Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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44 FEBRUARY 2023 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED IRISH ECHOES JIM LEFEBVRE BY JIM LEFEBVRE I n the context of his time, Tom Doerger was a giant of a man at 6‑foot‑5, 275 pounds. The 1985 Notre Dame graduate would go on to have an oversized impact on his home community of Cincinnati while working at La Salle High School. Doerger overcame a series of injuries — with knee surgery wiping out an entire season — to become a reliable, versa‑ tile offensive lineman for the Fighting Irish. He filled in at both guard and tackle when needed, and then started at tackle in 1984 and 1985. He helped clear the way for Allen Pinkett to gain 3,599 yards and rush for 44 touchdowns in 1983‑85. And while the team's success wasn't what anybody was hoping for those sea‑ sons — the last of Gerry Faust's tenure — Doerger learned valuable lessons around resiliency, determination and teamwork that would serve him well in the years ahead. Coupled with his degree in psy‑ chology, he was prepared to lead others. He was an educator, coach and coun‑ selor to hundreds in a long career at La Salle. Tom Doerger died on Friday, Dec. 23, of complications from his 2020 liver transplant, at age 59. "We were all influenced and shaped by people growing up, though few have had such a significant positive impact on young men's lives as Tom Doerger has at La Salle High School for over three decades," his family wrote in an‑ nouncing his death. "As a counselor, football coach and mentor, he made it his mission to make a difference in young men's lives, shaping stronger minds, bodies, hearts, and souls in their high school years and beyond." "His loving presence helped to shape the lives of so many and will be surely missed but not forgotten," the high school said of Doerger. La Salle head coach Pat McLaughlin shared the immense impact that Do‑ erger had in the La Salle community and in the Greater Cincinnati area. "It leaves a huge hole in our program. I'm not even sure how we can fill it," McLaughlin said. "His legacy at La Salle, the presence that he had, the per‑ son that he was, the time that he spent there, the things that he did for our football program and our school. I don't know if they'll ever be matched." With his large frame and deep voice, Doerger could command attention in any room he entered. Yet he came to be known as a "generous giant," always finding ways to help others, never mak‑ ing himself the center of attention. Doerger faced a significant challenge in his sophomore year at Notre Dame. A phone call from his mother revealed that his father had a rare form of cancer and was expected to live only six months. "I talked to my Dad. I told him that I was really shook up about this and asked him what I should do," Doerger reflected later. With great courage and love, his dad told him, "Don't worry about me. You go and do your best at Notre Dame. I'll be OK." "Coach Faust told me to go home if I needed to and that the coaches would work with me [when I got back]," Do‑ erger said. "But Dad wanted me to stay. He had treatments. His hair fell out and his weight went down to 120 pounds. He couldn't walk up stairs, which pre‑ vented him from coming to our games under normal conditions. "So, Coach Faust got him a special pass to sit in the press box and special parking. My dad took his chemotherapy treatments during the away games. The doctor said it was a miracle that he sur‑ vived as long as he did. 'His will kept him going another three years,' he said." Doerger overcame a series of injuries to become a reliable, versatile offensive lineman for the Fighting Irish in the mid-1980s. PHOTO COURTESY KNUTE ROCKNE MEMORIAL SOCIETY Tom Doerger Was A 'Generous Giant'