Jason Kelly - Mr. Notre Dame: The Life and Legend of Edward Moose Krause

J ASON KELLY COVERS NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL FOR THE South Bend Tribune. He lives with his wife, Kara, in South Bend, Indiana.

Copyright 2002 by Jason Kelly

All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission of the publisher.

Published by Diamond Communications
A Member of the Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group
4720 Boston Way
Lanham, Maryland 20706

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Kelly, Jason, 1972-

Mr. Notre Dame : the life and legend of Edward Moose Krause / Jason Kelly.

p. cm.

ISBN 1-888698-40-3 (Cloth : alk. paper)

1. Krause, Edward, 19131992. 2. Athletic directorsUnited StatesBiography. 3. Basketball coachesUnited StatesBiography. 4. University of Notre DameSportsHistory. I. Title: Mister Notre Dame. II. Title.

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.481992. Manufactured in the United States of America.

To Roland and Joyce Kelly

O PENING THEIR HOMES AND HEARTS, ALONG WITH many painful old wounds, the children of Edward Moose Krause made it possible to chronicle the true story of their fathers life. They shared his tragedies as well as his triumphs in emotional detail that still inspires tears and laughter among them. Without their candor, this book would be no more than a glimpse back at the many glory days of Notre Dame athletics that Krause experienced as a player, coach and administrator. Perhaps that story, which spans the generations from Rockne to Holtz, would be worthy enough in itself to be the subject of a book. But that was his lifes work, not his life story. Krauses children understand that better than anyone. Rev. Edward Krause described the difference in the eulogy he delivered for his father, saying a love affair with the whole of life, with the energy and the mystery of it, thats what Dads story is all about. He and his younger sister and brother, Mary Carrigan and Phil Krause, articulated that point in vivid and compelling stories that revealed why their father remains so revered on the Notre Dame campus and beyond.

They all share many of their fathers traits, from his charismatic personality and sense of humor, to his ear for a good story, to his genetic incapability to say no. More than agreeing to my many requests for interviews and information, they invariably offered to give more. Not ten feet from where Im sitting now, a stack of scrapbooks, personal letters and family photographsprecious material their mother, Elise, meticulously keptserves as a virtual Library of Krause. They have never asked when this treasure trove of family memories would be returned, only if I needed anything else.

To Father Ed, Mary, Phil and their families: thank you for making it possible to tell this story so completely. Many other friends and colleagues of Krause offered similarly intimate glimpses from their own perspectives. Jack Connor, the author of Leahys Lads and a natural storyteller, made 1940s football practices seem more vivid than a SportsCenter high-light. Jacks brother, George, the All-American tackle, met Krause when he was still selling sprinklers to Catholic parishes in Chicago. George idolized Krause then, and to hear his tone of voice when he talked about their relationship, that feeling remained sixty years and hundreds of victory cigars later. Marty OConnor, a former Notre Dame basketball player and a polio victim who remembered his hospitalization down to the itchy blankets wrapped around him, cried when he discussed Krauses supportive presence at his bedside. And Joe Doyle, the former South Bend Tribune sports editor, made me feel the hangover from a bender that happened before I was born.

This list could go on and onand, in a way, it does over the next couple hundred pages. Too many people contributed too many brush-strokes to this portrait of Krause to acknowledge any of them as fully as they deserve. I hope the story they helped tell serves as adequate thanks.

I also hope it is worth the sacrifices colleagues, friends and family made along the way. Jill Langford showed patience and encouragement to ease my anxiety about an unfamiliar business, while displaying a passion for the project and trust in my approach that inspired confidence. Bill Bilinski, the sports editor at the South Bend Tribune, also supported and accommodated me throughout this process, no matter the inconvenience to him. Bill and Eric Hansen, the managing editor of Sports Report, both helped me carve enough time out of a reporters quirky schedule to devote to this project without a whisper of complaint. Charles Lamb, Marlene Wasikowski and Erik Dix of the University of Notre Dame archives provided valuable assistance with audiovisual materials and photographs. Hearing Krause deliver a speech to Army chaplains in Europe or seeing him alongside Frank Leahy on the sidelines in an overcoat and a fedora in the 1940s brings the stories of those occasions vividly to life. The Notre Dame archives houses a wealth of similar material and its dedicated staff graciously shared it with me.

Finally, and most importantly, an inadequate thank you to my family, who often seemed more enthusiastic about this project than I did. Im not certain where the idea to write a biography of Krause originated, but if it didnt start with my father, Roland, he kept it alive with his gentle prodding. I know hes as proud as anyone to see it finally in print. It never seemed to matter to my mother, Joyce, that I was writing a bookand I mean that as a compliment. If I wrote parking tickets for a living, she would be happy as long as I enjoyed it. Thats a comforting feeling in a world where many people care more about resumes than relationships. Inspiration also comes from my sister, Laurie Dow, and her husband, Rick. They offer one generous gesture after another, large and small, too often taken for granted, but never forgotten. My brother, Randy, says I told him at age nine that I wanted to write a book. Ill take his word for it. Since that day, or at least as long as I can remember, hes assured me a hundred different ways that itand anything elseis possible.

Nobody sacrificed more to make this book possible than my wife, Kara, who had to fit her life around my bizarre work habits. There must have been days when she wondered if it would ever be finished, but I never knew it. I know there were many days when I felt that way, and Kara provided the motivation to make sure that I would see it through to the end.

I FIRST HEARD OF MOOSE KRAUSE IN 1941 WHEN HE came to our house on the south side of Chicago to recruit my brother George to attend Holy Cross College where Moose was then a coach. I was in eighth grade at the time and I remember when he walked in the door, he was so big he blocked the whole doorway. I wasnt sure who he was at the time, but I learned about him the following year when I was a freshman at DeLaSalle High School. I learned about Mooses Lithuanian roots; that Moose and his brother Phil were the stars on Ds athletic teams in the late 1920s; and that Moose went on to star in football and basketball at Notre Dame. Our athletic director, Brother Austin, talked about Moose every chance he could during my four years at DeLaSalle. I not only learned of Mooses prowess in football and basketball but also of his prodigious appetite and his endearing charm. It seems he could talk the Brothers into or out of anything. He became a larger than life figure to me.