Dat Tan Nguyen is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for seven seasons with the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas A&M Aggies, earning unanimous All-American honors. He is the first Vietnamese-American to be drafted, play, and be recognized as an All-Pro in the NFL.
Ara Raoul Parseghian was an American football player and coach who guided the University of Notre Dame to national championships in 1966 and 1973. He is noted for bringing Notre Dame's Fighting Irish football program back from years of futility into national prominence in 1964 and is widely regarded alongside Knute Rockne and Frank Leahy as a part of the "Holy Trinity" of Notre Dame head coaches.
Louis Leo Holtz is an American former football coach and television analyst. He served as the head football coach at the College of William & Mary (1969–1971), North Carolina State University (1972–1975), the New York Jets (1976), the University of Arkansas (1977–1983), the University of Minnesota (1984–1985), the University of Notre Dame (1986–1996), and the University of South Carolina (1999–2004), compiling a career college head coaching record of 249–132–7. Holtz's 1988 Notre Dame team went 12–0 with a victory in the Fiesta Bowl and was the consensus national champion. Holtz is the only college football coach to lead six different programs to bowl games and the only coach to guide four different programs to the final top 15 rankings.
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the college football team representing the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, north of the city of South Bend, Indiana. The team plays its home games at the campus's Notre Dame Stadium, which has a capacity of 77,622. Notre Dame is one of three schools that competes as an Independent at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level; however, they play five games a year against opponents from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), of which Notre Dame is a member in all other sports except ice hockey.
Stephen Taylor Beuerlein is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. After his playing career, he became an NFL and college football analyst for CBS.
Richard James Watters is an American former professional football player who was a running back for the San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, and Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). Watters played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, where he played wide receiver on the school's 1988 national champion team. He also won Super Bowl XXIX as a member of the 1994 49ers over the San Diego Chargers. Watters was known throughout his playing career for his outstanding receiving skills and his unique high-step running style, which earned him the nickname Ricky "Running" Watters, from ESPN sportscaster Chris Berman.
Robert Edwin Davie Jr. is an American former college football coach and player. He served as the head football coach at the University of Notre Dame from 1997 to 2001 and the University of New Mexico from 2012 to 2019. Davie worked for ESPN as a college football color commentator from 2002 to 2011.
Louis Leo "Skip" Holtz Jr. is an American football coach who is the head coach for the Birmingham Stallions of the United Football League (UFL). Holtz has led the team to two USFL Championships, in 2022 and 2023, and a UFL Championship in 2024. Previously, he was the head coach for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, South Florida Bulls, East Carolina Pirates, and the Connecticut Huskies. He has also served as an assistant coach for the South Carolina Gamecocks, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Colorado State Rams, and the Florida State Seminoles.
Jessie Willard Armstead is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the New York Giants and the Washington Redskins between 1993 and 2003. He was a three-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl section. He played college football at the University of Miami.
Johnny Chavis, nicknamed "The Chief", is an American football coach who was most recently the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach for the Birmingham Stallions of the United Football League (UFL). He previously served as defensive coordinator for the Arkansas Razorbacks football team and former defensive coordinator, linebacker coach, and associate head coach at the Tennessee Volunteers football, LSU Tigers football, and Texas A&M Aggies football programs.
Tony Rice is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the Canadian Football League (CFL) and World League of American Football (WLAF). Rice is perhaps best remembered as the dynamic option quarterback of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish's 1988 national championship team under coach Lou Holtz. Rice played professional football for three seasons for the CFL's Saskatchewan Roughriders and the Barcelona Dragons of the World League from 1990 to 1992. He also played for Munich Thunder in the Football League of Europe in 1994.
Gerald J. Tubbs was an American football linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys. He was selected by Chicago Cardinals in the first round of the 1957 NFL draft. After his retirement, he stayed with the Cowboys as an assistant coach for 22 years. He played college football at the University of Oklahoma.
Kevin Murray is an American former football quarterback at Texas A&M University and is currently a high school football coach. Murray's younger brother is former Major League Baseball (MLB) outfielder Calvin Murray. His son, Kyler, won the Heisman Trophy and was selected first overall in the 2019 NFL draft by the Arizona Cardinals.
The Notre Dame–USC football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team of the University of Notre Dame and USC Trojans football team of the University of Southern California, customarily played on the Saturday following Thanksgiving Day when the game is in Los Angeles or on the second or third Saturday of October when the game is in South Bend, Indiana.
Manti Malietau Louis Te'o is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, earning unanimous All-American honors and receiving multiple national awards. He was selected by the San Diego Chargers in the second round of the 2013 NFL draft and played in the NFL until 2021.
John Foley is a retired American college football linebacker who played for coach Lou Holtz at the University of Notre Dame. In 1985 while playing for St. Rita High School in Chicago, Illinois, he was named as the USA Today High School Defensive Player of the Year. Gatorade All America, Parade All America, US Army All America. Chicago Sun Times and Chicago Tribune Player of the Year. Ohio Club Top three players in the USA.
The 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the highest level of college football competition in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
Jaylon Smith is an American professional football linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and was selected 34th overall by the Dallas Cowboys in the second round of the 2016 NFL draft.
Zachary Edward Martin is an American professional football guard for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and was selected by the Cowboys in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft. Named to the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team, Martin has made nine Pro Bowl and nine All-Pro teams.
