Notre Dame Wins Finale Against Purdue

If Bob Davie is fired as coach of Notre Dame, his players made sure that he went out as a winner.

Vontez Duff scored on a 96-yard kickoff return and Jason Beckstrom returned an interception 29 yards for a score as the Irish defeated Purdue, 24-18, Saturday in what could be Davie’s last game as coach after five seasons in South Bend.

Davie’s job status has been questioned during most of Notre Dame’s disappointing 5-6 season.

Davie, who signed a five-year contract extension last December, was asked again if he would resign, but he walked away from the news conference without answering. He said earlier in the week he would never resign.

Davie said he realized he made a mistake Friday when he confronted rumors about his potential firing.

“I never addressed it at all until [Friday] night,” he said. “It was the lead story on ESPN, so I knew all of our players had seen it. I did not skirt around the issue. I addressed that situation for the first time last night. I apologized to the players. I really felt like they deserved better.”

The Boilermakers, who lost four of their last five games to finish the regular season 6-5, accepted a bid to play No. 13 Washington State in the Sun Bowl on Dec. 31 in El Paso.

With running backs Julian Jones and Tony Fisher hurt, the Irish turned to little-used freshman Ryan Grant. Grant ran for 77 yards in 19 carries and gave Notre Dame a 7-3 lead four minutes into the second quarter with a 14-yard touchdown run.

“I love him and the whole team loves him,” Beckstrom said of Davie. “He gave me a chance to come to Notre Dame, which is a dream of mine. I love him like a father.”