NCAAF Notre Dame Fighting Irish

General Information

• NCAA Division: Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS)
• Conference: Independent (1887-2019; 2021-current)
• City: South Bend, Indiana
• Stadium: Notre Dame Stadium
• Bowl Game Appearances: 39

Championships

• Championships: 20
• National Championships: 20 (1919, 1920, 1924, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1938, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1964, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1973, 1977, 1988, 1989, 1993)
• Conference Titles: None
• Divisional Championships: None

Past Conferences:

• Partially Affiliated with ACC in 2020

Team History

The University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish are a Division I FBS Football team based in South Bend, Indiana. Initially founded in 1887, Notre Dame has an overall record of 930–332–42. One of the most popular college football programs around the world, Notre Dame began its legendary program in 1887. During its run in the 19th Century, the Fighting Irish posted a moderate record of 31 wins, 15 losses, and four ties against a diverse variety of opponents, ranging from local high school teams to other universities.

In 1913, Notre Dame’s performance during the season helped change the game of football as a whole, with their use of the newly invented forward pass, where the quarterback throws the ball to a receiver while still in motion. Before this, most passing attempts were tossed plays either laterally or the receivers would stop motion and wait for the ball to come to them.

Former player Knute Rockne became Notre Dame’s head coach in 1918 and the program became a nationwide success under his tenure. With a record of 105 wins, 12 losses, and five ties, his wins account for over 12 percent of Notre Dame’s overall total wins. Rockne led the program to three national championships, five undefeated seasons, and a victory in the 1925 Rose Bowl over Stanford. The win over Stanford clinched the 1924 national title for the unbeaten Fighting Irish, who were led by the “Four Horsemen” rushing offense.

Rockne’s 1931 Plane Crash

After Rockne died in a plane crash in 1931, the Fighting Irish still had successful seasons ahead, but didn’t return to major championship glory until the next decade. Coach Frank Leahy led Notre Dame to four more national championships, six undefeated seasons, and a streak of 39 games without a loss (37 wins and two ties) during his tenure.

After limited success in the late 1950s and early 1960s, Notre Dame still claimed more national titles, this time under coach Ara Parseghian. More championships came over the next three decades under other notable coaches such as Dan Devine and Lou Holtz; the lowest point for the Fighting Irish program came around the turn of the century. Notre Dame’s last big successful campaign came in 2012, when the Fighting Irish went 11-0 and appeared in the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game for the first time, but lost to Alabama in a 42-14 blowout.

There has been some controversy over just how many championships Notre Dame has won. The university claims 11 national titles, while the NCAA claims 13, but other polls that were used in the early 20th Century named the Fighting Irish champions in other years, in spite of not being officially recognized by the school or the NCAA.

Check out all the updated Notre Dame Fighting Irish stats, recent news, and betting tips, here at Point Spreads.

All-Time Records (CFB)

 Passing yards

⦁ Brady Quinn: 11,762

⦁ Ian Book: 8,948

⦁ Jimmy Clausen: 8,148

⦁ Tommy Rees: 7,670

⦁ Ron Powlus: 7,602

Rushing yards

⦁ Autry Denson: 4,318

⦁ Allen Pinkett: 4,131

⦁ Vagas Ferguson: 3,472

⦁ Darius Walker: 3,249

⦁ Josh Adams: 3,201

Receiving yards

⦁ Michael Floyd: 3,686

⦁ Golden Tate: 2,707

⦁ Jeff Samardzija: 2,593

⦁ Derrick Mayes: 2,512

⦁ William Fuller: 2,512

⦁ Tim Brown 2,493