After the war, he finished his college career at Miami University in Ohio and went on to play halfback for the Cleveland Browns of the All-America Football Conference in 1948 and 1949.

[2] He never had a losing season at Notre Dame and posted an overall record of 95–17–4, giving him the fourth-most wins of any coach in school history after Rockne (105), Brian Kelly (101) and Lou Holtz (100).

Parseghian's .836 winning percentage while at Notre Dame ranks behind only Rockne's .881 and Leahy's .855, leading to his inclusion in the "Holy Trinity" of Fighting Irish coaches.

[8][9] The Navy transferred him for training to Naval Station Great Lakes near Chicago, where Paul Brown was coaching a service football team.

[12] Parseghian was named the team's starting fullback before the 1944 season, but he was sidelined with an ankle injury and did not play in any games as Great Lakes amassed a 9–2–1 record and was ranked 17th in the nation in the AP Poll.

[12] After his military service, Parseghian enrolled at Miami of Ohio and played halfback on the school's football team in 1946 and 1947 under coach Sid Gillman.

[12] As with Brown, Parseghian paid close attention to Gillman, a post-war football pioneer who helped popularize deep downfield passes as the T formation came into vogue.

[15] While he only started one game that season, he was part of a potent offensive backfield that featured quarterback Otto Graham and fullback Marion Motley.

[8][22][23] Parseghian's success, which included two wins over larger Big Ten Conference schools, raised his profile nationally as a head coaching prospect.

That crucible set the stage for a much more successful campaign in 1958, when Northwestern finished with a 5–4 record that included victories over conference rivals Michigan and Ohio State.

[28] Led by quarterback John Talley and star halfback Ron Burton, the team beat Michigan again and won a match-up in October against Notre Dame, a school Northwestern had not played since 1948.

[30] Myers, aided by a big offensive line and by star receiver Paul Flatley, led a passing attack that helped Northwestern to the top of the AP Poll in the middle of the season following wins against Ohio State and Notre Dame.

[35] He also clashed with athletic director Holcomb, who told him in 1963 that his contract would not be renewed after that season despite coaching the team to within two wins of a national championship the previous year.

In November of that year, he called Father Edmund Joyce, the vice president and chairman of the athletics board at Notre Dame, a Catholic university near South Bend, Indiana.

Notre Dame had built a proud history under Rockne and Frank Leahy (its two most successful coaches), but the late 1950s and early 1960s had been a disaster.

[45] Kuharich's surprise departure at the end of that season to become supervisor of officials in the National Football League, a position created by his friend and NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle, left the program in disarray.

[46] Devore, a long-time Notre Dame employee who had played for Rockne and coached under Leahy, was brought in to lead the team on an interim basis in 1963.

[52] A rule change allowing unlimited substitutions starting in 1964 helped make this strategy successful; fast-running receivers could now be taken out of the game and rested as others replaced them.

[53] Parseghian also recognized talent in quarterback John Huarte and wide receiver Jack Snow, who had been used only sparingly for two seasons by previous coaches.

[61] The team went undefeated until the last game of the year against USC, who won 20–17 in the final minutes on a touchdown pass from Craig Fertig to Rod Sherman.

[68] Led by quarterback Terry Hanratty, running back Nick Eddy, star receiver Jim Seymour, and fullback Larry Conjar, the offense was best in the nation in scoring, with an average of 36.2 points per game.

[70][71] When Parseghian's team trounced USC 51–0 the following week, critics alleged that he ran up the score to impress poll voters who had split the number-one ranking between Notre Dame and Michigan State following the tie.

[72] Subsequent to the USC rout, the final wire service polls gave Parseghian's team the national championship, although Notre Dame continued its policy of not participating in a post-season bowl game.

[77] Led by senior quarterback Joe Theismann, the team finished second in the polls in 1970 and avenged its Cotton Bowl loss, defeating the Longhorns 24–11 in an upset.

[87] His record at Notre Dame was 95–17–4, giving him the second-most wins by any football coach in the school's history, trailing only Knute Rockne.

[96] Notre Dame athletic director Moose Krause orchestrated the deal with Don Canham, his counterpart at Michigan, but Parseghian's friendship with Wolverine head coach Bo Schembechler also played a role.

[95] While at Notre Dame, Parseghian did away with all ornamentation on players' uniforms, eliminating shamrocks and shoulder stripes and switched the team's home jerseys to navy blue.

[88][98] Parseghian, who amassed a career coaching record of 170–58–6 at Miami, Northwestern and Notre Dame, was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1980.

[106] Along with Lou Holtz, Parseghian served as one of two honorary coaches in Notre Dame's 2007 spring game, an annual scrimmage held in April.

[111] The foundation is seeking a cure for Niemann-Pick disease Type C, a genetic disorder affecting children that causes the buildup of cholesterol in cells, resulting in damage to the nervous system and eventually death.