Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/98978
where have you gone? year drought against the Trojans. Weber played nearly the entire second half, and his blocking that day basically made him a co-starter with split end Pete Demmerle. The two-tight end look became much more incorporated on a team that would finish averaging a school-record 350.2 rushing yards per game while averaging about 11 passes per contest. The Pass Earlier in the national title battle with Alabama, Weber helped spring Al Hunter on a 93-yard kickoff return for a touchdown that allowed Notre Dame to regain a 14-7 lead. At 6-5, Weber was the tallest member on offense, and at 247 pounds he was one of the heftiest players on offense in that era. Yet Weber also twice lined up at split end while working in the double-tight end formation. With Notre Dame trailing 23-21 and facing third-and-goal at the Alabama 2-yard line, Weber lined up at split end and had no idea what he was doing. Clements kept motioning to him to split further out. ���I was so clueless, I was lining up in a three-point stance out wide,��� said a laughing Weber, who actually broke free into the end zone but was not seen on an incomplete pass that forced Notre Dame to kick a field goal with 4:26 left to take a 24-23 lead. Near the two-minute mark and still clinging to a one-point lead, Notre Dame faced third-and-five at its 6-yard line, and Weber stayed in as the second tight end after two straight slant fullback runs with Wayne Bullock. ���I���m looking to see if they���re going to send Pete in, and they don���t,��� Weber said. ���They call it again from the sideline and it���s another slant up the middle call ��� with a delayed count to try to draw them offsides on third-and-five to get the first down.��� Casper, a team captain, warned everyone in the huddle about the delayed count ��� but he was the one who ended up jumping, one of the few mental mistakes in his career. Weber was clapping enthusiastically because he originally thought Alabama had jumped offsides and it would be an automatic first down for the Irish. Instead, it was half the distance to the goal line and third-and-eight from the 3-yard line. ���I read these articles today that say there was this big conversation between Tom and Ara about what to do, and that���s just not true,��� Weber said. ���The beautiful thing about Ara���s offense, which was way ahead of its time, is he would jump on defenses real quick. From the time of the penalty until the next play, it was about 20 seconds, and it was called in from the sideline.��� ���Power-I-Right, Tackle-Trap-Left.��� The Irish used the play earlier on a crucial two-point conversion pass to Demmerle to move ahead 14-7. Parseghian kept Weber in to fool Alabama into thinking it would be a run. A slip on the wet turf, a fumble, an errant throw, a sack ��� the national title was the Crimson Tide���s to seize. ���I���m going, ���S---, Pete���s supposed to be in here!������ Weber recalled thinking as he broke the huddle. ���I���ve done nothing but practice the drag pattern, and I knew Casper would be dragging, so I