Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM JUNE/JULY 2024 15 50 Years Ago: July 25, 1974 Reigning national champion Notre Dame, fa- vored to repeat in 1974 with the return of eight starters on defense and nine on offense, had a devastating setback when the university an- nounced that six sophomore football players — four of them starters — would be expelled for the 1974-75 academic year. The statement released by the school was terse: "The University of Notre Dame has dis- missed for a period of no less than one academic year a small number of students who had been attending the summer session. This action fol- lows an investigation by the dean of students of a violation of university rules." It was discovered soon thereafter that the six were defensive ends Ross Browner and Wil- lie Fry, safety Luther Bradley, running backs Al Hunter and Dan Knott, and quarterback Roy Henry (all but Henry would return for the 1975- 76 school year). The news made national headlines, includ- ing Walter Cronkite's CBS evening news, when rape allegations were made, although no formal charges were pressed. The fact that Browner and Bradley were two of the greatest impact freshmen in NCAA history added to the stun- ning revelation. Browner led the 1973 national champs in tackles for loss (15) and was third in overall tackles (68), while Bradley paced the team in interceptions (6) and passes broken up (11). Hunter returned a kickoff for a 93-yard touchdown in the 24-23 Sugar Bowl win versus No. 1 Alabama, and was slated to start after Eric Penick suffered a severe ankle break during spring drills. The nightmare offseason continued that sum- mer with the news that two other projected starters, guard Steve Quehl and safety Tim Si- mon, would also be sidelined. Quehl nearly lost his life in an industrial accident at his summer job, while Simon was blinded in one eye in a separate incident. 30 Years Ago: July 11, 1994 Notre Dame was officially accepted as the 13th member of the Big East Conference, with the caveat that the football program would remain independent. Competition in the new league was set to begin during the 1995-96 school year. The move was made to enhance the visibil- ity and competitive level in all sports, but was especially made for basketball purposes. The growing women's team under head coach Muf- fet McGraw was playing in the lightly regarded Midwest Collegiate Conference. Meanwhile, the men's team was severely floundering as an independent with both sched- uling and recruiting. Head coach Digger Phelps had ended his successful 20-year career in 1991 with a 12-20 record, while successor John Ma- cLeod was 18-15, 9-18 and 12-17 his first three seasons. "I don't want to leave the impression we were forced into a conference because we could not compete as an independent," Notre Dame ath- letics director Dick Rosenthal told The New York Times. "I never felt we needed to cease being an independent in basketball. I still believe that. I just think this is a great marriage." 10 Years Ago: June 27, 2014 In the 21-year history of the Learfield Direc- tors' Cup awarded by the NCAA for most cu- mulative points tallied during an academic year in athletics competition, Notre Dame notched its highest-ever ranking at No. 3 with 1,128.25 points. Highlighted by a national title in men's soccer and runner-up placements in women's basketball and men's lacrosse, the Fighting Irish finished behind only Stanford (1,482.0) and Flor- ida (1,216.5). The previous highest ranking had been No. 6 in 2006. Twenty-two of Notre Dame's 26 varsity sports made a trip to their respective NCAA postseason tournaments. This also marked the first school year Notre Dame was part of the Atlantic Coast Conference after having previously been in the Big East. UNDER THE DOME Anniversaries In Notre Dame Athletics History: June-July DID YOU KNOW... ✦Your home address will be automatically changed to the mailing address on file with the US Postal Service? ALL addresses are cross-referenced with the USPS National Change of Address database. ✦ It can take up to 7 days for the USPS to update your address in their database? To prevent missed issues, please notify the US Postal Service ASAP. ✦ Your postal forwarding order expires in 60 days or less? Most forwarding requests expire in 60 days and DO NOT always include peri- odical mail. Issues are discarded at their discretion. ✦ You should call your local post office to verify your delivery address? Don't assume the post office knows your vacation or moving schedule. AVOID COSTLY DELAYS & REPLACEMENTS! Blue & Gold Illustrated Customer Service: 1–800–421–7751 We are happy to assist, but due to privacy laws all postal address changes must be completed by you. Defensive end Ross Browner, who led the 1973 national champs in tackles for loss (15) and was third in overall tackles (68), was among six Irish sophomore football players who were expelled for the 1974-75 academic year. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS