Golden Glory: Notre Dame Football's Enduring Legacy of Triumphs and Tradition
In the heart and sole of college football is the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Irish in their blue jerseys and iconic gold helmets have faced the field for centuries and are one of college footballs oldest teams. They hold a rich dense history filled with victories and traditions. They stand alone in the collegiate football world as they are not affiliated with a conference and compete against the toughest competition every season.
In the early days of Irish football stands a very important name, Knute Kenneth Rockne. This man organized and built the Notre Dame Fighting Irish into the powerhouse program they are now today. He lead the early beginnings of Notre Dame football during the early 20th century. Rockne took the reins of head coach for the Irish in 1918 and helped the Irish achieve three national championships. He also was famed for his "Four Horsmen" backfield and his emphasis on the involvment of the forward pass which help change the game forever. Sadly, we tragicly loss Rockne in a plane crash in 1931, but his legacy still last today in the Notre Dame football dynasty.
Coaching legend Lou Holtz started his time at Notre Dame in 1986. He took over the role with high expecations upon him based on the legacy and success of the Fighting Irish. With these expectations upon him he secured a national championship with the Fighting Irish in 1988. Making him a Notre Dame legend and coach that the Fighting Irish would keep around for a long time.
Most recently, Brian Kelly helped the Fighting Irish complete a long stretch of success in the collegiate football world. Kelley took the reins as head coach in 2010 and started to produce success quickly. He helped lead the Fighting Irish to consecutive appearances in the College Football Playoff. Although Kelley fell short in the securing a national championship like Rockne and Holtz. He still lead the Irish the very successful seasons and later moved on to take the head coach role at LSU in the SEC.
On the field in college football, presence is everything. If you look weak and put on a act of defense, teams will run all over you all day long. Especially a powerhouse like Notre Dame. Well to do so Notre Dame has adopted some very iconic and one of a kind helmets that can't be mathced. These helmets are very unique as they are painted gold that shines. The orgin of these helmets dates back to when Knute Rockne was the head coach for the Irish. In 1959, equipment manager Joe Myers, inspired by the allure of the Golden Dome atop the Main Building on Notre Dame's campus, introduced the metallic gold helmets. These helmets are undoubtly the most iconic helmets to hit the field of play.