The Gipper

January 3, 2011
It's not surprising that the more one gets to know George Gipp, the less like a hero he seems. A high school drop-out, he spent much of his time at Notre Dame cutting class, playing semi-pro ball under assumed names, hustling pool, and engaging in high-stakes gambling. Cavanaugh organizes his research well and says what he can about Gipp's personal life, but rightly focuses on the young man's astounding athleticism. Nearly a century on, Gipp still holds the Notre Dame record for most yards per carry in a season, most career total yards for a non-quarterback, and the longest field goal; he never allowed a pass to be completed to the man he was covering (though as teams tended to have few passes per game in those days, this is less impressive than it might seem), and is regarded by most historians as the school's best all-around player. His death in 1920 at the age of 25 (having never completely recovered from the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918) leaves Cavanaugh to fill out his effort with stories of Coach Rockne and Notre Dame's colorful early football days, all placed into the larger context of a country dealing with great tragedies.

October 1, 2010

President Reagan's political rallying cry, "Win one for the Gipper," originated in his portrayal of star Notre Dame halfback George Gipp in the 1940 biopic Knute Rockne, All American and thence became a part of American cultural literacy. But what of Gipp himself? He was arguably one of the three greatest football players of the early 20th century along with Jim Thorpe and Red Grange, but Gipp is the least well known of the trio, so sportswriter Cavanaugh's (Tunney) treatment meets a glaring need. The problem is that Gipp was a reticent loner who died 90 years ago at the age of 25. Fortunately, Cavanaugh was able to draw on several interviews he conducted 30 years ago with many of Gipp's teammates and contemporaries while he was writing a magazine piece. He has supplemented those with further interviews with descendants and additional research to create as full a picture of Gipp as is likely to emerge. Still, the book is as much about coach Knute Rockne and Notre Dame football as it is about Gipp, whose short, colorful life was marked by a propensity to spend more time drinking and gambling than attending class. VERDICT A welcome resource on a legendary figure, also giving a valuable depiction of a fabled coach and the start of a college football dynasty.--John Maxymuk, Rutgers Univ. Lib., Camden, NJ

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