1. Johnny Lujack played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, winning the Heisman Trophy in 1947.
23 Facts About Johnny Lujack
1. 2.
Johnny Lujack was a unanimous All-American in both 1946 and 1947, leading the team to national championships both years.
3.
Johnny Lujack later played professionally for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League from 1948 to 1951, receiving first-team All-Pro honors in 1950.
4.
Johnny Lujack's father worked for the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad for thirty years as a boilermaker.
5.
Johnny Lujack attended Connellsville High School and played for the school's football team from 1939 to 1941.
6.
People in Connellsville had wanted Johnny Lujack to go to the United States Military Academy at West Point, going so far as to ask their local congressman for an appointment, but Johnny Lujack, a fan of Notre Dame football from listening to their radio broadcasts, had his heart set on playing in South Bend.
7.
Johnny Lujack was the first Connellsville High School student to receive an appointment to Army.
8.
Johnny Lujack attended the University of Notre Dame, where he was given a scholarship by Frank Leahy, from 1942 to 1943 and then 1946 to 1947.
9.
Johnny Lujack's career was interrupted for two years by World War II after his sophomore season, during which he served as an officer in the United States Navy.
10.
When Johnny Lujack returned from the Atlantic duty, he appeared on the cover of the September 29,1947, issue of LIFE.
11.
Johnny Lujack was a two-time unanimous All-American and led Notre Dame to three national championships.
12.
Johnny Lujack was paid USD$17,000 for his 1948 rookie season with the Bears and $20,000 for his fourth and final season.
13.
In that game, Johnny Lujack threw six touchdown passes and set an NFL record with 468 passing yards.
14.
Johnny Lujack was the last Bears quarterback to throw at least five touchdown passes in a game until Mitchell Trubisky threw six against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2018.
15.
Johnny Lujack, named to the 1950 All-Pro First-team, set a Bears record for 109 total points in a season with 11 touchdowns, three field-goals, and 34 extra points.
16.
Leahy wanted Johnny Lujack to succeed him as the head coach of the Fighting Irish, but Terry Brennan was chosen instead by Reverend Theodore Hesburgh, the university president.
17.
Johnny Lujack served as a television color commentator for NFL games on NFL on CBS for several years, teaming with Ray Scott to call Green Bay Packers games in 1957 and with Chris Schenkel to call New York Giants games from 1958 to 1961.
18.
However, in 1962 when Ford signed on as a major sponsor and learned that Johnny Lujack was a Chevrolet dealer, he was replaced by Pat Summerall.
19.
Johnny Lujack worked with Jim McKay on CBS doing college football and on ABC college football telecasts in the late 1960s.
20.
On June 8,1978, Johnny Lujack was inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame.
21.
In 2005, Johnny Lujack donated $50,000 to Connellsville High School toward a new field house for the football stadium.
22.
Johnny Lujack was distantly related to NFL player Ben Skowronek and Olympic gymnast Courtney Kupets.
23.
Johnny Lujack died at a hospice in Naples, Florida, on July 25,2023, at age 98.