Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs LSU Tigers Match Player Stats On Dec 30, 2014

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Dec 30, 2014

Notre Dame 31, LSU 28: Kyle Brindza kicked a 32-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Fighting Irish over the Tigers in the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tenn.

Malik Zaire got the start at quarterback and went 12-of-15 for 96 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 96 yards and a score for Notre Dame (8-5). C.J. Prosise and Tarean Folston each added a rushing touchdown and Everett Golson went 6-of-11 for 90 passing yards as the Fighting Irish snapped a four-game losing streak that closed out the regular season.

Leonard Fournette ran for 143 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries and took a kickoff back for a score to lead LSU (8-5). Anthony Jennings went 7-of-14 for 151 yards and threw a touchdown pass to John Diarse, but some breakdowns on special teams caused the Tigers to come up just short.

Fournette, who ran for an 8-yard score in the first quarter and took a kickoff back 100 yards for a TD in the second, gave LSU its first lead at 28-21 when he broke up the middle and outraced the Notre Dame secondary for an 89-yard score with 6:14 left in the third. The Fighting Irish responded with a long rushing TD of their own when Prosise broke for 50 yards just under two minutes later, and the Tigers had a go-ahead field goal attempt blocked in the fourth quarter before Zaire guided the game-winning 14-play drive.

LSU attempted a fake field goal from the 2-yard line with seven seconds left in the first half and was denied at the goal line after replay failed to overturn the call on the field, sending the Tigers into the half down 21-14. LSU needed only one play in the second half to make up for that missed score as Jennings faked a quarterback draw and flipped a pass over the middle that Diarse took 75 yards for the tying score 14 seconds into the third quarter.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Fournette’s third-quarter TD run marked the longest in Music City Bowl history. … LSU piled up 285 yards on the ground while Notre Dame ran for 263 while holding onto the ball for 37 minutes. … Fighting Irish WR William Fuller made five catches for 57 yards and a score to lead the receiving corps.