And the winning streak of New Jersey quarterbacks – whose names end with a vowel – continues.
Former Bergen Catholic quarterback Steve Angeli rushed for 232 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 15 Notre Dame to a 40-8 victory over No. 21 Oregon State in the Sun Bowl on Friday.
Angeli – a sophomore making his first start for the Irish in place of Sam Hartman, who left the game – was 15 of 19, throwing TD passes of 8 yards to Jayden Thomas, 13 yards to Jordan Faison and 13 yards to Jeremiyah Love.
First Tommy DeVito, the Giants' third-stringer, took the NFL by storm, then Joe Flacco rose from his chair to lead the Cleveland Browns to the playoffs, and now Angeli – another talented Garden State quarterback escaping Rutgers – is thrilling could – fans look forward to next season when Hartman will be in the NFL.
“This is a moment I will remember for the rest of my life,” Angeli said, “but it’s really not about me. It's about the guys around me. All the people that were in that room that encouraged me, especially Sam Hartman. He did a great job teaching me the ropes and allowing me to come here and take advantage of this opportunity.”
Angeli's previous start came when he led Bergen Catholic over Don Bosco Prep – DeVito's alma mater – to a 2021 New Jersey state championship and a perfect season.
Some New Jersey football trivia:
Rutgers quarterback Gavin Wimsatt and Angeli, a Westfield native, were the first quarterbacks in the 2022 class to receive offers from Notre Dame. Brian Kelly, who recruited Angeli, is now LSU's head coach, but that didn't matter: Angeli has historic ties to the school. His great-uncle Pete Berezney won a national title with Notre Dame in the 1940s while playing for Frank Leahy.
Stanford, Arizona, Iowa and Syracuse offered Angeli after his junior season, but he was always apparently headed to Notre Dame. His college teammates said they had complete confidence in the former four-star recruit after watching him practice for two seasons.
“We knew it was coming,” receiver Jordan Faison said of Angeli. “We’re not surprised.”
Faison, the game's MVP, had five catches for 115 yards and a score for the Irish. Running back Jadarian Price rushed for 106 yards on 13 carries with one touchdown.
Notre Dame's young players had to do the heavy lifting as seven of the team's players – all starters – were eliminated from the game. That included Hartman and standout running back Audric Estime.
“We have this thing called a bumpy road. “That bumpy road ended really well,” Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman said. “And I’m proud of these guys. It’s a pleasure to coach her.”
Oregon State (8-5), which ended the season with a three-game losing streak, had three starters leave and four more enter the transfer portal – including starting quarterback DJ Uiagalelei and backup Aidan Chiles.
That left the Beavers in a tough spot against a top-ranked Irish defense that ranked eighth nationally and limited Oregon State to 197 total yards and just two rushing yards.
The game finally turned around late in the second quarter when Oregon State, trailing 7-0, attempted a fake punt from midfield that resulted in a loss. Notre Dame then played seven plays and extended the lead to 14-0 on a 1-yard run by Price with just 27 seconds left in the half.
Jimmy Valsin III scored Oregon State's only score, catching a 33-yard pass from Ben Gulbranson. Offensive lineman Tyler Voltin ran out of the Wildcat formation in the 2-point conversion.
That 6:02 mark in the fourth quarter cut Notre Dame's lead to 33-8 before the Irish scored a final touchdown on a 6-yard run by Chase Ketterer with 2:45 to play.
Gulbranson was 16 for 27 for 180 yards and one interception.
“Obviously it’s not the result we wanted,” Oregon State interim coach Kefense Hynson said. “Hats off to Notre Dame. I mean, this is a really, really good football team. They’re everything we saw on tape.”
THE TAKING AWAY
Oregon State: The biggest question facing the Beavers is their uncertain conference future. Oregon State and Washington State are the remaining members of the Pac-12, and the Beavers have just six games on the 2024 schedule. Wherever they end up, new head coach Trent Bray will have eight returning players on offense and five on defense as of Friday's game.
Notre Dame: The Irish secured a 10-win season, gaining momentum heading into next season, the first with the expanded playoffs – in which they are expected to play a role. Based on Friday's depth chart, the Irish could return all 11 starters on offense but only four on defense. Many of those spots will be open for competition, particularly at quarterback, where Duke transfer Riley Leonard will be in the mix.
AWARDS & AWARDS
The Irish won the game's honors. Faison was named MVP, defensive end Jordan Botelho was named Most Valuable Lineman and kicker Spencer Shrader was named special teams MVP. Botelho had five tackles, one sack and 1.5 tackles for loss. Shrader made a 44-yard field goal and five extra points.
FACTS
Notre Dame had 8 of 14 third downs while Oregon State had 1 of 9. The Irish had 24 first downs and 10 for the Beavers. The game's only turnover was an interception by Notre Dame's Benjamin Morrison. This was the third time the teams played each other, and all three competed in bowl games, with the Beavers having won the first two. Oregon State is 2-1 all-time in the Sun Bowl, while Notre Dame is 2-0 in El Paso.
The AP contributed to this report. Thank you for trusting us to provide you with the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting us with a subscription.