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Contents

   



(Top)
 


1 Schedule  





2 Roster  





3 Game summaries  



3.1  Pittsburgh  





3.2  Ole Miss  





3.3  Purdue  





3.4  Michigan State  





3.5  Army  





3.6  USC  





3.7  Navy  





3.8  Georgia Tech  





3.9  Clemson  





3.10  Air Force  





3.11  Miami (FL)  





3.12  Texas (Cotton Bowl)  







4 Post-season  



4.1  Award winners  





4.2  1978 NFL Draft  







5 References  














1977 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team







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1977 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football

Consensus national champion
Cotton Bowl Classic champion

Cotton Bowl Classic, W 38–10 vs. Texas

ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
CoachesNo. 1
APNo. 1
Record11–1
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorMerv Johnson (3rd season)
Offensive schemePro set
Defensive coordinatorJoe Yonto
Base defense4–3
Captains
Home stadiumNotre Dame Stadium
Seasons
← 1976
1978 →
1977 NCAA Division I independents football records
  • t
  • e
  • Conf Overall
    Team W   L   T W   L   T
    No.1Notre Dame       11 1 0
    No.5Penn State       11 1 0
    Colgate       10 1 0
    North Texas State *       10 1 0
    No.16San Diego State       10 1 0
    Tennessee State       8 1 1
    No.14Florida State       10 2 0
    No.8Pittsburgh       9 2 1
    East Carolina       8 3 0
    Rutgers       8 3 0
    Army       7 4 0
    Louisville       7 4 1
    Boston College       6 5 0
    Cincinnati       5 4 2
    Georgia Tech       6 5 0
    Memphis State       6 5 0
    Northwestern State       6 5 0
    Syracuse       6 5 0
    William & Mary       6 5 0
    Southern Miss       6 5 0
    Temple       5 5 1
    Hawaii       5 6 0
    Navy       5 6 0
    West Virginia       5 6 0
    South Carolina       5 7 0
    Utah State       4 7 0
    Villanova       4 7 0
    Illinois State       3 7 1
    Virginia Tech       3 7 1
    Miami (FL)       3 8 0
    Richmond       3 8 0
    Tulane       3 8 0
    Air Force       2 8 1
    Holy Cross       2 8 0
    Northeast Louisiana       2 9 0
    • North Texas State (originally 9–2) awarded a forfeit win after Mississippi State was found to be using an ineligible player.[1]
    Rankings from AP Poll

    The 1977 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame during the 1977 NCAA Division I football season. The Irish, coached by Dan Devine, ended the season with 11 wins and one loss, winning the national championship. The Fighting Irish won the title by defeating the previously unbeaten and No. 1 ranked Texas Longhorns in the Cotton Bowl Classic by a score of a 38–10.[2] The 1977 squad became the tenth Irish team to win the national title and were led by All-Americans Ken MacAfee, Ross Browner, Luther Bradley, and Bob Golic. Junior Joe Montana, a future Pro Football Hall of Famer, was the team's starting quarterback.

    Dan Devine entered his third year as head coach, coming off of a 9–3 season in 1976 that culminated in a Gator Bowl win over Penn State.[3] Devine returned a highly touted defense, featuring 1976 Outland Trophy winner Ross Browner, defensive end Willie Fry, and All-American linebacker Bob Golic.[3] On offense, quarterback Joe Montana earned the starting job and led an offense that included running backs Jerome Heavens and Vagas Ferguson and All-American tight end Ken MacAfee.[3] Montana, earned a reputation as "the comeback kid", had two come from behind victories in the fourth quarter, against Purdue and Clemson, down 17 and 10 respectively.[3] After a surprising loss to unranked Ole Miss, patience among the fans was running thin, who considered Devine's previous 8–3 and 9–3 seasons as lackluster compared to the team success under Devine's predecessor, Ara Parseghian.[4] The Irish rebounded to win their remaining games, including a 49–19 rout of USC in the now famous "Green Jersey Game."[4] The Irish earned a berth in the Cotton Bowl Classic, where they defeated No. 1 and unbeaten Texas by a score of 38–10 to capture Notre Dame's tenth national title.[3] The Irish leaped four spots in the polls after the Cotton Bowl Classic victory to claim the consensus title.[3]

    Schedule

    [edit]
    DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
    September 103:50 p.m.at No. 7PittsburghNo. 3
  • Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)
  • ABCW 19–956,500
    September 172:30 p.m.vs. Ole MissNo. 3
  • Jackson, MS
  • L 13–2048,200[5]
    September 242:30 p.m.atPurdueNo. 11
  • West Lafayette, IN (rivalry)
  • W 31–2468,966
    October 12:30 p.m.Michigan StateNo. 14
  • Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)
  • W 16–659,075
    October 151:30 p.m.vs. ArmyNo. 11
  • East Rutherford, NJ (rivalry)
  • W 24–072,594
    October 221:50 p.m.No. 5USCNo. 11
    • Notre Dame Stadium
  • Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)
  • ABCW 49–1959,075
    October 292:30 p.m.NavyNo. 5
    • Notre Dame Stadium
  • Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)
  • W 43–1059,075
    November 51:30 p.m.Georgia TechNo. 5
    • Notre Dame Stadium
  • Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)
  • W 69–1459,075
    November 121:30 p.m.at No. 15ClemsonNo. 5
  • Clemson, SC
  • W 21–1753,467–54,189[6][7]
    November 191:30 p.m.Air ForceNo. 6
    • Notre Dame Stadium
  • Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)
  • W 49–059,075
    December 38:00 p.m.atMiami (FL)No. 5
  • Miami, FL (rivalry)
  • W 48–1035,789
    January 2, 19782:00 p.m.vs. No. 1TexasNo. 5
  • Dallas, TX (Cotton Bowl Classic)
  • CBSW 38–1076,701
    • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time
  • Roster

    [edit]
    1977 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team roster
    Players Coaches
    Offense
    Pos. # Name Class
    TE 87 Mark Czaja So
    WR 1 Ty Dickerson Fr
    RB 26 Tom Domin
    RB 5 Steve Dover
    QB 8 Gary Forystek
    RB 40 Terry Eurick
    RB 32 Vagas Ferguson So
    OT 73 Tim Foley So
    WR 82 Kris Haines Jr
    TE 97 Kevin Hart
    WR 85 Speedy Hart Jr
    C 63 Jim Hautman
    RB 30 Jerome Heavens
    G 66 Ted Horansky
    C 56 Dave Huffman Jr
    OT 78 Tim Huffman Fr
    G 65 Ernie Hughes Sr
    QB 1 Greg Knafelc Fr
    RB 21 Dan Knott Sr
    QB 14 Tim Koegel Fr
    G 69 John Leon
    QB 6 Rusty Lisch  So
    TE 81 Ken MacAfee Sr
    OT 75 Rob Martinovich So
    OT 71 Steve McDaniels Sr
    G 60 Howard Meyer Jr
    RB 44 Dave Mitchell
    QB 3 Joe Montana Jr
    C 50 Terry Murphy
    RB 14 Steve Orsini
    RB 45 Pete Pallas Jr
    RB 19 Steve Schmitz Sr
    RB 42 Jim Stone
    OT 67 Bob Tull Sr
    G 59 Dave Vinson
    RB 34 Dave Waymer So
    Defense
    Pos. # Name Class
    LB 43 Doug Becker Sr
    CB 24 Dick Boushka
    CB 20 Luther Bradley Sr
    SS 33 Jim Browner Jr
    DE 89 Ross Browner Sr
    CB 18 Ted Burgmeier
    DT 77 Mike Calhoun Jr
    DT 75 Jay Case Jr
    SS 28 Ross Christensen Sr
    CB 16 Nick DeCicco
    DT 79 Ken Dike Sr
    CB 23 Tom Flynn Jr
    DE 94 Willie Fry
    FS 27 Tom Gibbons Fr
    LB 55 Bob Golic Jr
    LB 47 John Hankerd
    FS 10 Randy Harrison Jr
    LB 58 Steve Heimkreiter Jr
    SS, QB 31 Pete Holohan Fr
    LB 51 Pete Johnson
    SS 29 Phil Johnson Jr
    LB 61 Bobby Leopold So
    CB 9 Jim Morse
    DE 72 Hardy Rayam
    FS 7 Joe Restic Jr
    DE 88 Tom VanDenburgh So
    DT 74 Jeff Weston Jr
    LB 54 Mike Whittington So
    DT 68 Tom Wroblewski So
    DE 70 Scott Zettek So
    Special teams
    Pos. # Name Class
    P 4 Kevin Muno So
    K 13 Dave Reeve Sr
    P 7 Joe Restic Jr
    K 99 Joe Unis
    Head coach
    Coordinators/assistant coaches

    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • Injured Injured
    • Redshirt Redshirt

    Game summaries

    [edit]

    Pittsburgh

    [edit]

    Notre Dame Fighting Irish (0–0) at Pittsburgh Panthers (0–0)

    Period 1 2 34Total
    Notre Dame 0 6 01319
    Pittsburgh 7 2 009

    atPitt Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

    Game information

    Ole Miss

    [edit]

    Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1–0) at Ole Miss Rebels

    Period 1 2 34Total
    Notre Dame 0 7 0613
    Ole Miss 3 7 01020

    atMississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, Jackson, Mississippi

    Game information

    Ole Miss gave the eventual national champion Notre Dame its only loss of the season.

    Purdue

    [edit]
    1 234Total
    Notre Dame 0 14017 31
    Purdue 10 1400 24

    [8]

    Michigan State

    [edit]
    Michigan St at #14 Notre Dame
    1 234Total
    Michigan St 3 030 6
    Notre Dame 0 1060 16

    Army

    [edit]
    1 234Total
    Army 0 000 0
    • Notre Dame 0 7107 24

    USC

    [edit]
    1 234Total
    USC 0 7012 19
    Notre Dame 7 151314 49

    Notre Dame wore green jerseys for the first time since their 1963 game against Syracuse.

    [10]

    [edit]
    1 234Total
    Navy 0 037 10
    Notre Dame 7 91413 43
    • Date: October 29
    • Location: Notre Dame Stadium • South Bend, Indiana
    • Game attendance: 59,075

    Notre Dame wore green jerseys for the second straight week.

    [11]

    Georgia Tech

    [edit]
    1 234Total
    Georgia Tech 0 707 14
    Notre Dame 0 212127 69
    • Date: November 5
    • Location: Notre Dame Stadium • South Bend, Indiana
    • Game start: 1:30 pm EST
    • Game attendance: 59,075

    Notre Dame wore green jerseys for the third straight week, and for every home game through the end of the 1980 season. The 69 points were the second most ever scored at Notre Dame Stadium.

    Clemson

    [edit]
    1 234Total
    Notre Dame 7 0014 21
    Clemson 0 1070 17
    • Date: November 12
    • Location: Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC
    • Game start: 1:30 pm EST
    • Game attendance: 54,189

    This was the first-ever meeting between Notre Dame and Clemson.

    Air Force

    [edit]
    1 234Total
    Air Force 0 000 0
    Notre Dame 21 1477 49
    • Date: November 19
    • Location: Notre Dame Stadium • South Bend, Indiana
    • Game start: 1:30 pm EST
    • Game attendance: 59,075
    • Game weather: cloudy, 40 degrees

    This was the final game for Air Force head coach Ben Martin after 20 seasons. It also remains the most lopsided game in the 30-game series between Notre Dame and Air Force (the Fighting Irish lead 24-6).

    Miami (FL)

    [edit]
    1 234Total
    • Notre Dame 14 6217 48
    Miami (FL) 0 1000 10

    [12]

    Texas (Cotton Bowl)

    [edit]
    1 234Total
    • Notre Dame 3 2177 38
    Texas 3 700 10
    • Location: Cotton Bowl
    • Game attendance: 76,701
    • Game weather: Sunny; 35 °F (2 °C)

    [13]

    Post-season

    [edit]

    Award winners

    [edit]

    Heisman Trophy voting

    Ken MacAfee, 3rd[17]
    Ross Browner, 5th[17]

    All-Americans

    Name AP UPI NEA FC SN FW FN WCF CW
    Ross Browner, DE 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
    Ken MacAfee, TE 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
    Luther Bradley, DB 2 1 2 1 1 1
    Ernie Hughes, G 2 2
    Bob Golic, MG (MLB) 2 2 2
    Willie Fry, DE 2
    Ted Burgmeier, DB 2
    †denotes unanimous selection
    ‡denotes consensus selection Source:[2]

    College Football Hall of Fame inductees

    Name Position Year Inducted
    Ross Browner Defensive end 1999
    Dan Devine Coach 1985
    Ken MacAfee Tight end 1997

    [18]

    1978 NFL Draft

    [edit]
    Player Position Round Pick Franchise
    Ken MacAfee Tight end 1(7) 7 San Francisco 49ers
    Ross Browner Defensive end 1(8) 8 Cincinnati Bengals
    Luther Bradley Defensive back 1(11) 11 Detroit Lions
    Willie Fry Defensive end 2(23) 49 Pittsburgh Steelers
    Ernie Hughes Guard 3(23) 79 San Francisco 49ers
    Ted Burgmeier Defensive back 5(1) 111 Miami Dolphins
    Steve McDaniels Tackle 9(27) 249 San Francisco 49ers
    Doug Becker Linebacker 10(18) 268 Pittsburgh Steelers
    Source:[19]

    References

    [edit]
  • ^ a b "2007 Notre Dame Media Guide: History and Records (pages 131-175)". und.cstv.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2008. Retrieved December 29, 2008.
  • ^ a b c d e f "2007 Notre Dame Media Guide: 2007 Supplement (page 164)". und.cstv.com. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved December 29, 2008.
  • ^ a b Walters, John (July 21, 2004). Notre Dame Golden Moments. Rutledge Hill Press. ISBN 1-59186-042-3.
  • ^ "Mississippi Rebels, upsets Irish". The Indianapolis Star. September 18, 1977. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  • ^ "Irish break Clemson 'death' grip". The Indianapolis Star. November 13, 1977. Retrieved January 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  • ^ "Clemson Football Media Guide - 1978". Clemson University. 1978. p. 1. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  • ^ "Wolves Subdue Stubborn Navy; Notre Dame Overcomes Purdue." Ocala Star-Banner. September 25, 1977.
  • ^ "Irish looking to Heavens: He responds with record." Eugene Register-Guard. 1977 Oct 16. Retrieved 2017-Sep-02.
  • ^ "Green Irish thump Trojans." Eugene Register-Guard. October 23, 1977.
  • ^ "Irish wear green and don't need it, 43-10." Eugene Register-Guard. October 30, 1977.
  • ^ Palm Beach Post. December 4, 1977. Retrieved May 10, 2015.
  • ^ 2012 Notre Dame Football Supplement Retrieved 2017-Sep-03.
  • ^ "Winners & Finalists". Rotary Club of Houston. Archived from the original on January 8, 2009. Retrieved December 30, 2008.
  • ^ "The Maxwell Award Collegiate Player of the Year: Past Recipients". The Maxwell Football Club. Archived from the original on February 14, 2009. Retrieved December 30, 2008.
  • ^ "Walter Camp Football Foundation Awards (Page 3)". The Walter Camp Foundation. Archived from the original on September 5, 2008. Retrieved December 30, 2008.
  • ^ a b "Heisman Voting". und.cstv.com. Archived from the original on December 17, 2008. Retrieved December 30, 2008.
  • ^ "Hall of Fame: Select group by school". College Football Hall of Fame. Football Foundation. Retrieved December 30, 2008.
  • ^ "Notre Dame NFL Draft History". uhnd.com. Archived from the original on January 6, 2009. Retrieved December 30, 2008.

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