Voting for the Grotto Region’s first round is open from 6 p.m. ET, Sunday, March 15 until Wednesday night, March 18 at 6 p.m. ET. Be sure to vote for all eight regional match-ups here and see the bottom to click links and vote for the other three regions as well.
First Round Match-ups:
The 1993 “Game of the Century” gets a somewhat surprisingly difficult opponent for a 16 seed as the Lou Holtz-led upset of No. 9 Michigan in 1987.
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Another comeback win over a blue-blood from that 1999 season meets a memorable win over a Drew Brees-led Purdue team in 1998.
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Arnaz Battle strikes early as Notre Dame remains unbeaten at Florida State while Alabama’s last trip to South Bend results in a 1987 Notre Dame win.
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Gary Godsey beats eventual Big Ten Champ Purdue and Drew Brees (with the help of Nick Setta and some great special teams play) in 2000 while a 1990 trip to Tennessee ends in a top-ten victory.
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Glenn Earl blocks a field goal to force overtime and Joey Getherall scores on an end-around in the extra period to save what turned into a BCS berth. That meets a tough 2012 win over Michigan in which Tommy Rees scored Notre Dame’s only touchdown.
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The Rocket strikes twice in an early-season No. 1 vs. No. 2 win over Michigan while Mike Goolsby’s pick-six helps lead the way in a 2004 upset win at then top-ten Tennessee.
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A couple of wins over Stanford both kept undefeated Notre Dame seasons alive in mid-October.
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Perhaps Brian Kelly’s biggest win to date at Notre Dame meets up with that opponents biggest rival, just three years later in a game that the 2015 Fighting Irish made an impressive, blowout debut.
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Links to vote for the other three regions first round match-ups: