Elmer Layden
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| Elmer Layden | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | May 4, 1903 |
| Place of birth |  Davenport, Iowa |
| Date of death | June 30, 1973 |
| Position(s) | Head Coach Commissioner Fullback |
| College | Notre Dame |
| Team(s) as a player | |
| 1926 1926 |
Brooklyn Horsemen Rock Island Independents |
| Team(s) as a coach/administrator | |
| 1925-1926 1927-1933 1934-1940 1941-1946 |
Columbia College (IA) Duquesne University Notre Dame National Football League |
| College Hall of Fame | |
Elmer Francis Layden (May 4, 1903 – June 30, 1973) served as Commissioner of the National Football League and as head football coach at Notre Dame.
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[edit] College
Layden was born in Davenport, Iowa. At Notre Dame, he played fullback alongside quarterback Harry Stuhldreher, left halfback Jim Crowley, and right halfback Don Miller; the four collectively earned the nickname of "The Four Horsemen of Notre Dame" from legendary sportswriter Grantland Rice, and are still considered one of the best backfields in college football history. Named an All-American during his senior year, Layden culminated his collegiate career in the 1925 Rose Bowl against Stanford, returning two interceptions for touchdowns in Notre Dame's 27-10 victory.
[edit] Coaching career
After his playing days, Layden served as head football coach at Columbia College (Dubuque, Iowa) in 1925-26, where he compiled an 8-5-2 record. From 1927 to 1933 he was head coach at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, going 48-16-6 and winning the 1933 season's Festival of Palms Bowl on New Year's Day, 1934. Also in 1934, he became head coach and athletic director at Notre Dame, a few years after his legendary mentor Knute Rockne was killed in a plane crash. Layden would lead the Irish for seven years and post an overall 47-13-3 docket. His 1935 squad posted one of the greatest wins in school history by rallying to defeat Ohio State, 18-13 while his 1938 team finished 8-1, losing only to USC in the season finale which cost them a possible national championship.
Like Rockne before him, Layden was a goodwill ambassador for Notre Dame. He was able to schedule a home-and-home series with Michigan after meeting with Fielding Yost, healing a rift between the two schools. The two teams had not met since 1909, when after eight straight losses to the Wolverines, the Irish posted their first win. They were scheduled to meet again in 1910, but Michigan canceled the game while the Notre Dame team was en route to Ann Arbor and refused to play the Irish again. By the time they met again in 1942-43, Layden had left Notre Dame and Frank Leahy had taken his place. Unlike the easygoing Layden, Leahy was intense, and after the Irish had thrashed Michigan by a score of 35-12 in 1943, Wolverine coach and athletic director Fritz Crisler never scheduled the Irish again.
[edit] Commissioner
Layden left Notre Dame in February of 1941 to become Commissioner of the NFL, a post that had been renamed upon him taking the job. (Prior heads of the league had been referred to as "presidents".) In five years as Commissioner, Layden saw the NFL through the World War II years, in which teams had to use many men of inferior abilities as replacements while most of the regulars were fighting in the war, as did Major League Baseball. During this period a few teams temporarily merged due to lack of manpower, most notably the Pittsburgh Steelers with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Cleveland Rams ceased operations for a year, while the Brooklyn Dodgers were forced to fold. Shortly after the war ended, Layden resigned as NFL commissioner and was succeeded by Bert Bell.
[edit] Retirement
After stepping down as NFL Commissioner in 1946, Layden embarked on a successful business career in Chicago until his death at the age of 70. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951 as a charter member.
[edit] Personal life
Layden was married to the former Edith Davis on October 25, 1926.
[edit] External links
- Elmer Layden Profile at Rosebowl Legends
| Preceded by Heartley Anderson |
University of Notre Dame Head Football Coach 1934–1940 |
Succeeded by Frank Leahy |
| Preceded by Carl Storck as President |
Commissioner of the National Football League 1941-1946 |
Succeeded by Bert Bell |
| NFL Commissioners and presidents |
|
1920-1921: Jim Thorpe | 1921-1939: Joseph Carr | 1939-1941: Carl Storck | 1941-1946: Elmer Layden | 1946-1959: Bert Bell | 1959-1960: Austin Gunsel | 1960-1989: Pete Rozelle | 1989-2006: Paul Tagliabue | 2006-present: Roger Goodell |
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Categories: Notre Dame Fighting Irish football coaches | 1903 births | 1973 deaths | People from Iowa | American football fullbacks | American football executives | Duquesne Dukes football coaches | Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players | Brooklyn Horsemen players | Rock Island Independents players | National Football League commissioners | College Football Hall of Fame | College football coach stubs
