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What It Means to Be Fighting Irish: Ara Parseghian and Notre Dame's Greatest Players
Taking a decade-by-decade approach to the University of Notre Dame football tradition, this collection brings together over 40 stories from the most outstanding voices of the program. The spirit of Fighting Irish football is not captured by just one phrase, one season, or one particular game; instead, the student-athletes and coaches who made the magic happen over the decades blend their experiences to capture the true essence of their beloved school. Notre Dame fans will relish the intimate stories told by the figures they have come to cherish.
368 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 2004
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June 30, 2026
𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝 is a well put together retrospective for die-hard Notre Dame football historians and college football historians. Longtime Notre Dame football journalist Tim Prister went out and conducted 70 interviews with former Fighting Irish football players for this book, and because of those interviews you the reader will come away from this book with a deep understanding of how revered and respected Irish football has been since the 1930s.
𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝 is 357 pages of Irish football history told by the likes of former running back and quarterback Paul Hornung, running back Vagas Ferguson, defensive lineman Bob Golic, linebacker Wes Pritchett, quarterback Tony Rice, wide receiver and kick returner Raghib "Rocket" Ismail, center Jeff Faine, and so much more. If this book doesn't educate you and or make you respect Notre Dame football history, then you really didn't understand or really read this book.
The book started off with a good forward by legendary Notre Dame Head Coach Ara Parseghian. In that forward I found out that former Notre Dame President Theodore Hesburgh (RIP) was a civil rights champion and he was responsible for opening up doors for Black players to play at ND starting in 1973.
The interviews began on page 1 of the book which covered the 1930s and 1940s. That chapter ran all the way until page 36. That chapter was full of players (8) that I had never heard of except for quarterbacks Frank Tripucka and John Lujack.
Then in chapter 2 (The Fifties) 13 players were interviewed and there were two players from that chapter that I had heard of or knew in quarterback John Lattner and the before mentioned Hornung.
The book picked up for me in chapter 3 (Sixties and Seventies) which is where more familiarity with the interviewees took place. This chapter was the second biggest chapter in the book with 21 interviews that spanned 114 pages. One of my favorite interviews in this chapter was that of quarterback John Huarte who won the Heisman Trophy in 1964. I learned in that chapter that the 1960 to 1963 seasons were discouraging for Huarte and that he felt like a nobody at ND. In reviews of his career nobody really talks about those seasons but just the '64 season, but he did, starting on page 99. Meanwhile, in that Sixties and Seventies chapter I learned that halfback Tom Gatewood was the school's first Black football captain in the year 1971.
Notre Dame great Ross Browner (RIP) a defensive end at the school in 1973 and from 1975 to 1977, had an interesting story. He explained why he got suspended from the team in 1974 (page 182), he talked about him wanting to quit football for good in 1976 (page 184) and I'm glad he didn't because college and pro football would have been robbed of a great talent. Then Browner ended his interview with a good story about the last game he would ever play for the Irish, the 1978 Cotton Bowl.
In that Sixties and Seventies chapter Prister managed to get six pages worth of interview material from the most famous Notre Dame player ever in quarterback Joe Montana. Got some more insight on Montana's career at ND especially on page 196, as that page should be required reading for ND and college football historians.
On page 2024 is where this book really, really picked up for me because that was where interviews of former Fighting Irish players from the Eighties and Nineties eras started. I was so glad that part of the book was robust, as it had 23 interviews which spanned 132 pages.
Defensive end Mike Golic (pages 208-214) had one of the best interviews in the book. He was candid about his time at ND which spanned the 1981 to 1984 seasons, with that period being one of the most mediocre periods in ND football history. Then on page 244 of the Wes Pritchett chapter, the former linebacker explained the power of being a Notre Dame alumnus which I found interesting. Then two pages later former linebacker Ned Bolcar (1986-1989) shared an interesting story about one of his recruiting visits to Ohio State University. Also, in Bolcar's chapter on page 251, he showed us readers how funny he can be with a cool story about his being a part of a December 4, 1989 Sports Illustrated cover for all the wrong reasons LOL.
One of the main things I remember about this book was how Raghib Ismail revealed how tough it was for him to put with his growing celebrity around ND in 1990 due to his exciting football talents which included returning kicks and gobbling up yards as an explosive and lighting quick receiver. Pages 272-273 were a trip for me to read because I never knew he had anxiety about putting up with the media and fan attention that he got in 1990.
In that Eighties and Nineties chapter I had fun learning some things about Notre Dame players from the 1990s era that I never knew such as the unnecessary and maddening stuff that former quarterback Kevin McDougal had to go through to become a starter in 1993. The Aaron Taylor story, in particular page 296. Tight end Pete Chryplewicz's story, in particular pages 299-300. How fullback Marc Edwards and defensive lineman Melvin Dansby (revealed on page 316 how much he didn't really care for Head Coach Bob Davie) put it into perspective how much of a tyrant Lou Holtz was as a head coach in their years playing for him from 1993 to 1997.
Then the last chapter of the book, The New Millenium, had five interviews. The last interview in the book was of linebacker Courtney Watson, who was getting ready to begin his rookie season in the NFL with the New Orleans Saints when this book was published.
Pros of 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝: As far as oral history or interview books go, this book did its job which was to educate readers on a particular subject and give its interviewees a chance to share their stories. Prister included gray boxes at the end of every interview as to give his thoughts on what each player contributed to ND football history which was beneficial to the historical context of the book.
Cons of 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝: It would have been nice to have running back Jerome Bettis and Head Coach Lou Holtz be interviewed for this book. Those two men were responsible for some of the greatest moments in Fighting Irish history.
In conclusion, 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝 was an educational book on Notre Dame football history. I learned a lot about ND football history within this book which included dynastic periods or high achievement periods (much of the 1940s and from 1964 to 1974) for the program. Pick up this book only if you're a serious or die-hard Notre Dame football fan (of which I am not, I've never been a Notre Dame football fan) or college football historian (that's me).
𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝 is 357 pages of Irish football history told by the likes of former running back and quarterback Paul Hornung, running back Vagas Ferguson, defensive lineman Bob Golic, linebacker Wes Pritchett, quarterback Tony Rice, wide receiver and kick returner Raghib "Rocket" Ismail, center Jeff Faine, and so much more. If this book doesn't educate you and or make you respect Notre Dame football history, then you really didn't understand or really read this book.
The book started off with a good forward by legendary Notre Dame Head Coach Ara Parseghian. In that forward I found out that former Notre Dame President Theodore Hesburgh (RIP) was a civil rights champion and he was responsible for opening up doors for Black players to play at ND starting in 1973.
The interviews began on page 1 of the book which covered the 1930s and 1940s. That chapter ran all the way until page 36. That chapter was full of players (8) that I had never heard of except for quarterbacks Frank Tripucka and John Lujack.
Then in chapter 2 (The Fifties) 13 players were interviewed and there were two players from that chapter that I had heard of or knew in quarterback John Lattner and the before mentioned Hornung.
The book picked up for me in chapter 3 (Sixties and Seventies) which is where more familiarity with the interviewees took place. This chapter was the second biggest chapter in the book with 21 interviews that spanned 114 pages. One of my favorite interviews in this chapter was that of quarterback John Huarte who won the Heisman Trophy in 1964. I learned in that chapter that the 1960 to 1963 seasons were discouraging for Huarte and that he felt like a nobody at ND. In reviews of his career nobody really talks about those seasons but just the '64 season, but he did, starting on page 99. Meanwhile, in that Sixties and Seventies chapter I learned that halfback Tom Gatewood was the school's first Black football captain in the year 1971.
Notre Dame great Ross Browner (RIP) a defensive end at the school in 1973 and from 1975 to 1977, had an interesting story. He explained why he got suspended from the team in 1974 (page 182), he talked about him wanting to quit football for good in 1976 (page 184) and I'm glad he didn't because college and pro football would have been robbed of a great talent. Then Browner ended his interview with a good story about the last game he would ever play for the Irish, the 1978 Cotton Bowl.
In that Sixties and Seventies chapter Prister managed to get six pages worth of interview material from the most famous Notre Dame player ever in quarterback Joe Montana. Got some more insight on Montana's career at ND especially on page 196, as that page should be required reading for ND and college football historians.
On page 2024 is where this book really, really picked up for me because that was where interviews of former Fighting Irish players from the Eighties and Nineties eras started. I was so glad that part of the book was robust, as it had 23 interviews which spanned 132 pages.
Defensive end Mike Golic (pages 208-214) had one of the best interviews in the book. He was candid about his time at ND which spanned the 1981 to 1984 seasons, with that period being one of the most mediocre periods in ND football history. Then on page 244 of the Wes Pritchett chapter, the former linebacker explained the power of being a Notre Dame alumnus which I found interesting. Then two pages later former linebacker Ned Bolcar (1986-1989) shared an interesting story about one of his recruiting visits to Ohio State University. Also, in Bolcar's chapter on page 251, he showed us readers how funny he can be with a cool story about his being a part of a December 4, 1989 Sports Illustrated cover for all the wrong reasons LOL.
One of the main things I remember about this book was how Raghib Ismail revealed how tough it was for him to put with his growing celebrity around ND in 1990 due to his exciting football talents which included returning kicks and gobbling up yards as an explosive and lighting quick receiver. Pages 272-273 were a trip for me to read because I never knew he had anxiety about putting up with the media and fan attention that he got in 1990.
In that Eighties and Nineties chapter I had fun learning some things about Notre Dame players from the 1990s era that I never knew such as the unnecessary and maddening stuff that former quarterback Kevin McDougal had to go through to become a starter in 1993. The Aaron Taylor story, in particular page 296. Tight end Pete Chryplewicz's story, in particular pages 299-300. How fullback Marc Edwards and defensive lineman Melvin Dansby (revealed on page 316 how much he didn't really care for Head Coach Bob Davie) put it into perspective how much of a tyrant Lou Holtz was as a head coach in their years playing for him from 1993 to 1997.
Then the last chapter of the book, The New Millenium, had five interviews. The last interview in the book was of linebacker Courtney Watson, who was getting ready to begin his rookie season in the NFL with the New Orleans Saints when this book was published.
Pros of 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝: As far as oral history or interview books go, this book did its job which was to educate readers on a particular subject and give its interviewees a chance to share their stories. Prister included gray boxes at the end of every interview as to give his thoughts on what each player contributed to ND football history which was beneficial to the historical context of the book.
Cons of 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝: It would have been nice to have running back Jerome Bettis and Head Coach Lou Holtz be interviewed for this book. Those two men were responsible for some of the greatest moments in Fighting Irish history.
In conclusion, 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄𝙩 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙝 was an educational book on Notre Dame football history. I learned a lot about ND football history within this book which included dynastic periods or high achievement periods (much of the 1940s and from 1964 to 1974) for the program. Pick up this book only if you're a serious or die-hard Notre Dame football fan (of which I am not, I've never been a Notre Dame football fan) or college football historian (that's me).
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