Shake Down the Thunder: The Creation of Notre Dame Football

by Murray A. Sperber

Beginning with the humble origins of the Notre Dame football program in the nineteenth century, Shake Down the Thunder traces the evolution of the team to its status as a preeminent football power - winning national championships and attracting huge crowds to its games from coast to coast. In the process, Notre Dame has been hailed as the paragon of college football, and its history has gained almost mythical proportions. This is the true story of what happened during its formative years, the reality behind the myths. In writing Shake Down the Thunder, author Murray Sperber had what no other writer about Notre Dame has ever had: the use of Knute Rockne's voluminous private correspondence, which sat unopened in the university library's basement since his death. Drawing on these letters and other extraordinary archival materials, Sperber fully explores the Notre Dame sports tradition, including the background of its most famed victories and the darker side of its past. Sperber reveals the mixed stories that make up the institution's history - stories of both its unflagging devotion to high standards and its coaches' less respectable deal-making and entrepreneurial ventures. Chronicling Notre Dame's struggle as a Catholic institution in an era of rabid anti-Catholicism, this account of the rise of a college football team also reflects the changes in the country's social fabric and shows how Notre Dame's power reached beyond the field to elevate the status of Catholics in America. Shake Down the Thunder introduces the real personalities behind Notre Dame's icons, illuminating individuals such as Jesse Harper, George Gipp, Father John O'Hara, Elmer Layden, Frank Leahy, and Grantland Rice, but at the heart of the book is the greatest mythic figure of them all: Knute Rockne. A national celebrity first as a player and then as a coach, Rockne established the direction of the football program in a university struggling to maintain its academic identity, and truly made th

Genres: Sports

Hardcover

First published November 1, 1993

Reviews

[jeffrey thayer · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading it many years ago, I went back and read it again. My recollections were confirmed as Sperber documents the rise of Knute Rockne's Notre Dame football to what it remains today. Undoubtedly, Sperber is responsible for exposing the myths about George Gipp, the ND player played by Ronald Reagan in the movie "Knute Rockne, All American." Gipp was a "ringer" who Rockne was able to put on the ND squad without ever really enrolling in the school. He lived in a hotel in downtown South Bend as he played there and was never really enrolled in the school. (I'm vague on the facts of Gipp's time there, but Sperber exposes the myth for what it is.) College football was a growing business, enormously popular everywhere, and filled with questionable recruiting and shady practices. Rockne's Notre Dame was a perfect example of it. His was an outsized, successful football program at a small Catholic university surrounded by the immensity of the Big Ten conference. The university's Catholic administrators were always concerned that its academic reputation was overshadowed by Rockne's success on the field. He promoted the program wherever he could and was ingenious with all the publicity from the major newspapers.

"Shake Down the Thunder" is a wonderful example of how indicative Rockne's Notre Dame football then is of today's game. Everything taking place today is the result of what he helped set in motion 100 years ago. He was a cunning genius of a football coach who knew how to work the system for himself and the program.

[Paul Pessolano · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book that looks at the rise and fall of College Sports thru the eyes of Notre Dame, the most hated or loved football team ever. The expose is written by a non,catholic and shows no religious preference. It tells about this small school in Indiana that grew due to the presence of its coach, Knute Rockne. And priests of the Holy Cross. Some were fans of football and others fans of education. This should enlighten one to the problems this dichotomy causes and why there was a problem with College sports that remain today. One must realize this is the story of College Sports and not a condemnation of Irish Football. It is a problem for everyone and for all time,not just then. A long but excellent read that is true today as it was then.

[Jeffrey Thayer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although the book is about the rise of Notre Dame football with Knute Rockne, it's really about the spectacle that college football has remained since its beginnings. Rockne brought to Notre Dame what colleges everywhere experienced then. As a small Catholic university, ND wrestled with itself as the program grew in stature. Rockne made no apology for what he was doing. He was the coach and athletic director; football was his sole mission. He worked the system to his advantage. His coaching-administrative acumen is an archetype for everything that has followed the sport since. The book reflects today's college athletic environment as much as it documents Notre Dame's fame 100 years ago.

[Patrick Mackin · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent warts and all description of how Knute Rockne created the Notre Dame football legacy from just about scratch. He was not only a masterful coach, innovator and motivator, he was also a tireless /spokeman salesman for the school, for his team and for any product that would pay his fee to endorse it. Rockne understood that people won't pay good money to see the games and root for the team from the little Indiana Catholic school unless they had a reason to do so, and Rockne gave them the reasons, in spades.

[Byron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything you need to know Blue and Gold. Awesome book

[Ben Pietrzyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read for those that love ND, but also early college football history.

[William Enright · Rating 5 out of 5]

A concise and complete look into, not only the evolution of Notre Dame football, but the evolution of college football in general. A must read for every Notre Dame fan.