2006 Fiesta Bowl The 2006 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl , played on January 2 , 2006 , was the 35th edition of the Fiesta Bowl , featuring Notre Dame and Ohio State . Ohio State won the game 34 – 20 . Ohio State ' s quarterback , Troy Smith , became the frontrunner of the 2006 Heisman race , after he completed 19 of his 28 passes for 342 yards , including 2 touchdowns and no interceptions . Notre Dame ' s Brady Quinn completed 29 out of his 45 passes for 286 yards . Notre Dame got the 1st score of the game , with a 20 yard touchdown run by Darius Walker . Then Ohio State responded on a 6 play 86 yard drive capped off with a 56 yard touchdown pass to Ted Ginn , Jr . In the second quarter , off a wide - receiver reverse , Ginn rushed 68 yards to the left side for a touchdown . Then with just over 2 minutes to go in the half , Troy Smith found Santonio Holmes for an 85 yard touchdown pass , and Ohio State led 21 – 7 at half - time . In the second half , Notre Dame ' Darius Walker scored his second rushing touchdown of the game , to make the score 21 - 13 . Notre Dame ' s defense forced 2 Ohio State field goals , and the score was 27 – 13 . With 5 minutes left to go in the game , Darius Walker got his third rushing touchdown of the game , to make the score 27 – 20 . On third and 5 , with Ohio State eating up the clock , Ohio State iced the game with a 60 yard touchdown run by Antonio Pittman . Aftermath . Notre Dame extended its bowl game losing streak to 8 games , which tied an NCAA record . Ohio State finished the season ranked # 4 in the Nation , behind Texas , USC , and Penn State . Ohio State would go on to win a school record 20 consecutive games , including an entire season ranked at # 1 in the nation . A number of 1st round NFL draft picks played in this game including , A . J . Hawk , Brady Quinn , Ted Ginn , Jr . , Anthony Gonzalez , Santonio Holmes , Nick Mangold and Bobby Carpenter . The 2006 Fiesta Bowl would be the last played at Sun Devil Stadium . The Fiesta Bowl now is played at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale , Arizona . The 2006 Fiesta Bowl was the last at Sun Devil Stadium . But it was a similar scene as Ohio State won for the third time in four years with a big - play offense and a ball - hawking defense to defeat Notre Dame , 34 - 20 , in front of a standing - room - only crowd of 76 , 196 , the largest ever for a non - championship game . The game featured two of the most storied programs in college football , playing for just the fifth time in history , making it one of the most anticipated games in Fiesta Bowl history . Both teams won national championships in past Fiesta Bowls – Notre Dame in 1989 and Ohio State in 2003 – adding even more drama to a game that featured plenty of hype . Notre Dame grabbed an early 7 - 0 lead on a 20 - yard run by Darius Walker , who finished with thee rushing scores . Ohio State exploded after that with three long touchdowns , the first a 56 - yard pass from Troy Smith to a wide - open Ted Ginn Jr . Ginn Jr . opened the second quarter with a zigzagging 68 - yard end around and Smith hit Santonio Holmes on an 85 - yard touchdown pass , the longest in Fiesta Bowl history to give the Buckeyes a 21 - 7 lead at halftime . The Fighting Irish pulled within seven late in the fourth quarter on a 3 - yard dive by Walker , but Smith converted two huge third - down conversions and Antonio Pittman galloped 60 yards to seal the victory with 1 : 46 to play . Ohio State linebacker A . J . Hawk was named defensive player of the game , becoming the first player in Fiesta Bowl history to win that honor twice . Adding to the game ’ s hype , Hawk was dating Laura Quinn , sister of Notre Dame star quarterback Brady Quinn . Hawk sacked his girlfriend ’ s brother twice and ran him down on a key third - down play early in the fourth quarter . Ginn Jr . finished with eight receptions for 167 yards and Holmes had five catches for 124 yards , making them only the third pair of teammates to eclipse 100 yards receiving in a Fiesta Bowl . Smith earned offensive player of the game honors for completing 19 of 28 passes for a career - high 342 yards and 66 yards rushing on 13 attempts , making him a serious Heisman Trophy candidate going into next season . The pre - game ceremonies highlighted the bowl ’ s founders and legendary Arizona State coach Frank Kush , who led the Sun Devils to victories in four of the first five Fiesta Bowls , during a special video tribute and field presentation . http : / / mobile . fiestabowl . org / tostitos - fiesta - bowl / tostitos - fiesta - bowl - game - history / game - results - recaps / 2006 - fiesta - bowl . php