Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/181992
where have you gone? Notre Dame guard Frank Pomarico (left) and Mike Townsend were captains of the 1973 team that lacked talent, but came together for an unbeaten championship season. Photo courtesy Frank Pomarico stepping into the starting lineup on day one in 1973, the Irish defense that ended 1972 with 45-23 and 40-6 losses to USC and Nebraska, respectively, would have been labeled slow. The duo is the greatest pair of freshmen ever to suit up for Notre Dame, and among the top five or six in NCAA history. A year earlier, the defensive line recorded only 44 tackles for loss, with no one player having more than six. With Browner, who was third in tackles (68) and first in tackles for loss (15), the figure nearly doubled to 83, with four different players in double figures. Bradley meanwhile brought a ferocious presence to the secondary and finished as the team leader in interceptions (six, including two against USC) and passes broken up (11). Also providing excellent depth were defensive end Willie Fry and running back Al Hunter, considered the fastest recruit at that time in school history with a 9.3 time in the 100-yard dash. His 93-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the 24‑23 Sugar Bowl win versus Alabama proved vital. Defensive Changes — Because Browner and Bradley brought so much more speed to the defense, Parseghian changed Notre Dame's 4-4-3 look to a 50 front, using Potempa as the nose guard/middle linebacker hybrid, providing more pressure off the edge with Browner, Fry and Stock, and then having more people covering the back end. Junior Achievement — The 1969 and 1970 recruiting classes were the weakest football groups of the 11-year Parseghian era, and it showed in 1971 and 1972 when they were juniors and seniors. Those were the only two seasons Parseghian's Irish teams finished outside the top 10. Only one member of the 1969 group had an NFL career (12th-round linebacker Jim O'Malley) and two from the 1970 harvest (Casper and kicker Thomas). Fortunately, Parseghian's greatest allaround class was the 1971 haul, which would comprise half of the starting lineup on offense and defense when they became juniors in 1973. Collins and Fanning became focal figures on defense, while Clements,