Matt Rice remembers NU 17 ND 15

With Northwestern traveling to South Bend to take on Notre Dame on Saturday, many Wildcat fans are thinking back to the last time the Wildcats met the Irish, in the season opener on Sept. 2, 1995. And when people think about Northwestern's historic 17-15 win that day, they typically recall Irish quarterback Ron Powlus tripping on a two-point conversion attempt in the fourth quarter.

But the REAL play of the game came later.

With Notre Dame facing a fourth-and-two at their own 44-yard line with 3:57 to play, Irish coach Lou Holtz elected to go for the first down. Tailback Randy Kinder took the handoff and was immediately drilled for no gain. It was Notre Dame's last offensive play of the game and the Wildcats, who came in as 28-point underdogs, took possession and ran out the clock.

The player who made the hit on Kinder was junior defensive tackle Matt Rice.

Now the Chief Investment Officer at DiMeo Schneider & Associates, LLC, and a frequent contributor to the WildcatReport message boards, Rice took a few moments to reminisce about that victory over Notre Dame, the first win in the Wildcats' storybook run to the Rose Bowl.

Q. What do you remember most about that game?

Rice: I have a pretty vivid memory of virtually every defensive snap, but what sticks with me the most is that it felt like there were only 100 people at Notre Dame Stadium immediately after the game. Those 100 people were our players and coaches. We were surrounded by about 60,000 people, but you could hear a pin drop. Experiencing that stunned silence was quite a unique but wonderful experience.

Q. It's become legend that coach Gary Barnett told you not to carry him off the field after you won. But did you REALLY think you could knock off the Irish? They were 28-point favorites and you were coming off of a 3-8 season.

Rice: I absolutely believed it. I cannot speak for the other 100 guys on the team, but if anyone didn't believe it they sure had me fooled all summer, during training camp and the entire week leading up to the game. As proof of my conviction level, I went home for a weekend over the summer and explained to a high school buddy how certain I was that we'd beat Notre Dame. I was apparently so convincing to him that he bet another friend $20 that we'd beat Notre Dame straight up. He was willing to waive 28 points of spread based solely on my level of conviction.

Q. So many people love or hate Notre Dame. Did you have a good, healthy hatred of the Irish growing up, or did it develop after playing them a few times?

Rice: I suppose I grew up rooting against Notre Dame more than I rooted for them because they were rarely the underdog, but I never hated Notre Dame. I still don't today. I had a lot of respect for Notre Dame and Coach Holtz, which is why I wanted to beat them so badly. As an aside, during the 1997 Hula Bowl, I got to know Coach Holtz because he was my coach on the North team. It was easy to see why he had been a successful coach for so long. Despite being horrible with names, he did a terrific job of motivating a bunch of 21-23 year old guys he barely knew who just spent the week drinking pina coladas and hanging out on Waikiki beach in Honolulu.

Q. What was it like in the locker room before the game? Was the team quiet? Fired up? What was Barnett's pre-game speech?

Rice: It was a pretty typical pre-game locker room environment compared to all the other games we played that year. Perhaps there were a few more jitters because it was the first game of the season. Each guy was doing his own routine. Some guys run around the locker room and punch lockers or head-butt each other, while other guys like me try to chill out as much as possible to preserve energy as to not play the game before it starts. I would often put on a Grateful Dead CD to stay chilled before games. I don't want to light my fuse too early, but different guys are wired differently.

Coach Barnett touched on some parables and metaphors that he and motivational coach Steve Musseau had drilled into us during evening training Camp Kenosha seminars. Without getting into too many boring details, the parables were all about overcoming obstacles, having trust in yourself and faith in your teammates.

During Camp Kenosha and the week's practices leading up to the game, Coach Barnett had used a weighing scale to keep track of the number of good practices we had. If we practiced well, he added a penny to our side of the scale. If we didn't practice well, no penny. On the other side of the scale, he stacked a bunch of pennies that represented all of Notre Dame's practices. By the day of the game, the scale was balanced between teams. At the crescendo of his speech, he determined that he had accidently undercounted a practice somewhere along the way, and he used a (lucky) penny he had found that morning on the ground to tip the scale in our favor. Of course, we erupted in excitement!

Like pretty much all of Coach Barnett's pre-game speeches, it was right on point and relevant to the task at hand. So while his speech was great, quite frankly, he didn't need to say much at that point. We were prepared and ready to go, and his speech only complimented that momentum.

Q. How about halftime? What was the mood like? Do you remember anyone saying anything in particular?

Rice: It was pretty typical. We spent the majority of half time talking with our position coaches about what we were seeing in the first half and how they were attacking us. It's an important two-way conversation where coaches and players need to communicate effectively and efficiently in order to make any adjustments that could make us more effective in the second half. It was very workman-like and a typical halftime for that team. Like always towards the end of halftime, we huddle briefly as a team and Coach Barnett made a few brief remarks and then we were back at it in the second half. There was nothing remarkable about it.

Q. What was the turning point of the game. When did you think, "Hey, we can beat these guys"?

Rice: Quite frankly, we crossed that bridge long before the game started. It probably occurred for most guys somewhere between the end of the prior Spring ball and the middle of training camp. During the game, I don't think there were many major turning points.

Both teams were fighting back and forth in a pretty even fight. I don't want to speak for others, but I was able to look to my left and right on the defensive line and see physical playmakers all around me. We had three linebackers that played behind us that were all great players. We had two safeties that could knock the lips off of people and two corners that could man up and cover anyone. We had this guy name Hudhaifa Ismaeli who didn't even start, but who could pretty much do whatever he wanted on the field. By 1995, I had already played a lot of college football. I knew the offensive line I faced every day in practice was as good if not better than any I had faced in my prior two years. Even though he was technically a quarterback at the time, D'Wayne Bates would play wide receiver on the scout team in 1994 and routinely torch our very good defensive backs. We all knew Darnell (Autry) was a stud and he had a monster full back, Matt Hartl, blocking for him. We had a kicker that never missed. We had a punter that could launch them high and long. We had a punt returner who could make anyone miss in a phone booth. We also had a tremendous group of coaches who worked their butts off every week, and I always felt they gave us a great chance to win, even when we weren't very good in 1993 and 1994.

From an outsider's perspective, it may have been pretty hard to see these things develop, but they were easy for me and I think most of my teammates to see. I think our confidence was a rational byproduct of the abilities we had and tremendous preparation we did all year round.

Q. Take us through your fourth-down stop of Randy Kinder with 3:57 left.

Rice: When you win a close football game, there are always at least a handful of plays that are made or not made that determine the outcome. That play certainly was one of the important ones down the stretch. As I recall that fourth-down-and-2 play, Notre Dame came out in (an) I-formation and two tight ends. The entire offensive line had their weight forward in their stances, so I knew there would be no pulling lineman, no trapping, or no outside reach blocking. Based on the formation and pre-snap reads, it was clearly going to be a play designed to power the ball downhill in a hurry. They ran the two tight-end look a few times earlier in the game, but we hadn't really practiced it much that week in practice. It called for me to play inside shade over the guard rather than my normal outside shade of the center in our base defense. Since I hadn't practiced that technique at all that week, I honestly had a twinge of anxiety for a moment as I was lining up. I did a quick mental visualization rep of what I expected and how I would react, then let loose on the snap. Since we could cede up to two yards, I had put an emphasis on trying to get off a block quickly rather than erasing the line of scrimmage. Upon the snap of the ball, as is usually the case for a nose tackle, I was double teamed by the guard and the center. I was able to play over the top of the center quickly and make the play.

Upon re-watching the tape the following week in film study, the other three guys in the front four had created a perfect funnel, so the running back had no choice but to go straight ahead. Up to that moment in my football playing career, I had never experienced that level of pure joy on a single play. I usually had rather modest reactions after making a play, but I went sprinting off the field with my hands in the air before it was even clear to all that he was short of the first down and by at least a yard. With the way our offense was playing, I felt comfortable they could eat the remaining three minutes of clock or at least eat enough of it that Notre Dame would have a very long field with very little time left.

Q. What was it like on the sideline with NU driving to kill the clock at the end of the fourth quarter? Were you all shouting? Holding hands?

Rice: What I remember is huddling as a defense to get mentally prepared to go back out there if we needed to, but I must admit that it was one of the first times I ever snuck a peak at what the offense was doing on the field. The defensive players in the rotation are usually spending virtually all of the time the offense is on the field huddled and communicating about what we're going to do the next defensive series. There was certainly a lot of energy and adrenaline emanating from that sideline.

Q. What do you remember about the post-game celebration? Where were you? Who did you hug? Do you remember anything in particular being said? What was the locker room like?

Rice: I hugged or high-fived every teammate and coach in sight. Like I said before, the absolute silence after the game with a full stadium was bizarre, but in an incredibly satisfying way. The locker room environment was pretty much like everyone would expect. There were a lot of happy 18-22 year-olds in there having a great time.

Q. What was it like when you got back to Evanston? What did you do that night (that you can disclose on a family website)? How about the day after?

Rice: We probably had more fun on our three-hour bus ride back to Evanston than any other three-hour bus ride in history. I remember it was pretty late when we got back to Evanston, but we had a ton of fans waiting for us and we had a good chunk of the band there playing music. It was a lot of fun.

By the time we got home it was pretty late, and I was exhausted. It was a long day to say the least. Our best celebrations usually occurred after home games because we didn't have to deal with travel.

Q. What teammates are you closest to today? How often do you see or talk to them?

Rice: We were a tight-knit group and really still are today, although it gets harder to stay in touch as guys move across the country and raise families. My closest and dearest friend today is Paul Janus, who was a great offensive tackle and fellow Cheesehead from Wisconsin. We stood up in each other's weddings and remain very close today. We get our families together as much as we can despite our hectic lives. We were paired up as roommates as freshmen and lived together for four years. It's kind of funny because we usually got in least one fist fight a week during practice over a late hit or a perceived cheap shot, but we never clashed over a messy apartment or contested food in the refrigerator or the other typical stuff roommates clash about. It's funny how the rage generated during practice stopped the moment practice ended, and it never carried off the field. Ray Robey and I became great friends as well. He lives way out West these days, so we don't interact as much as we like. We seem to have a couple great phone conversations every year, and I always look him up when I'm traveling in his neck of the world for work. I hate to keep rattling off names because there are so many great life-long friendships that were formed.

In some cases, we may go a few years without seeing each other, but we immediately pick up where we left off and we often regress to the 20-something versions of ourselves from a maturity standpoint. In 2005, we had a great 10-year reunion the weekend Tyrell Sutton ran wild against Wisconsin. Back in 2011, we had a 15-year reunion for the 1996 Big Ten Championship team and we had a lot of fun reuniting. My now three-year old son was a few months old in 2011, and he watched much of the 2011 Minnesota game perched on Coach Barnett's lap in the Stadium Club. That was a tremendous weekend. I'm hearing the plan is in the works in for a 20-year reunion next fall, and I cannot wait.

Q. How often do you talk to Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald? Do you talk more about your glory days at NU or the current team? Or neither?

Rice: We talk periodically. A number of years ago I was on the N Club Board of Directors, and I was able coax Fitz into doing some speaking engagements for us.

When we talk these days, it's usually in relation to his current players outside of a football context and in the NU Football mentorship program. Fitz came up with the idea, and I think it was a great one. It pairs a current and former NU football player, and I think it's of tremendous value to the kids particularly in helping to get them ready for internships and ultimately job opportunities. I wish we had something like it when I was at NU. I've hired one former NU player that played under Fitz and I've tried to hire more. The job market for many of these guys is really competitive. I'm struck at how mature these kids are now and how Fitz and his staff have really helped to mold some truly remarkable young men. By contrast, Fitz and I and quite a few others were pretty much knuckleheads compared to the guys coming out today. To the extent we talk about our "glory days" today, we're usually ripping on ourselves and each other about our mutual lack of athletic ability.

Fitz and I and many other front-seven players used to spend countless hours in the film room watching tape on our opponents, and he had an unrivaled level of commitment to study, analysis and preparation that surpassed anything I ever saw from any other player. I spent a lot more time in the film room because of Fitz. Many of us did. Fitz is just a natural leader. He was never an in-your-face confrontational leader, but rather just the kind of guy that always knew what was needed to be done and commanded respect.

I think it was back in 1999 or 2000 when Fitz called me from Boulder when he was working as a graduate assistant under Coach Barnett and his defensive coordinator, (Vince) Okruch. Coach Okruch had been my defensive line coach at Northwestern. In any regard, Fitz called me to gauge any potential interest I might have of becoming a GA with him, where you get paid peanuts but get room and board for graduate school. In the event I ever wanted a career in coaching, that would have been the moment to seize a tremendous opportunity. After about five minutes of entertaining the notion, I passed fairly quickly. I love football and enjoy the physical and technical parts of the game, but it takes a rare breed to be a coach. You should only go into coaching if there is absolutely nothing else you want to do.

Q. How often do people ask you about the Notre Dame game today?

Rice: It comes up quite a bit actually. In context of the 1995 and 1996 seasons, it's probably the second-most asked about game after the Rose Bowl. I have a few Domer fan colleagues in my office, so it's come up a quite a bit more lately than normal.

Q. NU is having a difficult year and have now won just four of its last 17 games stretching back to last season. How difficult is it for you to watch your alma mater struggle, as well as a former teammate as the head coach?

Rice: It's difficult to see them struggle. I feel bad for the kids because I know how much they want to win. They haven't played very well at times this year, but they have played hard. Having come from a family with several successful football coaches, I also know how difficult it is on coaches and their families when you're struggling. I don't care who you are or where you are as a coach, you are going to face tough times eventually. As a head coach, it's your job to keep your wits, roll up your sleeves and lead the team through the tough times. I see Fitz doing that now. It's not easy nor is it pretty, but Fitz absolutely has all the key attributes to get things I fixed. I remember a conversation we had after the tough loss to New Hampshire back in 2006. He told me not to lose faith in him because he was going to get it turned around. He did. After a long and successful run, the team's going through a rough patch again, but I know he'll be able to turn it around again.

Q. Where does the win over Notre Dame rank among your football memories? Where does that day rank in your life?

Rice: Obviously, the birth of my children and the marriage to my beautiful wife are at the top of the list. There are a lot of other great life events that top anything football-related. Once you get down to the football-related items, the Notre Dame game is only memorable to me because it was the first of many. Had we not gone on to be a Big Ten champion, it probably would not have been too important. Arguably every game built off of that one and every game that came next was more important and even more memorable. In my opinion, the most important and most memorable game was our 24-8 win over Purdue because it secured (an) 8-0 (record) and the Big Ten championship for us.