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Four Horsemen (football)
Encyclopedia
The Four Horsemen of Notre Dame comprised a winning group of American football
players at the University of Notre Dame
under coach Knute Rockne
. They were the backfield of Notre Dame's 1924 football team
. The players that made up this group were Harry Stuhldreher
, Don Miller, Jim Crowley
, and Elmer Layden
.
In 1924, a dramatic nickname coined by a poetic sportswriter, Grantland Rice, and the quick-thinking actions of a clever student publicity aide transformed the Notre Dame backfield of Stuhldreher, Crowley, Miller and Layden into the most fabled quartet in college football history, the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1130404/index.htm
Quarterback
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 entire three-year tenure of the Four Horsemen, Notre Dame lost only two games; one each in 1922 and 1923, both to Nebraska
in Lincoln
before packed houses.
, a sportswriter for the former New York Herald Tribune
, to achieve 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
, 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
. 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
gave Rockne and Notre Dame the national championship and a perfect 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 and none of the four weighed more than 162 pounds, the Four Horsemen might comprise the greatest backfield ever. As a unit, Stuhldreher, Crowley, Miller and Layden played 30 games 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.
, was a self-assured leader who not only could throw accurately but also returned punts and proved a solid blocker. He emerged as the starting signal caller four games into his sophomore season in 1922. He was often labeled cocky, feisty and ambitious, but his field generalship was unmatched.
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 a defender with his clever, shifty ballcarrying.
Miller, a native of Defiance, Ohio
, followed his three brothers to Notre Dame. At 5-11, 160 pounds, Miller 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 also handled the punting chores. The 6-foot, 162-pounder from Davenport, Iowa
boasted 10-second speed in the 100-yard dash.
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
at Notre Dame, and later as commissioner of the National Football League
. After a business career in Chicago
, Layden died in 1973 at the age of 70.
Crowley started as an assistant coach at the University of Georgia
. He quickly moved to head coaching positions at Michigan State University
and Fordham University
where his famed line, the "Seven Blocks of Granite
," included Vince Lombardi
. His Fordham teams played in the Cotton Bowl Classic 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
. 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
, then became athletic director and football coach at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
. He later worked for U.S. Steel
.
Miller left coaching after four years at Georgia Tech
and began practicing law in Cleveland. He was appointed U.S. District Attorney for Northern Ohio by President Franklin D. Roosevelt
. 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
honored the Four Horsemen with their own stamp as part of 15 commemorative postage stamps saluting "The Roaring Twenties
."
Thus, a total of six members of the 1924 Notre Dame team have been elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.
Another of the "mules" was Joe Bach
who would go on to a coaching career that would include two stints as head coach of the Pittsburgh Pirates/Steelers.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
players at the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
under coach Knute Rockne
Knute Rockne
Knute Kenneth Rockne was an American football player and coach. He is regarded as one of the greatest coaches in college football history...
. They were the backfield of Notre Dame's 1924 football team
1924 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team
The 1924 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team represented the University of Notre Dame in the 1924 college football season. Coached by Knute Rockne and featuring the "Four Horsemen" backfield of Harry Stuhldreher, Don Miller, Jim Crowley, and Elmer Layden, Notre Dame completed an undefeated,...
. The players that made up this group were Harry Stuhldreher
Harry Stuhldreher
Harry Augustus Stuhldreher 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-American and member of the legendary "Four Horsemen" backfield...
, Don Miller, Jim Crowley
Jim Crowley
James Harold "Jim" Crowley was an American football player and coach. He gained fame as one-fourth of the University of Notre Dame's legendary "Four Horsemen" backfield where he played halfback from 1922 to 1924. After a brief career as a professional football player, Crowley turned to coaching...
, and Elmer Layden
Elmer Layden
Elmer Francis Layden 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 fullback as a member of the legendary "Four Horsemen" backfield...
.
In 1924, a dramatic nickname coined by a poetic sportswriter, Grantland Rice, and the quick-thinking actions of a clever student publicity aide transformed the Notre Dame backfield of Stuhldreher, Crowley, Miller and Layden into the most fabled quartet in college football history, the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1130404/index.htm
Quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
Harry Stuhldreher, left halfback
Halfback (American football)
A halfback, sometimes referred to as a tailback, is an offensive position in American football, which lines up in the backfield and generally is responsible for carrying the ball on run plays. Historically, from the 1870s through the 1950s, the halfback position was both an offensive and defensive...
Jim Crowley, right halfback Don Miller, and fullback
Fullback (American football)
A fullback is a position in the offensive backfield in American and Canadian football, and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback...
Elmer Layden had run rampant through Irish opponents' defenses since coach Knute Rockne devised the lineup in 1922 during their sophomore season. During the entire three-year tenure of the Four Horsemen, Notre Dame lost only two games; one each in 1922 and 1923, both to Nebraska
Nebraska Cornhuskers football
The Nebraska Cornhuskers represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in college football. The program has established itself as a traditional powerhouse, and has the fourth-most all-time victories of any NCAA Division I-A team. Nebraska is one of only six football programs in NCAA Division I-A...
in Lincoln
Lincoln, Nebraska
The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....
before packed houses.
Naming
The foursome needed some help from Grantland RiceGrantland Rice
Grantland Rice 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.-Biography:...
, a sportswriter for the former New York Herald Tribune
New York Herald Tribune
The New York Herald Tribune was a daily newspaper created in 1924 when the New York Tribune acquired the New York Herald.Other predecessors, which had earlier merged into the New York Tribune, included the original The New Yorker newsweekly , and the Whig Party's Log Cabin.The paper was home to...
, to achieve 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":
Outlined against a blue-gray October sky, the Four Horsemen rode again. In dramatic lore their names are Death, Destruction, Pestilence, and Famine. But those are aliases. Their real names are: Stuhldreher, Crowley, Miller and Layden. They formed the crest of the South Bend cyclone before which another fighting Army team was swept over the precipice at the Polo Grounds this afternoon as 55,000 spectators peered down upon the bewildering panorama spread out upon the green plain below.
George Strickler, then Rockne's student publicity aide and later sports editor of the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
, 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
Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino was an Italian actor, and early pop icon. A sex symbol of the 1920s, Valentino was known as the "Latin Lover". He starred in several well-known silent films including The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, The Sheik, Blood and Sand, The Eagle and Son of the Sheik...
movie The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (film)
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is a 1921 silent movie produced by Metro Pictures Corporation, adapted by June Mathis, directed by Rex Ingram and starring Rudolph Valentino, Pomeroy Cannon, Josef Swickard, Wallace Beery, and Alice Terry...
. 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
Stanford Cardinal football
The Stanford Cardinal football program represents Stanford University in college football at the NCAA Division I FBS level and is a member of the Pac-12 Conference's North Division. Stanford, the top-ranked academic institution with an FBS program, has a highly successful football tradition. The...
in the 1925 Rose Bowl
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 Glenn "Pop" Warner in his first year at Stanford. The game also featured...
gave Rockne and Notre Dame the national championship and a perfect 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 and none of the four weighed more than 162 pounds, the Four Horsemen might comprise the greatest backfield ever. As a unit, Stuhldreher, Crowley, Miller and Layden played 30 games 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, OhioMassillon, Ohio
Massillon is a city located in Stark County in the U.S. state of Ohio, approximately 8 miles to the west of Canton, Ohio, 20 miles south of Akron, Ohio, and 50 miles south of Cleveland, Ohio. The population was 32,149 at the 2010 census....
, was a self-assured leader who not only could throw accurately but also returned punts and proved a solid blocker. He emerged as the starting signal caller four games into his sophomore season in 1922. He was often labeled cocky, feisty and ambitious, but his field generalship was unmatched.
Crowley, who came to Notre Dame in 1921 from Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
, stood 5-11 and weighed 162 pounds. Known as "Sleepy Jim" for his drowsy-eyed appearance, Crowley outmaneuvered many a defender with his clever, shifty ballcarrying.
Miller, a native of Defiance, Ohio
Defiance, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 16,465 people, 6,572 households, and 4,422 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,562.4 people per square mile . There were 7,061 housing units at an average density of 670.0 per square mile...
, followed his three brothers to Notre Dame. At 5-11, 160 pounds, Miller 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 also handled the punting chores. The 6-foot, 162-pounder from Davenport, Iowa
Davenport, Iowa
Davenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
boasted 10-second speed in the 100-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 BluesHartford Blues
The Hartford Blues of the National Football League played only in the 1926 NFL season, with a record of 3-7. The team was based in Hartford, Connecticut but played at the East Hartford Velodrome.-Origins:...
in 1925 (Stuldreher was already playing for the team that year); the Blues, however, lost 13-6 to the Cleveland Bulldogs
Cleveland Bulldogs
The Cleveland Bulldogs was a team that played in Cleveland, Ohio in the National Football League. They were originally called the Indians in 1923, not to be confused with the Cleveland Indians NFL franchise in 1922...
. Two of the four, Layden and Stuhldreher, were the namesakes of the professional Brooklyn Horsemen
Brooklyn Horsemen
The Brooklyn Horsemen was a professional football team that competed in the American Football League during the 1926 season.On November 12, 1926, the team withdrew from the AFL and merged with Brooklyn Lions of the National Football League. The new team created by the merger was initially called...
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
Athletic director
An athletic director is an administrator at many American colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and related staff involved in intercollegiate or interscholastic athletic programs...
at Notre Dame, and later as commissioner of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. After a business career in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Layden died in 1973 at the age of 70.
Crowley started as an assistant coach at the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
. He quickly moved to head coaching positions at Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
and Fordham University
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
where his famed line, the "Seven Blocks of Granite
Seven Blocks of Granite
The Seven Blocks of Granite was a nickname given to the Fordham University football team's offensive line under head coach "Sleepy" Jim Crowley and line coach Frank Leahy. The most famous Seven Blocks of Granite were: Leo Paquin, Johnny Druze, Alex Wojciechowicz, Ed Franco, Al Babartsky, Natty...
," included Vince Lombardi
Vince Lombardi
Vincent Thomas "Vince" Lombardi was an American football coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight league championships and five in seven years, including winning the first two Super Bowls following the 1966 and...
. His Fordham teams played in the Cotton Bowl Classic and Sugar Bowl
Sugar Bowl
The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Sugar Bowl has been played annually since January 1, 1935, and celebrated its 75th anniversary on January 2, 2009...
. His overall record was 78–21–10. Crowley also served as commissioner of the All-America Football Conference
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations...
. He later entered business in Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
. 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
Villanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
, then became athletic director and football coach at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
. He later worked for U.S. Steel
U.S. Steel
The United States Steel Corporation , more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an integrated steel producer with major production operations in the United States, Canada, and Central Europe. The company is the world's tenth largest steel producer ranked by sales...
.
Miller left coaching after four years at Georgia Tech
Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology is a public research university in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States...
and began practicing law in Cleveland. He was appointed U.S. District Attorney for Northern Ohio by President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
. Miller died in 1979 at the age of 77.
All four players were elected to the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...
— Layden in 1951, Stuhldreher in 1958, Crowley in 1966, and Miller in 1970.
In 1998, the United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
honored the Four Horsemen with their own stamp as part of 15 commemorative postage stamps saluting "The Roaring Twenties
Roaring Twenties
The Roaring Twenties is a phrase used to describe the 1920s, principally in North America, but also in London, Berlin and Paris for a period of sustained economic prosperity. The phrase was meant to emphasize the period's social, artistic, and cultural dynamism...
."
The Seven Mules
After the Horsemen got their name, someone named their line the "Seven Mules." Two members of the line are also in the College Football Hall of Fame.- Adam Walsh, from Hollywood, California, was the starting centerCenter (American football)Center is a position in American football and Canadian football . The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense...
and team captain. In later years, he coached at Santa Clara UniversitySanta Clara UniversitySanta Clara University is a private, not-for-profit, Jesuit-affiliated university located in Santa Clara, California, United States. Chartered by the state of California and accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, it operates in collaboration with the Society of Jesus , whose...
and Bowdoin CollegeBowdoin CollegeBowdoin College , founded in 1794, is an elite private liberal arts college located in the coastal Maine town of Brunswick, Maine. As of 2011, U.S. News and World Report ranks Bowdoin 6th among liberal arts colleges in the United States. At times, it was ranked as high as 4th in the country. It is...
and for the Cleveland/Los Angeles RamsSt. Louis RamsThe St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,...
. Walsh died in 1985. - Edgar MillerEdgar MillerEdgar E. "Rip" Miller was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. Miller played college football as a tackle at the University of Notre Dame from 1922 to 1924. He was a member of the "Seven Mules" line that blocked for the famous "Four Horsemen" backfield on...
was a tackle from Canton, OhioCanton, OhioCanton is the county seat of Stark County in northeastern Ohio, approximately south of Akron and south of Cleveland.The City of Caton is the largest incorporated area within the Canton-Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area...
. He later coached at the United States Naval AcademyUnited States Naval AcademyThe United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
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.
Another of the "mules" was Joe Bach
Joe Bach
Joseph Anthony Bach was one of Notre Dame's famed "seven mules" and later the head coach for the NFL's Pittsburgh Pirates and later the renamed Pittsburgh Steelers ....
who would go on to a coaching career that would include two stints as head coach of the Pittsburgh Pirates/Steelers.
Sources
- When Pride Still Mattered, A Life of Vince Lombardi, by David Maraniss, 1999, (ISBN 0-684-84418-4) ISBN 978-0-618-90499-0