What It Means To Be Fighting Irish

Drawing insight from nearly 100 former players, coaches, and others directly tied to this storied and revered school, fans will read firsthand accounts about what being a part of the legendary football program means. The ultimate compendium of everything that is special about the University of Notre Dame and Fighting Irish football, this book includes the memories of everyone from John Lujack, Joe Montana, and Aaron Taylor, as well as other Fighting Irish greats. Some highlights include the 100 most important moments in Notre Dame football history, beloved landmarks and hang outs from the Notre Dame campus and South Bend area, the greatest players in the history of the program, and of course, the championship seasons. Fans will relish these retellings of the moments, games, and teams by the dozens of former players, coaches, and fans that are best qualified to share them.

Taking a decade-by-decade approach to the University of Notre Dame football tradition, this collection brings together over 40 stories from the most outstanding voices of the program. The spirit of Fighting Irish football is not captured by just one phrase, one season, or one particular game; instead, the student-athletes and coaches who made the magic happen over the decades blend their experiences to capture the true essence of their beloved school. Notre Dame fans will relish the intimate stories told by the figures they have come to cherish.

Did you know that the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are an independent football team? This means that they are not part of a conference and can play any teams they choose. Learn more about this college team’s history, traditions, uniforms, team records, coaches, and legendary players in Notre Dame Fighting Irish, part of the Inside College Football series.

Limited Leatherbound Edition. Limited to 500 copies. Signed by Mirko Jurkovic, Ted Burgmeier, Andy Heck, John Scully, Hunter Smith, Bob Crable and Daniel Rudy Ruettiger. Includes certificate of authenticity. The Fighting Irish Football Encyclopedia is written in a unique, easy-to-read style that brings to life the exploits of Notre Dame legends such as Knute Rockne, Joe Montana, the Four Horsemen, and former coach Lou Holtz. It also reviews great moments of Fighting Irish football, including the school's 21 bowl appearances, the unforgettable Game of the Century versus Michigan State in 1966, Notre Dame's 11 national championships, and its traditional battles against Michigan, Southern California, and others.

The 1st Fighting Irish: The 35th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, tells the compelling story of the exile of Ireland, Hoosiers who fought to preserve the Union of their newly adopted country. They fought for America at a time when the "native" American "Know Nothings" hated them for their foreign birth and Roman Catholic religion. Wearing green kepis to celebrate the "Ould Sod" the 1st Irish shed their red blood for the rather abstract idea of the "Union." The text features this complex Indiana Regiment, and its southern battles, trials and tribulations. But the true story is the many unique and colorful individuals who made up this Celtic "Band of Brothers." The Band was led by a Notre Dame Priest, and its nickname was eventually bestowed on the University of Notre Dame's athletic teams. The 1st Fighting Irish: The Indiana 35th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, Hoosier Hibernians in the War for the Union, provides a fresh retrospective on the "War for the Union," and serves to help preserve the memory of these brave Irish lads.

The Shillelagh has become synonymous with stereotypes about the "Fighting Irish." The truth is that shillelagh fighting was originally a form of fencing which required training, discipline and skill. Often combining stick-fencing with boxing and wrestling, shillelagh fighting was a once a complex mixed martial art. Now for the first time "Fighting Irish: The ARt Of Irish Stick-Fighting" describes and analyzes this fascinating sport, its essential nature and techniques. This authoritative classic contains clear cut descriptions of the most important offensive and defensive stick-fighting positions and methods. For the first time in history the basic concepts of Irish shillelagh fighting are laid out and explained for both the martial artist and the the interested reader.

Former ESPN basketball commentator Digger Phelps is regarded as one of the most charismatic and opinionated analysts in the profession. And he was the same personality during his twenty years as the head coach at the University of Notre Dame. In this book, first published in 2004, Phelps teams up with Tim Bourret and recalls the most successful period in Notre Dame basketball history. In his twenty seasons, seventeen of Phelps’s teams advanced to postseason play, including fourteen NCAA Tournament teams. In the book, Phelps recalls his initial expression of interest in Notre Dame through a 1965 letter he wrote to football coach Ara Parseghian. It recounts the scenes of his seven wins over number one-ranked teams, including the landmark game in 1974 when the Irish ended UCLA’s eighty-eight-game winning streak. Two chapters concentrate on the coach’s former Notre Dame players, concluding with the selection of his All-Digger teams. He also recalls the twenty Hall of Fame coaches he competed against, including Bobby Knight, Al McGuire, Ray Meyer, and John Wooden. Tales from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish Locker Room also contains a chapter entitled “Domers,” which documents Phelps’s relationships with Notre Dame coaches, administrators, and student-athletes, including Father Theodore Hesburgh, the man who made Notre Dame what it is today. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sports—books about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team. Whether you are a New York Yankees fan or hail from Red Sox nation; whether you are a die-hard Green Bay Packers or Dallas Cowboys fan; whether you root for the Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, UCLA Bruins, or Kansas Jayhawks; whether you route for the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, or Los Angeles Kings; we have a book for you. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Tim Newark's The Fighting Irish uses the dramatic words of the soldiers themselves to tell their stories, gathered from diaries, letters, journals, and interviews with veterans in Ireland and across the world. "Tells the story of the Irish fighting man with wit, clarity, and scholarship." —Andrew Roberts, author of The Storm of War For hundreds of years, Irish soldiers have sought their destiny abroad. Wherever they've traveled, whichever side of the battlefield they've stood, the tales of their exploits have never been forgotten. Leaving his birthplace, the Irish soldier has traveled with hope, often seeking to bring a liberating revolution to his fellow countrymen. In search of adventure the Fighting Irish have been found in all corners of the world. Some sailed to America and joined in frontier fighting, others demonstrated their loyalty to their adopted homeland in the bloody combats of the American Civil War, as well as campaigns against the British Empire in Canada and South Africa. The Irish soldier can also be found in the thick of war during the twentieth century—facing slaughter at the Somme, desperate last-stands in the Congo—and, more recently, in Iraq and Afghanistan.