Best ever in school history

[TDHeysus]

I always liked Rick Mirer, and Kevin McDougal. McDougal was the best athlete on the field when he played. look at the vs Mich game, they simply couldnt catch him, thats a mark of a great athlete.

Rick Mirer (I think the best)
Kevin McDougal (My favorite)
Tony Rice

 

[WaveDomer]

WaveDomer if you put it like that than I would definately take "The Come Back Kid"
Joe Montana as he done it at both levels and in the biggest games. To me there is no other choice.

As far as ND QB's Tony Rice and Brady Quinn and the first game I ever saw live was against Purdont and that was one of Joe's comebacks. So not only was I overwhelmed with the excitement of being there I also got to see a little bit of the Luck of the Irish.

This is definitely one of those unresolvable sports arguments. I just see certain people who have that winning edge. Guys like Tiger Woods, Pete Sampras, Montana, etc. They are clutch when it counts the most no matter what. They rarely make mistakes in big moments. They perform with injury. If they are down they still know they are going to win and on and on. That's what I would look for in a QB, since they are essentially the team leader. Did Montana have a great supporting cast? Of course, but he was able to lead that cast and do what it took when it mattered. Guys like Marino are great and have out of this world ability. To keep using him as the example, the Dolphins were good enough as a team to make the playoffs consistently (and the SB) with Marino. You can't say that making the playoffs is all Marino, but when they lose in the playoffs it's because he doesn't have the supporting cast. Bad teams don't consistently make the playoffs. Also, I don't think it's fair to say that with a certain cast Marino would have definitely won. That's a total unknown. Roethelisberger proved that he can lead a team in the final minutes of a SB to win. Marino never did that. Could he have done that? Who knows? Tony Rice proved that he can lead a team to an undefeated season. Again, it's a round and around discussion depending on your viewpoint, I think. But it's fun anyways.

 

[Dizzyphil]

This is definitely one of those unresolvable sports arguments. I just see certain people who have that winning edge. Guys like Tiger Woods, Pete Sampras, Montana, etc. They are clutch when it counts the most no matter what. They rarely make mistakes in big moments. They perform with injury. If they are down they still know they are going to win and on and on. That's what I would look for in a QB, since they are essentially the team leader. Did Montana have a great supporting cast? Of course, but he was able to lead that cast and do what it took when it mattered. Guys like Marino are great and have out of this world ability. To keep using him as the example, the Dolphins were good enough as a team to make the playoffs consistently (and the SB) with Marino. You can't say that making the playoffs is all Marino, but when they lose in the playoffs it's because he doesn't have the supporting cast. Bad teams don't consistently make the playoffs. Also, I don't think it's fair to say that with a certain cast Marino would have definitely won. That's a total unknown. Roethelisberger proved that he can lead a team in the final minutes of a SB to win. Marino never did that. Could he have done that? Who knows? Tony Rice proved that he can lead a team to an undefeated season. Again, it's a round and around discussion depending on your viewpoint, I think. But it's fun anyways.

You are on the mark with this post. A lot of people's decisions are going to be based on bias and opinion, which is great. I picked Rice because of the NC and the option. I also picked him because of the influence of my Grandfather loving his style of play and bleeding over to me. Some will pick Montana because it was their era. I love these conversations as well. I like to see who is who in their picks. Good post.

Dizzy

 

[Riddickulous]

I would say Joe Montana, but I wince everytime I see that he had a career touchdown-to-interception ratio of 25-27.

My vote is a tie between Johnny Lujack and Brady Quinn.

 

[wakeuptheechoes]

There have been many great atheletes at ND. In all fairness I notice that some fan's history does not go back as far as mine, and some others go further back. Yes, Montana had 25-27. TD-Pic ratio. But he was known as the "Comeback Kid" even at Notre Dame, before he ever played for the 49ers. I particularly remember the 1979 Cotton Bowl. against Houston with Montana having the flu, missing much of the game. He came back in midway through the 4th quater down 34-12. Only to win 35-34. On the last play of the game. 1979 Cotton Bowl - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia I believe ND came back 7 times that year to win. When the coach of Houston was asked by Sports Illustrated before the game about ND's ability to come back, he said it was Horse _____.

I liked watching many tremendous players, over the years at ND. I would be foolish to say who was the greatest. Perhaps it was Ronald Reagan, I mean the Gipper.