A New Crusade at Notre Dame

By J D. Reed.

Only a couple of seasons ago, the fans were dispirited, the alumni absolutely agonized. Notre Dame football, crucible of legends like Rockne and the Gipper, seemed headed toward the lower depths. The flailing Irish had not enjoyed an undefeated season in 15 years, and for only one brief spell in 1981 had they attained the No. 1 spot in the college rankings. Head coach Gerry Faust, who during his tenure from 1981 to 1985 racked up a lackluster 30-26-1 record, had let the Irish unravel. Once courted like a prom queen in postseason play, Notre Dame appeared in just two bowl games: Liberty (1983) and Aloha (1984). The team, it seemed, was fading from national prominence.

Lately, however, things are looking up. Way up. Employing a combination of teamwork, discipline and canny recruiting, new head coach Lou Holtz, 51, now in his third year, has fielded a young squad that is stomping powerful foes with the zeal of modern-day Crusaders. Last year Holtz's Irish pulled off an 8-4 season, and they currently boast a sterling 9-0 record. More important, Notre Dame last week moved up to the No. 1 ranking, and the team just could capture its first national championship since 1977.

What makes this all the more striking is that no one expected a distinguished season for Notre Dame this year. Playing one of the toughest schedules in the NCAA and lacking the services of 1987 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Brown, who graduated, the Irish were ranked 13th in pre-season projections. Eleven of the 22 first-stringers were starting for the first time. To compensate for the lack of experience, Holtz relentlessly drilled his specialty squads and relied on raw speed. In the season opener, the Irish edged out tenth-ranked University of Michigan 19-17 on the strength of four field goals by diminutive Reggie Ho, a former soccer player from Hawaii.

Late last month the Irish surprised everyone, perhaps even themselves, when they squeaked out a 31-30 win over archrival Miami, the defending national champion, which had been unbeaten in 36 regular-season games. As a sellout crowd of 59,075 roared in the South Bend stands, Irish quarterback Tony Rice threw touchdown passes to freshman wide receiver Raghib ("Rocket") Ismail and junior fullback Braxston Banks, and scored one himself on a keeper option play, a Holtz favorite. Says Holtz with a grin: "We've proved that there is life after Tim Brown."

Perhaps, but inexperience can lead to an odd inconsistency. Favored to beat Navy by five touchdowns, the Irish dropped five passes, lost two fumbles, shanked a punt for a mere 10 yds., and got whistled for having twelve men on the field -- all before winning the game 22-7. On the other hand, against 0-8 Rice last Saturday, Notre Dame dazzled with a 54-11 victory. After Rice scored early in the first quarter, the Irish quickly answered with four touchdowns on their first four possessions. Junior fullback Anthony Johnson rushed for two of Notre Dame's seven TDs; Ismail scored two others, remarkably, by returning kickoffs for 78 and 83 yds.

Much of the Irish success stems from perfectionist Holtz's famous practice sessions and attention to detail. When he arrived at Notre Dame in the winter of 1986, Holtz, who had been head coach at William and Mary, North Carolina State, Arkansas and Minnesota, concentrated on molding the Irish into a clockwork mechanism. Says senior linebacker Wes Pritchett: "He gave out shirts with TEAM on them in big letters and ME in tiny letters. It sounds corny, but the message got through: everyone can't be a star, but if you tackle your assigned role with 100% effort, you can be proud."

A disciple of Ohio State's legendary tough guy Woody Hayes, Holtz often joins huddles during scrimmages and scrutinizes backfielders like a Customs inspector. The idea, he says, is "to make practice worse than the game." The 5-ft. 10-in., 152-lb. coach once barreled onto the field and sacked quarterback Rice for goofing off during a passing drill. During competition, Holtz calls every offensive play from the sidelines.

Recruiting is another Holtz specialty. He signed up twelve of the top 100 high school All-Americas for this year. "The last couple of years, I've recruited for speed," says Holtz. "We've sometimes been a step or two slow. But now we have people like Ismail, who can do 40 ((yds.)) in 4.28 seconds." The Wilkes-Barre, Pa., freshman is possibly the fastest receiver in the country.

Such quickness will be needed if the Irish are to speed by their two remaining opponents. They must deal with a weakened but still formidable Penn State and, in their final game, with No. 2-ranked U.S.C. If successful, the Irish will probably play currently unbeaten West Virginia in either the Fiesta Bowl or the Gator Bowl, a contest that could decide the national championship. But overconfidence is not in Holtz's playbook. Says he: "Right now -- I don't care what the polls say -- we're not the best in the country. But maybe we can be by the end of the season."

With reporting by Lee Griggs/South Bend