When the college football world thinks of the historic rivalry between Miami and Notre Dame, one phrase comes to mind: “Catholics vs. Convicts.” The famous phrase traces its roots back to South Quad residents Pat Walsh (Dillon) and Joe Fredrick (Alumni) who illegally produced and distributed the infamous Catholics vs. Convicts t-shirt for the 1988 game between the two schools. The phrase, which eventually became the title of an ESPN “30 for 30” chronicling the game and its background, came to fruition after Miami’s football roster saw publicized legal trouble and multiple player arrests in the 1980s. While the derogatory shirt is certainly what comes to mind when anyone thinks about the matchup, there is so much more to this rivalry than just “Catholics vs. Convicts.”
In terms of history, the rivalry started in 1955 with an Irish victory, quickly evened out by a Hurricane victory in 1960. The following matchup in 1965 saw a boring game that ended in a 0-0 tie, the only tie in the 29-game all-time series. The next 11 matchups resulted in Notre Dame victories. In fact, from 1971-1980, Notre Dame beat Miami 10 years in a row, one of which was a bowl game that took place in Tokyo, Japan. Yes, surprising to most, this matchup was played in Japan for the Mirage Bowl. The Irish won this round 40-15, with captain Dave Waymer returning two interceptions for touchdowns.
While there is some history before the 1980s, the rivalry we all know and love didn’t start to heat up until Miami won their first national championship in 1983. Two years later, the Hurricanes embarrassed the Irish in Miami, beating them by 51 points, the largest margin of victory in the series. Under head coach Jimmy Johnson, the Hurricanes rose to college football prominence, with some of those Miami teams among the best ever. While the title of “Convicts” was bestowed, somewhat unjustly, upon Miami, don’t let that taint the electric and dominant teams that Miami had.
That 1985 game marked Gerry Faust’s last as Notre Dame coach, with Lou Holtz brought in to reinvigorate the sputtering Irish program. Holtz’s arrival is when the rivalry entered full swing. These teams hated each other, and so did the Holtz and Johnson. The clash of cultures along with two great programs only raised the stakes for many of the matchups. In 1987, Miami once again embarrassed the Irish in Miami with a 24-0 victory. But the most prominent of all the games between these two storied programs was the 1988 game, played in Notre Dame Stadium on Oct. 15. The game featured two undefeated teams in a matchup that ultimately decided the national champion. During warmups, the two teams broke out into a heated fight. In fact this pregame brawl — in the tunnel — is one of the main reasons that Notre Dame now has a separate away tunnel in the northeast corner of Notre Dame Stadium. After the fight, Lou Holtz gave a legendary quote in his pregame speech to the team: “If you want to fight after the game, go ahead, but you save Jimmy Johnson’s ass for me.” The Irish would go on to win this game by one point, the biggest and most remembered test on their way to a perfect 12-0 national championship season.
Recently, the rivalry has not been as animated. In 2010, 2012 and 2016, poor Miami teams made the matchup low stakes. In 2010, the Irish saw a familiar face, Al Golden, coaching the Hurricanes in the Sun Bowl. In 2012, the game was played at Soldier Field as part of the Shamrock Series, and in 2016 at South Bend, both teams were underwhelming. The Irish won all three matchups, although they later vacated the 2012 win. But in 2017, the No. 3 Irish went to Hard Rock Stadium and met the No. 7 Hurricanes. The famous Miami turnover chain was featured many times as both Brandon Wimbush and Ian Book threw picks. The Irish were once again crushed by the Hurricanes in Florida. It also shattered any hopes of Notre Dame making the College Football Playoff.
This history brings us to today. Miami will be the host and Carson Beck will be rocking new threads for the Hurricanes. The experienced transfer QB is leading a strong Miami team into a new season. On the other side of the field, Notre Dame has quite the opposite predicament. Redshirt freshman QB CJ Carr will be starting for the first time in a hostile environment that has proved troublesome for Irish QBs in the past.
The hype for this game is real. It is a top-10 matchup between historic rivals. Notre Dame is favored and is bringing back plenty of talent, but history tells us that the Irish struggle on the road against Miami. In fact, the Irish haven’t beat the Hurricanes on the road since 1977, and the Irish have never won against Miami in Hard Rock Stadium. This primetime matchup under the lights in Miami Gardens could be anyone’s game. Will a strong ND defense stifle Carson Beck’s debut? Or will a new Irish quarterback crumble in his first collegiate start? Only time will tell, but no doubt the nation’s eyes will be on this historic rivalry. Sunday, Aug. 31, 7:30 p.m., Catholics vs. Convicts, Notre Dame vs. Miami under the lights, a historic and fierce rivalry renewed.
