The Four Horsemen of Notre Dame comprised a group of
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
players at the
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic university, Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin fo ...
under coach
Knute Rockne. They were the
backfield The offensive backfield is the area of an American football field behind the line of scrimmage. The offensive backfield can also refer to members of offense who begin plays behind the line, typically including any backs on the field, such as the ...
of
Notre Dame's 1924 football team. The players that made up this group were
Harry Stuhldreher
Harry Augustus Stuhldreher (October 14, 1901 – January 26, 1965) was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He played quarterback at University of Notre Dame from 1922 to 1924, where he was a three-time All-A ...
,
Don Miller,
Jim Crowley, and
Elmer Layden
Elmer Francis Layden (May 4, 1903 – June 30, 1973) was an American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and professional sports executive. He played college football at the University of Notre Dame where he starred at full ...
.
In 1924, a nickname coined by sportswriter
Grantland Rice
Henry Grantland "Granny" Rice (November 1, 1880July 13, 1954) was an early 20th-century American sportswriter known for his elegant prose. His writing was published in newspapers around the country and broadcast on the radio.
Early years
Rice wa ...
and the actions of a student publicity aide transformed the Notre Dame backfield of Stuhldreher, Crowley, Miller, and Layden into one of the most noted groups of collegiate athletes in football history, the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame.
Quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
Harry Stuhldreher, left
halfback Jim Crowley, right halfback Don Miller, and
fullback Elmer Layden had run rampant through Irish opponents' defenses since coach Knute Rockne devised the lineup in 1922 during their sophomore season. During the three-year tenure of the Four Horsemen, Notre Dame lost only two games; one each in 1922 and 1923, both to
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...
in
Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincol ...
before packed houses.
Naming
Grantland Rice
Henry Grantland "Granny" Rice (November 1, 1880July 13, 1954) was an early 20th-century American sportswriter known for his elegant prose. His writing was published in newspapers around the country and broadcast on the radio.
Early years
Rice wa ...
, sportswriter for the ''
New York Herald Tribune'', gave the foursome football immortality.
After Notre Dame's 13–7 upset victory over a strong Army team, on October 18, 1924, Rice penned "the most famous football lead of all-time":
George Strickler, then Rockne's student publicity aide and later sports editor of the ''
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...
'', made sure the name stuck. He had pitched the idea out loud at the halftime of the Army game in the press box as a tie in to the 1921
Rudolph Valentino movie ''
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.''
[Dufresne, Chris - When they were riding high. Los Angeles Times, October 2, 2007] After the team arrived back in South Bend, he posed the four players, dressed in their uniforms, on the backs of four horses from a livery stable in town. The wire services picked up the now-famous photo, and the legendary status of the Four Horsemen was assured.
"At the time, I didn't realize the impact it would have," Crowley said later. "But the thing just mushroomed. After the splurge in the press, the sports fans of the nation got interested in us along with other sportswriters. Our record helped, too. If we'd lost a couple. I don't think we would have been remembered."
After that win over Army, Notre Dame's third straight victory of the young season, the Irish were rarely threatened the rest of the year. A 27–10 win over
Stanford in the
1925 Rose Bowl
The 1925 Rose Bowl was a college football bowl game. It was the 11th Rose Bowl Game. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish defeated Stanford University, 27–10. The game featured two legendary coaches, Knute Rockne of Notre Dame, and Pop Warner in his fir ...
gave Rockne and Notre Dame the national championship and a 10–0 record.
As it usually is with legends, the Four Horsemen earned their spot in gridiron history. Although none of the four stood taller than six feet or weighed more than 162 pounds, they played 30 games as a unit and only lost to one team, Nebraska, twice. They played at a time when there were no separate offensive and defensive teams. All players had to play both sides. Once a player left the field, he could not come back into the game.
Backgrounds
Stuhldreher, a 5'7", 151-pounder from
Massillon, Ohio, was a self-assured leader who could throw accurately, return punts, and block. He emerged as the starting signal caller four games into his sophomore season in 1922.
Crowley, who came to Notre Dame in 1921 from
Green Bay, Wisconsin, stood 5'11" and weighed 162 pounds. Known as "Sleepy Jim" for his drowsy-eyed appearance, Crowley outmaneuvered many defenders with his shifty ball carrying.
Miller, a native of
Defiance, Ohio
Defiance is a city in and the county seat of Defiance County, Ohio, United States, about southwest of Toledo, Ohio, Toledo and northeast of Fort Wayne, Indiana, in Ohio's northwestern corner. The population was 16,494 at the 2010 United State ...
, followed his three brothers to Notre Dame. At 5'11", 160 pounds, he proved to be the team's breakaway threat. According to Rockne, Miller was the greatest open-field runner he ever coached.
Layden, the fastest of the quartet, became the Irish defensive star with his timely interceptions and handled the punting chores. The 6-foot, 162-pounder from
Davenport, Iowa, boasted excellent speed in the 40-yard dash.
Later lives
After graduation, the lives of the Four Horsemen took similar paths. All began coaching careers, with three of the four occupying top positions. As players, the four reunited for one game for the
Hartford Blues in 1925 (Stuldreher was already playing for the team that year); the Blues, however, lost 13–6 to the
Cleveland Bulldogs. Two of the four, Layden and Stuhldreher, were the namesakes of the professional
Brooklyn Horsemen team for whom they played in 1926.
Layden coached at his alma mater for seven years and compiled a 47–13–3 record. He also served as
athletic director
An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches an ...
at Notre Dame and later as commissioner of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
. After a business career in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
, Layden died in 1973 at the age of 70.
Crowley started as an assistant coach at the
University of Georgia
, mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things."
, establ ...
. He quickly moved to head coaching positions at
Michigan State University and
Fordham University, where his famed line, the "
Seven Blocks of Granite The Seven Blocks of Granite were the Fordham University football team's offensive line under head coach "Sleepy" Jim Crowley and line coach Frank Leahy. The individuals identified among the Seven Blocks of Granite were Leo Paquin, Johnny Druze ...
," included
Vince Lombardi
Vincent Thomas Lombardi (June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is recognized a ...
. His Fordham teams played in the
Cotton Bowl Classic
The Cotton Bowl Classic (also known as the Cotton Bowl) is an American college football bowl game that has been held annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its namesake stadium i ...
and
Sugar Bowl. His overall record was 78–21–10. Crowley also served as commissioner of the
All-America Football Conference. He later entered business in
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming V ...
. The last surviving Horseman, Crowley died in 1986 at the age of 83.
Stuhldreher, who died in 1965 at the age of 63, was the head football coach for 11 years at
Villanova University
Villanova University is a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Augustinians in 1842 and named after Saint Thomas of Villanova. The university is the oldest Catholic university in Penns ...
, then became athletic director and football coach at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...
. He later worked for
U.S. Steel.
Miller left coaching after four years each at
Georgia Tech
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
and
The Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publi ...
. He began practicing law in
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
. He was appointed
U.S. District Attorney for Northern Ohio by President
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
. Miller died in 1979 at the age of 77.
All four players were elected to the
College Football Hall of Fame — Layden in 1951, Stuhldreher in 1958, Crowley in 1966, and Miller in 1970. In 1998, the
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...
honored the Four Horsemen with their own stamp as part of 15 commemorative postage stamps saluting "
The Roaring Twenties" which was part of their
Celebrate the Century stamp sheet series.
The Seven Mules
After the Horsemen got their name, the Notre Dame line was nicknamed the "Seven Mules" to emphasize their crucial but less glamorous function. Two members of the line are also in the College Football Hall of Fame.
Adam Walsh, from
Hollywood, California
Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...
, was the starting
center
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
*Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...
and team captain. In later years, he coached at
Santa Clara University and
Bowdoin College and for the
Cleveland/Los Angeles Rams. Walsh died in 1985.
Edgar Miller was a
tackle from
Canton, Ohio. He later coached at the
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...
and died in 1991. Thus, a total of six members of the 1924 Notre Dame team have been elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.
Yet another of the "Mules" was
Joe Bach who went on to a coaching career that included two stints as head coach of the
Pittsburgh Pirates/Steelers. Another Mule was
George Vergara who later played for the
Green Bay Packers and his career ended with a neck injury. Later he became the Mayor of
New Rochelle, New York.
Bibliography
Full text of Grantland Rice article from University of Notre Dame archives
References
Sources
*
When Pride Still Mattered, A Life of Vince Lombardi'' by David Maraniss, 1999, ()
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Four Horsemen (Football)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
Nicknamed groups of American football players
Quartets