Notre Dame Football
I was raised on Notre Dame football. Being a native of South Bend, my mom and dad would take me out to games on fall Saturday afternoons. When I was old enough, I would go out by myself, and that continues to this day when Joyce and I will go up on vacation every October to see a game or two.
In the span of years in the late 60’s and early 70’s, Joe Theisman was the QB for ND. When my two brothers and I would come home from school in the afternoon, we would throw the football around in the front yard. Joe was dating the girl next door. He happened to drop by when we were out there, and we threw the football around with him. Obviously, the things he learned from us that afternoon propelled him into the great NFL career that he had. I did tell him to go out and “break a leg”, but it wasn’t meant literally.
Trivia: Joe pronounced his last name “THEEZ-MAN”, but when he was at ND, a dorm hung a banner out the window that said “Theisman for Heisman.” He kept that pronunciation. Now if I had gone there, they could have changed the “Heisman” to “Leyes-man”, and no pronunciations would need to be changed.
In the span of years in the late 60’s and early 70’s, Joe Theisman was the QB for ND. When my two brothers and I would come home from school in the afternoon, we would throw the football around in the front yard. Joe was dating the girl next door. He happened to drop by when we were out there, and we threw the football around with him. Obviously, the things he learned from us that afternoon propelled him into the great NFL career that he had. I did tell him to go out and “break a leg”, but it wasn’t meant literally.
Trivia: Joe pronounced his last name “THEEZ-MAN”, but when he was at ND, a dorm hung a banner out the window that said “Theisman for Heisman.” He kept that pronunciation. Now if I had gone there, they could have changed the “Heisman” to “Leyes-man”, and no pronunciations would need to be changed.
posted by Harold Leyes @ Sunday, August 09, 2009
2 Comments
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2 Comments:
You are absolutely HILARIOUS!
It's even better because you don't look funny...well maybe a little. Thanks for the story, I saw that game live and still "can't look" at the replays. Joe seems like a level headed guy to me, but so did Willie Joe, until our neighbor across the street told me he watched him grow up, and he was a "gangster" in High School.
I work with Turning Hearts Ministries in Tampa. Council Rudolph, one of the "Original 11", is our Deacon and my friend.
One day I asked Council about his most memorable moment from that first season in 1976. Council said it was Coach John McKays reply to the press " when asked about his team's execution. "I'm all for it"
Ya' just can't make stuff like that up, can you?
Eagerly waiting for your next blog commentary...
Danny B
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