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Notre Dame Football: A brief history of Irish transfer quarterbacks against the Irish

By Andrew Hall

SOUTH BEND, IN - NOVEMBER 21: Zach Frazer #10 of the Connecticut Huskies passes the football against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium on November 21, 2009 in South Bend, Indiana. Connecticut won 33-30 in double overtime. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
SOUTH BEND, IN - NOVEMBER 21: Zach Frazer #10 of the Connecticut Huskies passes the football against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium on November 21, 2009 in South Bend, Indiana. Connecticut won 33-30 in double overtime. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Notre Dame football will likely see an (un)friendly face on November 14th in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. How have transfer quarterbacks done against the Irish?

This summer, former Notre Dame Quarterback Phil Jurkovec received approval to play immediately for Boston College. Rumors recently swirled that Irish Head Coach Brian Kelly was blocking Jurkovec’s waiver for immediate eligibility. Whether real or perceived, this fall’s game between Notre Dame and Boston College is very intriguing.

Jurkovec is not the first former Notre Dame Quarterback to play against the Fighting Irish and he probably will not be the last.

Don O’Leary

Filtering through some of the early transfers is difficult. In 1948, one of Notre Dame’s first Quarterback transfers, Don O’Leary, transferred to Washington. The Irish played the Huskies in 1948 and 1949 but it is unclear whether or not O’Leary played against the Irish. Most likely, he did not. During that time, the Huskies had a record setting signal caller by the name of Don Heinrich. Heinrich, who played at a time when passing with not in vogue, still ranks 12th all-time in career passing at Washington.

Joe Felitsky

Gerry Faust inked Central Catholic Quarterback Joe Felitsky. Felitsky, a promising prospect, suffered medical issues at the conclusion of his high school career. Still, Faust honored his scholarship to Notre Dame. After the redshirting his Freshman season, he transferred to his home town team, Pitt. The Irish and Panthers met in 1986. While, Felitsky was not the starter in the contest. He did see the field against his former team. Felitsky only compiled a single statistic, 0 for 1 passing.

Zach Frazer

Frazer is perhaps the most well-known and embarrassing example of revenge transfer Quarterbacks. In 2006, he signed and enrolled at Notre Dame with hopes of succeeding Brady Quinn. After a redshirt season, Frazer competed with Junior Evan Sharpley, fellow Sophomore Demetrius Jones and early enrollee Jimmy Clausen. However, after spring football, it was clear that Frazer was the fourth out of those four Quarterbacks.

Next. Top 10 Recruiting Misses of the Brian Kelly Era. dark

However, Frazer landed the ultimate revenge on Nov. 21, 2009 when his new team, UCONN, traveled to South Bend to play a reeling Notre Dame team. Even though Frazer only threw for 141 yards on less than 50% passing, the Huskies beat Charlie Weis and Jimmy Clausen. In a strange twist of fate, the one-time Notre Dame Quarterback placed the final nail in Weis’ coffin.

When the Irish play Phil Jurkovec, fans hope history does not repeat itself.

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