Coach’s legacy in wins, philanthropy

cure for the terrible disease that took the lives of three of his grandchildren.”

Parseghian took over at Notre Dame in 1964 when the Irish hadn’t had a win- ning season in five years. He led them to national titles in 1966 and 1973, then retired after the 1974 season, saying he was worn out and ready for a change. He never returned to coaching.

His .836 winning percent- age puts him third on Notre Dame’s coaching list behind fellow College Football Hall of Famers Knute Rockne (.881) and Frank Leahy (.855). Parseghian started his coach- ing career at Miami University, his alma mater, then spent eight seasons leading Northwestern. After step- ping down at Notre Dame, Parseghian spent more than a decade calling games on ABC and CBS.

In 1994, his family was hit with devastating news. Three of son Mike’s chil- dren were found to have Niemann-Pick disease type C. Parseghian helped create the Ara Parseghian Medical Foundation in response. He already had been active in the National Multiple Scle- rosis Society after daughter Karan was diagnosed.

The Parseghians lost three grandchildren between the ages of 9-16 to Niemann-Pick disease from 1997-2005. The foundation has raised more than $45 million for research on the disease.

In 2014, Parseghian’s daughter, Karan Burke, died at 61.