Former Notre Dame National Champion John Lium Dies at 80

Lium was a part of the 1966 Notre Dame football team that won the national championship

Oct 19, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A Notre Dame Fighting Irish helmet on the field before a game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

John Lium, an offensive lineman on Notre Dame's 1966 national championship football team, has died. He was 80 years old.

Lium's obituary states that he died on March 7, "after facing a long illness with grace and courage".

The 6-5 Lium was an offensive lineman at Notre Dame, where he earned a scholarship to play after starring at Cardinal Farley Military Academy in New York.

Lium began his Notre Dame career in 1963, a year former head coach Hugh Devore led after the resignation of Joe Kuharich.

That year saw the Irish go just 2-7, but a year later Lium would be part of the greatest turnarounds in college football history.

New head coach Ara Parseghian changed the luck of the Irish all the way to a 9-1 record, and within minutes of a national championship, had it not been for a late USC touchdown in the final game of the season.

Two years later, Lium and Notre Dame would get that title.

After graduating from Notre Dame in the spring of 1967, Lium played briefly on the New York Giants practice squad.

From there, he went back to school, getting his law degree from St. John's.

Lium's obituary also states that he was a member of the Screen Actors Guild and starred in several commercials over the years.

After surviving sudden cardiac arrest in 1999, Lium established the Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Research Foundation.

The family has asked that, instead of flowers, donations be made to that:

Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Research Foundation, Inc.
PO Box 690
Rye, NY 10580

Godspeed, John Lium.