The History of Notre Dame Quarterbacks

So, on last week’s podcast, Paul was running his mouth and said “name one Notre Dame quarterback that’s ever done anything in the NFL except Joe Montana.” Well, both Tommy and I were caught off guard by the statement, so we argued a little bit and moved on. That’s been eating at me. So, I asked myself the following questions: How Many Notre Dame Quarterbacks Played in the NFL? How Many Notre Dame Quarterbacks have been drafted? How many Notre Dame quarterbacks went pro? Here’s my brief history of Notre Dame Quarterbacks.

For reference, please feel free to give the podcast a listen to gain context.

Notre Dame has had 3 quarterbacks drafted #1 overall.
Notre Dame has had 10 quarterbacks drafted in the 1st round.
Notre Dame has had 2 quarterbacks drafted in the 2nd round.
Notre Dame has had 40 quarterbacks drafted in the NFL draft.
Notre Dame has had 52 quarterbacks play professional football.
Four of Notre Dame’s seven Heisman Trophy winners were quarterbacks.
Notre Dame has had the most quarterbacks ever start a Super Bowl (3) – Daryle Lamonica, Joe Montana and Joe Theismann.
Notre Dame is tied for #1 (with Michigan) having 5 Super Bowls won by ND quarterbacks.

Let’s take into account that the first NFL draft was in 1936. Notre Dame was a great football team long before that. So, let’s not leave out any of those amazing players.

1908-1909: Dan Hamilton played quarterback for the professional teams The Shelby Blues, The Canton Professionals and the Canton Bulldogs. He also played professional baseball.
1914: Alfred Henry “Big Dutch” Bergman played professional baseball for the Cleveland (baseball( Indians.
1919: Leonard Finlan “Pete” Bahan played for the Cleveland (football) Indians and the Buffalo All-Americans.
1922-1924: Harry Augustus Stuhldreher was a member of the legendary four horsemen. He played for the AFL’s Brookyln Horsemen and NFL’s Brookyln Lions when the teams merged.
1924-1926: Eugene Hoffman “Red” Edwards didn’t play professionally, but Art Rooney begged him to coach the Steelers and he declined. Fun fact for Paul.
1933-1934: Reyman Edward “Bud” Bonar played one year of professional football in the CFL.
1934-1936: Wally Fromhart was drafted by the Greenbay Packers in the 7th round of the 1936 draft.
1936-1937: Andy Puplis played for the Chicago Cardinals.
1938-1939: Steve Sitko was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the 22nd round of the 1940 draft.
1941-1943: Angelo Bertelli was the #1 overall pick in the 1944 NFL draft by the Boston Yanks. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1943. Bertelli instead signed with the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference. Bertelli also played for the Chicago Rockets between 1947 and 1948.
1945: Johnny Lujack was the #4 draft pick in the first round of the 1946 draft by the Chicago Bears. Pro Bowl (2x), First-Team All Pro (3x), Second team All-Pro (1), NFL rushing touchdown leader (1950), NFL Passing leader (1949), NFL passing touchdown leader (1949), 3 time national champion 1943, 1946 and 1947, Sporting Player of the Year (1947), Associated Press Athlete of the Year (1947) and Unanimous All-American (2x)
1946: Frank Dancewicz was the #1 overall draft pick by the Boston Yanks in the 1946 draft.

For those of you keeping track at home. That’s two Notre Dame quarterbacks taken in the first 4 picks of the 1946 NFL draft.

Fun fact: In the 17 NFL Drafts from 1944-60, Notre Dame had an astounding eight quarterbacks selected in the first round: Angelo Bertelli (1944), Frank Dancewicz (1946), John Lujack (also 1946), Frank Tripucka (1949), Bob Williams (1951), Ralph Gugliellmi (1955), Paul Hornung (1957) and George Izo (1960), with five of them No. 1 or 2 overall.

1948: Frank Tripucka was the #9 overall pick in the first round of the 1949 NFL Draft. He played for the Detroit Lions, Chicago Cardinals, Dallas Texans, left for the CFL with the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Ottawa Rough riders (not a typo) and then returned to the Denver Broncos only to make the All-Star game in 1960 and is in the Denver Hall of Fame. Tripucka ALLOWED Peyton Manning to wear #18, his retired number. It has since been re-retired.
1949-1950: Bob Williams was the #2 overall pick in the first round of the 1951 NFL Draft.
1950: John Mazur played for the CFL’s BC Lions
1951-1954: Ralph Guglielmi was the #4 overall pick in the first round of the 1955 NFL Draft.
1955-1956: Paul “Golden Boy” Hornung was the #1 overall pick in the first round of the 1957 NFL draft. He played for the Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints. Was the quarterback in Super Bowl I, NFL Champion (4x), Pro Bowl (2x), First-team All Pro (2x), Second-team All-Pro (1959), NFL Most Valuable Player (1961), NFL Rushing Touchdown leader (1960), Heisman Trophy Winner, Chic Harley Award, First team All-American (2x).
1957-1958: Robert Williams was drafted by the Chicago Bears as the 332 pick in the 28 round of the 1959 NFL Draft. Williams instead went to the University of Pittsburgh to become a Doctor. Fun fact about Willaims, he led Wilkes-Barre’s G.A.R Highschool to 3 state championships.
1959: George Izo was the #2 overall draft in the first round of the 1960 NFL draft by the St. Louis Cardinals and a first round pick in the 1960 AFL draft by the New York Titans. Izo decided to go to the NFL. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Washington Redskins, Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers.
1960: George Haffner was benched after the 2nd game of the 1960 season and transferred to McNeese State at NFL, but he was taken as the #280 pick in the 1965 draft by the Baltimore Colts. He was the last pick in the draft. He played one year with the Colts and then played with the Continental Football League’s Norfolk Neptunes.
1960-1962: Daryle Lamonica was the 188 pick in the 24th round of the 1963 NFL Draft and the 168 pick in the 12th round of the 1963 AFL Draft. He chose to play three seaons with the AFL’s Buffalo Bills. He also played seven seasons for the Oakland Raiders and one for the Southern California Sun of the World Football League. Pro Bowl (2x), AFL Champion (3x), AFL All-Star (3x), First-team All-AFL (2x), AFL MVP (2x), AFL passing yard leader (1969), AFL passing touchdowns leader (1967,1969), and AFL rushing touchdown leader (1964). Football Nation named Lamonica the 67th best quarterback since the 1970 merger.
1961-1963: Frank Budka was the #56 overall draft pick in the 4th round of the 1964 NFL Draft. He played for the Los Angels Rams and the Chicago Bears.
1963-1964: John Huarte was the #76 overall pick in the 6th round of the 1965 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles and the #12 overall pick in the 2nd round of the 1965 AFL Draft by the New York Jets. He chose to sign with the AFL’s Jets. He also played for the Boston Patriots, Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, Chicago Bears and the World Football League’s Memphis Southmen. Super Bowl IV Champion, Heisman Trophy Winner (1964) and All-American (1964).
1966-1968: Terry Hanratty was the #30 overall pick in the 2nd round of the 1969 draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Super Bowl IX and X champion and Sammy Baugh Trophy (1967).
1968-1970: Joe Theismann was the #99 pick in the 4th round of the 1971 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins. He was also selected in the 39th round of the 1971 MLB draft by the Twins. Negotiations failed with the Dolphins, so Theismann signed with the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL for three season. He would then play 9 seasons with the Washington Redskins. Super Bowl XVII Champion, NFL Most Valuable Player (1983), Pro Bowl (2x), First Team All Pro (1983), NFL Offensive Player of the Year (1983), Bert Bell Award (1982), CFL All-Star (2x), NFL Man of the Year (1982), First-team All-Amerian (1970), Academic All America (2x), Heisman Trophy runner up, Washington Redskins Hall of Fame.
1971: Bill Etter played three seasons for the CFL’s Hamilton Bear Cats.
1971-1974: Cliff Brown was the first African American to play quarterback at Notre Dame. He was drafted #427 in the 17th round of the 1974 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles.
1971-1974: Tony Clements went undrafted in the 1975 draft. But, he went on to play 12 years of professional football. He played for the CFL’s Ottawa Rough Riders (1975-1978), Saskatchewan Roughriders (1979), Hamilton Tiger-Cats (1979 and 1981-1982) and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (1983-1987). He played one season for the Kansas City Chiefs in 1980. CFL Most Outstanding Player (1987), Grey Cup (1976 and 1984), CFL passing yards leader (1979), CFL All-Star (7x), and CFL Most Outstanding Rookie (1975).
1975-1978: Joe Montana was the #82 pick in the third round of the 1979 NFL Draft by the San Franciso 49ers. Arguably the greatest professional quarterback in Notre Dame history. Super Bowl Champion (4x), Super Bowl MVP (3x), Pro Bowl (8x), First-team All-Pro (3x), Second-team All-Pro (2x), NFL Most Valuable Player (2x), NFL Offensive Player of the Year (1989), Bert Bell Award (1989), Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year (1990), AP Athlete of the Year (2x), NFL Comeback Player of the Year (1986), NFL passing touchdown leader (2x), #16 retired by San Francisco and National Champion (1977).
1975-1980: Rusty Lisch was drafted as the #89 overall pick in the 4th round of the 1980 NFL draft by the Arizona Cardinals. He also played for the Chicago Bears.
1981-1982: Blair Kiel was drafted as the #281 overall pick in the 11th round of the 1983 NFL draft by Tampa Bay. He played for Tampa Bay, Indianapolis, Green Bay, and Atlanta. He played in the CFL for Saskatchewan and Toronto and spent one season with the Cincinnati Rockers of the Arena Football League.
1983-1984: Steve Beuerlein was drafted as the #110 overall pick in the 4th round of the 1985 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Raiders. He was then redrafted in the 1995 expansion draft as the #1 overall pick in the first round. He played for the Raiders, Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals, Jaguars, Panthers and Denver Broncos. Super Bowl XXVII Champion, 1999 Pro Bowl (1999) and the 1999 NFL passing yards leader.
1987-1989: Tony Rice was not drafted. He played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the CFL, the Barcelona Dragons of the NFL’s World League and the Munich Thunder of the Football League Europe.
1987: Kent Graham (transferred after being benched for Tony Rice) was drafted as the #211 overall draft pick in the 8th round of the 1992 draft. He played for the Giants, Lions, Cardinals, Steelers, Redskins, Texans and Jaguars.
1990-1992: Rick Mirer was the #2 overall pick the first round of the 1993 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks. He played for the Seahawks, Bears, Packers, Jets, 49ers, Raiders, and Lions.
1991-1993: Paul Failla was not drafted. He played two seasons for the Irish before being drafted in the 3rd round of the MLB draft by the California Angels. He then returned to college and played one season for the Indian University of Pennsylvania. He played a season of football for the Arena Football League’s Jersey Red Dogs, a season in the NFL with the Carolina Panther. He was then the 9th over selection first round of the XFL Draft and selected by the Chicago Enforcers.
1992: Kevin McDougal was not drafted. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Los Angeles Rams in 1994. He was then shipped for the World League’s London Monarchs. He played a season for the CFL’s Blue Bomber, in the Arena Football League he played for Milwaukee and Georgia and alongside Paul Failla on the XFL’s Chicago Force.
1995-1997: Ron Powlus the pride of Berwick, PA was not drafted. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Tennessee Oilers in 1998. He also played for the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles. He also played for the World League’s Amsterdam Admirals.
1998-1999: Jarious Jackson was drafted as the #214 overall pick in the 7th round of the 2000 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos. he played 4 total seasons with the Broncos, 1 season with the Barcelona Dragons, 6 seasons with the CFL’s BC Lions and 1 with the Toronto Argonauts. He was a 4x Grey Cup Champion.
2000-2002: Arnaz Battle was drafted as the #197 pick in the 6th ride of the 2003 NFL Draft by the 49ers. He also played for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
2000-2001: Matt LoVecchio was not drafted but signed to the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent.
2001-2003: Carlyle Holiday went undrafted in the NFL draft, but was drafted by the Reds in the MLB draft, despite never playing baseball. He signed as an undrafted free agent and played a year with the Arizona Cardinals and three years with the Green Bay Packers.
2003-2006: Brady Quinn was the #22 overall pick in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. He played for the Browns, Broncos, Chiefs, Seahawks, Jets, Rams and Dolphins. Sammy Baugh Trophy (2005), Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (2006), Maxwell Award (2006), Cingular All-America Player of the Year (2006)
2007: Demetrius Jones was not drafted but played for the Kane County Dawgs of the Continental Indoor Football League and the Chicago Blitz of the American Indoor Football League.
2008-2009: Jimmy Clausen was the #48 overall pick in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers. He has also played for the Chicago Bears and the Baltimore Ravens.
2010-2011: Dayne Crist was undrafted but signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Ravens.
2o11-2013: Tommy Rees was undrafted but signed as a free agent with the Washington Redskins.
2012-2014: Everett Golson was undrafted but was offered undrafted free agent contracts witht he Colts and Eagles. He signed instead with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the CFL and is currently on their roster.
2015-2016: Deshone Kizer was drafted as the #52 overall pick in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft.

Most successful NFL Careers, what you would call “Super Stars” I guess would have to be Lujack, Trupucka, Hornuns, Lamonica, Huarte, Theismann, Montana and Beuerlien.