35TH ANNUAL TOSTITOS FIESTA BOWL
Jan. 2, 2006 |
 |
The final Tostitos Fiesta Bowl at Sun Devil Stadium was a similar scene as Ohio State won for the third time in four years with a big-play offense and a ball-hawking defense to defeat Notre Dame, 34-20, in front of a standing-room-only crowd of 76,196, the largest ever for a non-championship game.
The game featured two of the most storied programs in college football, playing for just the fifth time in history, making it one of the most anticipated games in Fiesta Bowl history. Both teams won national championships in past Fiesta Bowls – Notre Dame in 1989 and Ohio State in 2003 – adding even more drama to a game that featured plenty of hype.
Notre Dame grabbed an early 7-0 lead on a 20-yard run by Darius Walker, who finished with thee rushing scores. Ohio State exploded after that with three long touchdowns, the first a 56-yard pass from Troy Smith to a wide-open Ted Ginn Jr.
Ginn Jr. opened the second quarter with a zigzagging 68-yard end around and Smith hit Santonio Holmes on an 85-yard touchdown pass, the longest in Fiesta Bowl history to give the Buckeyes a 21-7 lead at halftime.
The Fighting Irish pulled within seven late in the fourth quarter on a 3-yard dive by Walker, but Smith converted two huge third-down conversions and Antonio Pittman galloped 60 yards to seal the victory with 1:46 to play.
Ohio State linebacker A.J. Hawk was named defensive player of the game, becoming the first player in Fiesta Bowl history to win that honor twice. Adding to the game’s hype, Hawk was dating Laura Quinn, sister of Notre Dame star quarterback Brady Quinn. Hawk sacked his girlfriend’s brother twice and ran him down on a key third-down play early in the fourth quarter.
Ginn Jr. finished with eight receptions for 167 yards and Holmes had five catches for 124 yards, making them only the third pair of teammates to eclipse 100 yards receiving in a Fiesta Bowl.
Smith earned offensive player of the game honors for completing 19 of 28 passes for a career-high 342 yards and 66 yards rushing on 13 attempts, making him a serious Heisman Trophy candidate going into next season.
The pre-game ceremonies highlighted the bowl’s founders and legendary Arizona State coach Frank Kush, who led the Sun Devils to victories in four of the first five Fiesta Bowls, during a special video tribute and field presentation.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Ohio State |
7 | 14 |
3 | 10 |
34 |
| Notre Dame |
7 | 0 | 6 |
7 |
20 |
HOW THEY SCORED
| OSU | ND | |
| 0 | 7 | Darius Walker 20 yard run (D.J. Fitzpatrick kick) |
| 7 | 7 | Ted Ginn Jr. 56 yard pass from Troy Smith (Josh Huston kick) |
| 14 | 7 | Ginn Jr. 68 yard run (Huston kick) |
| 21 | 7 | Santonio Holmes 85 yard pass from Smith (Huston kick) |
| 21 | 13 | Walker 10 yard run (kick failed) |
| 24 | 13 | Huston 40 yard field goal |
| 27 | 13 | Huston 26 yard field goal |
| 27 | 20 | Walker 3 yard run (Fitzpatrick kick) |
| 34 | 20 | Antonio Pittman 60 yard run (Huston kick) |
YARDSTICK
| OSU | |
ND |
| 27 | First Downs | 22 |
| 36-275 | Rushes-Yards | 28-62 |
| 342 | Passing Yards | 286 |
| 19-28-0 | Passes | 29-45-0 |
| 20 | Return Yards | 0 |
| 1-40.0 | Punts | 6-42.3 |
| 0-0 | Fumbles-Lost | 0-0 |
| 7-53 | Penalties-Yards | 6-48 |
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING – OHIO STATE: Antonio Pittman 21-136, Ted Ginn Jr. 2-73, Troy Smith 13-66. NOTRE DAME: Darius Walker 16-90, Asaph Schwapp 2-4, Brady Quinn 10-(-32).
PASSING – OHIO STATE: Smith 19-28-0-342. NOTRE DAME: Brady Quinn 29-45-0-286.
RECEIVING – OHIO STATE: Ted Ginn Jr. 8-167, Santonio Holmes 5-124, Roy Hall 2-22, Antonio Pittman 2-6, Anthony Gonzalez 1-15, Marcel Frost 1-8. NOTRE DAME: Maurice Stovall 9-126, Darius Walker 7-37, Jeff Samardzija 6-59, Matt Shelton 5-52, Anthony Fasano 2-12.
