Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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146 ✦ BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2017 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BY LOU SOMOGYI F orty years ago, Notre Dame captured the national title in ways that might be considered unimaginable today. • It is the lone national title winner since the start of the Associated Press poll in 1936 to lose to a sub-.500 team. In week two, the Fighting Irish lost at Ole Miss (20-13), which then would lose its ensu- ing three games and finish 5-6. (The NCAA later would award a forfeit win to Ole Miss because of probation). • The Fighting Irish head coach, often con- sidered a deity at a traditional power such as Notre Dame, had bumper stickers sold outside the home stadium calling for his ouster. • The third-team quarterback who had missed the entire season the year prior be- cause of a shoulder separation came to the rescue and became the starter by the fourth game. • The first 1,000-yard rusher in one season at Notre Dame (Al Hunter in 1976) was dis- missed from school over the summer. • The offense committed 40 turnovers, the most by any Irish team since 1962 (or since). • Entering the bowl season, the Fighting Irish were ranked No. 5. Vaulting all the way to No. 1 seemed implausible. Yet when the dust cleared, Notre Dame reached the summit for the 10th time in 54 seasons. Here were some of the main story- lines: The Preseason Favorite Other than maybe from 1989-92, the 1977 Notre Dame crew was the most overwhelm- ing preseason pick from this school to win it all. The 9-3 unit from the year prior returned all 11 starters from a defense that set a school record for most consecutive quarters with- out allowing a touchdown (21). End Ross Browner had won the Outland Trophy, while Willie Fry complemented him as America's most dominant "bookend" tandem. Linebacker/middle guard Bob Golic was also an All-American wrestler, and corner- back Luther Bradley had likewise earned All- America notice. On offense, seven of the 11 starters were slated to be back, headlined by All-American tight end Ken MacAfee. Hunter's sudden loss was a setback, but returning from a knee in- jury that sidelined him the last nine games of 1976 was Jerome Heavens, the top rusher as a freshman in 1975 with 756 yards. Quarterback was a question mark with the graduation of oft-maligned starter Rick Slager, but junior Rusty Lisch — who would play five seasons in the NFL — had seen meaningful minutes the year prior, including a start, and helped secure a 21-18 win over Alabama in 1976. It was now or never for third-year head coach Dan Devine, who was expected to match predecessors Knute Rockne, Frank Leahy and Ara Parseghian as a third-year Irish coach who finished unbeaten or with a national title, if not both. "What Ifs?" At Quarterback During the disappointing 2-1 start that dropped Notre Dame to No. 14 in the polls, two significant injuries at quarterback likely prevented a 1-2 or even 0-3 beginning. The first was at defending champion Pitt in the opener. On his second possession, Pan- thers quarterback and Heisman candidate Matt Cavanaugh found Gordon Jones for a touchdown and a quick 7-0 lead. Just as he re- leased the ball, Cavanaugh was decked by Fry and suffered a broken wrist when he landed awkwardly with Fry on top of him. Minus Cavanaugh, Pitt's offense was ren- dered anemic when it tried two different quar- terbacks who combined for 3-of-13 passing for 10 yards with two interceptions, fumbled four snaps and bobbled others. Altogether, Pitt had eight fumbles — seven in the second half, losing five — and seven total turnovers while accounting for 82 yards of total offense. The Panthers defense, coordinated by fu- ture 1984-88 Miami head coach Jimmy John- son, put on what Devine called one of the best displays of tenacity he'd ever seen while keeping Pitt ahead 9-6 in the fourth quarter. But Notre Dame's final six possessions began in Panther territory — the 26, 16, 38, 16 and 11 on the first five — to set up three hard- earned scores in the 19-9 win. Had Cavanaugh not been injured, the Irish might not have been as fortunate. Two weeks later at Purdue, following the stunning 20-13 defeat at Ole Miss, Devine attempted to spark the offense when No. 2 quarterback Gary Forystek was inserted in place of Lisch while the Boilermakers built a 10-0 first-quarter lead. On his second series, Forystek incurred a devastating hit that left him prone for about 20 minutes, ending his football career. Lisch was reinserted, but when Notre Dame still trailed 24-14 entering the fourth quarter, Devine made a final desperate call into his bullpen for third-team senior Joe Montana. The jolt of electricity on the Notre Dame sidelines was palpable. Two years earlier be- fore suffering another injury, Montana had led three comeback wins, two from 14-0 and 30-10 fourth-quarter deficits. "I was sitting next to my Purdue counter- part, and he asked what was going on," 1966- 95 Notre Dame sports information director Roger Valdiserri recalled. "I said, 'That's Joe Montana, and you guys are in trouble.' " Montana directed three scoring drives while completing 9 of 14 passes for 154 yards with a touchdown. The winning touchdown came on a five-yard run by another third-team figure, fullback Dave Mitchell, with 1:08 re- maining in the 31-24 triumph. The course of football history might have been altered without that carpe diem moment. Dressed To Kill Even with Montana at the helm the next two weeks, the Irish sputtered to 16-6 and 24-0 wins over Michigan State and Army. Outside Notre Dame Stadium, $1 "Dump Devine" bumper stickers had been sold. The running joke was that when Notre Dame ath- letics director Ed "Moose" Krause, no fan of Devine himself, saw the sticker he was enraged — because he felt the price should be at least $2. After a superb career at Arizona State (1955-57) and Missouri (1958-70) and a dis- appointing one with the Green Bay Packers (1971-74), Devine was entrusted by executive Notre Dame vice president Rev. Ned Joyce C.S.C. to the thankless task of replacing Ara Joe Montana, who began the season as the third- team quarterback, led a Notre Dame offense that — beginning with the 49-19 win over No. 5 USC in the infamous "Green Jersey Game" — averaged 45.3 points per game over its final seven contests. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME MEDIA RELATIONS Green Machine The 1977 national champions made an unusual journey to the top