No.11 Notre Dame (7-2) at Rutgers (3-6)             3:30 pm EST
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PISCATAWAY, New Jersey (Ticker) -- If Rutgers could entice
players like Matt LoVecchio to stay home, the Scarlet Knights
might not be in their present predicament. 

LoVecchio, a freshman from Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, leads
11th-ranked Notre Dame to the Garden State to play struggling
Rutgers, which plays its last home game under coach Terry Shea. 

LoVecchio has won all five games as the starting quarterback for
the Fighting Irish (7-2), who are likely headed to a berth in a
BCS bowl with wins today against Rutgers and next week against
Southern California.  LoVecchio is the first Irish QB since
Kevin McDougal in 1993 to win his first five starts and has
thrown nine touchdown passes with just one interception. 

Notre Dame is currently 11th in the BCS poll and needs to finish
in the top 12 to be eligible for a BCS bowl. The Fighting Irish
have won five straight games after a 28-16 win over Boston
College last weekend. 

Despite losing two fumbles against the Eagles, the Fighting
Irish continue to lead the nation with just seven turnovers. 

Rutgers (3-6) took West Virginia to double overtime before
losing, 31-24, last week.  The Scarlet Knights are 11-42 under
Shea, who has already announced his resignation, effective at
the end of the season. 

Notre Dame and Rutgers have met twice previously, in 1921 and
1996, and the Fighting Irish have won both games by a combined
score of 110-0. 

Notre Dame is 11-0 in games played in New Jersey and has seven
players from the state on its roster. 

st 11-18-00 07:11 et