As a freshman during the 1972 season, tight end Robin Weber was used extensively as a blocker in double tight end alignments. Yet the Dallas native lives on in Notre Dame lore because of a reception that couldn’t have come at a bigger time.
In the closing minutes of the 1973 Sugar Bowl, the Irish led Alabama, 24–23, but were backed up on their own two-yard line and faced third-and-eight. On a pattern designed to All-America tight end Dave Casper underneath, QB Tom Clements instead hit Weber on a beautifully thrown ball right in front of the Crimson Tide bench for a 37-yard gain, allowing Notre Dame to run out the clock en route to the national championship.
“It was a night of big plays, and I just happened to be the last man through,” Weber told Notre Dame athletics in 2006. “You always remember the last man through.”
For the past 24 years, Weber has served as president of Weber Commercial Real Estate Services in his native Dallas. When his alma mater and Alabama meet again for the national title 40 years after his famous catch, Weber will be in the Sun Life Stadium stands, watching to see who the “last man through” will be this time around. Robin Weber profile
