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The Folklore behind Bear Bryant’s Recruitment of Howard Schnellenberger

For many football fans across the Commonwealth, Howard Schnellenberger is celebrated as the architect that resurrected the University of Louisville football program. Long before he won a Fiesta Bowl with the Cardinals, or a National Championship with Miami , or served as the play-caller for the undefeated 72 Miami Dolphins, or recruited Joe Namath to Alabama, he was Bear Bryant’s most coveted football recruit.

Schnellenberger was a star for Flaget High School. Two years older than the Golden Boy, Paul Hornung, the Catholic school in the West End of Louisville was a football powerhouse in the 40s and 50s.