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Rockne, Four Horsmen Do-It-Yourself Kit
8 Lots
 Lot 122. Knute Rockne Autograph. The large, bold pencil signature of the great Notre Dame coach is on a 1 ¼” x 3 ¼” cut mounted on a 4 ¼” x 6” magazine photo attached to a scrapbook page. An added note records that the autograph was obtained at a high school in Jacksonville, FL, in 1931, shortly before Rockne’s death. More than 70 years after his passing, Rockne remains a legend, regarded as one as college football’s best and most innovative coaches ever. His teams went undefeated five times and earned at least a share of the mythical national college football championship four times from 1918-30. His signature on the pencil cut is a 10. See also Lots 123 through 128 for our “Four Horsemen Do-It-Yourself Kit,” including a vintage photo of Rockne. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $711.
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 Lot 123. Circa 1930 Knute Rockne 8” x 10” B&W Photo. Wonderful portrait with a facsimile signature. Vg+ photo adhered to a scrapbook page. See also Lots 122 and 124 through 128 for our “Four Horsemen Do-It-Yourself Kit,” including a Rockne autograph.
Minimum Bid $75.
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 Lot 124. Autograph of Jim Crowley, Notre Dame’s Four Horsemen Left Halfback. Crowley was the left halfback for the four Horsemen, who led Notre Dame to a 27-2-1 record from 1922-24, including a 10-0 national championship season in 1924. After Notre Dame, he played for the Green Bay Packers and Providence Steam Roller and coached successfully at Michigan State and Fordham, where Vince Lombardi was one of his “Seven Blocks of Granite.” He was also the first commissioner of the All-America Football Conference. He was elected to the College Hall of Fame in 1966. He died in 1986. His signature is a bold 10 on a section of paper the size of an index card. The signature is personalized; the personalization could easily be matted out. See also Lots 122, 123 and 125 through 128 for our “Four Horsemen Do-It-Yourself Kit,” including a vintage photos and autographs of Knute Rockne and the other Four Horsemen. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $134.
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 Lot 125. Autograph of Elmer Layden, Notre Dame’s Four Horsemen Fullback. Layden was the fastest of the Four Horsemen, and he was the top defensive player and punter on the team. His running and leadership helped the Fighting Irish of 1924 to win the national college championship with a 10-0 record, including a 27-10 win over Stanford in the Rose Bowl. Subsequently, Layden coached at Duquesne and Notre Dame and later served as commissioner of the National Football League. He was inducted into the College Hall of Fame in 1951 with Knute Rockne. He died in 1973. His ballpoint signature is a large, bold 10 on an unlined index card. See also Lots 122-124 and 126-128 for our “Four Horsemen Do-It-Yourself Kit,” including a vintage photos and autographs of Knute Rockne and the other Four Horsemen. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $110.
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 Lot 126. Autograph of Harry Stuhldreher, Notre Dame’s Four Horsemen Quarterback. The autograph is Stuhldreher is an outstanding gem mint 10 on a biographical card that contains further information that he added. In 1924, as the Irish went 10-0 and won a national championship, he was a consensus All-American. He coached at Villanova and Wisconsin before going into private business. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1958 and died in 1963. Next to Don Miller, his autograph is the most difficult of the Four Horsemen to obtain. See also Lots 122-125 and 127 and 128 for our “Four Horsemen Do-It-Yourself Kit,” including a vintage photos and autographs of Knute Rockne and the other Four Horsemen. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $324.
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 Lot 127. Autograph of Don Miller, Right Halfback of Notre Dame’s Four Horsemen. Miller’s autograph is the most difficult among the Four Horsemen to obtain. This example is a gem mint 10 personalized to “Joe” on an unlined index card and authenticated and encased by PSA-DNA. Although Miller was the most productive runner among the Four Horsemen, he was the last admitted to the College Hall of Fame (1970). He died in 1979. Although he led the national champion 1924 Notre Dame team in rushing, he was the only Four Horseman not selected as an All-American that year. He left South Bend second only to George Gipp in rushing. In 2001, he was 14th on the school’s all-time list. Following graduation, Miller played for one season with the Providence Steam Roller. For several years, he coached part-time while pursuing a career in law. In 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt appointed him U.S. District Attorney for Northern Ohio. See also Lots 122-126 and 128 for our “Four Horsemen Do-It-Yourself Kit,” including a vintage photos and autographs of Knute Rockne and the other Four Horsemen. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $1,044.
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 Lot 128. 2 Photos of Notre Dame’s Four Horsemen, Including 1 with the “Seven Mules.” Legendary sportswriter Grantland Rice dubbed the 1924 Notre Dame backfield the “Four Horsemen,” and they remain one of the more recognizable groups in football history. The Horsemen were Harry Stuhldreher at quarterback, Jim Crowley at left halfback, Don Miller at right halfback and Elmer Layden at fullback. In three years at Notre Dame, the Four Horsemen posted a 27-2-1 record, including a 10-0 slate in 1924. A sepia 8” x 10” photo, likely from the 1930s, pictures the four members of the College Hall of Fame. An 11” x 14” b&w photo, probably printed in the 1950s, pictures the Horseman behind their linemen, known as the “Seven Mules.” The earlier photo is glued to a scrapbook page and has an ex+ appearance. The second photo is vg with a scuff in the upper left that could be matted out. See also Lots 122 through 127 for our “Four Horsemen Do-It-Yourself Kit,” including autographs of Knute Rockne and the Four Horsemen.
Winning Bid $138.
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 Lot 138. Photo Premium of the 1926 Notre Dame Team Including Knute Rockne. The 1926 team went 9-1, losing to Carnegie Tech in a monumental upset. Going into the game, the Fighting Irish had rolled to eight victories while outscoring opponents, 197-7. The 8” x 16 ½” sepia premium is from Sam’l Spiro & Company Clothiers. Spiro was a long-time South Bend merchant. Rockne is in the back row, third from the right. The team included All-America Bud Boeringer, and John Smith, an All-America the following year. The premium was rolled and has various creases, a couple of edge tears and tape in the upper right corner. The image area displays as a nice vg.
Winning Bid $100.
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