Customer Reviews

Notre Dame and the Game that Changed Football: How Jesse Harper Made the Forward Pass a Weapon and Knute Rockne a Legend

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I learned some interesting and previously unknown things about the pre-Rockne days at ND, but there was a lot of repetition and needless details that didn't add anything. The book could have been much shorter.

I pulled this title having read Lars Anderson's book on the 1915 Carlisle-Army game and Mark Bowden's book on the 1958 NFL championship. I would recommend either of those without qualification. Both provide a thorough background leading up to and culminating in a particular pivotal game, which game itself is described in exciting detail (although not quite down-by-down). Anderson and Bowden provide nice little mini-bios of the key players and a taut history of football leading up to the game in question (in fact it might not be a stretch to say that Bowden's book proivdes a better retelling of football's becoming a more "open" game than this volume.) The background provided here is not the same level or quality and the game description itlsef is lacking. Quite tellingly, the game of the title taks place at the mid-way point of the book. The rest of the book to follow the game account, and much of what precedes it in fact, is really just a hagiography of Harper. The exciting history of ND football deserves better.

I like the subject of the book, but really the Army game was long after Carlisle and LSU had been throwing the ball with great effect in the years of 1906-1909.

The game of 1913 wasn't the first forward pass and many years after Pop Warner had made the Indians a passing machine. The Indians with Jim Thorpe and the great passing game of 1907-08 were a one of the best early football teams.

Its Carlisle in the North and LSU in the South that put the passing game on the map and near every football team in America started following thier lead.

Army had already been beat by Carlisle great team of 1912 and between Jim Thorpe's running and the Indians passing game, Army was destoryed by the score of 27-6.

Coach Wingrad comes to LSU and has the pass as his key weapon in the 1907 and 08 seasons, Joe Pitchard uses the same offense in 1909 at LSU. Its the two key passing plays vs Auburn on plains that lead to the victory over the Plainsmen, both passes were Fenton to Seip in a 10-2 victory. Read up on Doc Fenton, he is in the Hall of Fame and was the key passer on those teams.

Hollywood made the myth out of the Army-Notre Dame game and today we are still hearing the myth, its time to put it to rest.

So unlike the movie shows, no one by 1913 and in no way was Army surprised by the farward pass.

And Notre Dame like all the smaller teams of those times saw and knew that the small Indian teams had beat the football powers of Harvard, Yale, Penn, Army, Navy, etc using the passing game.

I love me some football and this story of some of the very early legends of football deserves your attention. Most fans have heard of Knute Rockne but not nearly enough have heard about Jess Harper and what these guys were able to do in the early years of Notre Dame football. The story is fascinating if you're at all a fan of college football.

An insightful, INTERESTING book about, among other things, reasonable people developing rules intended to keep people alive as they engage in sport. It is astonishing to know that there were actually people who opposed the new rule of the forward pass. Maggio's well-researched hindsight gives much deserved credit to Harper's foresight, and gives us all a timely reminder that intelligence is never out of style. The book reads anecdotally, and is a must for anyone interested in the history of football, the history of education, the history, really, of the game that defines in large part the character of our land. Maggio's well developed story telling style is a pleasure. You'd be well advised to buy two: One for you, and one to make sure you won't have to loan yours out.

Looking forward to reading the book, but the forward pass was used to beat ARMY! Not Navy

I enjoyed Homer Martin's review of my book, but I stand by my position that the Notre Dame vs. Army game of 1913 was indeed the game that changed football. I understand that many teams had used the forward pass prior to the 1913 game, including the great teams at the Carlisle Indian school. Sally Jenkins in her recent book points this out very well. However, I would point Mr. Martin, Ms. Jenkins and others to Chapter 3 of my book concerning the evolution of the rules governing the forward pass and also the change in the shape of the ball. Prior to the 1913 season the rules and the shape of the ball virtually prohibited the full and free passing attack that Notre Dame used against Army in 1913. Notre Dame gained 213 yards in the air that day. An unheard of statistic at the time.The evolution of the rules and the change in the shape of the ball made all the difference. Note also that ESPN, see the final chapter of my book for the citation, called Jesse Harper's decision to to pass against Army in 1913 the number one college coaching decision of the 20th Century. Hollywood did not make a myth out of the 1913 game. The credit for the game being the game that changed football has been asserted by numerous sport's writes since the day the game was played - starting with 2 and 1/2 columns on the game in the Sunday edition of the New York Times the day after the game was played. The Times article quoted Bill Roper, the former head football coach at Princeton, who was one of the officials in the game to the effect that "he had always believed that such playing was possible under the new rules, but that he had never seen the forward pass developed to such a state of perfection." So I submit, there is no myth to put to rest. It is a reality. Best regards to Mr. Martin and all who read this. Frank P. Maggio, the author. I can be contacted at "maggioND@msn.com"

Great book! This book is a MUST read for any die-hard Notre Dame fan. But also, it's a story ALL football fans should take interest in. Plus, it's interesting to learn about Jesse Harper and how he contributed to the storied history of the Notre Dame football program. Get it for your sports library.

Who is Jesse Harper?
And where is Notre Dame?
These matters don't concern you?
We'll tell you just the same.

Is it "Knute" with a "K"
Or "Knute" with an "N?"
It's all in the book, man,
Read it and then,

You'll know more of football,
Forward passes and scores
Than goofy John Madden
And the rest of the bores.

So, if you want the real lowdown,
Want some arcana to bank.
Get out your checkbook:
Send your money to Frank.

TIO CARLOS copyright 2007