University of Tennessee Athletics
Clausen Leads Vols to 28-18 Win at Notre Dame
November 03, 2001 | Football
Nov 3, 2001
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By TOM COYNE
Associated Press Writer
SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Casey Clausen had something to prove to Notre Dame, so he went out and led No. 7 Tennessee to a 28-18 victory over the Fighting Irish.
"There were a couple of people who said that I was not good enough to play college football, so today the game was personal for me," Clausen said. "Coach Davie is a great guy and a great coach but it gets personal because of one coach and what he said. I'll leave it at that."
Clausen threw a go-ahead touchdown pass in the third quarter and then scored from a yard out with 35 seconds left to seal the win for the Volunteers (6-1).
After throwing just eight passes in the first half, Clausen completed 10 of 17 for 150 yards in the third quarter as the Vols scored two TDs to take the lead. His 17-yard TD pass to Donte Stallworth gave Tennessee a 21-10 lead as Clausen improved to 12-2 as a starter.
"They abandoned their running game in the second half and spread the field and made some plays," Davie said. "Their quarterback made some plays and delivered the ball well."
The Irish (3-5) lost a final chance to pull out a win when Carlyle Holiday's pass was intercepted at the Notre Dame 25 with 2:41 left and Tennessee ahead by three points. The Vols came right back and Clausen added the clinching score by diving over Irish cornerback Shane Walton.
"I couldn't see enough of it to know if he landed in the end zone," Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer said. "I looked to the referee and looked at his arms. When they went up I was a happy camper."
Notre Dame, which may not qualify for a bowl game after playing in the Fiesta Bowl last season, also fumbled away two scoring chances inside Tennessee's 18-yard line in the first half.
"The bottom line is we made some mistakes that kept us from winning," Davie said. "We had every opportunity to win this game and didn't."
The Irish had advantages over the Volunteers in some statistics, including rushing yards (122-78), first downs (20-16) and time of possession (33:03 to 26:57). The Irish had an even bigger edge in stats in losing to Boston College a week earlier.
"It's frustrating two weeks in a row when you feel you could be sitting here with five straight wins," Davie said. "If you look closely at this game, it's a microcosm of how we've been."
The Irish have lost at least five games three times during Davie's five-year tenure and moved within a loss of their second losing season in three years. The Irish also dropped to 6-14 against ranked teams and 1-7 against teams in the Top 10.
Notre Dame closed to 21-18 with 8:04 left on a 17-play, 75-yard drive in which the Irish converted on four third downs and a fourth-and-3. Tony Fisher fought his way through a line of Tennessee defenders for the touchdown, then added a 2-point conversion on a shovel pass from Holiday.
The Irish then held the Volunteers on their next possession. But on Notre Dame's second play, Holiday's pass was intercepted by Dominique Stevenson.
"They stopped themselves enough to help us enough to beat them," Fulmer said.
Tennessee running back Travis Stephens, who sat out a series in the second quarter with a bruised shin, was held to a season-low 64 yards on 24 carries.
Julius Jones led the Irish with 46 yards rushing. Holiday, who had averaged 115 yards the previous four games, had 12 carries for minus 8 yards. He had his best game passing, completing 13-of-24 for 146 yards with one interception.
"I need to make big plays," Holiday said. "That's the kind of player I am and I didn't do that today."
John Henderson, the Outland Trophy winner last season as the top interior lineman, didn't have a tackle until the fourth quarter and finished with three tackles.
The Irish dominated the first half, outgaining the Volunteers 198-97. But they squandered three scoring chances.
"I keep preaching that we've got to play a complete football game," Fulmer said. "Here again today we didn't do it. But we had the character and the wherewithal to get it done anyway."
First, the Irish had the ball second-and-6 from the Tennessee 20. But under pressure, Holiday pitched the ball on the option out of bounds for a 9-yard loss. Albert Haynesworth then sacked Holiday for a 7-yard loss to take the Irish out of field goal range.
On Notre Dame's next possession, the Irish were about to score when Arnaz Battle went 18 yards on a reverse before fumbling on the 1 when hit by safety Julian Battle. Defensive end Constantin Ritzmann recovered.
The Irish were driving again on their next possession when freshman Ryan Grant was hit by Mark Jones at the 15. The ball bounced back to the 19 where Julian Battle scooped it up and returned it 81 yards for a touchdown.
