By Jojo Doria

Orlando, FL

E. J Manuel threw 20-for-31 for 249 yards with 2 touchdowns and the Florida State Seminoles overcame a slow start to beat the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 18-14.

The Seminoles successfully rallied from a 14-3 deficit in the fourth quarter to post the win.

Freshman wideout Rashad Greene captured the MVP honors after hauling in the TD catch that gave the Seminoles 15-14 lead at 13:18 mark of the fourth quarter.

Notre Dame's Zeke Motta scored the first TD for the Fighting Irish after rumbling 29-yards with a fumble return in the first quarter.

Fighting Irish quarterback Tommy Rees doubled his team's advantage after hooking up with senior wideout Michael Floyd for 5-yard TD pass.

The Seminoles cut into the lead late in the first half as Dustin Hopkins converted a 42-yard field goal to make it a 14-3 affair at the break.

After a defensive minded and scoreless third quarter, the Seminoles roared back in the final quarter as Manuel threw two quick TD passes: the first on an 18-yard hook up with senior wideout Bert Reed and the second with Greene for the go-ahead score.

The Seminoles tightened up their defense down the stretch and Hopkins sealed the victory with a 29-yard field goal conversion.

Florida State (9-4, 5-3 ACC) notched its fourth consecutive Bowl win, while Notre Dame (8-5, 5-3 home) had its two-Bowl winning streak snapped.

 

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