Notre Dame's comeback king — the greatest clutch quarterback in college football history before his NFL dynasty.
Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. was born in New Eagle, Pennsylvania in 1956. He attended the University of Notre Dame under coach Dan Devine and was famous for his ability to engineer comeback victories under pressure — a skill that defined his entire career. He won the national championship with Notre Dame in 1977. His most celebrated college performance came in the 1979 Cotton Bowl — known as the Chicken Soup Game — when he played through severe hypothermia in an ice storm against Houston, leaving the game and returning in the fourth quarter to engineer a 23-22 come-from-behind victory. His career statistics of 4,121 passing yards and 25 touchdowns do not tell the complete story — his impact was in moments, in fourth quarters and in the final drives that produced victories that seemed impossible. San Francisco 49ers selected him in the third round of the 1979 NFL Draft — a significant draft under-valuation given what followed. His Notre Dame career was marked by competition for the starting role rather than uninterrupted dominance, yet the clutch moments he produced established the reputation that his professional career confirmed.
National Championship (1977)
Career Honours
- National Championship (1977)
- Comeback King reputation
- Notre Dame legend
- Third round pick 1979