Knute Kenneth Rockne (March 4, 1888 – March 31, 1931) was a Norwegian-American football player and coach at the University of Notre Dame. Rockne is regarded as one of the greatest coaches in college football history. Rockne helped to popularize the forward pass and made the Notre Dame Fighting Irish a major factor in college football.

He was educated as a chemist at Notre Dame, and graduated in 1914 with a degree in pharmacy. After graduating, he was the laboratory assistant to noted polymer chemist Julius Arthur Nieuwland at Notre Dame and helped out with the football team, but rejected further work in chemistry after receiving an offer to coach football.

Rockne took over from his predecessor Jesse Harper in the war-torn season of 1918, posting a 3–1–2 record, losing only to the Michigan Aggies. He made his coaching debut on September 28, 1918, against Case Tech in Cleveland earning a 26–6 victory. Rockne was struck with illness in 1929, and the de facto head coach was assistant Tom Lieb.

Rockne died in the crash of a Transcontinental & Western Air airliner in Kansas on March 31, 1931, while en route to participate in the production of the film "The Spirit of Notre Dame" (released October 13, 1931). President Herbert Hoover called Rockne's death "a national loss". King Haakon VII of Norway, Rockne's birthplace, posthumously knighted Rockne, and sent a personal envoy to Rockne's massive funeral.

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