Mr. Notre Dame by Jason Kelly

Author:Jason Kelly
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781461703327
Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing
Published: 2013-12-06T00:00:00+00:00

Leahy worked himself sick. Days preoccupied with preparation and apprehension for the next opponent and nights spent sleeping on a cot in his office, if at all, finally took a toll. After a rout of Northwestern in a cold rain the week after the Army tie, Leahy fell ill with the flu, laryngitis and a recurrence of the spinal arthritis condition that had sent him to the Mayo Clinic in 1942. Doctors ordered him to remain home in bed the week before the final game of the season against Southern California.

Krause became the acting head coach in Leahy’s absence. In the slanting shadows and bitter chill of late November, he put the Irish through their usual meticulous preparation. Without the authoritarian presence of Leahy, practices were much more relaxed. Businesslike and efficient, Notre Dame studied new nuances in the game plan and performed its daily drills even without the coach’s relentless prodding.

Leahy’s spirit still inhabited the practice field, albeit in jest. Late Thursday afternoon, during the final full practice before Saturday’s season finale, Krause put the offensive starters through a noncontact scrimmage with a group of reserves. At the other end of Cartier Field, the second-team offense did the same, repeatedly running familiar plays, just to refine the timing. As the first-team broke from their huddle before one play, George Connor spotted something in the distance and abruptly stopped his trot to the line of scrimmage.

“Look at that,” he said, gesturing toward the reserves. “Look at them.”

Everybody looked in that direction to discover the second-team offense running backwards, like a rewinding play on a game film. They returned to their original positions and ran the play over again, stopping in unison, as if a projectionist had flipped a switch, then backtracking to their previous formation. From forty yards away in the hazy darkness, the scene took on the sepia tone of the grainy films Leahy dissected every week in team meetings.

Krause played the part of Leahy the film critic, allowing the play to develop in the distance and then hollering, “Run that play over again!” Every player who made a mistake on those celluloid reruns dreaded hearing Leahy say that in a team meeting, but Krause’s imitation only enhanced the amusement. Their precision amazed him, proving what many observers had suspected—this team literally learned its plays backward and forward.

“Marvelous, marvelous,” Krause laughed.

That word also summarizes the 1946 season. Marvelous. A 26-6 win to end the season at home against Southern California, combined with Army’s narrow victory over Navy, earned Notre Dame another national championship.

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