By the end of the third quarter, the Eagles were ahead 31-17, and Irish fans were near despair.
Suddenly, the Irish echoes seemed to awaken. The team clicked, and the Irish overcame a 38-17 deficit, scoring 22 points in the final 11 minutes.
McDougal's four-yard touchdown pass on fourth down to wide receiver Lake Dawson with 1:09 to play put the Irish ahead, 39-38.
It seemed a miracle.
But BC had the ball on their own 25-yard line with a minute to play and one more chance to win the game.
Foley nearly ruined the drive when Irish linebacker Pete Bercich dropped a potential game-clinching interception, but he rebounded to complete four passes on the drive.
Foley found tight end Pete Mitchell for 12 yards on third-and-10. He connected with Mitchell twice more for 6 and 24 yards and moved into Notre Dame territory. His final pass, a nine-yard completion to Ivan Boyd, put the Eagles on the 24-yard line with five seconds left.
Suddenly, the outcome of the game rested on the shoulders of Eagles place kicker David Gordon, a little-known walk-on who had failed on two game-winning field-goal attempts in the previous two years.
Gordon lined up and kicked from 41 yards.
In a heart-stopping, last-second effort, Irish dreams were crushed. The kick was good, and BC stunned Notre Dame 41-39.