Oct. 09--Pat Eilers and his wife Jana are helping Notre Dame's defensive backs by giving back.
The couple gave the school a $3 million endowment earmarked to pay for the football team's defensive backs coach, the school announced Friday. It is the first such endowment for an assistant coaching position at the university.
Eilers was a two-year starter who helped Notre Dame win its last national championship in 1988. He played flanker, split end and defensive back for the Irish, for whom he also played baseball. He was a teammate with current Irish defensive backs coach Todd Lyght at Notre Dame before a six-year career in the NFL that included a stop in Chicago.
Eilers, who is the managing director of Madison Dearborn Partners, a Chicago-based private equity firm, played nine games with the Bears in 1995. He and his wife reside in Winnetka.
"I'm honored that my friend and former teammate was willing to make such an incredibly generous gift," Lyght said. "Pat's love, dedication and commitment to Notre Dame and our football program are exemplary. It's extremely humbling that my position will now bear his family's name."
One of Eilers' four children, Katherine, is a junior lacrosse player for the Irish.
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