Tim Brown’s unforgettable special teams performance helped launch Notre Dame’s 1987 season in historic fashion.
There are moments in Notre Dame football history that feel larger than the final score—games that announce something bigger is coming. The 1987 season opener against Michigan State was one of those moments.
It was the first game of Notre Dame’s 100th season of football, and it came against a tough Spartan team led by Heisman candidate Lorenzo White and a defense that would go on to win the Big Ten and the Rose Bowl. What followed was a statement win fueled by special teams brilliance, relentless defense, and a player who electrified Notre Dame Stadium in a way few ever have.
For this week’s Throwback Thursday, we revisit “Two for the Money,” written by Kathleen McKernan for the 1987 Notre Dame Football Review, originally published in Scholastic Magazine (Vol. 129, No. 12, January 28, 1988). It’s a reminder of just how special that afternoon was—and why Tim Brown earned the nickname Touchdown Timmy.
Two for the Money
by Kathleen McKernan
After Notre Dame’s 31–8 victory over Michigan State in the season opener of its 100th year of football, Irish head coach and erstwhile quipster Lou Holtz was simple in his praise:
“This football team has an awful lot of things going for it.”
From Heisman Trophy candidate Tim Brown’s 275 all-purpose yards—including two punt returns for touchdowns—to eight sacks by a previously anonymous defense, to a solid performance from senior quarterback Terry Andrysiak, the Irish showed they could win with special teams, defense, and whatever else it took. They did it against a strong Michigan State Spartans squad featuring its own Heisman hopeful in Lorenzo White and a physical defense destined for a Big Ten title and Rose Bowl victory.
By the end of the first quarter, Notre Dame held a commanding 19–0 lead, thanks to Brown’s pair of punt returns that went for touchdowns within 2:01 of each other. The first marked the Irish’s first punt return touchdown in 14 years—and the first time since 1926 that a Notre Dame player had returned two punts for touchdowns in the same game.
The first return, Brown explained, was nearly planned.
“We knew (MSU punter Greg) Montgomery had a 53-yard average. We figured he’d overkick the coverage, and that’s exactly what he did.”
Brown broke two tackles, followed his blockers, and then faced Spartan safety Todd Krumm.
“He motioned for me to ‘come on, come on, come on.’ So I came to him.”
The second return wasn’t part of the plan.
“I was supposed to call for a fair catch,” Brown admitted. “I think I would have been chewed out if I hadn’t returned it.”
Michigan State head coach George Perles later reflected:
“If I had to do it over, maybe I wouldn’t have emphasized our punt coverage so much… They were all in one line with no second wave. And Brown is a great, great football player.”
With Notre Dame going for a punt block, Brown found himself with only Montgomery between him and the end zone.
“I’m not going to let myself be tackled by a punter,” Brown thought—before racing 66 yards for his second touchdown.
Holtz marveled afterward:
“What a move Timmy put on that punter. I don’t know where a dance is being held tonight. That’s the only place you might see another move like that.”
The Irish had already taken a 2–0 lead before a second ticked off the clock when Michigan State returner Blake Ezor mistakenly carried the opening kickoff into the end zone for a safety. After a Ted Gradel field goal made it 5–0, Brown’s heroics blew the game wide open.
Despite his performance, Brown deflected the praise.
“The defense played better than I did.”
And the numbers backed him up. Notre Dame held White to just 51 yards on 19 carries and sacked quarterback Bobby McAllister eight times. One of Jeff Kunz’s sacks in the end zone accounted for Notre Dame’s second safety of the afternoon.
The Irish defense also forced four turnovers, with interceptions by Ned Bolcar and Todd Lyght and fumble recoveries by Bolcar and Tom Gorman. Michigan State’s only score—a 57-yard pass to Andre Rison and a two-point conversion—came with just 1:06 left in the game against Notre Dame’s second team.
Perles also praised Andrysiak, who threw for 109 yards and rushed for 22.
“The way he played tonight was the way I figured he would play when I tried to recruit him. I’m glad we didn’t have to face him the last two years.”
As speculation about Heisman odds and bowl bids began almost immediately, Brown brushed it off.
“I don’t think about the Heisman.”
Holtz was even more resolute:
“Great teams are classified on Jan. 2.”
Looking back nearly four decades later, it’s easy to see why this game still resonates. It wasn’t just about two unforgettable punt returns or a lopsided score—it was about a program announcing its intentions, a defense setting a tone, and a player delivering one of the most electrifying performances Notre Dame Stadium has ever seen.
Touchdown Timmy didn’t just change the game that afternoon—he changed how special teams could swing momentum, belief, and history itself. And on a day meant to celebrate 100 years of Notre Dame football, the Irish reminded everyone that the future was just as bright as the past.
Some moments fade.
Two punt returns in 2:01?
Those live forever.
Cheers & GO IRISH!
Category: General Sports
