CATS SHOCK IRISH
NU’s Mitchell kicks game-winner in OT vs. ND
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald didn’t have any words of wisdom for kicker Jack Mitchell.
No speech to match the magnitude of the moment.
“It’s about action,” Fitzgerald said. “Even when he got iced [at the end of regulation], we didn’t come over and have a chit-chat and coffee and talk about world peace. It’s, ‘Go do your job.’ ”
Mitchell did just that, connecting from 41 yards to give the Wildcats a stunning 43-40 overtime victory against Notre Dame.
“I looked up, and I knew it was [good] right away,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell made four field goals. The third tied the game at 40 with 19 seconds to go. The game-winner came shortly after Irish kicker Kyle Brindza missed from 42 yards.
“Incredible,” Mitchell said. “Never experienced anything like that. Never had a game-winner before. Very, very fun.”
ND and NU hadn’t played since 1995. It was worth the wait.
The Wildcats took advantage of four turnovers (one interception, three fumbles) to complete the comeback.
“There weren’t errors,” Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said. “There were critical errors.”
The mistakes added up to a second consecutive defeat.
“We just don’t play clean enough as a football team, and those are the things that prevent us from winning,” Kelly said.
The Irish (7-3) built a 40-29 lead when Everett Golson found Will Fuller for an 11-yard touchdown with 10:34 left. The Irish decided to go for two and failed.
“We felt like given the circumstances, our kicking-game situation, that we were going to try to extend it with a two-point play,” Kelly said.
Northwestern quarterback Trevor Siemian scored on a sixyard run, and the Wildcats (4-6) had a successful two-point conversion to close to 40-37.
Notre Dame still looked like it had the game in hand after pick-
ing up a couple of first downs. But normally reliable running back Cam McDaniel fumbled.
“It was a critical situation, and I just didn’t get the job done,” McDaniel said. “That’s all there is to it.”
Northwestern took over at its 28 with 1:28 left.
“I said, ‘They’re giving us a shot, guys. Let’s let it rip,’ ” Siemian said.
It took only five plays to reach Notre Dame’s 28. Three incomplete passes followed, putting it all on Mitchell’s foot.
“You’ve had so many reps kick- ing over the years and in the cold,’’ Mitchell said. ‘‘We practiced outside this week. I was feeling comfortable.”
He came through at the end of regulation and again in overtime to give the Wildcats a win for the ages.
“The way the guys persevered and fought was [what] we have tried to do all season,” Fitzgerald said. “We were able to find a way to make one more big play.”