Show comeback trail in 57 here s why they may win the national title this season TW bj Daw© mf guru©!" each year Latest addition is Hugh Devore who was brought in to coach the freshmen Devore has 20 years of college and professional coaching experience Last year Bernie Crimmins was rehired as a Notre Dame assistant after holding down a head coaching job With such men as these on the staff it wouldn't appear that Notre Dame is 3 Those sophomores who got pushed around in the '56 season are all seniors now the nucleus of the '58 squad and ready to finish their college playing careers in style 4 Easier schedule This calls for quick explanaDave Werner tion No Notre Dame schedule is ever easy for received his there's a long line of journalism schools which consider training at Notre if their season a success Dameln the consideration have been worthy of successful-seaso- n in themselves The week after beating Oklahoma the Irish took on a powerful Iowa team and almost worked the miracle of toppling two giants in a row Notre Dame had a chance of beating the Hawkeyes going into the A key fourth quarter but finally succumbed 21-ht game was a touchdown pass play in the that was touched by five players two of them Notre Dame's before it wound up in the hands of an Iowa player in the end zone "Brennan gets my vote as Coach of the Year" Forrest Evashevski the Iowa coach commented Ed V (Moose) Krause Notre Dame's mammoth-size- d 13 hard-foug- director of athletics who played and assisted in coaching football at Notre Dame summed up the comeback: "We of course hoped for improvement over that dismal '56 record But what a job Terry did! It was fx astounding He's going into the '58 season with a raise in salary and no body deserved it more " In appraising prospects for this season Brennan acting in the manner of a W If si Carolina Gd'traui gives :j back Wilkes-Bar- this and Chronicle He has written magazine articles on numerous sports subjects and is also the author of a booh on Notre Dame Bob Williams Pa at coach Terry Brennan it s - - s n ' re and Nick Pietrosante Ansonia Conn at fullback 6 it' ps X t I "' £ "y 7"' 1 70th Notre Dame ball team may be a memorable one: foot- Brennan's experience begins to pay off 1 more each season A coach has to stay super-ale- rt when he plays Notre Dame's schedule 2 Brennan's coaching staff is getting stronger (NY) Democrat can quarterback are many reasons why Warner is now a sports writer for the Rochester co-Ca- end n national titles while rugged doesn't measure up to 1957 5 The possibility of All-Ameri- but it will take another year or so before we are in a position to be fighting for the national championship Our main problem now is finding depth There of winning and canstrong didates at five positions: Al Ecuyer of pt New Orleans at guard Bronko Nagurski International Falls Minn at tackle Monty Stickles Poughkeepsie N Y at smooth politician says "I think we have a good - start on the way back to bid for national honors We're on the way back for a truly dependable second unit— one that we can send in without worry anytime during a game" when the Fighting Irish were in the habit ' Southern California credit tor zztZTi Iowa era post-w- ar Dame Two toughies— Oklahoma and Michigan State— are not on the ND schedule this year The slate of Indiana Southern Methodist Army Duke Purdue Navy Pitt North Director A!! Notre beat can they A goat Terry 1956 Brennan is in f riding high after L great 1957 season I Dependable quarter-backin- g Any Notre Dame team which has made its mark always has had strong quarterbacking This year the Irish have Williams a senior backed up by a fine junior George Izo of Barberton Ohio Maybe neither is a S 0 Johnny Lujack or Paul Hornung but both can do a great job 7 Restored confidence with that 3 record after the 8 season Brennan says the win over Army when the game seemed m 7-- 2-- ' J JM hopelessly lost lifted the squad a long way last season Confidence is half the battle 8 Good squad balance There are 25 returning lettermen with monogram winners at all positions last season Eight of the Irish's 10 top ground-gaine- rs are back this year Enthusiasm is definitely on the upswing at Notre Dame not that it ever really died When Brennan called for Spring football candidates 104 of them largest in five years turned out In Jim Colisimo Eveleth Minn Stickles hero of the Army game last year Gary Meyers Spokane Dick Royer Cincinnati and Bob Wetoska Minneapolis Notre Dame may have five of the best ends in the country And in breakaway runners Patrick Doyle of Sioux City Iowa and Jim Crotty of Seattle the Irish may have two of the fleetest since Bob Livingstone Creighton Miller and Coy McGee were blazing the gridiron JO to 15 years ago The winning tradition has a strong flavor at Notre Dame whose record of 185 wins 49 losses and 14 ties is the best of all major college football teams over the last 26 years When Rockne was coaching Notre Dame teams the wins very often- - used to come as a result of deft psychological pitchforking "Rock" had the knack of getting his players fighting mad with such needles as "Okay girls let's go" Or by opening the door of the Notre Dame dressing room after a poor first half and saying "Sorry I thought this was the Notre Dame dressing room" then closing the door on his stunned squad Leahy got great results with a combination of perfecting his squad to the last detail while weeping to the press about a lack of material He was a master at crooning the blues even while Notre Dame was racking up a record of 39 consecutive victories over a period of four years Brennan whose record is 26 wins 14 defeats plays it with a more matter-of-fa- ct approach neither trying to kid himself his players or the press He gets better results playing it straight "Psychology in the dressing room is all right sometimes" he says "but the game has changed so much that all you've got time for is to prepare your team for each game as best you can then make the Besides I can see necessary changes at half-tim- e where a lot of that psychology could backfire" His players have great respect for Terry One of them recently summed it up this way: "If he asked me to run through a brick wall I'd do it because I'd figure he had a good reason" As for the football coach's crying towel Brennan who has a law degree doesn't permit himself the luxury of tears instead rests his case on: "Excessive moaning never gained a yard on a football field yet" So this may be the year for the Fighting Irish to regain the national crown they abdicated 10 years ago At any rate they'll be the team to watch They always have been time-honor- ed All WMil PP milk Family Weekly September 21 195& 9 |