Televised by CBS, the game kicked off shortly after 1 p.m. CST, as did the Sugar Bowl on ABC. In the first quarter, Notre Dame scored the first twelve points of the game, but Houston scored a touchdown off a turnover. Aided by the direction of the wind, Houston gained the lead in the second quarter and led 20–12 at halftime. When the teams returned to the field to start the second half, Notre Dame quarterback Joe Montana remained in the locker room. During the game, Montana's body temperature had dipped to and he had to fight off hypothermia. He was forced to retire to the locker room where the Notre Dame medical staff, led by orthopedic surgeon Les Bodner, warmed Montana by feeding him chicken bouillon soup and covering him with warm blankets. By the fourth quarter, Houston had built a 34–12 lead; Montana returned to the field with 7:37 remaining on the game clock and was cheered actively by the Notre Dame fans. Notre Dame had closed the gap to six points; with a half minute left and fourth down and one on their own 29, Houston went for the first down and was stopped. With six seconds left on the eight-yard-line, Montana threw the ball out of bounds and only two seconds remained. The final play was a touchdown pass to receiver Kris Haines as time expired. Placekicker Joe Unis was forced to kick the extra point twice after a Notre Dame penalty, but was successful both times, and Notre Dame won by a point, With a high temperature of, a strong north wind impacted both the subzero wind chill and the outcome of the game; all but seven of the game's 69 combined points were scored by the team defending the north end zone. Because of the weather, the stadium was less than half full in the first half and as few as 7,000 remained at
Notre Dame - Steve Cichy 33-yard blocked punt return
Notre Dame - Montana 2-yard run
Notre Dame - Haines 8-yard pass from Montana
Statistics
Aftermath
The game is one of the most notable games in Montana's entire football career. It was his final game for Notre Dame and helped to reinforce his image with football fans as "The Comeback Kid." Six months after the game, Notre Dame put out a promotional film called Seven and a Half Minutes to Destiny. Notre Dame head coach Dan Devine called the movie a "Joe Montana film." The Cougars returned the following year and staged a dramatic win of their own, defeating Nebraska 17–14 in the final seconds. The game has become recognized as one of the most important in the history of college bowl games. Montana went on to a hall of fame career in the National Football League, winning four Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers.
