Honolulu, HI (Sports Network) - Jimmy Clausen threw for 401 yards and five touchdowns, three of them going to Golden Tate, and Notre Dame snapped an NCAA-record nine-game bowl losing streak with a 49-21 rout of the Warriors in the Hawaii Bowl.
Clausen and Tate each set Notre Dame bowl records, and Armando Allen Jr. returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown as the Fighting Irish (7-6), with Charlie Weis working from the coaches box, blew out Hawaii on its home field.
Clausen connected on 22-of-26 passes as the Irish won their first bowl game since beating Texas A&M at the 1994 Cotton Bowl. He had three touchdowns and 300 of his yards in the first half. That alone was enough to eclipse the old mark for most passing yards in a bowl game for Notre Dame, breaking the record held by Brady Quinn (286) in the 2006 Fiesta Bowl against Ohio State.
The five TDs is also a bowl record, and Tate also set a mark with 177 receiving yards on six catches.
In the final minutes, celebratory Notre Dame players dumped a bucket of drinking liquid on offensive coordinator Mike Haywood, who on Tuesday was named head coach at Miami-Ohio.
Weis wasn't on the sidelines most of the game due to upcoming knee surgeries, but the head coach made his way to the field on crutches late in the fourth quarter. He is under contract through the 2015 season, but has the worst two- year run of any head coach in the storied history of the program. Weis was given a vote of confidence by Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick earlier this month, and on Wednesday the Irish set a team record for most points in a bowl game.
The defense was just as strong, registering eight sacks.
Greg Alexander connected on 23-of-39 passes for 261 yards with two TDs and an interception for Hawaii (7-7), which has been outscored 90-31 in its last two bowl games. The Warriors were pounded by Georgia last season at the Sugar Bowl, ending hopes of an undefeated season.
Hawaii, playing in its home bowl game for the fifth time in the seven-year history of the contest, was limited to 32 yards rushing. Aaron Bain had eight catches for 119 yards and two scores in defeat.
