Average White Backs began in 1976. There were six according

Average White Backs began in 1976. There were six according
by OldIrishFan (2020-07-13 03:44:30)
Edited on 2020-07-13 03:46:18

In reply to: Could our RBs wear the "AWB" towels one of their moms posted by rgvirish

Post Reply Return to Cartier Field

To Gene O’ Neil. He quizzed me on it when I met him before the 1990 Miami game. My brother had bragged that I had an encyclopedic memory when it came to ND football. Ok then who were the AWBs? He showed us a fax from Joe Montana to Rick Mirer. He also gave us T shirts of a glove manufacturing. The shirt read Get a Grip on Your Balls. There were 6 AWBs. I got 5 of them. They were Terry Eurick, Steve Orsini, Tom Domin, Steve Schmitz, Mark McLane, and the one I missed Joe Montana. Montana had a separated shoulder in 1976 and never appeared in a game. To my knowledge, I never saw him wear the towel. My guesses for the sixth included Steve Dover, Ted Burgmeier, and Dan Kelleher. Geno insisted Montana was one. They wore them in the 1976 Gator Bowl against Penn State. Eurick and Orsini continued to wear them into 1977.Not sure if Domin did.

Off Topic- reminds me of the Ed McCaffrey meme

His son Christian was far from being just average. As was Art Best. But before Art, Notre Dame was loaded with average white backs. You have to go back to Nick Eddy, then all the way back to the Golden Boy who was more Quarterback than running back at ND.

Did I miss any (non-QB) running back in that time that was outstanding? Conjar?

Not outstanding, but AWB in that era.

John Cieszkowski, Denny Allan, Bill Barz, Ed Gulyas, Darryl Dewan, Andy Huff, Gary Diminick.

Thank God for Penick, Best, and Hunter

Except for Gary, we had our share of slow running backs. No wonder Theismann ran for a bunch of yards.

The back we didn't mention was Rocky Blier but he was not that fast until he was wounded in Vietnam and rehabbed.

I first recall them at that Gator Bowl--I was on sidelines,,

for that game. I'm not sure how many guys were wearing the towels that night. Mark McLane had been kicked off team hours prior to GT game, so he wouldn't have had one.

It was the final game for a GA named "Ruettiger." I don't think that he slept on a cot in the stadium locker room that season. Devine gave the man a job, for which he was repaid in the early 90's with the "jerseys on the desk" fraud.

Slager came back as QB for that game after missing end of AL and all of Miami and USC games w/ injury. Lisch filled in for those games. I wonder whether Montana would've played in those games under current redshirt eligibility rules.

That team, with its de facto 3d string QB, outplayed #2 USC in a narrow Coliseum loss.

EDIT: Steve Schmitz, an AWB, lived down the hall from me that year. He was lightning fast, but he was never utilized except for punt returns.