Notre Dame Football: The Irish's Bowl History in Florida

Notre Dame will play in its 31st bowl game next week when they meet Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando. Of those 31, this will be the ninth played in the state of Florida.

The Irish sport a 3-5 record in bowl games played in Florida, with all of the previous games played in either Miami or Jacksonville. Here's a look back at Notre Dame's eight previous postseason visits to the Sunshine State.

1973 Orange Bowl: Nebraska 40, Notre Dame 6

Notre Dame's defense was no match for Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Rodgers. Nebraska rolled past the Irish, 40-6, in front of 80,000 in Miami's Orange Bowl. The versatile Rodgers ran for three touchdowns and caught a fourth as Nebraska built a 40-0 lead after three quarters.

Irish QB Tom Clements completed only nine of his 22 pass attempts; Nebraska out-gained Notre Dame 560-207. The Irish would finish 8-3 on the season.

Clements would avenge his performance in the following year's Sugar Bowl, however, leading Notre Dame to a 24-23 win over Alabama and the 1973 national title.

1975 Orange Bowl: Notre Dame 13, Alabama 11

Ara Parseghian's final game as coach of Notre Dame was one to remember, as for the second straight year the Irish narrowly defeated Bear Bryant and Alabama in a bowl game. The loss cost the Crimson Tide at least a share of the national title, which ended up being split by Oklahoma and USC.

Notre Dame jumped to a 13-0 lead in the second quarter and turned the game over to its defense. Richard Todd's 48-yard touchdown strike to Russ Schamun and the subsequent two-point conversion cut the lead to 13-11, but Reggie Barnett's interception of Todd on Alabama's final possession sealed the win for the Irish. 

1976 Gator Bowl: Notre Dame 20, Penn State 9

Notre Dame dominated its first meeting with Penn State in 48 years. The Irish defense, led by Outland Trophy winner Ross Browner, contained the Nittany Lions for most of the game. Al Hunter's two touchdowns helped Notre Dame rally from an early 3-0 deficit to take a 20-3 lead.

Quarterback Rick Slager was efficient, despite completing only 10 passes, in his final game before handing the reigns over to Joe Montana.

The Irish would finish 9-3 in Dan Devine's second season in South Bend, using the win as a springboard to the 1977 national title.

1990 Orange Bowl: Notre Dame 21, Colorado 6

A season marred by tragedy in Boulder after the death of QB Sal Aunese ended with a chance at the national title.

Notre Dame's defense stood tall in Miami, however, holding the explosive Buffaloes offense to just six points.

Anthony Johnson's two touchdown runs book-ended a 35-yard score from dynamic sophomore Raghib Ismail, as the Irish staked their claim for the national title. But Notre Dame would be unable to overcome its 27-10 loss to Miami in the regular season finale, and the Hurricanes were awarded the national title.

1991 Orange Bowl: Colorado 10, Notre Dame 9

Notre Dame's loss to Penn State had knocked them out of national title contention, but for the second straight year, the Irish had the opportunity to ruin Colorado's title hopes in the Orange Bowl.

After having been given a 5th-down earlier in the year in a win over Missouri, fate once again blessed Bill McCartney's team.

Leading 10-9 late in the game, the Buffaloes chose to punt to Raghib Ismail, who returned it all the way for a touchdown. A controversial clipping penalty was called on the play, and the touchdown was nullified.

Colorado held on for the win and won a share of the national title, splitting it with Georgia Tech. Notre Dame finished 9-3 despite spending much of the season at the top of the polls.

1996 Orange Bowl: Florida State 31, Notre Dame 26

The two powers had split regular-season meetings in 1993 and 1994, and they met again following the 1995 season in Miami.

Notre Dame was without QB Ron Powlus, as backup Tom Krug started for the Irish. A back-and-forth game between two 9-2 teams saw the Irish leading 26-14 in the fourth quarter.

Seminoles quarterback Danny Kanell had the hot hand, however, throwing two touchdown passes to give FSU a 29-26 lead. Krug was called for intentional grounding in the end zone on Notre Dame's next possession, resulting in a safety and the game's final points.

This game was scheduled to be the final Orange Bowl in the stadium after which it was named, but a conflict with the Miami Dolphins at Pro Player Stadium moved the 1999 game back to Little Havana.

1999 Gator Bowl: Georgia Tech 35, Notre Dame 28

The Irish were looking to halt a three-game postseason losing streak and donned green jerseys for its first appearance in the Gator Bowl in 22 years against Georgia Tech. The game turned into a fun shootout between dual-threat quarterbacks Joe Hamilton and Jarious Jackson.

Down 21-7 at halftime, the Irish scored twice in a matter of minutes to pull within 21-20. And after Hamilton threw his first of two touchdown passes to Dez White, Jackson led Notre Dame on an 88-yard scoring drive that tied the game at 28-28 with a two-point conversion.

Hamilton and White would be too much, however, answering with a 55-yard game-winning touchdown pass. Notre Dame could do nothing on its final two possessions and dropped its second-straight game after a 9-1 start.

2003 Gator Bowl: N.C. State 28, Notre Dame 6

After a dominant first 11 games, Notre Dame's defense was badly exposed by Carson Palmer and USC in a 44-13 rout in the regular-season finale.

N.C. State's Philip Rivers used the same blueprint to carve up the Irish and hand them their sixth-straight bowl loss.

A Nick Setta field goal gave the Irish a 3-0 lead, but a dominant second quarter sparked the Wolfpack. T.A. McClendon's two touchdown runs and a nine-yard pass from Rivers to Jerricho Cotchery put N.C. State ahead 21-3 at halftime. The Irish offense could do nothing in the second half, and both teams finished the season with 10-3 records.