The Four Horsemen of Notre Dame

The opening paragraph of a sports story written by Grantland Rice, one of the most famous sportswriters of all time, immortalized the 1924 Notre Dame backfield comprised of quarterback Harry Stuhldreher, left halfback Jim Crowley, right halfback Don Miller, and fullback Elmer Layden.

Describing Notre Dame's 13-7 upset of the Army on October 18, 1924, Rice wrote these words:

“Outlined against a blue-gray October sky the Four Horsemen rode again. In dramatic lore they are known as Famine, Pestilence, Destruction and Death. These are only aliases. Their real names are: Stuhldreher, Miller, Crowley 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.”

Rice’s words alone might have been enough to catapult the four players to glory. Their immortality was assured when an enterprising student publicist named George Strickler led four horses to the practice field a few days later for a soon-to-be-iconic photograph. All four of the Notre Dame backs mounted horses for the first time in their lives and became forever known as the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame.