by Leprechaun Express & Steve Welsh
[archived Sports Illustrated article from 1966, contemporary with Notre Dame’s national championship-deciding game at Michigan State; to be fair, in a #1 vs. #2 match-up on the road, Notre Dame knew that, because it was harder for the visiting team, a tie would favor the visiting team in the polls; when an injury-riddled Notre Dame team that had lost its starting quarterback early on and, among other back-ups, was playing a back-up quarterback who was an insulin-dependent diabetic, nevertheless still had a tie in hand that would preserve their #1 ranking, in the closing moments, the head coach made a strategic judgment that it would be most prudent and most fair to the team to simply hang onto the tie and ranking in the closing moments; and it was not the last game of the year; Notre Dame went on to ratify their #1 ranking by blowing out a top-10 Southern Cal team in the L.A. Coliseum]
“Notre Dame will wear special uniforms honoring legendary player and coach Knute Rockne for the Nov. 18 game against Navy. The uniforms feature a vintage “ND” logo as well as modernized versions of the old-school helmets and brown leather high-top cleats worn in Rockne’s era. “The older style ND …”
“Among the 15 Notre Dame full-time football head coaches since Jesse Harper in 1913, Brian Kelly is only the fifth to reach his eighth season. The only four with longer tenures are the “Mount Rushmore” of the program: Knute Rockne’s 13 seasons (1918-30) prior to his premature death, and then the 11-year reigns of Frank Leahy (1941-43, 1946-53), Ara Parseghian (1964-74) and Lou Holtz (1986-96). …”
“Notre Dame football mourned the loss of one of their program greats … as they began fall camp. However, the team found a way to take the legendary coach out on the playing field with them in the upcoming season. The name ‘Ara’ will be placed on the front of each helmet, above the face-mask, in place of where it normally says ‘Irish’. …”
“Family, friends and fans will gather on Notre Dame’s Campus Sunday to remember the late Ara Parseghian.
The public is invited to both the Mass and memorial on the University of Notre Dame campus. You may also watch a livestream of the services by clicking here.
The legendary former Notre Dame football coach died Wednesday at his home in Granger at the age of 94. Parseghian led Notre Dame to two national titles in 1966 and 1973 before retiring at the age of 51. …”
Mass and Celebration of Life for Ara Parseghian, from the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at the University of Notre Dame
“Ara Parseghian, the legendary football player and coach who led the University of Notre Dame to two national championships, died early Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2017, at his home in Granger, Indiana, according to multiple news sources. Parseghian, who underwent hospital treatment recently for a hip infection, was 94. … [includes link to Guest Book]”
“Legendary coach Ara Parseghian, who guided the University of Notre Dame’s 1966 and 1973 national championship football teams and is a member of the National Football Foundation’s College Football Hall of Fame, died at 1:30 a.m. Wednesday (Aug. 2) at his home in Granger, Indiana, the University’s president, Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., announced. He was 94. …”
In Lou Holtz’s first year at #NotreDame, when current Notre Dame assistant coach Greg Hudson was an underclassman player, the Irish had close games all year against elite opponents, only to take a 4-6 record into their finale against a top-20 #SouthernCal in the Coliseum. After falling behind, and still trailing 17 points in the fourth quarter, the Irish staged a furious comeback to beat the Trojans in the final moments, including contributions by future Heisman-winner and NFL great Tim Brown, future long-time NFL veterans Steve Beuerlein and John Carney, and an intense game for the ages from up and down the roster.
“… In commemorating Notre Dame’s 125 years of football history in 2012, Blue & Gold Illustrated’s Football Preview that summer compiled a top 50 countdown of the most iconic moments in Fighting Irish football lore. ….”
#NOTREDAME #FOOTBALL: “… when it comes to having profound and lasting impact on an entire sport, it’s tough to argue that any rivalry matched the Notre Dame-Army rivalry of the 20th century. The two teams met for the first time 103 years ago, when the upstart Notre Dame team traveled east to play the powerful Cadets at West Point. To counteract Army’s superiorities in size and strength, Notre Dame coach Jesse Harper unleashed a potent passing attack, facilitated by new rules intended to make the game safer. …”
“Catholics vs. Convicts: It was only a game, except it was so much more. The antagonism transcended #football. The two universities were symbols of a schism in society. … The contrast, the stage, the personalities and the compelling plots of the games made Hurricanes vs. Fighting Irish one of the greatest rivalries in sports for an intense six-year stretch ….”
Ara Parseghian still bristles 50 years later at the notion No. 1 Notre Dame played for a tie against No. 2 Michigan State …. ‘The only play that we ran that would be suggestive of going for a tie was the last play of the game’ …. * * * That 1966 game has been described as the Game of the Century, as was another Notre Dame tie , a 0-0 game between top-rated Army and the second-ranked Irish at Yankee Stadium in 1946.
The Irish finished No. 1 both times while their undefeated opponent finished No. 2 in the AP poll – the only two times that’s happened. …
From 1900 through 1975, Notre Dame lost only three opening games: 1934 (at home to Texas, oddly enough), at SMU in 1956 and at home in 1963 to Wisconsin.
Since 1976, though, it has lost 11 season openers in the past 41 years, most notably the 50-47 double-overtime setback at Texas this past weekend.
How has Notre Dame bounced back from being 0-1?