What was your favorite Notre Dame win and what game was the toughest loss for you to take?

[saturdaysarebetter]

What was your favorite Notre Dame win and what game was the toughest loss for you to take?

 

[IRISHbluehen]

Favorite win: Penn state this season as I live in PA.
Toughest Loss: Probably OSU in 2023. Rushed my wife through our first wedding anniversary dinner only to watch that ending. Brutal.

 

[SeekNDestroy]

Toughest loss: BC ‘93, no explanation needed
Favorite win: Penn St ‘25, Orange Bowl, playing for right to go to championship, smug head coach, pedophile supporters, comeback win, 2 iconic plays, etc.

 

[BobbyMac]

Fav: Trojan Horse ‘77 edges out Miami ‘88.

‘93 BC should be the worst but it’s the Bush Push. The only tougher loss for me ever was Bird - Magic in ‘79

 

[Riddickulous]

(Since 2005)
Favorite: 31-0 over Michigan in 2014

Worst: Bama in the natty. I was so convinced we were being underrated by everyone.

 

[Tejas]

Favourite win: Florida St. 93, Texas A&M 93 Cotton Bowl my first Irish game
Toughest loss: BC 93, Alabama title game
Least favourite win: I don't know, maybe 96 Vanderbilt. I don't remember it, but 14-7, seems like it was pretty underwelming

 

[SWirishfan]

(Since 2005)
Favorite: 31-0 over Michigan in 2014

Worst: Bama in the natty. I was so convinced we were being underrated by everyone.

37-0
Remember the 6!!

 

[SWirishfan]

High Point: FSU 93 Shawn Wooden for the Win!!
Low Point:

 

[Irish#1]

Favorite:'73 Sugar Bowl. Ara beats the Bear to win the Natty.
Favorite: '77 Cotton Bowl where the Irish rolled #1 Texas and Heisman winner Earl Campbell on the way to the NC.
Worst: '91 Orange Bowl when Rocket gets robbed on a questionable call costing a shot at another NC.

 

[Wild Bill]

Worst loss is a toss-up between the Bush Push and the 2012 Bama title game. Bush Push just pissed me off - I was young, dumb, learned nothing, and my remote paid a heavy price when that bastard crossed the goal line. Bama was pure despair, but at least it came with perspective. We had no business being on that field, and that was the day I stopped pretending we did.

Best win was Georgia and Penn State last year b/c I get to pretend we belong again.

 

[SeekNDestroy]

Worst loss is a toss-up between the Bush Push and the 2012 Bama title game. Bush Push just pissed me off - I was young, dumb, learned nothing, and my remote paid a heavy price when that bastard crossed the goal line. Bama was pure despair, but at least it came with perspective. We had no business being on that field, and that was the day I stopped pretending we did.

Best win was Georgia and Penn State last year b/c I get to pretend we belong again.

“…get to pretend we belong again.” WE DO (and did) BELONG!

 

[GATTACA!]

This is like asking for someones favorite movie. Too hard to narrow it down even to 5.

Best wins are 2012 Stanford, 37-0 (best game I've ever attended), Georgia/PSU last season.

Worst: Bush Push, 2023 vs OSU, 2006 Fiesta Bowl vs OSU was really terrible too. I was in middle school surrounded by 100% OSU fans. I made a bet with my gym teacher and had to wear an OSU shirt for a day after that game as a result. I should sue.

2012 wasn't that bad. I was resigned to our fate as soon as Oregon and KSU lost. I knew we were fucked.

 

[IrishinTN]

Best win was FSU in 93.

Worst is and always will be Michigan meltdown 2011. Because...muck Fichigan.

 

[KPENN]

I started watching in 2002.

Best win: Georgia this year

Worst loss: Bush push game, 2014 FSU is not far behind.

 

[pumpdog20]

In person...

Win = either Michigan 2012 or USC 2023; Clemson 2022 honorable mention
Loss = Ohio State 2023

 

[MacIrish75]

Best win: Any in the 2024-25 playoffs—especially UGA.

Worst loss: OSU in the natty. I was convinced after that first drive it was destiny for us to win.

When I was a kid worst loss: 2002 BC. I took all my ND stuff off my wall in my room, took all my gear, and threw it in the corner of the garage…until the next week. Pat Dillingham. Bruh.

 

[FU BK]

Best Win: 93 Florida State...1st game i ever went to.

Worst loss: one week later....2nd game i ever went to

 

[goldandblue]

Favourite win: Florida St. 93, Texas A&M 93 Cotton Bowl my first Irish game
Toughest loss: BC 93, Alabama title game
Least favourite win: I don't know, maybe 96 Vanderbilt. I don't remember it, but 14-7, seems like it was pretty underwelming

I was at that vandy game

 

[TracyGraham]

Favorite: 92 cheerios bowl. Was a kid @ game on my birthday, cried at Halftime, haha, then the bus ran wild in the 2nd half. Went to locker room and got autographs from everyone. Tracy Graham gave me his sugar bowl jacket. Mirer didnt want to give his autograph but did when I told him it was really my birthday.
Worst: @ Miami 89, remember them completing like 3rd and 50 play to break our 2 year win streak (first ND loss I can remember. I thought we were invincible)

 

[Huntr]

Either FSU '93 or Miami '88 are the best games I've seen ( '25 Sugar Bowl was pretty close to that)

'93 BC was the worst. That loss and not getting the Natty pissed me off so much.

Then getting hosed vs Colorado and going 1-9 in bowl games in the 15 years after that until BK came along was just ... ugh.

I mean, winning the friggin Hawaii bowl felt like getting your head barely above water again, and that's pathetic.

God, that era sucked so fuckin bad.

 

[IRISHDODGER]

Best win: Any in the 2024-25 playoffs—especially UGA.

Worst loss: OSU in the natty. I was convinced after that first drive it was destiny for us to win.

When I was a kid worst loss: 2002 BC. I took all my ND stuff off my wall in my room, took all my gear, and threw it in the corner of the garage…until the next week. Pat Dillingham. Bruh.

Dillingham went from hero to zero in a matter of weeks. Poor guy. I think he transferred from Stanford & walked on to ND but Irish couldn’t keep Holiday healthy. The throw to Battle to beat MSU at the buzzer was a beaut but that BC game was gross and way too soon considering it was less than a decade from 1993 upset loss. One of my buddies in wine & spirits biz met Dillingham & his partner as they were promoting their distillery where they were producing & selling a moonshine. I forgot the name but he gave me a tshirt b/c he new I was a big ND fan.

 

[IRISHDODGER]

Favorite: 92 cheerios bowl. Was a kid @ game, cried at Halftime, haha, then the bus ran wild in the 2nd half.
Worst: @ Miami 89, remember them completing like 3rd and 50 play to break our 2 year win streak (first ND loss I can remember. I thought we were invincible)

That ‘89 loss was brutal b/c Holtz basically neutered his team by bending over backwards to avoid the fracas from 1988 occurring again in Miami. Those guys were dogs & deserved to play as aggressive as they did the previous year. Despite that loss a case could be made for them to at least have a a share of the title that year. After all, they knocked off #1 Colorado in the bowl. But non-ND fans will point to head-to-head so get them to agree w/ the importance of that and simply point to 1993 & then they’ll make up some BS about how that was different. ND haters always have to have it both ways.

 

[forkbeard3777]

As a casual Notre Dame fan, 2005 USC was brutal. I always hated those mother fuckers after the 2003 LSU/USC debacle.

That said, fuck .... 2023 Ohio State was just gut wrenching.

ETA: Favorite win was most likely this year's Sugar Bowl. I had been boasting about ND all season to my UGA friends. They thought it was the "same ole, same ole" ND. Riley Mills went down in the IU game, but I - thanks to the help of the "liquid courage" - doubled down on my initial bet with them that ND would win by double digits. When Harrison housed that kickoff, I was feeling pretty, pretty, pretty good.

 

[ulukinatme]

Toughest loss: BC ‘93, no explanation needed
Favorite win: Penn St ‘25, Orange Bowl, playing for right to go to championship, smug head coach, pedophile supporters, comeback win, 2 iconic plays, etc.

Fav: Trojan Horse ‘77 edges out Miami ‘88.

‘93 BC should be the worst but it’s the Bush Push. The only tougher loss for me ever was Bird - Magic in ‘79

Either FSU '93 or Miami '88 are the best games I've seen ( '25 Sugar Bowl was pretty close to that)

'93 BC was the worst. That loss and not getting the Natty pissed me off so much.

Then getting hosed vs Colorado and going 1-9 in bowl games in the 15 years after that until BK came along was just ... ugh.

I mean, winning the friggin Hawaii bowl felt like getting your head barely above water again, and that's pathetic.

God, that era sucked so fuckin bad.

Best Win: 93 Florida State...1st game i ever went to.

Worst loss: one week later....2nd game i ever went to

I've probably mentioned it 100 times, but '93 BC was my first game in South Bend and it will probably always be the hardest for me. I 100% believe we were the best team that year after downing #1 and eventual champ FSU the week before. We overlooked a scrappy BC team, and then FSU ended up playing a Nebraska team for the title...and we were much better than that Nebraska team. Bush Push and '23 OSU would be a close #2 and #3.

Favorite game is tough...dunno if I can pick just one. It was a throw away game during a bad season but I had so much fun during '08 Michigan. I've posted about this one before too, it was a pretty rainy day game where water was cascading down the stadium steps and Michigan could NOT hold onto the ball to save their lives. It was hilarious!



As far as other favorite games I was at, '15 USC is up there, Michigan in '14, Michigan in '12, Tennessee in '05 was a game Zibby went fuckin' ham and I loved it.



As far as favorite games I wasn't in attendance for, the playoffs this year would have to be up there. 2010 USC has a special place for me as it was snapping a losing streak to the Trojans that took up almost my entire 20s. By the same token, 2002 MSU saw us break a losing streak to the Spartans. I remember exactly where I was, I was watching the game on a 10 inch TV at Papa Johns where I worked during college, and I was screaming in the store as Arnaz Battle caught the pass from Dillingham to put us up.

 

[ulukinatme]

(Since 2005)
Favorite: 37-0 over Michigan in 2014

Worst: Bama in the natty. I was so convinced we were being underrated by everyone.

FIFY...IYKYK

 

[Kingbish01]

UGA (I live in Atlanta, UGA is UGA, and all my friends are Dawg fans)

OSU 23 ( you could hear a pin drop, felt like we were walking out of a funeral.

 

[rtrn2glory]

A lot of favorite wins.

Toughest losses..... Every single Ohio St game

 

[stlnd01]

Couple of sleeper favorite games:
- 1998 Michigan. I was a sophomore at Notre Dame at the time and freshman season had been, well, disappointing. They were defending national champions, our next door neighbors, and, well, insufferable. Then we ripped their heads off, and it was just mayhem in the student section that day. The fact that their QB went on to be Tom Brady only made it sweeter in retrospect.
- 2012 Stanford. Helped along by being there probably as well, but I was right behind our end zone for the goal line stand. Everyone was drenched. It was wild. Such a battle.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

Favorite win: Beating WVU in the Fiesta Bowl

Worst Loss: 1993 Boston College

 

[matman4593]

Favorite win: Michigan '14. The campus was ALIVE before and more importantly after that game
Worst loss: '14 FSU. Drove down the night before with my roommates, and while in the stands didn't realize they called back the game winning touchdown until the game was over. was too busy celebrating the "win". That was a complete and utter hose job

That '14 season (my senior year) was such a rollercoaster. Went from thinking we were a title contender to "what on earth happened", all on the heels of that FSU game.