Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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50 OCT. 12, 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED IRISH ECHOES JIM LEFEBVRE F or Elmer Layden, life was like a series of track-and-field events. Well-prepared with ample practice and preparation, he went to the starting line, and when the gun went off, gave the very best of himself to the challenge at hand. Much more often than not, he came home a winner. Born on May 4, 1903, to an active, com- munity-involved, middle-class family in Davenport, Iowa, Layden had a strong bond with his parents and four siblings, especially his older brother Clarence. The Layden home was the center of all sorts of activity when young Elmer grew up. The boulevard was split by a length of grass that alternately became the site of football, baseball and other games for the neighborhood youth. At Davenport High, Layden starred as a darting fullback, a track sprinter and a basketball sharpshooter. At the famous Drake Relays in Des Moines, Elmer and Clarence teamed with two classmates to set the high school record for the half- mile relay. Everyone figured Elmer would be an all-around athlete at the University of Iowa, his father's alma mater. How- ever, a knee injury during Layden's se- nior basketball season caused the Hawk- eyes to lose some interest. Meanwhile, his high school coach, Walter Halas, secured a coveted coach- ing job, joining the staff of Knute Rockne at the University of Notre Dame. Rockne, always on the lookout for promising young coaching talent, hired Halas to assist him in football and serve as the Irish head basketball coach. Wal- ter's older brother George was an excel- lent football player who got involved in organizing and coaching professional teams, including one that became the Chicago Bears. Walter told Rockne about the speedy lad he had coached in Davenport, and the Notre Dame coach, through Halas, asked Layden to come on over to South Bend. It seemed a long way from Daven- port, but Elmer enrolled at Notre Dame. Layden looked the part of an athlete. Well-proportioned, with a square jaw and coal-black hair parted in the mid- dle, he struck a handsome pose. He was confident on the playing field but for- ever longing for his family and friends back home. Elmer missed them all. It wasn't long before Layden was checking out the schedules of trains headed back to Iowa. Coach Halas sensed his distress and invited Elmer to the coach's house for a home-cooked meal. Almost on cue, there was a knock on the door, and Coach Rockne ap- peared. Layden and Rockne started talking and the subject of Layden's homesickness came up. "Son, we've never lost a freshman from our team yet," the coach boasted. Layden thought: "Mr. Rockne, your record is about to be broken." Rockne went on to talk about his own path in life, suggesting how lucky Layden was to be able to start college at 18 and not 22. The coach gave his phi- losophy on the different types of per- sonalities. And what, Elmer wanted to know, was the outstanding characteris- tic of a Notre Dame player. "Courage," came the reply. "At Notre Dame there are no quitters." Also urged by his family to stay in college, Layden made his way through his freshman season in 1921. Late in the 1922 campaign, fellow sophomores Harry Stuhldreher, Jim Crowley and Don Miller had settled into major roles as quarterback, left half and right half, respectively. Layden figured he would play out the season with spot duty be- hind the starting backs. But on November 18, in a 31-3 victory over Butler at Indianapolis, senior full- back Paul Castner, the captain and star of the Irish team, suffered a broken hip. After the game, Rockne came to Layden and told him to get ready to play fullback the next week against Carnegie Tech. "But Rock," Layden pointed out, "I only weigh 162 pounds. And we already have two other fullbacks." Rockne con- vinced Layden he was a new type of fullback – sleek and swift, able to gain yardage on quick opening plays. The backfield that would be named The Four Horsemen was born. As juniors in 1923, the four ripped through the op- position seemingly at will, and the Irish racked up a 275-37 scoring advantage en route to a 9-1 record. Layden rushed 102 times for 420 yards and 5 touchdowns. Layden and his teammates came into the fall of 1924 brimming with confi- dence. In the third game, against rival Army, he played a huge role. His numer- ous punts continually kept Army bot- tled up in its own territory. He bulled his way into the end zone from the 1-yard- line to give Notre Dame a 6-0 lead in the first half. And his second-half inter- ception set up the Irish for the winning score in what would be a 13-7 victory. In his typical modesty, that week Layden wrote his romantic interest at the time that "against the Army, I played a few minutes, and was fortunate enough to score a touchdown." Later, when Layden and the other three backs were coaxed onto work horses that had been led onto the Notre Dame practice field for a quick public- Elmer Layden Was Intent On Finishing First In Sports And Life CELEBRATING THE 1924 CHAMPIONS Layden was a reliable fullback for the 1922-24 Irish, handled the punting duties and picked off 7 passes, including 2 returned for touchdowns in the 1925 Rose Bowl. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME