Legendary Figures, Classic Battles Connect Notre Dame, Green Bay, U. of Wisconsin

Today’s announcement of the Notre Dame-Wisconsin series resuming after a 56-year hiatus opens a floodgate of historical connections. The two-game series at iconic venues – Lambeau Field in 2020, Soldier Field in 2021 – promises to be one of the toughest tickets imaginable, given the geography and the enthusiasm of the two fan bases. When   Read Full Post

Notre Dame-Wisconsin Athletic Bond Has Roots Sunk A Century Ago

The two have met in basketball just once in last 47 years, but share earlier connections   Along the shores of Lake Mendota in Madison, Wis., stands a towering pine tree nearly 100 years old. Its owner, Walter Meanwell, Jr., lives in the tasteful lakeside home his father had built in the 1920s. The tree   Read Full Post

’57 Irish Used a Teammate’s Slight to Score Huge Upset

Ed Sullivan came to Notre Dame in 1953 from the football-rich area of western Pennsylvania, a solid lineman out of McKeesport and a late recruit by Coach Frank Leahy. Sullivan grew up idolizing Notre Dame, and headed west intent on getting an education and making his way into the Fighting Irish lineup. By his junior   Read Full Post

High Drama Highlights ND Games at Pittsburgh

Notre Dame travels to Pittsburgh today for Saturday’s game against the Pitt Panthers. In recent years, the games have been decided by slim margins, regardless of the teams’ relative strengths. That’s consistent with a long history of close, dramatic contests, beginning more than a century ago. On Oct. 30, 1909, Coach Frank “Shorty” Longman brought   Read Full Post

100 Years Ago Today: ND, Nebraska Start a Great Series

Shortly after Jesse Harper was hired from Wabash College to become Notre Dame’s first full-time athletic director and head football coach in 1913, he started working on upgrading and expanding the school’s football schedule. He contacted major colleges across the country, seeking to add major opponents. Harper’s efforts resulted in Notre Dame trips to play   Read Full Post

For ND Legacy Families from Texas, It’s a Special Time

By Jim Lefebvre Forever Irish www.NDFootballHistory.com They say everything is bigger in Texas. One thing is certain, as Notre Dame prepares to open the 2015 season by hosting the University of Texas – there are some pretty large extended families from the Lone Star State headed to South Bend to celebrate their Fighting Irish heritage.   Read Full Post

90 Years Ago Today: “Outlined Against A Blue-Gray October Sky…”

Editor’s Note:  The following is excerpted  from the award-winning biography  Coach For A Nation: The Life and Times of Knute Rockne. As Notre Dame prepared to head to New York City to play Army at the Polo Grounds, football fans across the country grew eager with anticipation for the intersectional battle of the year. Under   Read Full Post

A Special Reunion

Occasionally, we’re asked why Notre Dame doesn’t celebrate Homecoming. The answer, of course, is simple. Every Notre Dame home game is a homecoming, a reunion for ten of thousands of Fighting Irish fans and alums from all over the country. Away games and the Shamrock Series are also opportunities for members of the Notre Dame   Read Full Post

The Only Option: Moving Foward

When Hurricane Irene slammed into the Northeast recently, I probably had the same reaction as millions of other Americans….wondering how loved ones in the region were faring with the flooding, power outages and other disruptions of the disaster. I’m having something of deja vu moment after Saturday’s gut-wrenching defeat. I want to reach out to   Read Full Post

Recalling “The Game of The Century”

By Jim Lefebvre, Editor, Forever Irish The first week of August brings with it a special feeling – the start of the 2011 season is now less than a month away. The Fighting Irish officially start pre-season camp on Saturday, star receiver Michael Floyd is back in the fold, and the team’s strong 2010 finish   Read Full Post