# 1976 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team

The 1976 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame during the 1976 NCAA Division I football season.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 11 | 4:20 p.m. | No. 9 Pittsburgh | No. 11 | Notre Dame StadiumNotre Dame, IN (rivalry) | ABC | L 10–31 | 59,075 |
| September 18 | 2:30 p.m. | Purdue | | Notre Dame StadiumNotre Dame, IN (rivalry) | | W 23–0 | 59,075 |
| September 25 | 2:30 p.m. | at Northwestern | | Dyche StadiumEvanston, IL (rivalry) | | W 48–0 | 44,396 |
| October 2 | 1:30 p.m. | at Michigan State | No. 18 | Spartan StadiumEast Lansing, MI (rivalry) | | W 24–6 | 77,081 |
| October 16 | 2:30 p.m. | Oregon | No. 14 | Notre Dame StadiumNotre Dame, IN | | W 41–0 | 59,075 |
| October 23 | 1:10 p.m. | at No. 19 South Carolina | No. 12 | Williams–Brice StadiumColumbia, SC | | W 13–6 | 56,721 |
| October 30 | 1:00 p.m. | vs. Navy | No. 11 | Municipal StadiumCleveland, OH (rivalry) | | W 27–21 | 61,172 |
| November 6 | 1:30 p.m. | at Georgia Tech | No. 11 | Grant FieldAtlanta, GA (rivalry) | | L 14–23 | 50,079 |
| November 13 | 12:50 p.m. | No. 10 Alabama | No. 18 | Notre Dame StadiumNotre Dame, IN | ABC | W 21–18 | 59,075 |
| November 20 | 1:30 p.m. | Miami (FL) | No. 13 | Notre Dame StadiumNotre Dame, IN (rivalry) | | W 40–27 | 59,075 |
| November 27 | 4:00 p.m. | at No. 3 USC | No. 13 | Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA (rivalry) | ABC | L 13–17 | 76,561 |
| December 27 | 9:00 p.m. | vs. No. 20 Penn State | No. 15 | Gator Bowl StadiumJacksonville, FL (Gator Bowl, rivalry) | ABC | W 20–9 | 67,827 |
| Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||||

## Game summaries
### Pittsburgh
### Purdue

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Purdue | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Notre Dame | 3 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 23 |
at Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, Indiana
* Date: September 18
* Game attendance: 59,075
* Recap/Box
Game information :
First quarter
ND – Dave Reeve 39-yard field goal, 0:47. Notre Dame 3–0. Drive:
Second quarter
ND – Mark McLane 33-yard pass from Al Hunter (Dave Reeve kick). Notre Dame 10–0. Drive:
Third quarter
ND – Rick Slager 1-yard run (Dave Reeve kick). Notre Dame 17–0. Drive:
Fourth quarter
ND – Al Hunter 2-yard run (kick failed). Notre Dame 23–0. Drive: 49 yards.
Top passers
PUR
ND
Top rushers
PUR
ND
Top receivers
PUR
ND :

### Vs. Navy

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Notre Dame | 3 | 21 | 0 | 3 | 27 |
| Navy | 0 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio
* Date: October 30
* Game attendance: 61,172
* Recap/Box Score
Game information :
First quarter
ND – Dave Reeve 47-yard field goal. Notre Dame 3–0. Drive:
Second quarter
NAVY – Dave King 17-yard pass from Bob Leszcyznski (Bob Tata kick). Navy 7–3. Drive:
NAVY – Larry Klawinski 1-yard run (Bob Tata kick). Navy 14–3. Drive:
ND – Dan Kelleher 58-yard pass from Rick Slager (Dave Reeve kick). Navy 14–10. Drive:
ND – Al Hunter 5-yard run (Dave Reeve kick). Notre Dame 17–14. Drive: 60 yards.
ND – Al Hunter 28-yard pass from Rick Slager (Dave Reeve kick). Notre Dame 24–14. Drive:
Third quarter
No scoring
Fourth quarter
NAVY – Reggie Thompson 1-yard run (Bob Tata kick). Notre Dame 24–21. Drive:
ND – Dave Reeve 24-yard field goal. Notre Dame 27–21. Drive:
Top passers
ND
NAVY – Bob Leszcyznski – 21/45, 294 yards, TD, INT
Top rushers
ND
NAVY
Top receivers
ND – Dan Kelleher – 7 receptions, 162 yards, TD
NAVY :

### At USC

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Notre Dame | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 13 |
| USC | 0 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 17 |
at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California
* Date: November 27
* Game attendance: 76,561
* TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson, Ara Parseghian
* Recap/Box
Game information :
First quarter
No scoring
Second quarter
USC – Shelton Diggs 6-yard pass from Rob Hertel (Glen Walker kick). USC 7–0. Drive: 10 plays, 67 yards.
Third quarter
USC – Randy Simmrin 63-yard pass from Vince Evans (Glen Walker kick), 13:30. USC 14–0. Drive:
Fourth quarter
ND – Vagas Ferguson 17-yard pass from Rusty Lisch (Dave Reeve kick), 14:06. USC 14–7. Drive: 4 plays, 68 yards.
USC – Glen Walker 46-yard field goal. USC 17–7. Drive:
ND – Rusty Lisch 1-yard run (two-point conversion failed). USC 17–13. Drive: 76 yards.
Top passers
ND
USC – Vince Evans – 6/14, 106 yards, TD
Top rushers
ND
USC – Ricky Bell – 21 rushes, 75 yards
Top receivers
ND
USC – Randy Simmrin – 6 receptions, 121 yards, TD :
Rick Slager started the game but was replaced by Rusty Lisch after Slagler injured his shoulder.