Evening star., 1941-04-02
BY EARL HILLIGAN,
Associated Press Sports Writer,

AeooSAAbS1 tVus 6bSAsS "t'sSA'
SOUTH BEND, Ind, April a.
Heartley GIunk) Anderson stepped
into the toughest spot the football
coaching game ever has known when
he agreed to succeed Knute Rockne
at Notre Dame.
The announcement of his engage
ment by Notre Dame was made
April 10, 1881, just 10 days after
Rockne's death in an airliner crash.
That afternoon the Notre Dame
president, the Rev. Charles L.
ODonnell, c. S. c., stood before 200
sober r-faced Irish players and said:
There Is no head coach at Notre
Dame. Knute Rockne Is always
head coach. Hunk Anderson is the
senior coach and Jack Chevigny the
Junior coach. Remember, the whole
world has its eyes on you"
That statement was clear-cut
summation of the tremendous prob
lem before Anderson, onetime Irish
line star who had assisted Rockne
for seven years. Anderson knew the
world had its eyes on him. He knew
the size of his job; he was cognizant
of the Rockne record and winning
tradition. But never man to be
daunted by anything, he wanted to
give it try.
Anderson Resigns in 1888.
He called the first practice session.
He had two big jobs on his hands.
One was the job of trying to fill
Rockne's shoes; the other was the
senior Junior coaching experiment,
which didn't work out principally
because of friction which developed
on the coaching staff.
Notre Dame Didn't fare badly in
1881, losing twice and tying one game
in nine starts, but by February of
1882 Chevigny had turned in his
resignation.
In 1892. the team lost to Pitts
burgh and Southern California, and
although rumblings of discomfort
were heard, Anderson was hired for
another season. The fall of 1888
the AK fell. Tied by Kansas in an
opening game, the Irish beat Indi-
ana and then lost four games in q
row-the first time any Notre Dame
team ever had lost that many con-
secutive games.
In December Of 1893, Anderson
and the Irish athletic director, Jesse
c. Harper, turned in their resigna-
tions and two months later Notre
Danes famous thin man." Elmer
Layden, was installed in the head
coach's and athletic directors office.
Layden's Record Fine.
Wherever Notre Dame men gather,
they'll argue about the comparative
records of Rockne teams with those
turned out by Anderson and Layden.
Rockne's teams won los games,
lost IL and tied S. Anderson's three
year record was Is won, 9 lost and 2
tied. Layden'S Seven-year mark
was At games won, 13 lost and 3 tied.
The combined Anderson-Layden
record, therefore, was So victories,
% defeats and S ties.
Anderson's record wasn't impress
sive. but an analysis OF LaydenS
showing marks it as remarkably
fine. Layden took over at period
when major schools, such as Notre
Dame, virtually had given up open
ing their schedule with small school
"breather teams" Coaching had
improved; Notre Dame continued
playing it's suicide" schedule of
iptnrcertinoo1 contests
But even though Layden kept
turning out good teams. he was
under the finger" of the Rockne
legend. When his teams won, fans
would refer to them as teams that
looked like those Rock used to turn
out" When his teams lost, how
ever, they were Layden teams"
Line Overrated Last Year.
He wasn't the fast-cracking, mas
ter psychologist that Rockne was;
of quiet mien, almost taciturn to
those he was meeting for the first
time, he usually didn't go in for rip
roaring dressing-room speeches be-
tween halves.
1884, when Notre Dame won six and
lost three. His best was 1898. when
the team won eight and lost its final
game to Southern California, l3 to 0.
Last fall, the first tinge of dis
appointment in Layden teams was
evident on the campus. The Irish