| College football's annual bowl season is full of | | | | defeated the highly-ranked Army team for the |
| surprises and spectacular moments. Famous | | | | first time in 1913, and was a graduate assistant in |
| coaches have had some memorable remarks | | | | chemistry before eventually becoming Notre |
| about American's most popular sport, and here | | | | Dame's head coach in 1918. A Protestant, he |
| are some of them by legendary Notre Dame | | | | converted to Catholicism later in life. |
| coach Knute Rockne, who many consider to be | | | | Following his undefeated, 6th national championship |
| the best of the best. | | | | team in 1930, Rockne died at age 43 as a |
| Knute Rockne's head coaching record in college | | | | passenger in a tragic Fokker airplane accident that |
| football was second to none, and his won-loss | | | | would help revolutionize the transportation |
| percentage is better than any other college or pro | | | | business and lead to the all-metal Boeing 247 |
| coach ever. | | | | aircraft. He was inducted into the College Football |
| In 13 years with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, | | | | Hall of Fame in 1951 as a charter member. |
| Rockne's regular season won-loss percentage was | | | | Here are some of Knute Rockne's best known |
| 90% (105-12-5), his winning percentage among all | | | | quotes: |
| games was 86%, and he led Notre Dame to 6 | | | | "Four years of football are calculated to breed in |
| national championships, winning titles in 1919 (9-0), | | | | the average man more of the ingredients of |
| 1920 (9-0), 1924 (10-0), 1927 (7-1-1), 1929 (9-0) | | | | success in life than almost any academic course |
| and 1930 (10-0). Five of his 6 national | | | | he takes." |
| championships came from undefeated teams. | | | | "At home we're the hosts, and I never liked the |
| Along the way he coached the immortal George | | | | idea of being embarrassed in front of our friends." |
| "Gipper" Gipp, whose multiple skills lifted Notre | | | | "On the road we're somebody else's guests - and |
| Dame to national fame, and the "Four Horsemen" | | | | we play in a way that they're not going to forget |
| backfield of Harry Stuhldreher, Don Miller, Jim | | | | we visited them." |
| Crowley and Elmer Layden that led the Fighting | | | | "We count on winning. And if we lose, don't beef. |
| Irish to a 28-2 record. | | | | And the best way to prevent beefing is - don't |
| While covering a Notre Dame football game, | | | | lose." |
| sportswriter Grantland Rice penned the famous | | | | "Let's win one for the Gipper." |
| opening story line-"Outlined against a blue-gray | | | | "I've found that prayers work best when you |
| October sky, the Four Horsemen rode again"-that | | | | have big players." |
| has become legend in sports history. | | | | "It isn't necessary to see a good tackle. You can |
| Rockne's influence on the game of football was | | | | hear it." |
| immense. He is credited with helping popularize the | | | | "One loss is good for the soul, too many losses is |
| forward pass, initiating intersectional rivalries, | | | | not good for the coach." |
| building a national schedule, and instituting the | | | | "Show me a good and gracious loser and I'll show |
| "Rockne Shift", a backfield T formation that | | | | you a failure." |
| quickly shifted into a box formation to the right or | | | | "Yes, I know that you feel you are not strong |
| left as the ball was snapped. Hewas also the first | | | | enough. That's what the enemy thinks too. But |
| coach to realize the market potential of football | | | | we're gonna fool them." |
| as an entertainment medium and openly | | | | "The secret is to work less as individuals and |
| promoted Notre Dame football by courting the | | | | more as a team. As a coach, I play not my |
| media for free advertising so Notre Dame's | | | | eleven best, but my best eleven." |
| football program would be financially successful. | | | | "One man practicing sportsmanship is better than |
| Knute Rockne was a Norwegian immigrant who | | | | a hundred teaching it." |
| graduated magna cum laude from Notre Dame in | | | | "Most men, when they think they are thinking, are |
| 1914, played end for the Fighting Irish that | | | | merely rearranging their prejudices. |