The important dates
What they say about K. R.
The motivator
The stories 1
The stories 2
The Stories 3
The quotations
The Shift
The spinner
Great Players
Great games
Musical shows
Notre Dameīs 3 nicknames
The 1925 Rose Bowl Final
1930 Exhibition game
Superstitions
American Football
Miscellanious things
Links to Knute Rockne pages
Links to Notre Dame pages
Coaching statistics 1918-1924
Coaching statistics 1925-1930
 
During the 1920s, the period often referred to as the golden age of sports, the name Rockne of Notre Dame was as well known as that of any figure of public life. And yet he was merely a football coach. A football coach at a comparably small school - the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.
 
Notre Dame was not only a winning football team, but it was directed by a personality so dynamic, so highly visible, even in the limited media of the day, that the coachīs image was inseparable from the ball club. And the play of his teams, and Rockneīs own personality captured the imagination of an entire country.
 
Knute Rockne He produced more championship teams and All American players than any man of his generation. Yet, that isnīt why heīs still so well remembered. He is remembered because of the sort of person he was. There was a special magic in the man, and a kindred magic in his name. The echoes of the bands playing, the cheers of the crowds has died away. But the memory of this short stocky, bald headed Scandinavian remains bright and clear.  
 
When Rockne was made head coach in 1918, he succeded a man whoīs team had attracted national attention, but it was Rockne and his Fighting Irish teams that made Notre Dame famous on the gridiron. It did not take him long to grasp the change that had come into the attitude of the American public towards intercollegiate sports. 
 
He realized the change had itīs beginning in the World War. The war heightened and quickened the appreciation of the American people for all of the activeties of American youth. The American people saw now that competitive athletics were a wonderful help in in the preparation of manhood. 
 
Even in his playing days, Rockne saw this change taking place and he foresaw the necessarity of something different in the game if football int-ended to make any progress at all. Rockne and his team had comparatively no one to show their innovations to because of the small crowds. 
 
It was after the two undefeated seasons 1919 and 1920 that Rockne became a leading name within the American sport. Later on he was often named in the trio of the nations leading sport stars together with Jack Dempsey in boxing, and Babe Ruth in baseball. 
 
Knute Rockne
 
The public had began to understand that Rockne did more than just breed technical skilled players. That his aim also was to build up an etical attitude towards life with the youth too. He rarely gave an interview without touching that subject. He talked about it in his lectures. And he emphasized it in the articles he wrote. 
 
Knute Rockne instructing his players
Rockne instructing his players.
 
With the partnership of Harper the two of them had already made the change to the shift, but now Rockne began to vary it. The idea was a tendency to towards the open game. The backbone of this shift was to gamble for big yardage without smashing the line in the conventional gain of two or three. This system depended on speed,brains and execution. 
 
It took the country by storm. The oponents were not able to handle it, with the mighty George Gipp, Mohardt, Chet Whynne and Norm Barry, cavorting behind a powerful but speedy line made up of Kiley and Anderson at ends, Shaw, Garvey, and Coughlin at tackles, Clipper Smith, Dooley, Ed DeGree and Hunk Anderson at guards; Larsen and Bob Mehre at centers. 
 
This team of 1920, with swift, powerful, cagey, with plenty of gray matter, swept through itīs games for an undefeated season. It was Rockneīs second great team. That of 1919 was just as powerful, and also went through an undefeated season. The 1st of 5 under Rockne. On the team, as itīs motive power was the greatest player Notre Dame had ever turned out, the amazing George Gipp.
 
For an average spectator, watching a Rockne-coached team in action, could seem like some sort of magical hocus pocus. The smoothness of execution, the irresistible march of blue legs over chalked lines, they seemed invinsible. Somehow it all looks too easy.
 
Knute Rockne - The wizard Only those few who had witnessed a practice session at Cartier field, who had heard those electrifying words: "Everybody Up", who had watched that quick, direct walk from the little green gate to the center of the field, could know that it was not at all magical, that it was not easy. That on contrary, the progress of the blue-clad legs down the field was a progress born of infinite pains, of almost unbelievable attention of details, of sweat, of harder than hard work, in short, of the thing that only Rockne alone seemed to be able to put to the nth degree into the molding of a team.
 
In later years huddled beside Rockne on the groundin a blanket, was the manager with charts in his lap. He wrote down all of Rockneīs comments throughout the game and these was later used by him to show the team their mistakes and the good plays of the game.
 
People wonder what great, mystifying secret lay behind the success of Knute Rockne. How could he turn out such consistently good teams year after year? Even in defeat, Notre Dame usually managed somehow to steal the glory.
 
Knute Rockne - Fighting Irish The glamor resulting from Rockneīs success was so dazzling that his minute attention to detail and the pains taken to weave those details into a whole cannot clearly be seen. He was the first football coach to initiate intersectional rivalries and build a national schedule. His success was of such brilliancy that it was hard for the public to realize that itīs effectiveness came from monotonus rinding. Rockne was a genius in that he could squeeze the most out of his time. Those who have seen his teams play have marvelled at their grasp of the fundamentals. 
 
Chet Grant who played in one of Rockneīs teams, and later become his assistant in the 1920s said this about him:
"Rock" didnīt believe in genius. Heīd hold on to that hard work, and only hard work would give results. He was constantly after the players, and never stopped before he got them to do their utmost. But he did it with intellect. He had a sharp tongue and used it when needed. But the good thing was that he could scold and it didnīt leave bitterness with the players. One scolding from Rockne would rather give the opposite effect, that the scolded player felt strengthened. That was because the last word he said usually came with a smile - an unforgettable smile which lay the forehead in folds, opened his mouth wide and got his eyes to sparkle".
 
In Knute Rockneīs thirteen years as head coach of Notre Dame five of his teams enjoyed undefeated seasons, they were the teams of 1919, -20, -24, -29 and -30. He started coaching in the 1918 season. In the period he served as head coach his teams won 105 games, lost 12 and were tied 5 times. A record that is without parallel in football, considering the strong schedules with generally playing 10 games each season and the fact that the greater portion of the important games were played away from Notre Dame.
 
His legendary locker room speech to his 1928 Notre Dame team inspired an underdog Notre Dame football team to "win just one for the Gipper".
 
His love of football and of life became apparent when he spent much of the 1929 season coaching from a wheelchair because of bad health. He used a loudspeaker to give orders.......his players would do anything for "The Rock."
Knute Rockne in his wheelchair
Knute Rockne in his wheelchair
 
Rockneīs yearly salery at Notre Dame was never more than $12.000,- But his extra income was to be, as time went by, considerable. His fee pr speech was $500,-. He was without comparison the most sought-after speaker at lunches etc. in the country.
 
When he was going to hold a speech, and the toastmaster had introduced him, Rockne could stay and look for a couple of seconds at the audience, without saying a word. It is told about those moments that: "It always seemed longer than it was. It was like he knew that he had the ability to keep the audienceīs interest. The moment was filled with dramatic expertation".