The 1953 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team was an American football team that represented the University of Notre Dame as an independent during the 1953 college football season. In their 11th and final season under head coach Frank Leahy, the Irish compiled a 9–0–1 record and outscored opponents by a total of 317 to 139. They won their first seven games, including victories over No. 6 Oklahoma and No. 4 Georgia Tech, and were ranked No. 1 in the AP poll through that time. After a tie with No. 20 Iowa on November 21, they dropped to No. 2 and remained in that spot in the final AP and UPI coaches polls. Twelve other selectors declared Notre Dame as the 1953 national champion.
Notre Dame halfback Johnny Lattner played on offense, defense, and special teams, won the Heisman Trophy and the Maxwell Award, and was a consensus first-team pick on the 1953 All-America college football team. Tackle Art Hunter was also a consensus All-American.
The team played its home games at Notre Dame Stadium in Notre Dame, Indiana.
Schedule
Game summaries Oklahoma
On September 26, Notre Dame opened its season with a 28–21 victory over Oklahoma before a sellout crowd of 59,500 in 94 degree heat at Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma. Quarterback Ralph Guglielmi ran for a touchdown and threw a touchdown pass to Joe Heap. Don Penza blocked and recovered a punt to set up one touchdown and recovered a fumble that led to another Notre Dame score. Fullback Neil Worden gained 78 rushing yards on 12 carries."Fighting Irish Roar Back to 28-21 Victory." Palm Beach Post. 1953 September 27 Retrieved 7 July 2013.
Purdue
On October 3, Notre Dame defeated Purdue, 37–7, before a crowd of 49,135 at Ross–Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana. Purdue turned the ball over seven times on four fumbles and three interceptions. Johnny Lattner returned a kickoff 86 yards. With Notre Dame in control, Frank Leahy made extensive use of reserves, including Dick Fitzgerald who tallied 90 rushing yards on 10 carries. Ralph Guglielmi, a two-way player, intercepted a Purdue pass and completed seven of eight passes for 92 yards.
Pittsburgh
On October 17, Notre Dame defeated No. 15 Pittsburgh, 23–14, before a crowd of 57,998 at Notre Dame Stadium. After a "sputtering" performance in the first half, Notre Dame tallied a safety in the third quarter and held Pitt to three net yards rushing in the second half. Quarterback Ralph Guglielmi scored two rushing touchdowns in the second half. Neil Worden and Joe Heap led the Irish with 65 rushing yards each.
Georgia Tech
On October 24, in a matchup of top five teams, No. 1 Notre Dame defeated No. 4 Georgia Tech, 27–14, before a crowd of 58,254 at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame scored on the game's opening drive and led, 7–0, at halftime. During the intermission, head coach Frank Leahy became dizzy, complained of chest pain, and lapsed into semi-consciousness. The university's executive vice president, who was also a priest, administered last rites prior to Leahy being rushed in ambulance to the hospital. The players returned to the field with tears streaming from their faces. The Irish rallied for two touchdowns in the third quarter.
Navy
On October 31, Notre Dame defeated Navy, 38–7, before a crowd of 58,154 at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame head coach Frank Leahy did not attend the game, recuperating at home following his collapse during the Georgia Tech game. Notre Dame was held scoreless in the first 20 minutes of the game, but then scored four touchdowns, including a 57-yard interception return by Ralph Guglielmi, in the last 10 minutes of the first half. Assistant coach Joe McArdle, leading the team in Leahy's absence, kept the first-string players on the bench during the entire second half. Navy did not score until the final two minutes of the game. Notre Dame tallied 318 rushing yards in the game and reportely "could have rolled up 600 yards if the merciful McArdle hadn't elected to hold the score down."
Penn
On November 7, Notre Dame defeated Penn, 28–20, before a crowd of 69,071 at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote that the two teams played inspired football, but the difference was Johnny Lattner who gave "probably the greatest individual performance witnessed here in more than a decade." Lattner had appeared the prior week on the cover of Sports Illustrated, yet "made a mockery of the jinx" associated with appearing on the cover. After Penn scored a touchdown on the opening drive, Lattner ensured that Penn's lead lasted only 15 seconds, as he returned the ensuing kickoff 92 yards with "lightning-like" speed for a touchdown. Lattner then provided "both spark and killing punch" for the Irish. He tallied 261 all-purpose yards, including another kickoff return of 56 yards, and intercepted a goal-line pass to halt Penn's final drive.
North Carolina
On November 14, Notre Dame defeated North Carolina, 34–14, before a crowd of 43,000 at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Notre Dame tallied 489 rushing yards. Fullback Neil Worden gained 151 yards on 15 carries and scored two touchdowns, breaking Notre Dame's career scoring record in his third year with the program.
Iowa
On November 21, Notre Dame played Iowa to a 14–14 tie at Notre Dame Stadium. Iowa scored first, and Iowa tied the game at 7–7 on the final play of the first half, as Ralph Guglielmi threw for a touchdown pass to Dan Shannon. Iowa retook the lead with 2:07 remaining in the game. With six seconds remaining, Notre Dame tied the game on a second touchdown pass from Guglielmi to Shannon. Notre Dame completed 12 of 30 passes for 129 yards and tallied 228 yards on the ground.
USC
On November 28, Notre Dame defeated USC, 48–11, before a crowd of 97,952 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. It was the most lopsided game in the history of the Notre Dame-USC football rivalry and was one point short of the record 49 points scored against USC in the 1948 Rose Bowl. Due to illness, coach Frank Leahy did not travel with the team to Los Angeles. Johnny Lattner tallied 157 rushing yards (9.5 yards per carry) and scored four touchdowns for Notre Dame. Neil Worden added 134 rushing yards, averaging just short of nine yards per carry.
SMU
On December 6, Notre Dame defeated SMU, 40–14, before a national television audience and a crowd of 55,522 at Notre Dame Stadium. Neil Worden scored three touchdowns to finish his college career with a Notre Dame-record 29 touchdowns. Johnny Lattner added two touchdowns, including a 34-yard touchdown reception on a pass from Ralph Guglielmi. The victory concluded Frank Leahy's sixth undefeated season in 11 seasons as Notre Dame's head coach.
National championship On November 30, 1953, prior to Notre Dame's final regular-season victory over SMU, and prior to Maryland's Orange Bowl loss to Oklahoma, the Associated Press (AP) released its final poll. In that poll, Maryland tallied 3,365 points, edging Notre Dame's 3,149 points.
Also on November 30, the United Press Board of Coaches released the results of its final poll. In very close voting, the 35 coaches who participated ranked Maryland first with 326 points and Notre Dame second with 320 points—a difference of only six points or less than one percent of the total points.
In 1953, the final polls were taken in late November, prior to the bowl games. Maryland went on to lose in the 1954 Orange Bowl to Oklahoma – a team that Notre Dame had beaten in the regular season. Despite the fact that Maryland was no longer undefeated and had lost to a team Notre Dame had defeated, the results of the AP and UP polls remained final.
In addition to Oklahoma, Notre Dame and Maryland had one other opponent in common: North Carolina. North Carolina assistant coach was asked whether Notre Dame or Maryland was the best: "There's no hesitancy on his answer. 'It would be Notre Dame ... Too much power. They just take the ball and -- harumph!' He said making a sign of a tank going through some bramble bushes. ... Maryland is a great team. Plenty of speed, and smart. But I just don't think they could handle a team like Notre Dame..."
A dozen other selectors, both contemporaneous and retrospective, have declared Notre Dame as the 1953 national champion. Selectors choosing Notre Dame include: Smith Touchdown Tendency System of Ratings. Dr. Allen N. Smith released his final ratings at the end of November 1953, ranking Notre Dame first, Maryland second, and Oklahoma third. Litkenhous Ratings. The final Litkenhous Ratings, released on December 14, 1953, gave Notre Dame 110.4 power points, edging Maryland's 108.5 power points. Oklahoma was ranked No. 3, and Iowa, the only team that Notre Dame did not defeat, was ranked No. 7 by Litkenhous. Houlgate System. In January 1954, Deke Houlgate revised his rankings after the bowl games. He ranked Notre Dame first, Oklahoma second, and Maryland third. Billingsley Report Boand System DeVold System Dunkel System Helms Athletic Foundation National Championship Foundation Poling System Sagarin Ratings and Sagarin's ELO-Chess method Williamson System
Departure of Frank Leahy On January 31, 1954, Leahy, at age 45, announced that, for "reasons of health", he was stepping down as Notre Dame's head coach. His decision was described as "sudden" but "somewhat expected" after he collapsed during the Georgia Tech game and then missed two additional games in the remaining weeks of the season. In eleven years as Notre Dame's head coach, Leahy compiled an 87–11–9 record, including six undefeated seasons. His tenure was described as "one of the most successful coaching reigns in the history of the game." Leahy was replaced by Terry Brennan who at age 25 was the youngest head coach in Notre Dame football history.
Personnel Players
Jim Bigelow, quarterback, junior, Pittsburgh Pat Bisceglia, guard, sophomore Don Bucci, quarterback, junior Joe Bush, offensive tackle Walt Cabral, end, junior Tom Carey, backup quarterback, junior Ed Cook, guard, junior Wayne Edmonds, right tackle Dick Fitzgerald, halfback, sophomore Dick Frasor, guard and center John Gaffney, fullback Armando "Army" Galardo, halfback, senior Don George, end, sophomore Ralph Guglielmi, quarterback and defensive back, junior Joe Heap, end, junior, New Orleans Dick Hendricks, halfback, sophomore Art Hunter, offensive and defensive end Gene Kapish, end, sophomore Joe Katchik, defensive end Dick Keller, right halfback Bob Lasch, tackle Johnny Lattner, Jack Lee, right guard, junior Ray Lemek, left guard, sophomore Fred Mangialardi, end, senior Gene Martell, tackle Bob Martin, reserve quarterback, senior, Davenport, IA Paul Matz, defensive end, junior Menil "Minnie" Mavraides, middle guard and placekicker Tom McHugh, fullback Jim Mense, center Rockne Morrissey, senior (son of a Notre Dame player who played for Knute Rockne) George Nicula, tackle/guard, sophomore Art Nowack, center, Rochester, NY Sam Palumbo Tony Pasquesi, right tackle Don Penza,* No. 83, captain and right end Nick Raich, fullback, sophomore Bob Ready, tackle, junior Bob Rigali, halfback Dan Schaefer, quarterback, sophomore Jim Schrader, center and linebacker, senior Dan Shannon, end, junior Dick Szymanski Bob Taylor, guard and tackle Frank Varrichione, offensive and defensive tackle Dick Washington, halfback, sophomore Neil Worden,* fullback, senior Ben Zajeski, guard
Coaching staff Head coach: Elmer Layden Assistant coaches: John Druze (ends, chief scout), Joe McArdle (guards, interim HC vs Navy), Bill Earley (backfield), Bob McBride (tackles), Wayne Ziemba (centers), Fred Miller (volunteer coach, also president of Miller High Life Brewing Co.), Johnny Lujack (pressbox) Athletic director: Edward W. "Moose" Krause Trainer: Gene Paskiet Equipment superintendent: Jack McAllister Student managers: John Jarnot, Dan Hammer, Charlie Keller
Statistics