Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/651219
Leahy would return Notre Dame to glory. The Irish head coach assembled excellent recruiting classes in 1950 and 1951 that would propel three consecu- tive top-four finishes from 1952-54, with Lattner — a two-time consensus All-American and the 1953 Heisman Trophy winner — serving as the crown jewel. Lattner averaged an astonishing 18 yards per carry as a senior at Fenwick, but due to NCAA freshman ineligi- bility back then, he couldn't join the Notre Dame varsity until 1951. With the United States embroiled in the Korean War at the time, freshmen were made eligible in 1951, and the genesis of one of the great backfields in Notre Dame annals was born in 1952-53 with quarterback Ralph Gug- lielmi, fullback Neil Worden and half- back Joe Heap joining Lattner — and all four becoming top-nine NFL picks. These days, a triple-threat player is defined as a runner, receiver and return man. In Lattner 's day, it was about playing offense, defense and special teams. In 1952, the year Notre Dame de- feated four different conference cham- pions or co-champs — Texas, Okla- homa, Purdue and USC, and tied Ivy League champion Penn — Lattner was the lone Irish player to start on both offense and defense. Plus, he was the punter and return man. One year later as a senior, Lattner didn't lead the unbeaten Irish (9-0-1) in rushing, receiving, interceptions, tackles nor touchdowns, but he still won the Heisman for his body of work. A demon on defense, Lattner set the career interceptions record (13)