Blair Kiel

Blair Armstrong Kiel (born November 29, 1961) is a former four-year starting quarterback for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, from 1980-1983. He played professionally for several teams in the National Football League, the Canadian Football League and the Arena Football League, and was inducted into the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 1998. Currently Kiel works as an advisor to corporate real estate clients in the Indianapolis area.

College

Kiel attended Columbus East High School in Indiana, where he was rated the #3 quarterback in the nation by Parade. Coach Richard Dangles offered him a scholarship to the University of Notre Dame, where Kiel earned the starting quarterback job during his freshman year, four games into the 1980 season. The team achieved a 9-0-1 record and the #1 ranking before closing the season with losses at USC (20-3) and to Georgia in the Sugar Bowl (17-10).

Kiel went on to become the sixth all-time leading passer for Notre Dame, and holds the record for the team's longest pass play—a 96-yard bomb to Joe Howard against Georgia Tech in 1981. In his final game, he led the unranked Irish to victory over 13th-ranked Boston College in the Liberty Bowl.

Professional

Kiel was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 1984 NFL Draft but only saw playing time in the regular season as a holder on kick attempts. He later played in seven games over two seasons with the Indianapolis Colts as both a quarterback and punter, and then spent...
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