blueandgold Posted July 29 Posted July 29 Looking for some information on the history of the Fighting Irish’s former wrestling program. I saw that it dissolved after the conclusion of the 1991-92 season, but nothing beyond that. Hoping to get my Master’s at ND and just wanting to know about the program that once was.
Wrestleknownothing Posted July 29 Posted July 29 39 minutes ago, blueandgold said: Looking for some information on the history of the Fighting Irish’s former wrestling program. I saw that it dissolved after the conclusion of the 1991-92 season, but nothing beyond that. Hoping to get my Master’s at ND and just wanting to know about the program that once was. It is a sad story https://johnnythompsonnum1.blogspot.com/2020/03/gone-lost-forgotten-their-best-notre.html 2 1 Drowning in data, but thirsting for knowledge
D3 for LU Posted July 30 Posted July 30 I remember watching Jerry Durso... who wrestled for Ridge HS in New Jersey. 1985 NJSIAA State Champion @ 142. 134 lbs Jerry Durso A three time NCAA qualifier for the Irish, Durso took eighth place honors at the 1989 NCAA tournament as a senior. New Jersey wrestling should be proud w/ Jerry becoming an AA for Notre Dame! D3 Never argue with an idiot. They will only bring you down to their level and beat you with experience.
Smsu150 Posted July 30 Posted July 30 (edited) The topic has been discussed before. I was in college when ND got dropped and we wrestled against ND in our regional. The story was the program was dropped in order to avoid an NCAA probe of the athletic program. The wrestling program had commuted some "minor" NCAA infractions and the NCAA used that as an excuse to drop the program therefore warding off the probe that was to take place. It was a self-funded program, as was another Catholic school, Marquette, which dropped around 2001. Both of those schools competed in the West Region at the time. The ND roster was filled with top high school recruits, but their success in regards to AA's was limited. However, JJ McGrew, who was on the last ND team, transferred to Okie State and won a national title. Steve King was another guy on the final ND that transferred and earned AA status at Michigan. There may have been a few others. Edited July 30 by Smsu150 3 1
H82Lose Posted August 4 Posted August 4 JJ Mcgrew was there when it dropped, went on to be a 2X AA (1X champ) at Okie State
Kerouac Posted August 7 Posted August 7 On 7/29/2024 at 3:53 PM, blueandgold said: Looking for some information on the history of the Fighting Irish’s former wrestling program. I saw that it dissolved after the conclusion of the 1991-92 season, but nothing beyond that. Hoping to get my Master’s at ND and just wanting to know about the program that once was. I have seen a clip of what I could only assume to be an Irish upper-weight of ND getting thrown in a 1991 Iowa wrestling highlight posted by Eustice Wrestling on YouTube. Would have to check the schedules or brackets from that year to see whether U of I and Notre Dame met up anywhere.
SCWrestlingCoach Posted August 7 Posted August 7 The story I recall being told.... They traveled to NAIA powerhouse Adams State in Alamosa, CO for a dual and after the then Indians trounced them on a bitterly cold night. That was it for the fighting irish wrestling team. 1
tgrass21 Posted August 10 Posted August 10 My buddy was on the team when they dropped the program. I believe Lou Holtz invited them to join the football team for special teams sorta like the 12th man thing like A&M did back in the day. He was going to transfer back to a school in PA, but decided to stay for the education which worked out for him in the end. That’s back when they were stacked in football. The amount of future NFL players in his dorm his freshman year was crazy. He had some cool stories to share. 1 2
Wrestleknownothing Posted August 10 Posted August 10 1 hour ago, tgrass21 said: My buddy was on the team when they dropped the program. I believe Lou Holtz invited them to join the football team for special teams sorta like the 12th man thing like A&M did back in the day. He was going to transfer back to a school in PA, but decided to stay for the education which worked out for him in the end. That’s back when they were stacked in football. The amount of future NFL players in his dorm his freshman year was crazy. He had some cool stories to share. What does he say is why they shut down? Drowning in data, but thirsting for knowledge
tgrass21 Posted August 10 Posted August 10 5 hours ago, Wrestleknownothing said: What does he say is why they shut down? Pretty sure it was due to money.
gimpeltf Posted August 10 Posted August 10 Just now, tgrass21 said: Pretty sure it was due to money. I think I heard the administration didn't like McCann as coach. The donor passed away and the admin convinced the widow to redirect the money to the athletic department.
Richard Mann Posted August 15 Posted August 15 Bob Golic from Saved by the Bell: The College Years was a two-time AA https://nwhof.org/hall_of_fame/bio/7367
Tom formerly Tofurky Posted August 17 Posted August 17 A few good articles, one by @JohnnyThompsonNum1 http://johnnythompsonnum1.blogspot.com/2020/03/gone-lost-forgotten-their-best-notre.html https://notredameclassof1969blog.blogspot.com/2018/10/1965-69-four-notre-dame-varsity.html https://www.nytimes.com/1992/04/11/sports/wrestling-stopped-at-notre-dame.html
TexRef Posted August 17 Posted August 17 After the swimming team gets suspended for gambling, there is no way they will bring back wrestling! https://www.si.com/college/sources-notre-dame-suspends-mens-swimming-program-one-year-after-gambling-investigation Do they know Nelson Brands?!
gimpeltf Posted August 17 Posted August 17 7 minutes ago, TexRef said: After the swimming team gets suspended for gambling, there is no way they will bring back wrestling! https://www.si.com/college/sources-notre-dame-suspends-mens-swimming-program-one-year-after-gambling-investigation Do they know Nelson Brands?! Wanna bet?!
TexRef Posted August 17 Posted August 17 29 minutes ago, gimpeltf said: Wanna bet?! I am not betting anyone on this site!
Jason Bryant Posted August 17 Posted August 17 After the swimming team gets suspended for gambling, there is no way they will bring back wrestling! https://www.si.com/college/sources-notre-dame-suspends-mens-swimming-program-one-year-after-gambling-investigation Do they know Nelson Brands?! Seems to have a weird similarity here: Allow me to go hypothetically conspiratorial for a moment - wrestling was axed in part to keep the NCAA from investigating the department. Is swimming in the same situation? They get shut down to keep more eyes and hands prying into Notre Dame’s entire athletics program? I’m not alleging anything … but … what if? 1 Insert catchy tagline here.
flyingcement Posted August 17 Posted August 17 2 hours ago, Jason Bryant said: Seems to have a weird similarity here: Allow me to go hypothetically conspiratorial for a moment - wrestling was axed in part to keep the NCAA from investigating the department. Is swimming in the same situation? They get shut down to keep more eyes and hands prying into Notre Dame’s entire athletics program? I’m not alleging anything … but … what if? Sounds reasonable enough of a theory to me. 1
Natalie Rush Canon-McMillan, Pennsylvania Class of 2025 Committed to West Liberty (Women) Projected Weight: 207
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