Blue and Gold Illustrated

Sept. 24, 2022

Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football

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52 SEPT. 24, 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED IRISH ECHOES JIM LEFEBVRE BY JIM LEFEBVRE I f ever there was a team brimming with confidence entering a season, it was the 1947 Notre Dame football squad. Coach Frank Leahy's men were com- ing off an 8-0-1 national championship campaign in 1946, in which they domi- nated opponents week after week. Apart from an epic 0-0 tie with then No. 1 Army at Yankee Stadium, the Irish defeated their other eight opponents by an aver- age of nearly 31 points per game. Nobody came within 20 points of the champs. Eight of the 11 regulars from 1946 were back in '47, and one of the new starters (Leon Hart) was a future Heis- man Trophy winner. In all, seven of the 1947 Irish players would go on to be inducted into the Col- lege Football Hall of Fame: • Jim Martin, left end • George Connor, left tackle • Bill Fischer, left guard • Ziggy Czarobski, right tackle • Leon Hart, right end • Johnny Lujack, quarterback • Emil Sitko, right halfback At center, George Strohmeyer was back after an All-America season in 1946, but he would be supplanted by junior Bill Walsh, such was the strength of the Irish reserves. It was said Notre Dame could have fielded a second team that would have been among the top clubs in the country. At left halfback, the fluid Terry Bren- nan was a threat as a runner, receiver and kick returner. He led the Irish in catches in both 1946 and '47. Yet for all the team's skill, when a Chicago sportswriter visited a pre- season practice, he noticed a certain lack of crispness. He spoke to Leahy after the workout and the next day the coach announced to the team, "We are going back to fundamentals." No detail in blocking and tackling would be taken for granted in preparing to kick off the season. Wrote one sportswriter: "Notre Dame is the machine most likely to go through undefeated and untied. It is doubtful any team ever went into a normal sea- son, as distinguished from a wartime season, recognized so universally as a team without a weakness. Notre Dame has an excellent opportunity to estab- lish itself not only as champion but as the greatest team in football history." The Irish opened at Pittsburgh and whipped a hapless Panther squad which would win just one game that season. The final count was 40-6. The second game was also on the road, at Purdue, which was optimistic under first-year head coach Stu Holcomb and brimming with confidence after a victory over Ohio State. A great over-the-shoulder reception by Brennan gave Notre Dame a 7-0 lead, but Purdue struck right back to tie it, something these Irish weren't used to. Lujack showed his relentless versatility by completing a long pass to the Purdue 21. On the next play, with his receivers covered, he darted through the Boiler- maker defenders to score the winning touchdown in a 22-7 victory. When the AP rankings came out on Monday, though, Michigan had ascended to No. 1 after its 69-0 shellacking of Pitt. Leahy redoubled his efforts to work the Irish hard in practice, and made this public pronouncement: "I can promise you one thing: We'll be a little better ev- ery week. You can count on that." The next three weeks, Notre Dame was untouchable against Nebraska (31-0), Iowa (21-0) and Navy (27-0), the latter in Cleveland. But those opponents would finish the season with a com- bined record of just 6-19-2. The Irish needed to prove their mettle against a stronger foe. That opponent — No. 9 Army — was headed to South Bend for the first time in the storied rivalry. All previous games had been played at West Point (1913-22) 75 Years Later, 1947 National Champions Remain The Gold Standard Head coach Frank Leahy followed up the 8-0-1 campaign in 1946 by leading Notre Dame to a 9-0 record and another national championship the following year. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS

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