) East Divis ...

Bob Diaco Robert Albert Diaco (born February 19, 1973) is an American football coach and a former linebacker who is the defensive line coach for the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League (USFL). He played college football at the Univers ...

departed to become the head coach of the

Connecticut Huskies The UConn Huskies (or Connecticut Huskies) are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Connecticut, located in Storrs. The school is a member of the NCAA's Division I and the Big East Conference. The university's fo ...

Brian VanGorder Brian VanGorder (born April 17, 1959) is an American football coach and former player. He was the defensive coordinator at Bowling Green State University, a position he assumed in 2019. Prior to that, he was defensive coordinator at the Universit ...

, formerly the linebackers coach of the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

, was hired to be the new defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.

Matt LaFleur Matthew Patrick LaFleur ( ; born November 3, 1979) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He has served as the quarterback coach of the Washington Redskins, Notre Dame ...

, formerly the quarterbacks coach of the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

, was hired to be the new quarterbacks coach.

Mike Denbrock Michael Fredrick Denbrock (born January 29, 1964) is an American football coach. He is the offensive coordinator at Louisiana State University (LSU). Denbrock has previously been a coach at Notre Dame, Illinois State, Grand Valley State, Stanford ...

was promoted to offensive coordinator, filling the void left by Martin.

Recruiting class

Brian Kelly received 23 commitments in his fourth full recruiting class including two five-stars: linebacker Nyles Morgan and offensive tackle Quenton Nelson. The class included student-athletes from 14 states.

Personnel

Coaching staff

Roster

The roster is current as of October 8, 2014.

Schedule

Game summaries

Rice

Michigan

In what looks to be the final meeting between Notre Dame and Michigan, Notre Dame defeated Michigan, 31–0, giving the Irish their most lopsided win against the Wolverines. The game ended Michigan's NCAA record of consecutive games without being shut out. (The Wolverines were last shut out in 1984 versus Iowa). Michigan turned the ball over four times, while Notre Dame had no turnovers. Michigan never reached the red zone in this game. Everett Golson went 23 for 34, throwing for 226 yards and three touchdowns for the Irish. Notre Dame went to 2–0 on the year.

Purdue

Syracuse

Stanford

With 1:09 left in the game and Notre Dame facing a 4th and 11 from Stanford's 23 yard line, Everett Golson finds a wide open Ben Koyack in the corner of the endzone to lift Notre Dame over Stanford 17–14. Stanford, the country's number one defense, had been giving up just 198 total yards of offense a game, but Notre Dame piled up 370 yards. Despite the Irish offense moving the ball, multiple mistakes including botched field goal snaps and turnovers in the red zone kept the game close throughout. Notre Dame's defense was dominant, giving up just 204 total yards and had two interceptions. Further, the Irish defense held Stanford to 47 yards rushing – Stanford's fewest rush yards in a game since 2007. With the win, Notre Dame moves to 5–0.

North Carolina

The 6th ranked Irish held off the North Carolina Tar Heels to win in a shootout 50–43. After trailing 14–0 in the 1st, the Irish found some rhythm to score 21 points in a row to take a 21–14 lead. The win marked the first time the Irish put up 50 points against a non-academy team since beating Stanford 57–7 in 2003.

Florida State

The Irish, who were double digit underdogs, looked to score the game-winning touchdown with :13 left after Everett Golson found a wide open Corey Robinson in the endzone. But the Irish were flagged for a pass interference penalty which took the touchdown away and pushed Notre Dame back 10 yards. Irish turned the ball over on the next play. The penalty was considered controversial by someControversial Pass Interference Penalty cost ND Game
/ref> in a game many consider the game of the year between two top 5 teams. Everett Golson showed why many consider him a Heisman candidate by completing 31 of 52 passes for 313 yards and throwing for 3 touchdowns.

Navy

Arizona State

1st quarter scoring: ND – Kyle Brindza 46-yard field goal; ASU –

Zane Gonzalez Holden Fortunato Gonzalez (born May 7, 1995) is an American football placekicker for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Arizona State University and was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in ...

, 47-yard field goal; ASU – Jaelen Strong 13-yard pass from Taylor Kelly (Gonzalez kick); ASU – Demario Richard 1-yard run (Gonzalez kick) 2nd quarter scoring: ASU – Damarious Randall 59-yard interception (Gonzalez kick); ASU – Cameron Smith 43-yard pass from Kelly (Gonzalez kick); ASU – Gonzalez, 28-yard field goal; ND – Will Fuller 9-yard pass from Everett Golden (Brindza kick) 3rd quarter scoring:

Northwestern

Louisville

For the first time in the history of Notre Dame football, the Irish have given up 30 points or more in six straight game. And for the second week in a row, a missed field goal by kicker Kyle Brindza late in the game dooms the Irish. Notre Dame is now 1–4 in the last 5 games after starting 6–0.

USC

LSU (Music City Bowl)

Rankings

Postseason

Awards

All-Americans

References

{{Notre Dame Fighting Irish football navbox Notre Dame Notre Dame Fighting Irish football seasons Music City Bowl champion seasons

Notre Dame Fighting Irish football The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the intercollegiate football team representing the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, north of the city of South Bend, Indiana. The team plays its home games at the campus' Notre Dame ...