1947 Heisman Trophy Winner and Notre Dame Quarterback Johnny Lujack passes away at age 98 Johnny Lujack, the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback who led Notre Dame to three national championships in the 1940s, died in Florida on Tuesday following a brief illness. He was 98. Lujack’s death was confirmed by his granddaughter, Amy Schiller, who said he had entered hospice care recently after having been in good health until a couple of weeks ago. “He was not only a legend in Notre Dame football and the sports world,” Schiller said, “he was a legend as a father and grandfather and great grandfather.”
Lujack is considered one of the greatest Notre Dame players of all time, having won the Heisman in 1947 and leading the Irish to national titles in 1943, 1946 and 1947. Lujack posted a 20-1-1 record as starting quarterback for coach Frank Leahy. He played for the Irish in 1942 and ‘43, served two years in the Navy during World War II, and returned to Notre Dame for the 1946 and ’47 seasons. He was The Associated Press athlete of the year in 1947, when he was a first-round draft pick of the Chicago Bears. He played four seasons for the Bears, leading the team in scoring each year before retiring at age 26.
While Lujack had plenty of offensive highlights at Notre Dame, he is best remembered for a play he made as a defensive back in an era when players stayed on the field for nearly every play. A standing-room-only crowd of about 75,000 packed Yankee Stadium in 1946 to see No. 1 Army the two-time defending national champions face then-rival Notre Dame, which was ranked No. 2. Lujack made the game-saving tackle against Doc Blanchard in a 0-0 tie. That contest is frequently referred to as the game of the century.
Lujack, in a 1996 interview with the AP, said that was the game he was asked about most often. He downplayed the tackle of Blanchard, who won the Heisman in 1945. “You were back there,” Lujack said. “You were supposed to make the tackle.” Lujack finished third in Heisman voting in 1946 before he won the award as the college game’s outstanding player the next year, when he completed 61 of 109 passes for 777 yards with nine touchdowns in leading the Irish to a 9-0 record and their second straight title.
He took over as the starting quarterback for the top-ranked Irish in 1943, after Angelo Bertelli left after six games to join the Marines. Among the other Irish greats, he played with were Creighton Miller, Terry Brennan, Emil Sitko, George Connor, Bill Fischer and 1949. “We always felt that a game was kind of an easy scrimmage because the scrimmages we had against each other were mean and rough,” Lujack once said. The one loss in his college football career came in the final game of his sophomore season against Great Lakes Naval Training Station, a military base team that had some college players serving in the military, including some Notre Dame players. Lujack intercepted eight passes as a rookie with the Bears and in 1949 he threw for 468 yards and six touchdowns in a 52-21 win over the Chicago Cardinals. He played in the Pro Bowl his final two seasons before retiring. He served as an assistant coach at Notre Dame in Leahy’s final two seasons. He then moved to Davenport, Iowa, where he owned an auto dealership until 1988.
Purdue Men’s Basketball to face Gonzaga in the opening round of the Maui Invitational The Purdue University men’s basketball team will face Gonzaga in the opening round of the 2023 Maui Jim Maui Invitational in Hawaii. Their quarterfinal round matchup will tip-off at 5pm Indiana Time on Monday, Nov. 20. The winner of the game will face the winner of Syracuse vs. Tennessee. It’s the second straight season Purdue will play Gonzaga. The two programs faced each other in last year’s semifinal round of the Phil Knight Legacy. The Boilermakers won that contest by the final of 84-66. Purdue currently has a 3-0 all-time record against the Bulldogs. This will be the Boilermakers’ fourth appearance in the Maui Invitational, but their first appearance in the tournament since 2014.
Ahmed Hafnaoui No. 2 Qualifier in 800 Free, Lilly King Takes Fourth in 100 Breast After earning a silver medal on Sunday in the 400-meter freestyle, Ahmed Hafnaoui continued his strong worlds performance for Tunisia in the 800-meter free heats on Tuesday at the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka Japan. His 7:41.97 was second best in the heats, meaning he’ll swim in lane five during the final which is set for 7 am this morning. Two Time Olympic Gold Medalist Lilly King was fourth in the women’s 100-meter breaststroke in a time of 1:06.02.
Two Indiana University Field Hockey players to represent their respective National Teams Indiana Field Hockey’s Arabella Loveridge and Inés Garcia Prado have both advanced in their respective national field hockey teams’ development system. Loveridge, who is entering her junior year at Indiana, has made New Zealand’s U21 National Team as a member of the Extended Squad. Garcia Prado earned a roster spot on Spain’s U18 National Team this month. As members of their respective national teams, they get the opportunity to compete in high-level, international competition.
Garcia Prado recently competed in the 2023 EuroHockey U18 Championships from July 7-17 in Krefeld, Germany. Spain took third place, defeating England 1-0, and earned Garcia Prado and her teammates a bronze medal. Garcia Prado was excited about the team taking third place and for the opportunity to play for Spain. “It is such an incredible feeling,” Garcia Prado said. “When I was younger, I dreamed of being able to play for Spain, and now I am so happy and proud to be doing what I love the most while representing my country.”
Loveridge started training with New Zealand’s U21 team in March, but officially joined the team in July. The rest of her summer is dedicated to training with the team prior to the fall collegiate season. In October, a final camp will be held that will result in 18 players being named to represent New Zealand in the 2023 FIH Junior World Cup (JWC). The JWC will take place from November 29 to December 10 in Santiago, Chile. Loveridge believes that her time with the New Zealand national team will elevate her play when she gets back to Bloomington. “Training in a high-quality environment has taught me new skills and helped me improve as a player, and I hope to bring this quality to Indiana to help the team,” Loveridge said of her experience. “I have now put myself in a competitive mindset which helps prepare me for the season ahead.”
Former Indiana University Women’s Soccer player Gabi Rennie is representing New Zealand in the Women’s World Cup Former Indiana University Women’s Soccer Gabi Rennie played the final seven minutes of New Zealand’s opening 1-0 win over Norway at the FIFA Women’s World Cup which is being co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia. Rennie who turned 22 on July 7, played at Indiana University from 2020-21 scoring one goal against Michigan State in 21 matches. She transferred to Arizona State and scored 3 goals in 13 games in the 2022 season. Rennie has played in 24 matches for the New Zealand National team with 2 goals both of them coming two years ago on July 20, 2021, against Australia in the Toyko Olympics and July 30, 2021, against South Korea in a friendly. Rennie did not play in New Zealand’s second World Cup match against the Philippines which was a 1-0 loss. New Zealand is 1-1 with 3 points and faces Switzerland in the final group match on Sunday.
In 2017 Rennie won the OFC Under 16 Women’s Championship making 6 appearances for the New Zealand U-17 National Team along with third place finish at the 2018 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Uruguay. Rennie made 7 appearances and scored three goals for the New Zealand U-20 National Team and won the OFC U-19 Women’s Championship in 2019. She played for Canterbury United Pride in the National Women’s League winning three straight championships from 2018 through 2020 and was the league top goal scorer in 2020.
Seven Former Indiana University Basketball players see their teams eliminated in the Basketball Tournament Seven Former Indiana University Men’s Basketball Players have been eliminated from The Basketball Tournament in the first and second rounds which are taking place at seven sites around the country to win a winner take all prize of One Million Dollars. Here is a look at the guys who have played so far during the tournament.
Clifton Moore played 29 minutes and 25 seconds as Big 5 lost to the defending champions Blue Collar U which is the University of Buffalo Alumni Team 78-77 in the first round of the Syracuse New York Regional. Moore scored 13 points on 6-11 shooting from the field and 1-2 from three-point range. He pulled down 6 rebounds along with a block, an assist and two turnovers. Curtis Jones Jr played 13 minutes and 13 seconds as the Happy Valley Hoopsters which the Penn State Alumni Team lost to the Nerd Team 54-49 in the first round of the Syracuse Regional. Jones scored 2 points and was 0-6 from the field along with 0-3 shooting from three-point range and was 2-2 from the free throw line. Jones pulled down 2 rebounds along with an assist and a block.
Freddie McSwain Jr played 3 minutes and 52 seconds as the Juco Products lost to Heart Fire 69-66 in the First Round of the Wichita Regional. McSwain pulled down a rebound and committed a turnover and did not take any shot attempts. Parker Stewart and Michael Durr who are playing for the B1 Ballers lost to the Wichita State Alumni Team called the Aftershocks 66-54 in the first round of the Wichita Regional. Stewart played 19 Minutes and 5 Seconds scoring 4 points. Durr played 22 Minutes and 20 Seconds Scoring 4 points. Stewart was 1-4 from the field with all his shots coming from three-point range and 1-2 from the free throw line along with 2 rebounds and a turnover. Durr was 1-10 from the field, 1-6 from three-point range and 1-2 from the free throw line. Durr pulled down 7 rebounds, 2 blocks and committed a turnover. Devin Davis played 7 minutes and 49 seconds as the Money Team lost to the University of Cincinnati Alumni Team Called Nasty Nati 88-76 in the first round of the Xavier Regional. Davis pulled down 3 rebounds and had 1 steal as he did not have any attempts from the field.
Zip Em Up which is the Xavier alumni team that features Remy Abell, Bloomington South Grad Dee Davis along with Indianapolis Natives Paul Scruggs and Trevon Bluiett Beat Georgia Kings 84-78 in the first round of the Xavier Regional. Abell played 11 minutes and 6 seconds and was 0-1 from the field with a rebound and an assist. Scruggs played 12 minutes and 40 seconds and scored 2 points. Scruggs went 1-4 from the field and 0-1 from three-point range. Scruggs dished out 5 assists, pulled down 3 rebounds, 2 steals and committed three turnovers. Bluiett scored 15 points in 22 minutes and 55 seconds of action going 5-10 from three-point range, pulling down 5 rebounds and 1 Steal. Davis played 2 minutes and 49 seconds going 0-1 from three-point range, with a rebound, a block and a turnover. In the Second Round it was a battle of City Rivals as Nasty Nati beat Zip Em Up 77-73. Remy Abell led the way scoring 9 points in 23 minutes and 9 seconds of action. Abell went 3-6 from the field, 1-1 from three-point range and 2-2 from the free throw line along with 2 blocks. Bluiett scored 6 points in 26 minutes and 41 seconds going 2-9 from the field and 1-8 from three-point range along with 1-3 from the free throw line. Bluiett pulled down 6 rebounds with an assist and steal. Scruggs was 0-1 from three-point range in 3 minutes and 10 seconds of action and Davis did not play.
Fort Wayne Champs based out of Fort Wayne beat the East Tennessee State Alumni Team called Bucketneers 85-52 in the first round of the Xavier Regional then lost to The Program for Autism 86-74 in the second round. The Tournament continues with more regional action this week with the Semifinals and Finals in Philadelphia next week.
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