Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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52 NOV. 20, 2021 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED IRISH ECHOES JIM LEFEBVRE N otre Dame's first interaction with southern football powers came in 1922 with a challeng- ing trip to Atlanta to take on Georgia Tech. The Golden Tornado had made their mark on the sport during the 16- year (1904-19) tenure of coach John Heisman, one of the early leaders in the history of the game. Heisman's squad had won national champion- ship honors in 1917, when it outscored the opposition 491-17 during a 9-0 season. The Irish came home with a 13-3 victory that day. And within a de - cade, it was Knute Rockne's name t h a t re so n a te d a c ross t h e So u t h , as his former Notre Dame players guided numerous programs includ - ing powers such as Alabama, Auburn, Florida, and Georgia. Several factors were at play. Notre Dame's consistent success on the field attracted national attention and re - spect. And Rockne's personal magne- tism, in-depth contacts and relentless communication put him in a position to recommend coaches for countless colleges, universities, prep schools and high schools that approached him with their athletic openings. In the fall of 1924, the Four Horse - men and Seven Mules were all seniors at Notre Dame, concluding their play- ing days by winning a national cham- pionship. By the next fall, all 11 men were coaching college football, in- cluding three head coaches — Harry Stuhldreher at Villanova, Adam Walsh at Santa Clara and Elmer Layden at Io- wa's Columbia College (today's Loras University). Meanwhile, four members of the 1924 Irish were headed off to be as- sistants at major southern schools — Horsemen Jim Crowley (Georgia) and Don Miller (Georgia Tech), along with Mules Chuck Collins (Tennessee) and John Weibel (Vanderbilt). Here's a look at the schools in the region and the Rockne men who led their teams: ALABAMA FRANK THOMAS ('21) • 1931-46 Record: 115-24-7 Thomas played quarterback under Rockne on Notre Dame's undefeated teams of 1920-21, as a teammate of George Gipp. He would go on to cross paths with more football legends in his 15-year stint as head coach of the Crimson Tide. In his fourth season, 1934, he guided the Tide to a 10-0 record, a Rose Bowl victory over Stanford and the national championship. The stars of the team were quarterback Dixie Howell along with ends Don Hutson and Paul "Bear" Bryant. Thomas would serve as Bryant's mentor for years, including 1936-40, when the Bear was one of his assistants. Thomas led Alabama to victories in the Cotton (1941), Orange (1942) and Rose (1935, 1945) bowls. AUBURN CHET WYNNE ('22) • 1930-33 Record: 22-15-2 Another backfield mate of Gipp's, Wynne lined up as the Irish starting fullback in 1920 and 1921. He guided Creighton as head coach for seven sea- sons (1923-29) before heading to Auburn. There, in his third season (1932), he coached the Tigers to a 9-0-1 record and Southern Conference title. JACK MEAGHER ('17) • 1934-43 Record: 48-37-10 When Wynne left Auburn for Kentucky in 1934, the Tigers turned to another former Notre Dame star, and Meagher coached Auburn for the next nine seasons. In 1937, he led the Tigers to a 6-0 Orange Bowl victory over Michigan State, coached by former Irish lineman Charlie Bachman. FLORIDA CHARLIE BACHMAN ('17) • 1928-32 Record: 27-18-3 Bachman first established his coaching creden- tials from 1920-27 at Kansas State, where in 1924 his Wildcats beat Kansas for the first time in 18 Frank Thomas (above), quarterback for Knute Rockne on Notre Dame's 1920-21 teams, went on to become the head coach at Alabama from 1931-46, leading the Crimson Tide, including Bear Bryant (left), to a national championship in 1934. PHOTOS COURTESY AL.COM Knute Rockne's Coaching Tree Spread Quickly Among South's Top Schools