Michigan Stadium will host its first night game Saturday when the Michigan football team welcomes Notre Dame in front of a national television audience (8 p.m. ESPN).

As a venue, the night concept is new.

As a program, though, it's not at all.

Michigan has played 33 night games in its history, technically defined as contests that began after 5 p.m. local time. The Wolverines are 22-11 in those games, 19-5 on the road and 3-6 in neutral site games.

For nostalgia's sake, here are five memorable Michigan nighttime battles.

Michigan at Notre Dame
Sept. 10, 1988
Fighting Irish 19, Wolverines 17

The only time in the history of the rivalry that a 5-foot-5 walk-on from Hawaii played hero.

Affectionately known as "The Reggie Ho Game" by Notre Dame faithful, the Irish's miniature junior walk-on kicker banged home four after-dark field goals -- including a game-winning 26-yarder with 1:13 to play -- to break Michigan's heart and begin Notre Dame's march to the 1998 national championship.

For Ho, who came to Notre Dame with aspirations of becoming a doctor before eventually beginning a career as a cardiologist, the entire situation was a matter of right place, right time.

"It was following the Alabama game in 1986 when we fell to 1-3 that we came back and changed personnel in the kicking game," former Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz told the New York Times in 1988. "We went with some nonscholarship kids. Hey, I was just looking for somebody who wanted to play."

In a game where the Michigan defense didn't allow a touchdown, Notre Dame used Ho's four field goals and an 81-yard punt return for a score from freshman Ricky Watters to grab the narrow win.

Despite being held to just 74 yards passing on the evening, Michigan managed to inch in front 17-16 following a Mike Gillette field goal with 5:34 to play. The Wolverines actually had one final chance to win the game at the end of regulation, but Gillette just missed from 48 yards as time ran out.

Though the season started out with a thud -- and got worse a week later with a 31-30 home loss to No. 1 Miami -- the 1988 Wolverines rallied, going unbeaten the rest of the season to finish 9-2-1. The year included an outright Big Ten title and a Rose Bowl victory, Bo Schembechler's second and final win in Pasadena.

Michigan at UCLA
Sept. 23, 1989
Wolverines 24, Bruins 23

In Schembechler's final season at Michigan, the Wolverines got four field goals -- and one gorgeous onside kick -- from J.D. Carlson to grab a dramatic come-from-behind win over UCLA during a regular-season night contest at the Rose Bowl.

Michigan fell behind 14-3 midway through the second quarter, but was able to fight back thanks to field goals of 36 and 43 yards by Carlson before a 63-yard punt return from eventual All-American Tripp Welborne set up a 1-yard Leroy Hoard touchdown to put the Wolverines up 15-14 with 5:12 to go in the third.

UCLA would fire back, getting a field goal from Alfredo Velasco and a touchdown pass from Bret Johnson to Corwin Anthony to make it a 23-15 game midway through the fourth. Velasco's extra point was blocked, however, giving Michigan slight life.

The Wolverines' life grew even larger later in the final quarter, when a Shawn Wills fumble was scooped up by J.J. Grant -- giving Michigan the ball at the UCLA 43 with 3:50 to play.

Elvis Grbac inched Michigan closer a little more than two minutes later when he found Derrick Walker for a 3-yard scoring strike with 1:35 remaining. Grbac's two-point conversion pass would fail, forcing Carlson into onside kick duty.

The task was no problem for the eventual All-Big Ten performer. Carlson sailed a high-bouncing kick down the UCLA sideline that was scooped up by Vada Murray at the Bruin 39. After a pair of Grbac completions, running back Tony Boles turned a screen pass into a 17-yard pickup, giving the Wolverines the ball at the 8.

Michigan would then wind the clock down to one second, allowing Carlson to bang home the 24-yarder for the victory.

The Wolverines would go on to win their final nine games of the 1989 regular season, giving Schembechler an outright Big Ten title during his final year on the sidelines.

Schembechler's final game at Michigan wouldn't be as sweet, however, as the Wolverines fell 17-10 to USC -- ironically enough, back in the Rose Bowl.

Michigan vs. Alabama, Orange Bowl
Jan. 1, 2000
Wolverines 35, Crimson Tide 34 (OT)

Tom Brady saved his best for last in Michigan's first Bowl Championship Series appearance.

In a game that not only went down as the first overtime game in BCS history, but also in Michigan history, Brady and sophomore receiver David Terrell lit up the Miami night sky while Alabama senior running back Shaun Alexander chewed up the ground.

The Crimson Tide held 14-point advantages twice, but each time Michigan was able to fight back, eventually tying the game 28-28 on a 3-yard plunge from Anthony Thomas late in the third quarter.

After neither team was able to muster anything in the fourth, the overtime period ignited a scoring frenzy. Brady hit tight end Shawn Thompson for a 25-yard touchdown pass on Michigan's first play from scrimmage. But it was Hayden Epstein's ensuing extra point that proved to be the game's biggest play.

The Crimson Tide scored on the second play of their first possession when Andrew Zow found Antonio Carter in the endzone. But kicker Ryan Pflugner would send Michigan home with a bucket full of oranges -- and its only BCS win to date -- when he pushed his extra point attempt wide right.

Brady finished the day with a career-high four touchdown passes and a Michigan bowl record 369 passing yards, completing 34 of 46 attempts.

Four months later, every team in the NFL passed on the former Michigan signal-caller, allowing the New England Patriots to make what now goes down as arguably the biggest draft day steal ever with a sixth-round choice.

Michigan at Northwestern
Oct. 17, 1998
Wolverines 12, Wildcats 6

In a game that will be remembered more for the weather than for the action on the field, Michigan continued its march to dig out of an early 0-2 national championship hangover during a nighttime monsoon at Northwestern's Ryan Field.

Following a perfect season and split national title in 1997, the Wolverines opened the 1998 campaign with losses to Notre Dame and Syracuse before putting together three straight wins leading into the date in Evanston.

After falling behind 6-0 early, and watching a pair of Jay Feely field goal attempts go unsuccessful, Michigan got its biggest offensive play of the day late in the second quarter when Brady found Tai Streets through the rain, wind and mud for a 30-yard touchdown pass to put the Wolverines up 7-6 with 32 seconds to go in the half.

While Streets' big grab was the highlight-maker, it was the play of freshman running back Justin Fargas that sealed a Michigan win. Fargas officially introduced himself to Wolverine fans with a 31-carry, 120-yard performance. His ability to sled through the mud in the fourth quarter allowed Michigan to chew up nearly six minutes before a successful Feely field goal, and also was key on the Wolverines' final possession -- as Michigan followed an intentional Northwestern safety by eating up the final four minutes of game clock to seal the win.

It was Fargas' finest hour at Michigan. He broke his leg four weeks later against Wisconsin, redshirted the entire 1999 season, moved to safety in 2000 due to the emergence of Anthony Thomas and eventually transferred to USC in 2001.

Not all was lost for Fargas, though, as he ran for 715 yards for USC's 2002 Orange Bowl championship squad. Fargas would parlay that effort into an NFL career that spanned seven seasons with the Oakland Raiders -- including a 1,000-yard rushing year in 2007.

As for Michigan that season? The Wolverines rattled off eight straight wins in total before falling at Ohio State. Michigan would then go on to beat Hawaii before holding off Arkansas in a Citrus Bowl shootout to finish the season 10-3 with a share of the Big Ten title.

Michigan at Wisconsin
Sept. 24, 2005
Badgers 23, Wolverines 20

In Barry Alvarez's final game against Michigan, the Wolverines kept the Badgers in check in front of a Camp Randall crowd of 83,022 -- eventually taking a 20-16 lead midway through the fourth quarter after Chad Henne hit Mario Manningham on a 49-yard touchdown strike.

After stuffing the Badgers on their next possession, Michigan was then forced to work from its own three -- a task that proved too difficult. The Wolverines punted after a three-and-out, giving the Badgers the ball back on their own 48 with 4:29 to go.

Led by junior quarterback John Stocco and junior running back Brian Calhoun, Wisconsin slugged through an 11-play, 52-yard drive that was capped off by a gutsy 5-yard quarterback keeper on third down by Stocco to put the Badgers up 23-20 with just 24 seconds to play.

Calhoun, who eventually left Wisconsin early before putting together a disappointing three-year career with the Detroit Lions, finished with 155 yards on 35 carries, and Stocco technically rushed for -14 yards. But it didn't matter, as Alvarez got his first win in seven tries against Lloyd Carr.

The loss dropped Michigan to 2-2 on the season and out of the national rankings. Michigan would go on to break Michigan State's heart the next week, but would eventually lose again to Minnesota and Ohio State before falling to Nebraska in the Alamo Bowl.

Nick Baumgardner covers Michigan basketball for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-2514, by email at nickbaumgardner@annarbor.com and followed on Twitter @nickbaumgardner.