My memory of college football games goes back to 1964, when I was 9 years old. I’ve been a Notre Dame fan since then (I am also an ND alum), and I’ve read significant amounts of history about the Irish. Here are ND games that are legendary:
1909 — Notre Dame 11 Michigan 3. This was the first victory by ND over the scum in 9 tries dating back to 1888. Fielding “Hurry Up” Yost cancelled the 1910 rematch while the ND team was on the train from South Bend to Ann Arbor.
1913— Notre Dame 35 Army 13. Knute Rockne played end, and Gus Dorais was his quarterback. Although the forward pass had been legal for a few seasons, this was the game that brought passing plays to the fore, and put Notre Dame in the national consciousness. It was played on All Saints’ Day (November 1) at West Point.
1924—Notre Dame 13 Army 7. This game was on October 18 and I believe it took place at the Polo Grounds. Sports writer Grantland Rice immortalized the “Four Horsemen” ( Don Miller, Elmer Layden, Jim Crowley and Harry Stuhldreher) “outlined against a Blue Gray October Sky”).
1925—Notre Dame 27 Stanford 10. The only time ND was ever invited to play in the Rose Bowl. ND won its first national championship against a Stanford squad led by the great Ernie Nevers.
1928—Notre Dame 12 Army 7. This one was at Yankee Stadium, and involved Knute Rockne’s immortal “Win One for the Gipper” speech.
1935—Notre Dame 18, Ohio State 13. This was the original “Game of the Century”. ND, lead by quarterback Bill Shakespeare, scored 3 touchdowns late in the game to stun the Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium.
1946—Notre Dame 0, Army 0. This was at Yankee Stadium, and involved the two top teams in America. Johnny Lujack, ND’s Heisman winning QB, made the most famous play in this game as a defensive player by tacking Doc Blanchard short of the goal line.
As for games involving other teams, I would rank the 1969 Texas Arkansas game (Texas overcame a 14-0 deficit to win 15-14) easily in the top 10 games ever played.
At that Rose Bowl game, the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame's 1924 backfield--Stuhldreher, Miller, Layden and Crowley--rode their horses in the stadium.
Go Irish! Check out post #90 below.