Gerry Faust, who was famously plucked from an Ohio high school to lead Notre Dame’s storied football program in 1981, died Monday, his family confirmed in a statement. He was 89.
Faust, who had no college coaching experience prior to replacing Dan Devine in what was dubbed the “Bold Experiment,” had a 30-26-1 record from 1981 to 1985. He guided the Fighting Irish to just one bowl victory, 19-18 over Boston College in the 1983 Liberty Bowl, and his teams lost at least four games in each of his five seasons on the sideline.
Despite Notre Dame’s mediocre stretch during his tenure, Faust was grateful for the unlikely opportunity to live out his dream by coaching the Fighting Irish.
“I only had 26 miserable days at Notre Dame, and that’s when we lost,” Faust told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. “Other than that, I was the happiest guy in the world. If I had the opportunity to do it again and knew the results would be the same, I’d do it again in a minute.”
The son of a successful high school coach in Ohio, Faust had grown up dreaming about playing at Notre Dame. At an early age, Faust told anyone who would listen that he was going to play football for the Irish.
“I’d loved Notre Dame as long as I can remember,” Faust wrote in his book, “The Golden Dream.” “When I was in the fifth or sixth grade, I’d ride my bike to practice with my cleats slung over my handlebars, my helmet on my head, whistling the ‘Notre Dame Victory March.’ Even in the fourth grade, I knew what I wanted and I wasn’t bashful about telling others.”
As a high school senior, Faust visited Notre Dame the day before the season finale against USC. Back then, recruiting rules allowed college teams to work out recruits. Faust was one of 18 quarterbacks on campus that day, according to his book.
“I was about eighth in line,” Faust said. “After I saw the first seven throw the football, I knew I couldn’t play football at Notre Dame. They were too good. My next dream was to be the coach at Notre Dame.”
Notre Dame offered Faust a partial scholarship, but he didn’t accept it because he didn’t want to burden his parents with the cost of tuition. He played quarterback at the University of Dayton from 1955 to ’57.
In 1960, Faust started building a new football program with borrowed equipment at Archbishop Moeller High School, an all-boys…
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