Irish Taste Low Life No. 17 Michigan State Picks Apart Notre Dame, 23-7

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Michigan State coach Nick Saban found out how good his team can be. Notre Dame coach Bob Davie discovered he’s got more problems than he thought.

Marc Renaud rushed for 112 yards and Sedrick Irvin for 106, and the two combined for 381 all-purpose yards Saturday as No. 17 Michigan State beat Notre Dame 23-7.

It was Notre Dame’s second loss in as many weeks, dropping the Irish to 1-2. It hasn’t been under .500 since 1986, when Lou Holtz’s first team went 1-4 on the way to a 5-6 finish. That was also the last time Michigan State (3-0) beat Notre Dame.

The Irish now have road games at No. 8 Michigan and No. 21 Stanford.

Another ugly game was just too much for fans, who booed the Notre Dame offense as it walked off the field midway through the fourth quarter. There were more boos when Ron Powlus’ pass was intercepted with two minutes to play.

Fans, who usually stay until the end of the game, were leaving with 10 minutes to play. The only cheers came from the Michigan State band.

The Spartans scored on their first possession and were never in trouble again. Their massive offensive line opened huge holes for Irvin and Renaud, who ran wherever they wanted.

Michigan State finished with 353 yards, including 222 on 53 rushes. Quarterback Todd Schulz was 12 of 18 for 107 yards.

Notre Dame’s offense didn’t fare much better, but its problems were of its own doing. The Irish looked as dazed and confused as they had in their first two games. Their only score was set up by Kory Minor’s interception.

The Irish gained just 61 yards rushing on 23 carries, and Denson had 59 of those. Powlus was 23 of 37 for 181 yards, with one touchdown and one interception. Notre Dame lost 60 yards on four penalties.

Next for Michigan State: vs. Minnesota, Oct. 4.

(1) Penn State 57, Louisville 21 At Louisville, Ky., Curtis Enis rushed for three touchdowns and Joe Jurevicius caught three TD passes as the Nittany Lions (3-0) made easy work of the Cardinals (1-3).

Penn State’s Mike McQueary completed 10 of 18 passes for 219 yards, Enis rushed 14 times for 80 yards and Jurevicius had four receptions for 150 yards as Penn State won its eighth straight game, the longest winning streak in I-A.

Next for Penn State: At Illinois, Oct. 4.

(5) Florida St. 35, (16) Clemson 28: At Clemson, S.C., Peter Warrick scored three long touchdowns, including a Deion Sanders-style 90-yard punt return, as the Seminoles (3-0, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) stopped the Tigers (2-1, 1-1) and gave Bobby Bowden his 200th win as FSU coach.

After Clemson quarterback Nealon Greene connected for a 17-yard touchdown pass with Brian Wofford - and made a 2-point conversion to cut Florida State’s lead to 28-25 - Warrick zipped down the right sideline for an 80-yard touchdown catch to restore the double-digit lead.

Warrick, a sophomore, finished with eight catches for 249 yards. Florida State’s Thad Busby had a career-high 332 yards passing.

Next for Florida State: vs. Miami, Oct. 4.

Next for Clemson: at Georgia Tech.

(6) North Carolina 40, Maryland 14In College Park, Md., Oscar Davenport passed for 281 yards and two touchdowns in his first start of the season, and the Tar Heels (3-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) pulled away from the Terrapins (0-3, 0-2).

The Tar Heels trailed 7-0 in the second quarter, but scored 10 points off two fumble recoveries deep in Maryland territory to go up 17-7 early in the third quarter. Maryland never recovered and remained winless under new coach Ron Vanderlinden.

Next for North Carolina: vs. Virgina.

(8) Michigan 38, Baylor 3: In Ann Arbor, Mich., the Wolverines (2-0) didn’t allow a touchdown for the second straight week and the offense gained 532 yards against the Bears (1-2).

Baylor didn’t have a first down in the second half until getting one against reserves with 2:10 remaining.

Jerod Douglas, Baylor’s second all-time leading rusher, was held to 12 yards on 12 carries.

Brian Griese was 13 of 22 for 169 yards and a touchdown for the Wolverines. Chris Howard rushed for 112 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries, freshman Anthony Thomas rushed for 122 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries and Clarence Williams rushed for 77 yards on 11 carries as Michigan had 344 yards on the ground.

Next for Michigan: vs. Notre Dame.

Arkansas 17, (11) Alabama 16: In Tuscaloosa, Ala., Clint Stoerner hit a wide-open Anthony Eubanks for a 29-yard touchdown with 1:45 left, giving the Razorbacks (2-1, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) an upset win over the Crimson Tide (2-1, 1-1).

It was the second straight time the Razorbacks beat Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

Trailing by six with 3:34 left, Stoerner led Arkansas on a 58-yard scoring drive.

No Alabama running back rushed for more than 50 yards and Freddie Kitchens finished with just 84 yards passing.

Next for Alabama: vs. Southern Mississippi.

(13) Iowa 63, Iowa St 20: In Ames, Iowa, Tim Dwight re-emerged as a force in Iowa’s offense and the Hawkeyes (3-0) once again had their way with the Cyclones (0-4).

Dwight caught three touchdown passes. Iowa’s Tavian Banks sprinted 82 yards for a touchdown on the second play of the game and scored three more times. He finished with 127 yards on 20 carries.

Next for Iowa: vs. Illinois.

(18) Virginia Tech 23, Temple 13: At Philadelphia, Ken Oxendine ran for 160 yards and two touchdowns and the Owls (1-3, 1-1 Big East) twice fumbled away scoring chances in the fourth quarter, allowing the Hokies (3-0, 3-0) to survive.

Next for Virginia Tech: vs. Arkansas State.

(25) Georgia 42, Northeast Louisiana 3: In Athens, Ga., the Bulldogs (3-0) protected their first ranking in two years, coasting past the Indians (1-3). Georgia is 3-0 for the first time since 1988.

The Bulldogs’ Mike Bobo completed 11 of 17 for 229 yards and three touchdowns.

Next for Georgia: vs. Mississippi State, Oct. 4.