All right, guys, line up.
Rudy, take that stupid helmet off. You're not even playing.
Me and Pete, we're Notre Dame. You guys, you're Michigan.
Okay, huddle up. Come on.
-Same play. l'll hand it off to you. -Okay. l got it.
One, two, three, break!
Come on, Rudy. Get on the ball.
Ready! 42, blow!
Set, hut!
One, 1 000. Two, 1 000.
Oh, no! Oh!
I toId you to cut inside.
Do it right.
Come on, Todd.
Try it again. Let's go.
AII right, Todd. Same thing, okay?
Break.
-Ready? -Let's go. Get on the baII.
I'm sick of being aII-time center.
-What? -I'm sick of being aII-time center.
I toId you five times.
You can't pIay anything eIse but that.
You're too smaII.
-I can too. -You guys, I'm going. I'm sorry.
-I gotta go. -We need you.
-Come on. -Let Rudy pIay in my pIace.
Good idea, Frank. Let Rudy pIay.
Come on. Why not?
Okay, you can rush the passer.
AII right, Rudy.
We gotta get them.
-Break. -Okay.
Okay, Iet's go.
Ready!
Set, hut!
Get him, Rudy. Get him.
-The snow, for the touchdown. -Yeah!
AII right!
What a spaz.
AII right! We won, guys!
Oh, yeah!
-There you go. -Thanks.
Pete, you got your own home?
-Last time I Iooked. -You're weIcome here anytime.
Excuse me, young Iady. Who are you?
Sherry WaIinski.
-Bob's kid? -Rudy's girIfriend.
She is not.
Yes, I am.
-Everybody has a job at the miII. -But I don't want that.
Where eIse you gonna get 5 bucks an hour? You got union protection.
You got reIatives watching your front and your back.
TeII me where you'II find this...
-...and God be with you. -But, Dad, Pat's going there--
-You gonna give me indigestion here? -Leave the boy aIone.
But this boy can go off on his own. You heard him.
That's enough.
Has anybody eIse got anything to say before I start this meaI?
After high schooI, I'm gonna pIay footbaII at Notre Dame.
PIay footbaII at Notre Dame?
And I'II buy a mansion on Lake Shore Drive.
Rudy....
What are we watching? ChanneI 7.
-Don't you want something to drink? -That's okay. Thanks.
-Mr. Ruettiger? -Yeah, Pete.
At haIftime, couId we watch some of the Indiana-Purdue game?
There's onIy one team we watch in this house, right?
Right.
And I want the ends in there fast, every pIay, every pIay.
We're under controI.
Any men in the backfieId, anaIyze before you move.
If they throw a forward pass, see the baII in the air...
...and then go and get it. When we get it...
...that's when we go on offense. That's when we go to them.
We're going inside and outside them, inside and outside them.
We'II get them and keep them on the run.
We won't pass unIess our secondary comes up too cIose.
But don't forget, we'II get them on the run and go, go, go, go!
Don't stop untiI we're over the goaI Iine.
Don't forget men, today's the day we're gonna win.
They can't beat us in the fight and we'II fight, fight, fight, fight!
What do you say, men? Yeah!
Ruettiger! Hey, Rudy!
KiII that haIfback. Move that secondary back.
-We gotta get ready for those-- -Come on, offense. Break!
BIack, 80!
Set, hut!
-Bring it on down. Come on! -AII right, Iet's go.
Come on, Pete. Come on, buddy.
I didn't hurt you, did I?
Take a knee, guys.
Listen up.
You seniors, this is your Iast practice.
And with the exception of Thomas, Lee, Bo...
...Sypitch, you get on the weights...
...tomorrow night wiII be the Iast time you put on a footbaII uniform.
You know these Iast four years have gone by too fast.
They aIways do.
And I gotta teII you guys...
...that I reaIIy appreciate the hard work and effort...
...that you've given to me, to the coaches...
...and to the HiIItoppers.
As a reward...
...I'II give each one of you seniors...
...one finaI hit on me and my friend down there.
AII right. Seniors, stay here.
UndercIassmen, two Iines, five yards apart. Let's go!
You're first, McConneII!
Give me your best shot! Remember, it's gonna be your Iast!
Good shot!
Shower room.
Constantino!
Come on, David!
Ruettiger!
Okay, Rudy. Okay.
Hey, Rudy, we're gonna miss you.
Come on, Pete!
I can't beIieve it's over.
The bicameral legislature originated...
...not in the United States, but where?
Rudy, Rudy.
Mr. Ruettiger, wouId you be interested in joining us?
-The House and the Senate-- -Don't even try.
If I were giving out grades for daydreaming, you'd be getting an A.
But in civics, you're faiIing.
You see, Iadies and gentIemen...
...the probIem with dreamers is, they usuaIIy aren't doers.
Their achievements are grand up here...
...but here where it counts, they faII short.
Now, the bicameraI IegisIature originated-- HoId up.
I have an announcement.
''If you are a student interested in the University of Notre Dame...
...a bus wiII be Ieaving here at 1 0 a.m. Saturday, December 1 5th...
...for a one-day guided tour of the campus.
PIease sign up by Wednesday, November 5th.''
And Raciniak, good.
Whoa, wait!
Where are you going?
I'm going to see Notre Dame.
Do you have some friends in South Bend?
-No. -Then there must be some other reason.
When you announced it in cIass, I thought anybody couId go.
I'm sorry. This bus is for students who want to attend the university.
It's not a sightseeing tour.
Maybe someday I'II go to schooI there.
-Father Joseph, take over for me. -Of course.
Rudy...
...you don't have the grades for JoIiet Community, much Iess Notre Dame.
The secret to happiness in this Iife...
...is to be gratefuI for the gifts the good Lord has bestowed upon us.
Rudy...
...not everyone is meant to go to coIIege.
Dad, wait up!
What about this order?
We have to change the roIIers on number 1 3.
-Thirteen? -Yeah.
AII right, we'II have the crane ready for you, okay?
Hey, Rudy.
Rudy!
You were Iate again today?
You were Iate?
Get serious.
No speciaI days here.
What is today?
-Friday. -No, no, I mean the date.
August 23rd.
And that is...?
My birthday.
Twenty-two big ones!
Pete, it's starting to go by too fast.
WeII, I didn't have time to wrap it, but....
-Go ahead, open it. -You shouIdn't have.
This is fantastic.
Where did you find this?
I saw it in this surpIus store and I said, ''That's gotta be yours.''
This is unbeIievabIe.
Pete, I don't know how I'm ever gonna thank you.
How's it Iook?
You were born to wear the jacket.
Do you know Ara...
...is the onIy coach in Notre Dame history who encourages waIk-on pIayers?
You probabIy know more about the team than haIf the pIayers.
I can't wait to get there.
Guess how much money I have saved up?
Twenty?
Eighty? Fifty?
1 000 doIIars.
That's a good start!
You're the onIy one who ever took me serious, Pete.
WeII, you know what my dad aIways said.
''Having dreams is what makes Iife toIerabIe.''
-2-2-0-5. -2-2-0-9.
That's 2-2-0-9. That's the house, Rudy!
Isn't it cute?
We can afford this.
And know what eIse it has? WaII-to-waII carpeting.
It has a firepIace.
And a big kitchen.
It's cIose to the schooIs.
What's wrong?
Nothing.
It's great, Sherry. It's great. You did a great job.
Look, buddy...
...I've put in my time.
I've been very patient waiting for us to save up...
...so we couId get married and do this right.
You owe me.
Come on.
I think you're gonna Iike it.
Hey, Joe, what do you know?
-Can I get another beer down here? -Sure. Coming right up.
What are you doing tomorrow night?
A IittIe TV.
Coach Parseghian is speaking at the Chicago Grid Iron CIub. Wanna go?
Sure. If Rhonda Iets me stay out Iate.
TeII her the D train gets back no Iater than 1 0:30--
Ara Parseghian? You just can't give it up, can you?
He's the greatest coach in the country, Frank.
Are you gonna kiss his autographed picture every night?
-What is your probIem? -Or maybe he'II Iet you wipe his ass.
-Why don't you Ieave him aIone? -Mind your own business.
As Iong as my brother taIks this crazy Notre Dame shit, he deserves this.
Hey, you were a pretty big Notre Dame fan.
I used to coIIect basebaII cards too.
Forget about it.
You know what Coach GiIIespie said about you, Frank?
He said you had a Iot of taIent.
But your probIem was, you were too afraid of getting hit.
You had no guts.
Go to heII, Pete.
-Come on. -It's okay.
He used to teII me if you had one haIf of Rudy's heart and desire...
...you couId have been aII-conference.
He said you were a pussy.
Frank!
Come on, Frank.
Rudy!
-Rudy! Rudy! -AII right!
That's enough!
Do you hear me?!
That's enough!
Frank, good!
Don't nothing ever change?
Throw them out, Mary Ann.
You didn't have to get into it with Frank. I can take care of myseIf.
I know you can. That was between him and me!
Ever since he started working here, he's been pissed off.
Because he's not the same kind of god around here...
...that he was in high schooI.
We got a breakout!
Rudy, I need more water!
I'm not getting any!
Try another vaIve!
I'm not getting any, Pete!
Come on, goddamn it.
There's no pressure in the Iine. We need to get out of here!
Turn something!
Pete!
Let us pray.
O, God, who aIone are ever mercifuI and sparing of punishment...
...humbIy we pray You in behaIf of the souI of Your servant, Peter...
...whom You have commanded to go forth today from this worId.
Do not hand him over to the enemy, and do not forget him forever...
...but command that this souI be taken up by the hoIy angeIs...
...and brought home to Paradise. So that, since he hoped...
...and beIieved in You, he may not undergo the punishments of HeII....
-I'm so sorry. He was a friend. -Thank you.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
You okay?
You wanna just go home?
I'm going to South Bend.
Now is not the time.
If I don't go now, I'II never be any good for you or for me or anybody.
I'm sorry.
WeII...
...if you have to go, then you'II have to go aIone.
I know.
I'm sorry.
Dad.
What are you doing here?
You can take a coupIe of weeks off.
Your grandfather saved aII of his Iife...
...to bring the famiIy to this country.
He got a good job in the stockyards. He had a nice IittIe house...
...South Chicago.
I was about 1 2.
Somebody soId him on the idea he ought to move to the country...
...and become a dairy farmer.
WeII...
...he buys some Iand, you know, and gets a coupIe hundred cows.
Within five months, every one of those cows was dead with disease.
It was the Depression.
CouIdn't seII the Iand.
There was no work.
So one day...
...he took off.
Didn't come back.
My brothers and me, we spIit up...
...to Iive with friends and reIatives.
Chasing a stupid dream...
...causes nothing but you and everyone around you heartache.
Notre Dame is for rich kids...
...smart kids...
...great athIetes. It's not for us.
You're a Ruettiger.
There's nothing wrong with that. You can have a damn nice Iife.
Frank is gonna take over pIant number two.
A coupIe years, he'II make more than me and Johnny.
He's in charge of the expansion program.
I don't wanna be Frank or John.
Excuse me, I need to see somebody about going to schooI here.
Now?
Admissions office doesn't open for another coupIe of hours yet.
There's gotta be somebody I can taIk to now.
PIease?
WeII, you couId taIk to a priest. Maybe that's what you need, son.
Yeah, I'd appreciate that.
Just a minute.
Mr. Ruettiger?
-Rudy. -I'm Father Cavanaugh.
How Iong have you thought about this decision?
For as Iong as I can remember--
Have you taken the proper steps, investigated the process?
-Yes. I have more to Iearn, but-- -Are you fuIIy aware...
...of the sacrifices you'II have to make?
I am.
I'II do whatever it takes.
What brought you here today?
I just came from my best friend's funeraI. He said that--
Of course.
What do you mean, ''Of course''?
WeII, it's very common for peopIe...
...suffering a crisis to seek escape into the cIoth.
-We recommend a grieving-- -Escape into the cIoth?
That's just an expression that we use...
...for those who are running away from emotionaI or psychoIogicaI pain...
...by choosing priesthood.
You think I want to become a priest?
Don't you?
Nothing against being a priest, but I don't think it's for me.
Why are you here?
I want to go to schooI at Notre Dame.
WeII, have you appIied?
No, my grades have never been very good, even though I tried.
But I'II try harder. I'II study 20 hours a day if I have to.
This university, it's not for everybody.
Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to go to schooI here.
And ever since I was a kid, everyone said it couIdn't be done.
My whoIe Iife, peopIe have been teIIing me what I couId do and couIdn't do.
I've aIways Iistened to them, beIieved in what they said.
I don't want to do that anymore.
Okay, Mr. Rudy.
Here's the deaI...
...HoIy Cross Junior CoIIege is nearby. I can get you one semester there.
You make grades, you get another semester.
Maybe with a good GPA...
...you might have a chance of getting into Notre Dame.
Hey, kid!
You're not supposed to be here!
Hey, this pIace is reaIIy something eIse, huh?
Someday, I'm gonna come out of that tunneI and run onto this fieId!
WeII, it ain't gonna be this day.
I'm here to pIay footbaII for the Irish.
Coach Parseghian know about it?
No, not yet.
WeII, maybe you best teII him first.
Yeah, you're right.
Yeah, that's what I shouId do.
Thanks.
I'II see you around.
ls he expecting you?
This'II just take a second.
-Now just a moment-- -Coach?
-Can I taIk to you for a second? -I'm sorry, coach, I tried.
-No, it's aII right. I've got it. -ShaII I cIose the door?
-How can I heIp you, son? -I'm Rudy Ruettiger.
I'm here to taIk about pIaying footbaII for Notre Dame.
Our waIk-on tryout date was two weeks ago.
I'm not taIking about this year. I was thinking about next springtime.
Are you a student here?
No. I'm at HoIy Cross. But I'm gonna be a student here.
I've been a Notre Dame fan for as Iong as I can remember, since I was IittIe.
In high schooI, I started-- Is it aII right if I sit down?
In high schooI, I started at cornerback.
I wasn't the quickest guy on the team or the biggest...
...but I Iead in tackIes.
But anyway...
...I've been working at a steeI miII for about four years.
And I've been saving up my money.
And I've been pIanning on coming here. But....
My friend Pete reaIIy understood what my dream was.
And he toId me not to waste any more time.
But I don't know. For some reason, I couIdn't--
See, he died in an accident on Friday.
And I came here right after the funeraI.
You see what I mean?
Son...
...I think you're in the wrong office.
Come on, now.
I don't understand.
You might want to go and taIk to Father Cavanaugh.
I taIked to Father Cavanaugh. He got me into HoIy Cross.
He did?
He said that if I got good enough grades at HoIy Cross--
--and I wiII, I promise-- that I'd be admitted here officiaIIy.
I just wanted to introduce myseIf and say I Iook forward to practice.
-Thank you. -So Iong.
Sorry.
For us, divine inspiration does not mean that God possesses a man...
...and simpIy dictates the inspired text to him.
Rather...
...that God impIants into a man's mind the generaI concept.
When God does that...
...He aIIows the man to write that in his historicaI context.
The sitz im leben, or, ''That is the setting in Iife.''
So a man may have historicaI inaccuracies...
...but God aIIows those misunderstandings...
...because what is important and inherent...
...is the theoIogicaI concept that God is getting across to mankind.
I think that's aII for today.
We wiII have a quiz on Monday, so pIease prepare yourseIves for it.
WeII done, Father.
PIease grade these for me.
-Appreciate it. Thank you. -CertainIy.
You Iearning stenography or what?
Everything he's mouthing is in the book.
I gotta make an A in this cIass.
Just remember your sitz im leben, and it shouIdn't be a probIem.
I'm not taIking to you, man. Not after what you did.
You brought a girI to meet me...
...and the next thing you know, she sits next to Brian--
Hi, couId you hoId this?
-Yeah, sure. -Thanks.
So you're interested in a room to rent?
I don't know. Maybe.
My brother has a house about five bIocks from campus.
I'm sick and tired of--
-I have an extra card I can give you. -Just forget it.
Forget it. See you.
So if you're interested, caII soon.
Maybe tonight. AII right, bye.
You don't have a goddamn cIue, do you?
About what?
About how to get an A in that cIass.
I couId heIp you.
Look, besides being an honor student at Notre Dame...
...and a TA in Father--
I'm aIso a tutor for hire.
I can't even afford a room to rent.
Wait, maybe we can make some other kind of deaI.
What kind of deaI?
WeII...
...I got Notre Dame pretty weII staked out.
Staked out?
GirIs.
-I don't know here-- -Excuse me.
-Sorry. -Sorry.
I don't know the girIs here at HoIy Cross.
-What's your point? -WeII, maybe you couId....
What?
-Introduce me to a few-- -I don't know any girIs here.
So be it.
Wait a minute.
Hey, wait!
Hey, wait a minute.
Maybe I do know some girIs.
In fact, I know a Iot of girIs.
-I just gotta find them. -That's the spirit.
As you can see, I'm pretty goddamn desperate.
I'm D-Bob.
-Rudy. -And I'm in Iove.
-Hey, how you doing? -Don't say anything.
Pretty sweater you're wearing. This is D-Bob.
He's feeIing not weII.
WiII you cut it out?
Branski twisted his knee.
He's not gonna make--
-Is this the practice fieId? -AII practices are cIosed.
-I know Coach Parseghian. -Are you--
-I taIked to him the other day. -Watch out.
-Step back, okay? -AII right.
Hey, coach!
You gotta keep your eyes open around here, kid.
Hey, coach!
Coach Parseghian...
...anything I can do to heIp the team, you just Iet me know.
See you.
-Who's that? -Your Iunch breaks are too Iong.
Go pIug in the end zone.
-TeII Jake I need to taIk to him. -AII right, boss.
-What did I teII you about trespassing? -You're the guy I need to taIk to.
-I need your heIp. -Why shouId I heIp you?
-I want to be your assistant. -I've got a fuII crew.
CouIdn't you use somebody eIse? I mean, I'II work for free.
What's in it for you?
I voIunteered to heIp the team do anything I can, but...
...I can't, because I'm not a student here.
But I wiII be.
I figured if I'm gonna pIay here, I need to know the Iay of the Iand.
You're nuts.
I've heard that a Iot.
WeII, you've got to be nuts to want to work for nothing.
I just want to be a part of this university.
Okay.
Meet me here tomorrow, 1 0 a.m.
-Thanks. -Minimum wage.
-Thanks again. -AII right.
Did you understand what I was trying to say?
You don't understand.
-Let me give you a hand. -Are you sure?
-No probIem. Here. -I got it.
-Keep it straight, kid. -Okay.
-Poet. SchoIar. -Dickinson. Dickinson.
Hut, hut. BIue and goId, Iet's go.
-Hi there, what's your name? -Donna.
-Great. My name's Rudy Ruettiger. -Hi, I'm CoIIeen.
-I've got this buddy, D-Bob. -D-Bob with the two watches?
Mr. MarshaII FieIds?
-His name's D-Bob. He's a sweetheart. -WeII, maybe I'II see you around.
-No, I have cIass. -I sit behind you in 235.
-Two watches! -Two watches!
Don't waste time reading the question if it's a Iong test in a short period.
-AII right. -Two of them wiII be simiIar.
It'II be one of those two. One's absurd. Forget that one.
-This is important. -''Increase...
-...in psychoIogicaI responses.'' -What do you think?
Excuse me.
I'm sorry to interrupt, but I just have to ask you...
...have we met somewhere before?
You know, you Iook reaIIy famiIiar to me.
Maybe psych cIass. Do you have psych on Monday, Wednesday, Friday?
I'm in there at 1 0:00.
Yeah, he's in that cIass.
I bet that's where. I knew you Iooked famiIiar.
WeII, anyway, this is kind of embarrassing, but...
...you heard about the dance on Saturday night, right?
-Right? -Yeah, we've heard about it.
Okay. AII right, weII, I was just wondering, do you have any pIans?
-That's great. So you're avaiIabIe? -D-Bob wouId Iove to go.
ReaIIy? This is so great.
I wouId Iove to introduce you to my roommate, EIza.
EIza, come here.
D-Bob was suspicious, so he made me go to a Ianguage Iab to take these tests.
They said I had a sIight case of dysIexia.
It's when the words get mixed up in your head when you're reading.
I'm doing exercises to heIp me, and...
-...I got an A on a Iiterature test. -That's great, kid.
Hey, do you Iive in here?
BeIieve it or not, got my own home.
That cot's for when my sciatica acts up.
Okay, Iet's go to work.
See that hose on top of the Iocker?
Bring that with you.
So you're in student housing?
Huh?
No, I'm Iiving with a friend in town.
Where in town?
-I haven't found a pIace to stay yet. -Funds pretty Iow, huh?
AII my savings went for tuition.
I shower at HoIy Cross. I'm aII right.
-So this is it, huh? -This is where it starts and finishes.
''I've gotta go, Rock.
It's aII right. I'm not afraid.
Sometime, when the team's in troubIe...
...and things are wrong and the breaks are beating the boys...
...teII them to go in there and win just one for the Gipper.
I don't know where I'II be then, Rock, but I'II know about it...
...and I'II be happy.''
The Four Horsemen.
Knute Rockne.
Moose Krause.
AngeIo BerteIIi.
Johnny Lujack.
Leon Hart, Terry Hanratty, Jack Snow.
John Lattner.
PauI Hornung couId've dressed in this Iocker.
We got work to do, kid.
''We're gonna go inside. We're gonna go outside.
We're gonna get them on the run. We're gonna keep them on the run.
Then we're gonna go, go, go, go, go!
We won't stop untiI we're across that goaI Iine.
This is a team they say is good. WeII, I think we're better than them.
They can't Iick us.
What do you say, men?''
By the way, Gipper, l got your gym card.
-Great! -Wait, we had a deaI.
-I do your Iaundry for two months. -This was hard to get.
-It's gonna be a semester. -Of doing your Iaundry?
-Come on, Iet me see. -A semester.
AII right, fine. Just Iet me see the card.
-Come on, that's impossibIe. -It's your job to give it a shot.
She's out of our Ieague.
TeII her I'm a FieIds.
As in MarshaII FieIds. She'II know. Just teII her that, pIease.
That Iooks great. I think you'II reaIIy enjoy it.
Hi, are you interested in joining a student activity?
Here's your choices.
Do you see that guy over there? Over by the piIIar.
CouId you wave at him a IittIe bit? Just kind of humor him.
PIease?
That was perfect. Thank you.
WeII?
Choir Iooks good. I used to sing in the high schooI choir.
-What's FootbaII Boosters? -We organize the pep raIIies and...
...paint the heImets the night before the game.
The actuaI footbaII heImets? You guys--
That's definiteIy me. Where do I sign?
Right here.
You are a student at Notre Dame, right?
Yeah. Why, don't I Iook Iike one?
Oh, no, we're just supposed to ask.
Yeah, I'm Notre Dame goId and bIue, through and through.
The first meeting is tomorrow night at the ACC, 7:00.
-See you there. -AII right, bye.
Like to sign up for a student activity?
-Strike? -Out.
She has a boyfriend who's on the footbaII team.
-You Iooked Iike you were in. -WeII, I'm sorry.
You Iook awfuI goddamn happy about this.
Thank you.
-Did you get the fieId passes? -Chuck hasn't given them to me yet.
Mary.
Mary!
-Watch yourseIf. -Oh! Sorry.
Hey...
...isn't this fantastic?
There's 24-karat goId in the paint!
-What's your name again? -Rudy Ruettiger.
I need your student I.D. to get your card section pass.
I don't have it now, but I'm gonna get it.
-I'II have it by tomorrow. -I gotta send the names in tonight.
CouIdn't you Iet it sIide this once?
It's the ruIes, sorry. Next game.
Are you gonna come to Corby's? It's where we aII go afterwards.
Yeah, I'II be there. Thanks.
Is that Bob GIadieux and Ron Dushney sitting at the end of the bar?
-How about another one? -Sure.
Now, that's a game to remember: 1 966 against Michigan State.
GIadieux caught the greatest pass in Notre Dame footbaII history.
Hey!
''Mary, Mary quite contrary, what makes your garden grow?''
Excuse me, couId I get change for a doIIar, pIease?
Thank you.
You aII right?
Yeah. I just wanted to say it's been a pIeasure working with you.
Thanks.
You said before you were the greatest Notre Dame footbaII fan in history.
I thought I was, so I guess that means we got something in common.
In fact, I'm gonna be pIaying footbaII for the Irish next faII.
I've taIked to Coach Parseghian about it.
You see, I'm at HoIy Cross for a semester, maybe two at the most.
Father Cavanaugh says if I make the grades...
...I'II have a reaI good shot at getting in.
And for the first time in my Iife, my grades have been reaIIy good.
You're not a Notre Dame student?
Not officiaIIy.
-But I wiII be next semester. -You can't be a part of the Boosters.
-I'm sorry. -Mary, wait a minute.
WiII you pIease forget I said that?
-You know what a tremendous fan I am. -It's the ruIes.
I know, but--
Damn!
I need one ticket.
No way.
-Mister, I got 1 0 bucks for a ticket. -Ten bucks? You're 90 short.
-Kid, can I buy that ticket from you? -Yeah, for 20 bucks.
-PIease, can I get in? I got $1 0. -I couIdn't do it. I'd Iose my job.
ReaIIy.
I'd Iike to, buddy.
--hands off to Eric Penick for the Notre Dame touchdown.
Do you have an extra ticket? PIease?
-One ticket. I just need one seat. -I'm sorry, no.
Point after attempt is good. Score: lrish, 7, Northwestern, nothing.
Fortune, did you see Eric Penick's kickoff return yesterday?
I saw it on TV.
He broke free right about here.
The 40. The 35. The 30!
The 25! The 20! The 1 5!
The 1 0! The 5! Touchdown Irish!
Hey, hey, hey, we got work to do.
Down, set, hut!
-You ever see a game from in here? -Nope.
WeII, then your first game wiII be one I'm pIaying in.
Whatever you say, kid. You gonna watch me or heIp me?
Thanks for the bIanket and the key.
I don't know nothing about it.
Then who put the key on the cot?
You hear what I just said?
Yeah.
AII B's.
And an A.
I know my grades have gone down, Father, but...
...I have a Iot of extracurricuIar activities.
You did a good job, kid.
Admissions peopIe, you never can teII. They're a funny bunch of squirreIs.
Have I done aII I can?
Excuse me.
Hi, I need box 620, pIease.
Thank you.
''Dear Mr. Ruettiger, Your appIication for admission...
...to the University of Notre Dame has been evaIuated by....''
-Merry Christmas. -Merry Christmas to you.
Tommy, where did you get that? Oh, you're aII sticky.
It's okay, but it's just gonna get everything aII over the pIace.
Rudy!
Where have you been for so Iong?
I've been going to coIIege at HoIy Cross. It's in South Bend.
If you're going to HoIy Cross, why do you have a Notre Dame jacket?
-I'II go there next year. -Then that's where I'II go too!
Do you want something to eat?
An A and three B's.
Good for you.
I didn't make it into Notre Dame this semester. I saw a few home games.
I thought about you. You'd have Ioved it. You gotta come over for a game.
It's so exciting. You've--
I watch the games here on my teIevision. That's fine for me.
I know, but it's not the same thing.
What if I were in the game?
Jesus, we stiII have to Iisten to this crap?
That semester at coIIege didn't make you smarter.
I'm gIad you made good grades.
Come on, Johnny. PIease teII me.
It wouIdn't be a surprise if I teII.
You can do better than that.
Okay, one more hint.
Hey, Johnny-boy, aren't you gonna wish your brother a merry Christmas?
How you doing, Rudy?
Fine.
I just want to teII you that you going to coIIege and aII...
...I think that's great.
Thanks, Johnny.
I'II be in the kitchen.
I gotta go.
Why don't you stay for a whiIe?
I have to go to work.
Rudy, I'm sorry.
I just want to teII you that I hope you make it. I do.
Hi.
TweIve o'cIock. CIosing time.
-Thanks, Mrs. Mackenzie. -You're weIcome.
Thanks.
Vacation, that's aII I hear from you. ''I'm gonna go on vacation.''
After this game you're gonna pay my money, right?
What about the end of the month?
TotaI faiIure.
Everything I did.
Work, the studying, four hours a night's sIeep in a dungeon.
I've bIown another year of eIigibiIity.
This entire year's been a waste.
A waste, huh?
You got your head so far up your ass about that damn footbaII team...
...you don't get that you just got one year of top-quaIity education.
''Waste.''
Don't be wasting my time.
Ain't you got some work to do?
First three chapters for next week. Start thinking about those.
Thank you.
Damn it!
We gotta do our own cooking and Iaundry.
I'm not very good at that either.
You gonna invite me?
You'II be the first one.
-First? I'm gonna be the guinea pig? -If you Iive through it, why....
-Excuse me. -Sure.
Taking your appeaI to a higher court.
I'm desperate.
If I don't get in next semester, it's over, done.
Notre Dame doesn't accept senior transfers.
WeII, you did a heII of a job, kid, chasing down your dream.
I don't care. If it doesn't produce resuIts, it doesn't mean anything.
I think you'II discover that it wiII.
Maybe I haven't prayed enough.
I'm sure that's not the probIem.
Praying is something we do in our time.
The answers come in God's time.
Have I done everything I possibIy can? Can you heIp me?
Son, in 35 years of reIigious studies...
...I've come up with onIy two hard, incontrovertibIe facts:
There is a God...
...and I'm not Him.
ls there anything in box 620, please?
''--has been approved.
You've been accepted as a freshman for the faII semester....''
Oh, thank God.
What's wrong?
Read it.
''CongratuIations, you are....''
I did it.
You did it.
Hey, guys.
My son's going to Notre Dame.
AII right, Rudy. Way to go!
Hey, you guys!
My son's going to Notre Dame!
You hear that, Johnny? Your brother's going to Notre Dame.
Can you beIieve it, Frank?
CongratuIations.
So, Iisten, you wanna work tiII it's time to go to schooI?
I gotta get back, Pop. FootbaII tryouts start this week.
I'II caII you.
One, two, three...
...four, five, six...
...seven, eight!
Let me tell it to you as clean as l can.
We have 95 players here...
...so accomplished as athletes in high school...
...they have fuII schoIarships to the best footbaII program in the country.
NCAA reguIations aIIow us to dress just 60 for home games...
...which means at Ieast 35 schoIarship pIayers...
...wiII be watching the game from the stands.
So if any of you has any fantasies...
...about running out of that tunneI with your heImet shining in the sun...
...you best Ieave them right here.
Of you 1 5 dreamers out there, maybe we'II keep one or two.
My job is to basicaIIy beat the shit out of you for the next five days.
And whoever is stiII standing at the end...
...maybe we'II use for our scout teams.
You'II be running the opposition's pIays week in and week out.
Your greatest vaIue to us is, we don't care whether you get hurt.
Our first teams are gonna pound on you Iike you're their worst enemies.
Like what you hear so far?
Any of you want to run home to Mama? Now's your chance.
Joe, they're aII yours.
Don't just stand there trying to think. Let's hit those ropes. Move it!
Move it, I said! Come on!
Pick them up, pick them up!
High knees! Let's go, gentIemen, Iet's go!
Pump your arms, keep your heads up.
That's it, don't step on that rope!
Up and down, Iet's go! We want to see how quick you are here.
Keep it roIIing, keep it roIIing.
Heads up, keep moving, keep moving.
Pump those arms, pump those arms when you're backwards running.
Move it, move it, move it!
Keep your heads up, keep your heads up!
Run!
Get in there, Ruettiger, get in there!
AII right, Iet's concentrate and get it right.
Go hard, charge him.
What is that? What are you doing? Come on!
Who has the pIay? Who wants to do it right?
I got it.
AII right, stay Iow.
Come on, Iet's do it again!
-Get out of here. -Coach, I can do it.
Oh, yeah? AII right, we'II see.
This is where we separate the men from the girIs.
30, hit the spot.
Get in there. Now pick him off. Pick him off, damn it!
AII right, if you want to make this team....
ReIax for a few minutes.
If it was up to me, I'd get rid of aII of them.
If they can't protect themseIves, I don't want them.
The kid with bIood on him.
Ruettiger?
Have you been watching? No athIetic skiII.
-He's put more effort than anybody. -You feIIows decide.
Not in my defensive backfieId. You want him, you got him.
AII right, shower up. We'II Iet you know.
You think you made it?
UnfortunateIy, yeah.
What is so unfortunate about making the team?
This is my third year as a waIk-on.
I had schoIarships to two Big Ten schooIs.
But my father was an aII-American here...
...so I get a Iot of famiIy pressure.
I don't understand.
If you haven't been cut, then you stiII have a chance.
-What, a chance to pIay? -Yeah.
The onIy reason they keep me on here is because I'm a Iegacy.
To them I'm no more vaIuabIe than a tackIing dummy.
Ruettiger, come with me.
Yeah, coach.
You want on the team pretty bad.
You have no idea.
-You sure busted your baIIs out there. -Coach, I'II do anything.
You think you can give the same effort...
...day in and day out for the next five months?
Sir, I have no doubt.
Fine. If you do Iighten up one hair...
...I'II throw you off this team so fast you won't know what hit you.
Wait a minute.
Throw me off? That means I gotta be on the team first.
-Don't Iet me down. -Does that mean I'm on the team?
-Yeah, kid, you're on the team. -Thank you!
Hey, hey, come on.
Go put some shoes on.
Thanks for everything.
Here.
What's that?
It's the key to the maintenance room.
Don't know nothing about it.
Yeah....
You promised. You'II come see your first game if I ever dress.
WeII, I'II stop by every now and again, just to bother you.
See you Iater.
Hey, kid.
You ever dress...
...I'II be there.
Rally, sons of Notre Dame
Sing the glort and sound the fame
Raise the gold and blue And cheer with voices true
Rah-rah for Notre Dame
We will fight in evert game
Strong of heart and true to her name
We will ne'er forget her And will cheer her ever
Loyal to Notre Dame
Cheer, cheer for old Notre Dame
Wake up the echoes cheering her name
Send the volley cheer on high
Shake down the thunder from the sky
What tho the odds be great or small
Old Notre Dame will win over all
While her loyal sons are marching
Onward to victort
Cheer, cheer for old Notre Dame
Wake up the echoes cheering her name
Send the volley cheer on high
Shake down the thunder from the sky
What tho the odds be great or small
Old Notre Dame will win over all
While her loyal sons are marching
Onward to victort
SIoppy!
Run it again. SIoppy, for chrissake!
38 counter.
The back missed the hoIe. He's gotta go to the outside.
You aII right, man? Come on, get up.
-Get in the huddIe. -Ruettiger!
Ruettiger, get out.
I can do it, coach!
-Ready? -Let's go, feIIas.
What are you doing?
Don't treat me Iike your kid brother. I'm pIaying defense for Purdue.
You ain't here to be no nanny in no kindergarten!
-Now, go pIay baII. -Hit me, man.
Red 40!
Keep your ass down.
So on EagIe, do I go on ''set'' or ''2''?
You gotta go on ''set.'' You gotta pick the man up.
On EagIe SIant, do I Iet him sIide or do I pick him up too?
Hey, IittIe buddy! HoId up, man.
I'm not taIking to you. You keep going.
I'm sorry about what happened at practice today.
Don't be sorry.
If you don't cooI it out there, you'II get yourseIf kiIIed.
If I cooI it, I won't be heIping you get ready for the games. Got it?
I got it.
He's just a showboat, man. That's aII he's about.
He's just doing his job, Jamie. Can it.
Go Irish!
-Let's go. Come on. -Come on, here we go.
What are you doing, huh?
Break it up!
Get off me!
Come on, Ruettiger!
Break it up, I said. And cooI down.
You brown-nosed suck-ass! You suck ass!
What's your probIem, O'Hare?
Last practice and this asshoIe thinks it's the Super BowI.
You just summed up your entire sorry career here...
...in one sentence!
If you had a tenth of Ruettiger's heart, you'd have made aII-American.
As it is, you just went from third team to prep team.
Go on, get out of here. Get me another taiIback.
-HuddIe! -Let's run it.
Come on, Iet's rock some ass.
-HuddIe! -Let's go. Defense, come on out.
Rudy, I want you to ice this twice more in your room tonight.
We'II see you tomorrow.
Keep that pack on that shouIder for at Ieast 1 5 more minutes.
Hey, Jim.
Your buIIshit out there makes us Iook bad, so diaI it down a notch.
DiaI it down?
Everybody's sick and tired of hearing, ''Put out more Iike Ruettiger.''
What do you get out of getting your head kicked in?
It's not worth it, you know?
You gotta be in at Ieast one pIay during a game...
...to officiaIIy be part of this team.
The onIy uniform you'II put on is that grungy thing you've been wearing.
If you hate it so much, why don't you just quit?
I can't.
Why not?
If I quit, my father won't pay my tuition.
Is that why you're here?
I'm under the deIusion that I might get a chance to run out that tunneI.
Does he think I'm Iying to him?
Nobody said nothing about Iying.
I have to get pictures taken of practice to prove I'm on the team?
I beIieve you.
What happened to my face? Where did I get these?
-So you're a gIorified waterboy. -Oh, you just don't get it.
If you are on that team, my opinion of Notre Dame just hit the shits.
Leave him aIone.
There's no ''if.''
I wear a uniform, I bIock and tackIe. You just don't understand.
ActuaIIy, it's simpIe.
Every Saturday when we turn on the TV to watch...
...we see pIayers wearing the bIue and goId. We just don't see you.
You wiII.
-What? -You wiII. Now shoot.
Just shoot.
Coach, Rudy Ruettiger's here to see you.
Send him in.
This won't take Iong, coach.
First, I'd Iike to thank you for the opportunity of being on the team.
I never thought I'd be saying this...
...but it's been a pIeasure. Now what can I do for you?
WeII, one of the many things that I've Iearned this year...
...is that no matter how hard I try, I'II never get above the prep team.
I've accepted that God made some peopIe footbaII pIayers, but not me.
I wish God wouId put your heart in some of my pIayers' bodies.
My father Ioves Notre Dame footbaII more than anything eIse in the worId.
He doesn't beIieve I'm on the team...
...because he can't see me during the games.
Next year, my senior year, I'd Iove to be abIe to give him this gift:
I'd reaIIy appreciate it if you'd Iet me dress one game next season.
Look, Rudy...
...the NCAA reaIIy hamstrings us with this 60 ruIe.
In some positions we onIy have one backup.
You know every year we're competing for the nationaI championship.
Is this just for your father?
No, it's for everybody who toId me that it wouId be impossibIe.
It's for my brothers...
...the kids in my high schooI, the guys I work with at the miII.
They can't come to practice and see that I am part of the team.
Okay.
You deserve it. You'II dress for one game next season.
Thank you, coach.
Yes!
I don't know which game yet, but it'II definiteIy be next season.
I'm sure.
I guess they'II teII me a few days before the game.
Look, just be ready, okay?
Thanks, Dad.
AII right, bye.
V-l-C-T-O-R-Y
Victort, victort, that's our crt
Gipper. Hey, Gipper!
Goddamn Miami Iaw schooI beckons.
Miami!
I had to go.
What's wrong with you?
Look.
Ara quit?
I'II be goddamned. Who's the new coach?
-Dan Devine from the Green Bay Packers. -Wow....
I'm sure Ara's gonna Iet him know about his promise to Iet you dress.
Come on, Iet's take a waIk.
When are you leaving?
-In about six minutes. -ReaIIy?
The spring semester starts in two weeks.
We've had a heII of a goddamn--
We've had a heII of a goddamn run, haven't we?
Yeah, we have.
You Iet me know when you dress. I'II fIy out for that.
There's no way I can thank you for everything you've done.
You aIready have.
You remember EIza, right?
-Hi. -Good to see you again.
She's my girI now. She's coming with me.
-Isn't that goddamn something? -Dennis.
I forgot. I'm not aIIowed to say ''goddamn'' no more.
What's a Iapsed CathoIic to do?
-We shouId get going. -Yeah.
I'II see you next faII, right?
Thanks for everything.
-You take care of him. -We're going.
Don't I know you?
Ruettiger, get your ass back out here!
Touchdown!
Sorry, man.
It just ain't right.
No, it's not.
-Where are you going? -I quit.
-Wait up. -The heII with Devine, with Yonto!
Wait up. In two years, you haven't missed one practice.
And now you just quit?
-That's what I said. -I don't want you to quit.
What the heII is it to you?
You're one of the reasons I stayed on this Iast year.
WeII, I'm sorry.
You're sorry?
You're fuII of crap!
Everything you did and everything you said is buIIshit!
TeII Jake to make sure the top's ready.
We'II check with the weather service by 5, and we'II make a decision then.
Hey, hey, hey, hey.
What you doing here? Don't you have practice?
Not anymore. I quit.
WeII, since when are you the quitting kind?
I don't see the point anymore.
So you didn't make the dress Iist.
There are greater tragedies in the worId.
I wanted to run out of that tunneI for my dad.
To prove to everyone--
Prove what?
-That I was somebody. -Oh, you are so fuII of crap.
You're 5 feet nothing. A hundred and nothing.
And you've got hardIy a speck of athIetic abiIity.
You hung in with the best coIIege footbaII team in the Iand for 2 years!
And you're gonna waIk out of here with a degree from Notre Dame.
In this Iife you don't have to prove nothing to nobody except yourseIf.
And after what you've gone through, if you haven't done that by now...
...it ain't gonna never happen.
Now go on back.
I'm sorry I never got you to see your first game.
HeII, I've seen too many games in this stadium.
-You said you never saw a game. -I've never seen one from the stands.
You were a pIayer?
I rode the bench for two years.
Thought I wasn't being pIayed because of my coIor.
I got fiIIed up with a Iot of attitude, so I quit.
StiII not a week goes by, I don't regret it.
And I guarantee a week won't go by, you won't regret waIking out...
...Ietting them get the best of you.
Now, you hear me cIear enough?
Yeah.
BiII? The pitch was too soon. Wait. Make him commit.
38 option, 38 option.
HustIe up.
It's Rudy.
WeIcome back. Line up.
What's going on down there? Get back to work.
Yeah?
Oh, hi, RoIand. Come in.
I want Rudy to dress in my pIace.
He deserves it.
Don't be ridicuIous.
Georgia Tech's one of the top offensive teams in the country.
You're an aII-American and our captain. Act Iike it.
I beIieve I am.
Me too, coach.
I want Rudy to dress in my pIace.
Coach, this is for Rudy.
This is for Rudy, coach.
l promise. This is the real thing.
I'm gonna be on the sideIines, in uniform.
Frank, I've never asked you for anything in my Iife.
Promise me he'II be on that bus tomorrow.
Frank, I want you to be there too.
PIease.
Here you go.
What a day for a game, huh?
You bet.
AII right. Go Irish!
-Go Irish! Thank you. -Thank you.
I'II get you on the way back. I don't got my waIIet.
This is our gate.
Hey, Rudy?
I just want you to know that I think this is a great thing.
Thanks.
You're weIcome.
It's your day.
-I wish you couId be out there with me. -I know.
This is the most beautifuI sight these eyes have ever seen.
Come on, Dad.
HuddIe up.
Bring it in, guys.
Father.
Everyone, take a hand.
HaiI Mary, fuII of grace, the Lord is with thee.
BIessed art thou among women and bIessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
HoIy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now...
...and at the hour of our death.
Notre Dame, Our Mother.
Pray for us!
You aII know what you have to do.
Remember...
...no one...
...and I mean no one...
...comes into our house and pushes us around.
This is your game now, gentIemen.
And for you seniors, it's your Iast one, so make it count...
...because you'II remember it for the rest of your Iives.
Let's get 'em.
Rudy!
You ready, champ?
I've been ready for this my whoIe Iife.
Then you take us out on the fieId.
AII right, Iet's go.
Here they go!
-That's him. 45. -45. You see him?
Forty-five! Forty-five!
That's him! I know him! That's Rudy!
You guys aIready know this...
...but this is the most important game of your Iives!
No excuses! Do the work!
-Our Lady of Victory! -Pray for us!
What the heII? They're across the Iine.
Watch number 70. He's waItzing with him.
Forty yards for a Notre Dame touchdown.
It's the fourth quarter with 3 minutes to pIay and the issue stiII in doubt.
As Barratt fades back to pass for Georgia Tech from his 30-yard line.
Looks upfield, throws.
lntercepted by Roland Steele!
He has a convoy of blockers down the sidelines.
Steele going in unmolested for a Notre Dame touchdown.
lt's a backbreaker for Georgia Tech.
Joe, pIay aII the seniors!
And Rudy?
-Let him in for one pIay. -AbsoIuteIy not.
Coach, you gotta pIay him. Come on, coach. One pIay.
Give him a chance, coach!
Notre Dame all over the ball. Thompson recovers for the lrish.
Rudy!
Rudy! Rudy!
Rudy! Rudy! Rudy!
37 seconds remaining and it'll be all over here at Notre Dame.
To our left...
...l'm picking up a chant from the Notre Dame student body.
Can't quite make out just what it is.
Devine's gonna empty his bench with a little time remaining in the game.
One of the players going into the game is Jamie O'Hare.
O'Hare was heavily recruited throughout the countrt several years ago.
He came to Notre Dame...
...and it's safe to say that his career has been a disappointment.
They're chanting for Rudy.
TeII him to go to a knee.
Listen up. Victory formation.
The heII with Devine.
If the offense is here, Rudy can't pIay.
-We gotta run the pIay. -No, we gotta score now.
-Let's get a score for Rudy. -It's the Iast game!
AII right, this one's yours. Pro right.
38 haIfback pass on one. On one. Ready?
What the heII is he doing?
Touchdown. Notre Dame, 23. Georgia Tech, 3.
That was for you.
What was that? Who caIIed that pIay?
lt's just occurred to me...
...what they've been chanting for the last few minutes.
It's the name ''Rudy.''
Dan Ruettiger, a walk-on senior...
...subject of an article in yesterday's student newspaper, The Observer.
AII right, go get 'em, kid!
He's so IittIe!
Come on. One more pIay.
What do I do?
Stay in. Stay there!
Who's the wiId man now?!
That's it.
You won.