How good a coach was Knute Rockne? It hardly matters. Killed in a plane crash at the height of his fame, his 1931 death was dubbed “a national disaster” by President Hoover, and his fable was forever set as a leader of men and the father of the Fighting Irish. Still, this son of Norwegian immigrants was good enough to have deserved most of the legend he so carefully and systematically constructed around himself. In 12 years at Notre Dame, he transformed a regional Catholic college into a football powerhouse of national interest. His teams marched through a stunning five seasons without a loss. When the famed “Four Horsemen” in his backfield flagged, he had the memory of George “Win one for the Gipper!” Gipp, a true reprobate who in no way resembles the sappy deathbed myth Rockne perpetuated, to wave for inspiration. The Rock’s knowledge of the game and talent as a coach wasn’t nearly as important or lasting as his unabashed ability to promote and market his school, his players, his program, and, ultimately, himself.
A solid sports biographer, Ray Robinson has previously parsed the lives of Lou Gehrig and Christy Mathewson. Here, he takes the stone statue that has come down to us of St. Knute and dusts it off until the cracks are visible. Despite that, Robinson’s respect for Rockne and his accomplishments come through clearly both on the field and off. In one telling incident early in his coaching career, Rockne, still several years from embracing Catholicism, stands up staunchly to the anti-Catholic sentiments of an Indiana senator and the KKK. “The more Rockne was exposed to prejudice around him,” writes Robinson, “the more he was attracted to the religiosity of his surroundings.” Which, in the end, made Notre Dame football not just his job, but his mission. –Jeff Silverman
To say that Knute Rockne was the best coach who ever lived is to understate his importance to football. True, in a mere twelve years, his “Fighting Irish” won 105 games, including five astonishing undefeated seasons. But Rockne was more than the sum of his victories–he was an icon, a legend
on a par with Babe Ruth, a sports giant who, more than anyone, made football an American obsession.
In Rockne of Notre Dame, Ray Robinson delivers a memorable portrait of one of the great American sports figures. The book gives us colorful descriptions of such Rockne teams as the undefeated 1924 eleven led by the illustrious Four Horsemen, and the 1930 squad, Rockne’s last and greatest. Here
too are vivid accounts of some of the great games in Notre Dame history, including epic battles with arch rivals Army, Nebraska, Carnegie Tech, and USC. But the heart of the book is Rockne himself. A renowned motivator whose “Win one for the Gipper” is the most famous locker-room speech ever, Rockne
was also football’s most brilliant innovator, a pioneer of the forward pass, a master of the psychological ploy, and an early advocate of conditioning. Though Robinson doesn’t pull punches, Rockne emerges as an exemplary and complex figure, a fierce competitor who was generous in victory and
defeat, an inspiring father figure to his players, and a man so revered nationwide that when he died in a plane crash in 1931, at the height of his career, he was mourned by the entire country.
A feast for all Notre Dame grads and for subway alumni everywhere, this engaging biography is the finest portrait we have of the man who changed football in America.
Order Rockne of Notre Dame: The Making of a Football Legend from Amazon for $9.99
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Wins, Losses, and Lessons
The Day of Battle : The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944
