Gus Dorais

Bio

It must have been a strange sight in 1913. A pair of lifeguards at Lake Erie's Cedar Point, pitching a football back and forth, were about to change the look of college football. The two young men were Notre Dame football players -quarterback Gus Dorais and end Knute Rockne. Just a few months later, the Irish passing combination would upset Army, 35-13, in one of the classic "surprises" in the history of the game. From this simple beginning, Dorais developed into one of football's foremost students, a man possessed with devotion to the sport. Although he and Rockne would be recognized as one of the college football's first passing tandems it would be as a coach - not as a player -that Dorais would gain election into the Hall of Fame. He and Rockne were roommates at Notre Dame, and in their coaching days, Dorais served as an assistant under Rockne. Together, they developed strategies which would serve them well as two of the game's most outstanding coaches. Dorais was head coach at Loras 1914-17, assistant at Notre Dame 1919, head coach at Gonzaga 1920-24 and Detroit 1925-42. He also coached the Detroit Lions 1943-47. His record was 150-70-12 as a college coach, 20-31-2 as a pro.