Tom Schoen, a former University of Notre Dame Consensus All-American, passed away in late January of 2023 at the age of 77. Born in 1946 in Cleveland, Ohio, Schoen was a high school quarterback at St. Joseph High School (OH) and began his career with the Fighting Irish in 1965 under center before shifting to the defensive backfield for his final two seasons.
Schoen led the Irish in punt returns and interceptions as a junior and senior, which included seven interceptions for 117 yards and two touchdowns during Notre Dame’s 1966 National Championship campaign.
Schoen appears in several different places throughout the Notre Dame record book, including holding the single-game record for total punt returns and punt return yardage (nine and 167, respectively, at Pittsburgh in 1967). He also is first in single-season punt returns (42 in 1967), second in single-season punt return yards (447, 1967), fifth in career punt returns (71) and sixth in punt return yards (700).
When Schoen got his hands on the ball as a defensive back, he had a propensity to make game-changing plays and earned Consensus All-America honors at the conclusion of the 1967 season. He ranks third on the all-time interception return list with 226 yards and shares the Notre Dame record with four other players with three career interception returns for a touchdown.
Schoen was an eight-round selection in the 1968 NFL Draft by his hometown team, the Cleveland Browns. He also was drafted into the U.S. Army, serving in Fort Campbell, Kentucky and in South Korea. Schoen was able to play for the Browns in 1970 after his service ended and he was eventually inducted into the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame in 2000.
Schoen returned to his high school alma mater as an assistant football coach in 1988, was named head coach in 1995 and then the school’s athletic director in 1998. He also was the owner of Olympic Sporting Goods in Cleveland and Schoen’s Bar & Grill in Euclid, Ohio. Schoen is survived by his wife, Mary, and children Kirstin, Thomas, Kathleen, Timothy and Michael.