Rudy Ruettiger

Daniel Eugene Ruettiger (nicknamed “Rudy”) was born on August 23, 1948, in Joliet, Illinois. He was the third of 14 children and grew up with his German American family. Ruettiger did not excel scholastically, at least in part due to dyslexia. He attended Joliet Catholic High School and played for locally famous football coach Gordie Gillespie.

Ruettiger joined the United States Navy after high school, serving as a yeoman on a communications command ship for two years; he then worked in a power plant for two years. Ruettiger applied to Notre Dame and was rejected due to his low high school grades. He enrolled and attended nearby Holy Cross College, and after two years was accepted as a student at Notre Dame after many tries, in the fall of 1974. It was during his time studying at Holy Cross that Ruettiger discovered he had dyslexia.

Ruettiger harbored a dream to play for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, despite being undersized at 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) and 165 lb (75 kg). Head coach Ara Parseghian encouraged walk-on players from the student body.

After tremendous hard work, Ruettiger earned a place on the Notre Dame scout team, a squad that helps the varsity team practice for games. Merv Johnson was the coach who was instrumental in keeping Ruettiger on as a scout-team player.

After the 1974 season, Notre Dame coach Parseghian stepped down and former Green Bay Packers coach Dan Devine was named head coach. In Ruettiger’s last opportunity to play for Notre Dame at home, Devine put him into a game as defensive end against Georgia Tech on November 8, 1975. In the movie Rudy, Devine is given a somewhat antagonistic role, not wanting Ruettiger to dress for his last game. However, in the real life scenario, it was Devine who came up with the idea to dress Ruettiger.

During the final home game of Ruettiger’s senior season with the Fighting Irish, he recorded a sack, which is all his Notre Dame stat line has shown. Ruettiger actually played for three plays: a kickoff, an incomplete pass, and on the third play (the game’s final play), he sacked Georgia Tech quarterback Rudy Allen. Ruettiger was carried off the field by his teammates following the game, the first player in Notre Dame history to be honored in this way.

Ruettiger set up a successful maintenance company and also sold real estate. In 1986, he moved back to South Bend, Indiana, and decided to sell his story to be made into a film. Ruettiger’s story was told in the 1993 feature film Rudy, which starred actor Sean Astin in the title role. The film was written by Angelo Pizzo and directed by David Anspaugh, both of whom were involved in Hoosiers. Ruettiger appeared in a cameo as a fan behind his father, played by Ned Beatty, during the final game scenes.

Ruettiger has said that the movie is “92% true. “The players did not lay down their jerseys; rather, the team captain and one other player requested that he be allowed to play.

On October 14, 2005, Ruettiger appeared at a pep rally before the 2005 USC vs. Notre Dame football game, which Notre Dame ultimately lost in the last few seconds.

The inaugural 2007 College Football Rudy Award was held on January 8, 2008, at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. The College Football Rudy Award was created by the Rudy Foundation and honors Division Ifootball players who demonstrate what Ruettiger refers to as the “Four Cs”: character, courage, contribution, and commitment as a member of their team. A similar award for high school students was created in 2009. Trusted Sports and Ruettiger launched the High School Football “Rudy” Awards, which aim to uncover the “Rudy” on every high school football team in America.

Inspired by the College Football Rudy Awards, three finalists were announced on February 3, 2010. The winner, Calob Leindecker of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, received a college scholarship totaling $10,000. Two runners-up, Kyle Weafer of Kansas and Justin Ray Duke of Texas each received $5,000 scholarships.

In July 2009, Ruettiger was initiated into the Kappa Sigma fraternity at the Grand Conclave in San Antonio, Texas.

Ruettiger received honorary doctoral degrees from Holy Cross College, Mercy University, and Long Island University. He has been given key to the city at numerous cities across the nation along with special proclamations for his inspiration, commitment, and human spirit; one such proclamation from the Governor of Nevada announced an Official Rudy Award Day.

Today, Ruettiger is a motivational speaker and author.