1929 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
ConferenceIndependent
Record9–0
Head coach
Offensive schemeNotre Dame Box
Base defense7–2–2
CaptainJohn B. Law
Home stadiumSoldier Field
Seasons
← 1928
1930 →
1929 Midwestern college football independents records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Notre Dame   –   9 – 0 – 0
Detroit   –   7 – 1 – 1
Haskell   –   8 – 2 – 0
Loyola (IL)   –   5 – 2 – 1
Michigan State   –   5 – 3 – 0
John Carroll   –   5 – 3 – 1
Marquette   –   4 – 3 – 1
Butler   –   4 – 4 – 0
Wabash   –   4 – 5 – 0
Saint Louis   –   3 – 4 – 1
DePaul   –   2 – 7 – 0
Kent State   –   1 – 7 – 0
Valparaiso   –   1 – 7 – 0
Ball State   –   0 – 7 – 0
Rankings from Dickinson System

The 1929 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team was an American football team that represented the University of Notre Dame as an independent during the 1929 college football season. In their 12th year under head coach Knute Rockne, the Irish compiled a perfect 9–0 record and outscored opponents by a total of 145 to 38, with four shutouts.[1]

The Dickinson System rated Notre Dame No. 1 with 25.00 points, ahead of No. 2 Purdue (23.60), both from the State of Indiana.[2] In later analyses, Notre Dame was also selected as the 1929 national champion by Billingsley Report, Boand System, Dickinson System, Dunkel System, College Football Researchers Association, Helms Athletic Foundation, National Championship Foundation, Poling System, and Jeff Sagarin's ELO-Chess system.[3]

Two Notre Dame player, quarterback Frank Carideo and guard Jack Cannon, were consensus first-team players on the 1929 All-America college football team.[4]

Coach Rockne was stricken with what was variously described as an infection or a blood clot in his right leg prior to the second game of the season against Navy. He was able to attend only two of the remaining game on the side lines. Assistant coach Tom Lieb served as the interim head coach.[5][6]

With the razing of Cartier Field, the team played no home games in South Bend, Indiana. Three "home" games were played at Soldier Field in Chicago. The new Notre Dame Stadium opened for the 1930 season.

Schedule

DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
October 5at Indiana
W 14–016,111–22,000[7]
October 12vs. Navy
W 14–764,681–71,000[8]
October 19Wisconsin
W 19–085,000–90,000[9][10]
October 26at Carnegie Tech
W 7–065,000–66,000[11]
November 2at Georgia Tech
W 26–622,000[12]
November 9Drake
  • Soldier Field
  • Chicago, IL
W 19–745,000–55,000[13][14]
November 16USC
W 13–12120,000–123,000[15][16]
November 23at Northwestern
W 26–650,000[17]
November 30vs. Army
W 7–079,408–82,000[18]

[19]

Personnel

Players

[20]

Staff

[20]

Awards and honors

Source:[21]

References

  1. ^ "1929 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  2. ^ "National Trophy to Notre Dame". The Miami Herald. December 2, 1929. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ 2020 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). Indianapolis: The National Collegiate Athletic Association. July 2020. pp. 112–114. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  4. ^ "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. p. 7. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
  5. ^ "Rockne's double keeps Ramblers in front". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. November 25, 1929. p. 14.
  6. ^ "To Direct Team From a Wheelchair, Maybe". The Oshkosh Northwestern. November 12, 1929. p. 19 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ John W. Stahr (October 6, 1929). "Elder Stars as N.D. Wins, 14-0: Runs 24 and 59 Yards to Beat Indiana Eleven". The South Bend Tribune. pp. 1, Sports 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ John H. Boyle (October 13, 1929). "Notre Dame Defeats Navy: Ramblers Take Game, 14 to 7, While 71,000 Fans Throng Staddium; Frank Carideo Stars As Rockne's Eleven Overcomes Middies' Early Lead for Third Successive Victory". The Baltimore Sun. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ John W. Stahr (October 20, 1929). "85,000 See Notre Dame Win: Rocknemen Get 'On' Wisconsin to Tune of 19-0; Tom Lieb Directs Team to Victory at Soldier Field in Chicago". The South Bend Tribune. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Soldier Field Event History". Archived from the original on July 13, 2014.
  11. ^ Max E. Hannum (October 27, 1929). "65,000 See Notre Dame Beat Carnegie, 7-0: Elevens Wage Stubborn Fight; Savoldi Jumps Over Line for Only Score on Fourth Attempt". The Pittsburgh Press. pp. Sporting 1, 6 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Ralph McGill (November 3, 1929). "Irish Express Rambles Through Stubborn Jackets, 26-6: Fleet Backs and Reserves Defeat Tech; Man-Power of Notre Dame Eleven Plays Prominent Part". The Atlanta Constitution. pp. Sports 1, 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Drake Makes N.D. Fight To Win: Leads Irish For Three Periods But Loses, 19-7". The South Bend Tribune. November 10, 1929. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Charles Nevada (November 10, 1929). "Notre Dame Triumphs Over Plucky Drake Team, 19-7". Chicago Tribune. p. II-2 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ John W. Stahr (November 17, 1929). "Notre Dame Beats Trojans: Irish Capture 13-12 Victory Before 123,000". The South Bend Tribune. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "600,000 Attend 13 Banner Games on U.S. Gridirons". Chicago Tribune. November 17, 1929. p. 28 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ Walter Eckersall (November 24, 1929). "Notre Dame's Long Runs Rout N. U., 26 to 6: Irish Line Rips Holes in Purple Defense; Savoldi Stars". Chicago Tribune. p. II-1 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ Paul Gallico (December 1, 1929). "Notre Dame Nips Army, 7-0: Elder's 98-Yard Run On Intercepted Pass Saves Day for Irish". Daily News. pp. 80, 82 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ 2014 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football media guide. Retrieved 2015-Jul-12.
  20. ^ a b "Official Football Review Notre Dame University 1929" (PDF). Notre Dame University. pp. 15, 18–19. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  21. ^ 2014 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football supplement Archived 2015-03-26 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2015-Jul-12.
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