Williams also wore No. 9 (he became
a doctor and passed away in 1990 at
age 52).
"Many times when I've been intro-
duced as a former Notre Dame quar-
terback, people have asked about the
Oklahoma game," Williams "The
First" noted with a smile.
SPECIAL FEATS
Nevertheless, the 1948-50 Williams
had his name arise a couple of times
in recent years when noting gold stan-
dards among Notre Dame quarter-
backs.
First, Williams' pass efficiency rating
of 161.37 during the 1949 national title
season when the Irish finished 10-0
was the single-season school standard
for a remarkable 60 years, until it was
finally broken by Jimmy Clausen in
2009 during a 6-6 campaign with a
161.42.
The Notre Dame record book actu-
ally shows both at 161.4 when rounded
off, but Clausen gets the nod by the
Williams, who led the Irish to a 10-0 record
and the national championship in 1949, was
enshrined into the College Football Hall of Fame
in 1988.
PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME MEDIA RELATIONS
