Oct. 29, 2012
Full Notes Package in PDF Format 
| Notre Dame-Pittsburgh Gameweek Central
DATE
- Saturday, November 3, 2012
TIME
- 3:40 p.m. ET
SITE (CAPACITY)
- Notre Dame Stadium (80,795); Notre Dame, Ind.
TELEVISION
- NBC national telecast with Dan Hicks (play-by-play), Mike Mayock (analysis), Alex Flanagan (sideline), Matt Marvin (producer) and Pierre Moossa (director).
RADIO
- IMG College Sports is the exclusive national rights-holder for Irish football radio broadcasts. IMG College manages, produces and syndicates the Irish national football radio network. Notre Dame games will be broadcast by Don Criqui (play-by-play), former Irish great Allen Pinkett (analysis) and Jeff Jeffers (sideline). This broadcast can be heard live on both SIRIUS and XM Satellite Radio (channel 129).
- All Irish home games may be heard in South Bend on News & Sports Radio 96.1 FM & 960 AM WSBT.
TICKETS
- Saturday is the 230th straight sellout at Notre Dame Stadium. Since 1966, every home game for the Irish has been a sellout except one – a 1973 Thanksgiving Day game vs. Air Force. Notre Dame has played in front of sellouts in 278 of its last 279 home games.
- The Irish have played in front of sellout crowds in 251 of its previous 293 games (.857) overall. Notre Dame has played before 622 sellouts in 894 total games (.696) since 1930.
WEB SITES
- Notre Dame (UND.com), Pittsburgh (PittsburghPanthers.com)
POLLS
- Notre Dame is ranked No. 4 in this week’s Associated Press and USA Today Coaches’ polls. The Irish vaulted to No. 3 in the season’s third BCS standings. Pittsburgh is unranked in each poll.
REAL-TIME STATS
- Live in-game stats will be provided through CBS College Sports GameTracker via UND.com.
SERIES INFO
- This year’s matchup will mark the 68th meeting between Notre Dame and Pittsburgh, with the Irish holding a 46-20-1 series lead.
- Notre Dame and Pittsburgh have met in 58 of the last 70 seasons (including 2012), with no breaks in the series longer than three years during that 70-year period.
- Detailed series history is available on pages 34-37.
COUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF
10 The Irish held Oklahoma to its lowest rushing total in a home game in 10 years. The Sooners gained 15 net rushing yards against Notre Dame, the seventh-fewest rushing yards in Oklahoma’s storied history. (Page 11)
9 Notre Dame is 9-0 under Brian Kelly when it doesn’t commit a turnover in a game. The Irish have played turnoverfree in three games this year, including road games at No. 10 Michigan State and No. 8 Oklahoma. (Pages 9-10)
8 Sophomore Stephon Tuitt is tied for eighth in the nation with 8.5 sacks (1.06 sacks/game). Tuitt is sixth in single-season school history and only one Irish player in the last eight years (Victor Abiamiri, 10.5, in 2006) has recorded more sacks in a season than Tuitt this year. (Pages 22-23)
7 Since Sept. 17, 2011, only seven teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision have won more games than Notre Dame. The Irish are 16-3 over the span. (Page 6)
6 Six of Notre Dame’s eight opponents this year scored more than 40 points in the game immediately preceding their date with the Irish. None of those six teams scored more than 17 points against Notre Dame’s defense and the collective group of six combined to total 55 points. (Pages 13-14)
5 Senior LB Manti Te’o leads the Irish with five interceptions, which is tied for the most in a single season ever by a Notre Dame linebacker. Te’o leads all FBS linebackers in interceptions and is tied for second in interceptions overall. (Pages 19-21)
4 Half of Notre Dame’s eight wins have been against teams ranked in the AP top 25 at the time of the matchup. The four victories over ranked opponents are the most of any team in the FBS. (Pages 6-7)
3 Notre Dame enters this week ranked No. 3 in the BCS standings. It equals the highest Irish ranking during the BCS era since Notre Dame was No. 3 in the standings released the weeks of Oct. 19 and Oct. 26, 2002. (Pages 3)
2 Notre Dame limited Oklahoma to 13 points, which tied for the second-fewest points scored by the Sooners in a home game during the Bob Stoops era. (Page 13)
1 Notre Dame has lost one game in the month of November under Brian Kelly (6-1). In the two seasons prior to Kelly’s arrival, the Irish won just once in nine November contests. (Page 3)
0 No team has scored a touchdown against the Irish in the first quarter this year. Notre Dame has only yielded a field goal against Miami and Oklahoma in the opening quarter. The last team to record a touchdown in the first quarter against Notre Dame was Stanford on Nov. 26, 2011. (Page 4)
NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL CELEBRATES 125 YEARS
- The celebration of 125 years of Fighting Irish football (1887-2012) is well underway.
- The University last spring introduced a special 125 logo that is being utilized throughout the year on all signage identifying elements of the campaign. The logo will be seen on sideline apparel worn by Irish coaches during 2012 home games and on the back of the Irish helmets for the Sept. 22 Notre Dame-Michigan game.
- The “Strong and True” slogan-taken from the University’s alma mater, “Notre Dame, Our Mother”-has been interwoven through various segments of the NDFB125 program.
- Although the celebration lasts all fall, the Sept. 22 Notre Dame-Michigan game at Notre Dame Stadium featured special recognition events based on Irish football history dating back to the first Notre Dame game in 1887 against Michigan. The Notre Dame-Michigan relationship qualifies as the original and oldest Football Bowl Subdivision rivalry. Former Irish head coach Ara Parseghian took part in the coin toss for that game.
- A Web site devoted to 125 years of Irish football has been created at http://125.nd.edu. It launched last spring, with three sample “Strong and True” moments featured. Beginning Aug. 27, 125 “Strong and True” moments will be released (one per day) via digital media, along with photo and video galleries. Some of those video moments will be featured at the Notre Dame Football Kickoff luncheons on the Fridays of home weekends.
- Former Notre Dame players and fans have been and will be encouraged to engage and participate via the 125 site (as well as social media) by sharing stories, photos and videos of their “Strong and True” experiences via Facebook (facebook.com/ndfootball) and Twitter (@125ndfb). The official NDFB125 site also will feature memories provided by former Irish football players and others connected with the program from their Notre Dame football experiences.
- Here are specifics of other elements of the 125-year celebration:
- NDFB125 banners featuring the official logo will be on display at all Notre Dame Stadium gates, as well as at the media entrance and on the ticket windows.
- The pennant-style flags that fly over Notre Dame Stadium and normally feature all the different opponent names from that season instead in 2012 will display the NDFB125 logo.
- The light posts surrounding Notre Dame Stadium, in the Joyce and Stadium parking lots and also around the Guglielmino Athletics Complex and the LaBar Practice Complex fields will feature NDFB125 flags.
- A 360-degree megapixel photo was taken to commemorate the Sept. 22 Notre Dame-Michigan game. Fans are able to interact with the image via the NDFB125 Web site, tag themselves and share with friends via social media.
- The 2012 Official Notre Dame Football Yearbook features a 125-year Irish football time line, including more than 140 pages of allnew prose in a scrapbook format and more than 1,200 images. It was published Aug. 24 and will be sold through the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore on the Notre Dame campus and via UND.com.
- Each of the Notre Dame football game programs (including the version for the Notre Dame-Miami game in Chicago) features a specially-designed, eight-page pullout insert devoted to 125 years of Notre Dame football. Each insert is based on an essay dealing with an aspect of Notre Dame football history.
- Covers of the football games programs feature original art by nationally-known sports artist Tim Cortes from Duluth, Minn. Cortes’ work highlights the NDFB125 celebration and can be seen on all seven program covers (including the Solder Field game).
- Game tickets for the 2012 home season (and the Oct. 6 Soldier Field game against Miami) include both the NDFB125 logo as well as throwback looks based on tickets from past seasons.
- A one-hour television special providing a behind-the-scenes look at the Notre Dame football program aired at 2:30 p.m. EDT, on Oct. 13 (just prior to the Notre Dame-Stanford game) on NBC.
- The Leprechaun Legion, the official student group liaison to the athletics department, is coordinating a celebration of student traditions over 125 years of Notre Dame football.
- The Notre Dame Licensing Office has worked with a variety of its licensees to produce commercial products that include the NDFB125 logo–including everything from pins and pennants to apparel and mini-helmets.
- The 2012 version of “The Shirt” features the NDFB125 logo below the back collar.
- A special NDFB125 commemorative coin has been produced and is being utilized throughout the 2012 season for pre-game coin tosses. A smaller version is being produced for retail sale.
- Legends of Notre Dame, located just south of Notre Dame Stadium, is displaying signage related to the celebration.
- Centerplate, the University’s official athletics concessionaire, has included the 125 logo on commemorative drink cups and popcorn boxes utilized throughout the 2012 football season.
- The South Bend Convention and Visitors Bureau has joined in the celebration with a variety of programs–including streets renamed during the football season in both downtown South Bend and Mishawaka. Flags denoting NDFB125 will hang along Michigan Avenue in downtown South Bend all fall, as well as throughout downtown Mishawaka.
- A large version of the official logo will appear throughout September on the side of the parking garage at Main and Colfax in downtown South Bend.
- Hotels in the South Bend-Mishawaka area will feature commemorative room key cards featuring the NDFB125 logo all during the 2012 home season.
- Notre Dame’s University Relations department will create a commemorative poster featuring images from the Notre Dame-Michigan game weekend.
ONLY THE BIG BOYS
- Notre Dame is one of just three NCAA FBS programs to have not faced a non-FBS opponent since the current setup was established in 1978. The two other remaining schools that have yet to play a non-FBS opponent are USC and UCLA.
ON THIS DATE
- Notre Dame has played 16 previous games in its history on Nov. 3. The Irish are 10-4-2 (.688) all-time on this date.
NOTRE DAME IN OCTOBER
- Notre Dame is 315-122-27 (.708) all-time during the month of November.
- Notre Dame is 146-44-7 (.759) in November home games.
- The Irish are 114-65-16 (.626) in November road games.
- Notre Dame is 55-13-4 (.792) in November neutral games.
- The Irish are 169-78-20 (.670) in November games away from Notre Dame Stadium.
- The Irish are 98-37-2 (.723) in November games at Notre Dame Stadium.
- Notre Dame is 142-48-8 (.737) all-time in the month of November as a ranked team.
- The Irish are 72-15-1 (.824) all-time in the month of November as a ranked team at Notre Dame Stadium.
- Notre Dame is 47-29-4 (.613) all-time in the month of November as a ranked team on the road.
- Notre Dame is 6-1 in the month of November under head coach Brian Kelly. Notre Dame had lost eight of its last nine November games before Kelly’s arrival in 2010.
A VICTORY OVER PITTSBURGH…
- Improves Notre Dame to 9-0 for the first time since 1993.
- Gives the Irish nine straight victories to open a season for the 16th time in school history.
- Marks Notre Dame’s 17th win over its last 20 games.
- Gives the Irish their longest winning streak since capturing 17 straight during the 1992-93 seasons.
- Gives Notre Dame its 20th winning streak in school history of at least nine games.
- Improves the all-time record for the Irish to 862-300-42 (.733).
- Improves Notre Dame’s all-time record at home to 465-118-13 (.791).
- Improves the all-time record at Notre Dame Stadium for the Irish to 318-106-5 (.747).
- Improves Notre Dame’s all-time record when ranked in the top 25 to 418-133-15 (.752).
- Improves the all-time Notre Dame Stadium record for the Irish when ranked in the top 25 to 210-54-3 (.792).
- Improves Notre Dame’s all-time record when ranked in the top five to 179-44-7 (.793).
- Improves the all-time Notre Dame Stadium record for the Irish when ranked in the top five to 82-20-2 (.798).
- Improves Notre Dame’s all-time record when ranked in the top 25 against an unranked opponent to 301-57-6 (.835).
- Improves the all-time Notre Dame Stadium record for the Irish when ranked in the top 25 against an unranked opponent to 156-27-0 (.852).
- Improves Notre Dame’s all-time record when ranked in the top five against an unranked opponent to 121-17-2 (.871).
- Improves the all-time Notre Dame Stadium record for the Irish when ranked in the top five against an unranked opponent to 59-7 (.894).
- Improves Notre Dame to 47-20-1 (.699) in the all-time series with Pittsburgh.
- Improves the Irish to 21-10 (.677) at home in the all-time series with the Panthers.
- Improves Kelly’s record to 196-67-2 (.743) overall.
- Improves Kelly’s record at Notre Dame to 25-10 (.714).
- Improves Kelly’s record to 77-32 (.706) in FBS games.
- Improves Kelly’s record to 68-20 (.773) since 2006.
- Improves Kelly’s record to 119-34 (.778) since 2001.
- Improves Kelly’s record to 55-14 (.797) all-time in the month of November.
- Improves Kelly’s record to 7-1 (.875) in the month of November as Notre Dame head coach
A LOSS TO PITTSBURGH…
- Drops Notre Dame to 8-1 for the first time since 2006.
- Denies the Irish nine straight victories to open a season for the 16th time in school history.
- Marks Notre Dame’s fourth loss in its last 20 games.
- Denies the Irish their longest winning streak since capturing 17 straight during the 1992-93 seasons.
- Denies Notre Dame its 20th winning streak in school history of at least nine games.
- Drops the all-time record for the Irish to 861-301-42 (.733).
- Drops Notre Dame’s all-time record at home to 464-119-13 (.789).
- Drops the all-time record at Notre Dame Stadium for the Irish to 317-107-5 (.745).
- Drops Notre Dame’s all-time record when ranked in the top 25 to 417-134-15 (.750).
- Drops the all-time Notre Dame Stadium record for the Irish when ranked in the top 25 to 209-55-3 (.788).
- Drops Notre Dame’s all-time record when ranked in the top five to 178-45-7 (.789).
- Drops the all-time Notre Dame Stadium record for the Irish when ranked in the top five to 81-21-2 (.788).
- Drops Notre Dame’s all-time record when ranked in the top 25 against an unranked opponent to 300-58-6 (.832).
- Drops the all-time Notre Dame Stadium record for the Irish when ranked in the top 25 against an unranked opponent to 155-28-0 (.847).
- Drops Notre Dame’s all-time record when ranked in the top five against an unranked opponent to 120-18-2 (.864).
- Drops the all-time Notre Dame Stadium record for the Irish when ranked in the top five against an unranked opponent to 58-8 (.879).
- Drops Notre Dame to 46-21-1 (.684) in the all-time series with Pittsburgh.
- Drops the Irish to 20-11 (.645) at home in the all-time series with the Panthers.
- Drops Kelly’s record to 195-68-2 (.740) overall.
- Drops Kelly’s record at Notre Dame to 24-11 (.686).
- Drops Kelly’s record to 76-33 (.697) in FBS games.
- Drops Kelly’s record to 67-21 (.761) since 2006.
- Drops Kelly’s record to 118-35 (.771) since 2001.
- Drops Kelly’s record to 54-15 (.783) all-time in the month of November.
- Drops Kelly’s record to 6-2 (.750) in the month of November as Notre Dame head coach.
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