- Notre Dame Box
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The Notre Dame Box was a variation of the single-wing formation used in American football, with great success by Notre Dame in college football and the Green Bay Packers of the 1920s and 1930s in the NFL. Green Bay's coach, Curly Lambeau, learned the Notre Dame Box while playing for Knute Rockne in the late 1910s.
The Notre Dame Box differed from the traditional single-wing in that the line was balanced and the halfback who normally played the "wing" in the single-wing was brought in more tightly, with the option of shifting out to the wing. These two changes made the backs' formation resemble a square (hence the "box") and made the formation less predictable, allowing offenses to run more easily to the "weak" side. Additionally, the halfback became a more viable runner than in the single-wing and the quarterback, normally just a blocking back in the single-wing, could become a passer since the center could snap the ball directly to him. The Notre Dame Box relied on a great deal of deception, caused by backs shifting frequently, rather than the pure power of the single-wing. Teams would often adopt the Notre Dame Box if they lacked a true "triple threat" tailback, necessary for effective single-wing use.
The Packers, using the Notre Dame Box almost exclusively, won three straight NFL titles from 1929-1931. From 1936 through 1945, Green Bay made use of the Notre Dame Box to exploit Don Hutson's receiving ability. Bringing the halfback in tight allowed Hutson to split out from the line, making him an even more potent threat. Hutson, impossible to cover one-on-one by any defensive back of his day, averaged a touchdown every five times he caught the ball, a mark that no receiver has rivaled in NFL history. Green Bay added three more championships employing the Notre Dame Box after 1933 (when official championship games began), beating the Boston Redskins 21-6 in 1936, defeating the New York Giants 27-0 in 1939, and beating the Giants again in 1944 by a score of 14-7. Green Bay tailbacks of those years were among the first NFL passers to post "modern" numbers. Arnie Herber was the first NFL player to pass for over 1000 yards in 1936, throwing for 1239 yards and 11 touchdowns. Of that, 526 yards and 8 TDs were to Hutson. In 1939, Herber and Cecil Isbell combined for 1856 yards passing and 14 touchdowns. In 1941, Isbell broke Herber's single season record with 1470 yards passing and 15 touchdowns; he bettered his own marks in 1942 with 2021 yards passing and 24 TDs. 1942 was also the year Don Hutson shattered his own NFL records with 1211 yards receiving and 17 TDs, all in 11 games.
The Chicago Bears's and Clark Shaughnessy's Stanford Indians success with a modernized version of the T-formation in the 1940s eventually led to the demise of the Notre Dame Box, as well as all single-wing variants. The Packers finally switched to the T-formation, after Don Hutson had retired, in 1947. No major NCAA or NFL team has used this formation since and much of the knowledge (i.e. playbooks) associated with this formation are no longer available.
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Modern use of the Notre Dame Box
Use of the Notre Dame Box in modern times has been limited in part due to changes in football rulebooks regarding motion. The frequent shifts in the backfield that are employed by the system are still legal, but teams must now set themselves in a formation for at least one second before snapping the ball or sending a player into motion. This motion player must be moving backward or laterally. Canadian football never adopted these changes, and (even though it is not used in that variant of the sport) the original version of the system is still legal.
In the late 1990s, Western Harnett High School of Lillington, North Carolina was featured on ESPN after their program experienced a major turnaround credited to their employment of the Notre Dame Box. [1]
The head coach of that team, Travis Conner, later moved on to Jacksonville High School in nearby Jacksonville, North Carolina and installed the Notre Dame Box there, as well. He then moved onto Bunker Hill High School and completely transformed their football program, with the new system Bunker Hill produced 3 top 10 rushers with the leader being Reggie Davis who rushed for a single season near 2000 yards.
The formation is very prevalent in the north of England, and is used by many teams in BUAFL and BAFL due to the lack of talented passers as well at the unpredictable weather conditions. [2]
See also
- Single-wing
- T-formation
References
External links
- A basic overview of the Notre Dame Box offense: http://www.the-endzone.net/The%20Notre%20Dame%20Box%20Offense.doc
Notre Dame Fighting Irish football Established 1887 · based in Notre Dame, Indiana The University University of Notre Dame · Location: Notre Dame, Indiana · President: Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. · Athletic Director: Jack SwarbrickHead coaches Affiliation Stadiums Rivalries Culture Lore Four Horsemen · "Win One for the Gipper" · Notre Dame Box · Jeweled Shillelagh · "The Game of the Century" (1946) · "The Game of the Century" (1966) · "The Chicken Soup Game" · Catholics vs. Convicts · 1991 Orange Bowl · "The Game of the Century" (1993) · Holy War · Shamrock Classic · Ireland Trophy · The "Bush Push" · 2007 Navy vs. Notre Dame football game · Play Like A Champion TodayHeisman Trophy winners National championships (11) BCS berths (3) Seasons (123) 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s Categories:- American football formations
- Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
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