Notre Dame football: Top 5 quarterbacks in school history
Johnny Lujack is the greatest quarterback in Notre Dame football history. That sounds strange, but it’s true. Angelo Bertelli’s successor, Lujack, was with Notre Dame for three different National Championships.
He was twice a unanimous All-American selection. He was the AP Player of the Year, Sportsnews Player of the Year, and Heisman Trophy winner. All of those honors came in his legendary 1947 season. He’s also in the College Football Hall of Fame. To go along with his honors in football, he lettered in four sports while at Notre Dame.
That’s quite the resume.
Lujack’s time at Notre Dame would be broken up by World War II. This allowed his career to span from 1942 until 1947. He served in the United States Navy, tracking down German U-Boats. Upon returning to Notre Dame, Lujack made himself an American sports legend.
Lujack led Notre Dame to two straight National Championships in 1946 and 1947. During those two seasons, Notre Dame didn’t lose a single game and only had one tie. That was a 0-0 finish against Army, at Yankee Stadium.
While not as accomplished as a passer as Bertelli, Lujack brought the running game back to the quarterback position for Notre Dame. He had a career passer rating of 119.1, and a career completion percentage of 51.4%. These are obviously not numbers that jump off the page, but they were excellent for the time period he played in.
His rushing ability was excellent. During the 1947 season, Lujack averaged 11.6 yards per carry. This helped him to operate the T-Formation, and keep opposing defenses honest. It also opened up the offense to score 32 points per game in that unbeaten, untied, 1947 run.
Like Bertelli, Lujack played during a forgotten time in Notre Dame history. The nation was either engaged in or just getting over World War II. He played post-Rockne but pre-modern memory. It’s simply too easy for the casual, or simply modern fan to forget about Lujack’s greatness.
He may not be the most common of names, but his resume and talent are so great that it is impossible to deny that Johnny Lujack is the greatest Notre Dame quarterback ever.