Saturday will be 23 years to the day since Notre Dame’s last trip to Chapel Hill to face the Tar Heels. In that game a sophomore quarterback came off the bench to jum start a struggling offense as the Irish trailed 14-7 in the fourth quarter. That sophomore quarterback rallied the Irish to a 21-14 victory with a touchdown pass in the final minute of the game. The following week, that same sophomore quarterback came off the bench in the fourth quarter again to rally the Irish to a 31-30 victory after trailing 30-10.
That sophomore quarterback was Joe Montana. Here’s a video of Montana rallying the Irish to victory over North Carolina on that Saturday afternoon in October of 1975.
Frank Vitovitch has been Co-Owner and Editor in Chief of UHND.com since joining forces with Kyle Flavin in 1999. Since that time, he has written over 2,000 articles covering Notre Dame football, recruiting, and basketball. He also works with all staff and external writers on all articles published on UHND.com. Frank's love for Notre Dame football started at a young age watching Rocket Ismail give opposing coaches ulcers in the late 1980's. By day Frank works in marketing and holds a degree in Digital Media from Drexel University. Frank's work has been cited by online/print editions of NBC Sports, ESPN, and Sports Illustrated and has been quoted on air by ESPN's Collin Cowherd. He's conducted interviews with Notre Dame legends Rocket Ismail, Randy Kinder, Lee Becton, Reggie Brooks, Michael Stonebreaker, and Ned Bolcar among others over his 20+ years of covering Notre Dame football. He's also been published in the print edition of USA Today Sports Weekly and the USA Today College Football Preview multiple times. Other Published Works/Citations for Frank Three Reasons Notre Dame Will Beat Alabama - USA Today Notre Dame Suspends WR Kevin Stepherson, RB C.J. Holmes Indefinitely - Bleacher Report Notre Dame / Ohio State Fiesta Bowl Preview - Eleven Warriors Brace Yourself: The Fighting Irish are Relevant Again - Sports on Earth Interviews with the Enemy: A Q&A with Frank Vitovitch of UHND - Yahoo! Sports Five Good Minutes: Notre Dame Football Preview With UHND.com - BC Interruption Vicious Electronic Questioning with UHND - MGO Blog
Comments
2 RESPONSESMore on Notre Dame Football Highlights
Notre Dame Football Highlights
Notre Dame Blue-Gold Game Recap: Spencer Porath Wins It With Late 43-Yard Field Goal
Notre Dame Football Highlights
Highlights: Notre Dame Erupts for 70 in Senior Day Beatdown of Syracuse
Notre Dame Football Highlights
Highlights: Notre Dame Defense Suffocates Pitt in Ranked Showdown
That was 33 yrs ago and my recollection is that the Irish were down by 13 in the 4th qtr. Rich Slager was the starting quarterback. He started again the next week at Air Force when Joe came in again and rallied the Irish from 30-10. He didn’t play again until the third game in 77, against Purdue, another comeback, as 3rd string in that game. Went on to win the NC.
Maybe if we have a large lead in the fourth quarter, Maybe Charlie will let Nate Montana finish off the game.