Notre Dame football trivia for Week 13
Notre Dame (8-3) closes out the regular season with a trip to Palo Alto, Calif., to face Stanford (3-8) on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET on the Pac-12 Network. This will mark the Fighting Irish’s 28th trip to California for Thanksgiving weekend to face either Southern Cal or Stanford. The Notre Dame-Stanford series became an annual occurrence in 1988, with the exception of a two-year hiatus from 1995-96 when the Irish played a home-and-home with Washington.
The Fighting Irish lead the all-time series against the Cardinal 22-14 but are just 8-9 at Stanford Stadium. However, after a five-game losing streak there the Irish have won two straight — 45-24 in 2019 and 45-14 in 2021. When is the last time Notre Dame won three consecutive contests against Stanford in Palo Alto?
A. Never
B. 1989-93
C. 2001-05
D. 2003-07
Answer: D. Notre Dame last won three in a row at Stanford from 2003-07. Head coach Tyrone Willingham — who had coached at Stanford from 1995-2001 — led the Irish to wins in Pal Alto in 2003 (57-7) and 2005 (38-31), and then Charlie Weis guided them to a victory in 2007 (21-14).
The Irish had one other three-game win streak at Stanford, under head coach Lou Holtz from 1989-93. Holtz’s teams triumphed 27-17 in 1989, 42-26 in 1991 and 48-20 in 1993.
