One of the legendary "Four Horsemen of Notre Dame" (as coined by famed sportswriter Grantland Rice), Elmer Layden played fullback alongside quarterback Harry Stuhldreher, left halfback Jim Crowley, and right halfback Don Miller. Collectively, this fearsome foursome is still considered one of the best backfields in college football history. Earnig All-American honors as a senior year in South Bend, Layden ended his collegiate career in style at the 1925 Rose Bowl, returning two interceptions for touchdowns in Notre Dame's 27–10 victory over Stanford.
After his playing days, Layden coached at Columbia College in his native Iowa. In 1934, three years after his mentor Knute Rockne was killed in a plane crash, he became head coach and athletic director of his alma mater where he guided the Irish to a 47–13–3 record in seven seasons. The NFL came calling in 1941 and Layden was appointed league commissioner for six seasons through the culmination of World War II. It was during this trying tenure that Elmer Layden made it mandatory for every NFL team to play "The Star Spangled Banner" before games, a vital American sports tradition that continues to this day.
Offered here is a May 13, 1940, typed letter on Notre Dame Athletic Department letterhead signed by Layden to a Notre Dame fan named Tommie with the same surname. Elmer surmises that they are likely related through his Irish ancestry. The best part of this piece is not Layden's bold black autograph at the bottom; it's the three offensive plays that he has drawn in pencil on the reverse. One is a pass play and the other two ("Off-Tackle" and "Fullback Plunge") are run plays likely perfected by the Four Horsemen during Rockne's prime coaching years with the Irish. However, as Elmer points out in his letter to the aspiring coach from Los Angeles, "all the plays in the book will be of no use if first they don't learn to block and tackle well." Terrific content with unique illustrations from a gridiron legend, authenticated and encapsulated for long-term preservation by PSA/DNA.