Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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50 NOV. 16, 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED IRISH ECHOES JIM LEFEBVRE E ver since the 1924 schedule was released, Knute Rockne's players were intensely focused on Nov. 15 and the chance for revenge against their prime nemesis of the past two years — the Nebraska Cornhuskers. It was said that in the Irish dressing room, lockers were adorned with all manner of signs such as: "Remember the last two defeats." "This year, we ought to beat 'em, got to beat 'em, WILL beat 'em." In less than a decade, the Nebraska- Notre Dame rivalry had become as fierce as any the two schools played. It started in 1915 and saw the Huskers go 2-1-1 against the Irish in the first four games. Then Notre Dame dominated, tak- ing hard-fought victories with George Gipp-led teams in 1919 (14-9) and 1920 (16-7) and a 7-0 triumph in Nebraska's first visit to Notre Dame's Cartier Field for Homecoming in 1921. In 1922, sophomores Harry Stuhldre- her, Jim Crowley, Elmer Layden and Don Miller combined in the Irish backfield for their first start Nov. 25 against Carnegie Tech in Pittsburgh, winning 19-0. With almost no preparation time, the Irish had to turn around and travel to Lincoln for their season- ending clash with the Huskers on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 30. In the final game ever played at Ne- braska Field, a crowd estimated at 16,000 crammed the old park to see the classic battle. Notre Dame was 8-0-1, having played a scoreless tie at Army on Armistice Day. Going into Lincoln, the Irish had al- lowed only 13 points the entire season. On this day, the Huskers put up 14, and a final Irish drive was thwarted inside the Cornhusker 10-yard-line, the game ending 14-6, Nebraska. In 1923, everything was setting up for a Notre Dame squad second to none, and the chances to retake command of the Nebraska series were strong. The Irish plowed through their first six op- ponents by a combined score of 195-16. This time the venue was the new Memo- rial Stadium, with the support of 30,000 full-throated backers. But the Huskers' 1-1-2 squad didn't appear to be a strong contender to upset the Fighting Irish. Yet somehow the Cornhuskers rose up to form a defensive front that frustrated the Irish on the ground and in the air all day. The Huskers took a 14-0 lead early in the fourth quarter. The Irish battled back and scored a late touchdown on a pass from Stuhldreher to backup Bill Cerney but could come no closer, losing 14-7. The Huskers left the field in deliri- ous triumph, the Irish in bitter defeat. Nobody was more disappointed than Stuhldreher. He had played his heart out, completing several passes and intercepting three Husker aerials. He swore to himself that day, and to his teammates, that "we would beat Ne- braska in 1924, even if we lost every other game" of the season. Two-thirds of the way through the 1924 season, it was clear the Irish didn't have to sacrifice any other games in an attempt to beat the Huskers and stay unbeaten. Now, finally, it was time for Nebraska. Preparations began to take on the air of a "second homecoming," just two weeks after Georgia Tech's historic visit. Thou- sands were expected to pour into South Bend on special trains and by automobile. Football games at Notre Dame were becoming "an event." Local groups made plans to handle the overflow of guests, arrang- ing private homes that could accommodate visitors unable to find hotel rooms. Informa- tion booths and greeters would again welcome visitors at the train stations and hotels. The attention of the Midwest, and indeed the nation, would fall on South Bend and Notre Dame this Saturday. Both wanted to show their best side. The clamor for tickets to an Irish home game had never been greater. Everywhere one went, there was someone looking for another pair of pasteboards. The Tuesday before the Nebraska game, Rockne announced that all tickets, re- served and general admission, were com- pletely sold out. "Never before in the history of Cartier Field has there been such a demand for tickets," a local newspaper declared. Ac- cording to reports, the few ticket-holders willing to part with their passes were ask- ing $7.50 to $15 apiece; in Chicago, choice seats were changing hands for as much as $32.50 each, more than 10 times face value. The Cornhuskers entrained Thursday night, serenaded at the Lincoln station by several of their undergraduate class- mates chanting the school cry, "Go, gang, go." Coach Fred Dawson and com- pany traveled through the night to Chi- cago, where they held a light signal drill Friday afternoon at Stagg Field. They continued on to South Bend and could not have imagined what awaited them. Pulling into the New York Central station a little after 7 p.m., the Nebraska contingent noticed the lineup of auto- mobiles decked out in the colors of both schools. To the cheers of onlookers, the Huskers were escorted to the ve- hicles. The caravan, with horns blaring, wound through downtown and brought the Huskers to the Notre Dame campus, where a huge pep fest was waiting to honor the visitors. The News-Times described the scene: The 1924 Irish Were Primed For Revenge Against Their Nemesis CELEBRATING THE 1924 CHAMPIONS A crowd of 22,000 packed Cartier Field and enjoyed the Notre Dame band prior to kickoff against the Cornhuskers on Nov. 15, 1924. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS