A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| 2005 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football | |
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Fiesta Bowl, L 20–34 vs. Ohio State | |
| Conference | Independent |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 11 |
| AP | No. 9 |
| Record | 9–3 |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Michael Haywood (1st season) |
| Offensive scheme | Pro-style |
| Defensive coordinator | Rick Minter (1st year of 2nd stint, 3rd overall season) |
| Base defense | 4–3 Multiple |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Notre Dame Stadium (c. 80,795, grass) |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 Notre Dame % | – | 9 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Navy | – | 8 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Army | – | 4 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Temple | – | 0 | – | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2005 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame in the 2005 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Charlie Weis and played its home games at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana. The Irish completed the season with a record of 9–3, culminating in an appearance in the Fiesta Bowl and a number 9 ranking in the nation.
Preseason
Coaching changes
After finishing the 2004 season at 6–6, Notre Dame officials, in a controversial move,[1][2] fired third-year head coach Tyrone Willingham. The Irish initially hoped to hire University of Utah head coach Urban Meyer, who had led the Utes to an undefeated season, as Meyer had been an assistant coach for the Irish for five years and had a clause in his contract stating he could leave Utah without penalty if Notre Dame offered him a job.[3] When Meyer accepted the head coaching job at the University of Florida, Notre Dame hired Charlie Weis, the New England Patriots' offensive coordinator, making him the first Notre Dame alumnus to lead the team since 1963.[4]
Roster changes
The Irish lost a number of players on defense including four former starting defensive backs, three players on the defensive line, including defensive end Justin Tuck, and two former starting linebackers, including honorable mention All-American Derek Curry, to graduation. On the offensive side of the ball the only key losses for the Irish were running back Ryan Grant and former quarterback and wide receiver Carlyle Holiday. The Irish returned ten starters on offense and four on defense.[5]
Recruits
With poor recruiting being one of the issues that led to the firing of Willingham,[6] Weis was challenged to coach the Patriots' offense during the day and work on recruiting players for the Irish at night.[7] He took a proactive role in recruiting, including sending seven of his assistant coaches to a recruit who had de-committed after Willingham was fired[8] (the recruit, however, signed with the Ohio State Buckeyes). Weis, with some of Willingham's recruits signing also, built a class of 15 recruits, including five four star recruits.
| US college sports recruiting information for 2005 recruits | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | 40‡ | Commit date |
| David Bruton DB |
Miamisburg, OH | Miamisburg HS | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | 4.5 | Jun 29, 2004 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Paul Duncan OL |
Dallas, GA | Eas Paulding HS | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 282 lb (128 kg) | 5.43 | Jan 11, 2005 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| David Grimes WR |
Detroit, MI | Detroit City HS | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 157 lb (71 kg) | 4.5 | Jul 18, 2004 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Derrell Hand DT |
Philadelphia, PA | West Philadelphia Catholic HS | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 298 lb (135 kg) | 5.62 | Jan 19, 2005 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Ray Herring S |
Melbourne, FL | Holy Trinity Episcopal School | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | 187 lb (85 kg) | 4.5 | Jan 19, 2005 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Joey Hiben TE |
Waconia, MN | Waconia Sr. | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | 4.7 | Nov 8, 2004 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| D.J. Hord WR |
Kansas City, MO | Rockhurst HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | 4.4 | Jan 15, 2005 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Patrick Kuntz DE |
Indianapolis, IN | Roncalli HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 255 lb (116 kg) | 4.8 | Jan 15, 2005 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Kyle McCarthy CB |
Youngstown, OH | Cardinal Mooney HS | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 172 lb (78 kg) | 4.47 | Jan 23, 2005 |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Steve Quinn LB |
Philadelphia, PA | St. Joseph's Prep School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 208 lb (94 kg) | 4.62 | Feb 2, 2005 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Asaph Schwapp RB |
Hartford, CT | Weaver HS | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 247 lb (112 kg) | 4.64 | Jul 15, 2004 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Evan Sharpley QB |
Marshall, MI | Marshall HS | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | 4.7 | Jul 18, 2004 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Scott Smith LB |
Highland Park, IL | Highland Park, HS | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 222 lb (101 kg) | 4.75 | Jul 16, 2004 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Michael Turkovich OL |
Wayne, PA | Valley Forge Military Academy | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 280 lb (130 kg) | 5 | Jan 8, 2005 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Kevin Washington LB |
Sugar Land, TX | Steven F. Austin HS | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 213 lb (97 kg) | 4.59 | Jul 18, 2004 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A
| ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: #27 Rivals: #40 | ||||||
Sources:
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Award candidates
Four players were named to the national awards watch lists in the pre-season:
- Anthony Fasano – John Mackey Award[9]
- D. J. Fitzpatrick – Lou Groza Award[10]
- Brandon Hoyte – Dick Butkus Award[11]
- Brady Quinn – Maxwell Award[12]
Schedule
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 3 | 8:00 p.m. | at No. 23 Pittsburgh | ABC | W 42–21 | 66,451 | ||
| September 10 | 12:00 p.m. | at No. 3 Michigan | No. 20 | ABC | W 17–10 | 111,386 | |
| September 17 | 3:30 p.m. | Michigan State | No. 10 | NBC | L 41–44 OT | 80,795 | |
| September 24 | 3:30 p.m. | at Washington | No. 16 | ABC | W 36–17 | 71,473 | |
| October 1 | 7:45 p.m. | at No. 22 Purdue | No. 13 | ESPN | W 49–28 | 65,491 | |
| October 15 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 1 USC | No. 9 |
| NBC | L 31–34 | 80,795 |
| October 22 | 2:30 p.m. | BYU | No. 9 |
| NBC | W 49–23 | 80,795 |
| November 5 | 2:30 p.m. | Tennessee | No. 8 |
| NBC | W 41–21 | 80,795 |
| November 12 | 1:00 p.m. | Navy | No. 7 |
| NBC | W 42–21 | 80,795 |
| November 19 | 2:30 p.m. | Syracuse | No. 6 |
| NBC | W 34–10 | 80,795 |
| November 26 | 8:00 p.m. | at Stanford | No. 8 | ABC | W 38–31 | 56,057 | |
| January 2, 2006 | 4:30 p.m. | vs. No. 4 Ohio State | No. 6 | ABC | L 20–34 | 76,196 | |
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Roster
| Roster | ||
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