The Biggest Game of Them All: Notre Dame, Michigan State and the Fall of 1966

A look at the epic gridiron showdown between Notre Dame and Michigan State offers play-by-play commentary and discusses football and television

On Nov. 19, 1966, the two top-rated college football teams in the country met in a showdown, the first time in decades that Nos. 1 and 2, both undefeated, had done battle so late in the season. Notre Dame, coached by Ara Parseghian, and Michigan State, led by Duffy Daugherty, had both been rebuilding after several poor seasons. Each was drawing from national pools of players: nearly every Catholic football star in the country (and plenty of non-Catholics) wanted to play for the Fighting Irish, while Daugherty had tapped into the vast reservoir of black talent in the South (colleges below the Mason-Dixon line had no black players). Of the 44 starters that day, 25 received All-America mention and 33 would go on to pro careers. The game ended with the score 10-10 after Parseghian decided to play for the tie (and so preserve Notre Dame's No. 1 ranking), a decision that is still hotly debated. Sportswriter Celizic ( Courage ) deftly traces the seasons of the gridiron giants, ascribing a significance to the game that only readers indifferent toward college football are likely to argue with.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Celizic, who currently writes for the Bergen, New Jersey Record , was a University of Notre Dame freshman in 1966. That year, the two best college football teams in the country were those of the University of Notre Dame and of Michigan State University. Celizic writes intimately about the season, leading up to the crucial match in which the two great teams vied for the national championship. Profiling players and coaches on each side, he praises Michigan coach Daugherty for bringing in Southern black players and backs Notre Dame coach Ara Parseghian's decision to accept a tie. This book is comparable to Ben Brown's Saint Bobby and the Barbarians: The Inside Story of a Tumultous Season with the Florida State Seminoles ( LJ 9/1/92). Recommended for sports collections.
- Morey Berger, St. Joseph's Hosp. Medical Lib., Tucson
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.