The First Notre Dame-Penn State Game
Notre Dame's 1913 season is best known for its November 1 game on The Plain at West Point, when quarterback Gus Dorais went airborne, completing 13 of 17 passes for 243 yards to take down Army 35-13. Notre Dame was an emerging regional power then, having never played a game east of Pittsburg, but the $1,000 guarantee from Army made the trip to the Hudson a no-brainer.
Dorais started slowly but got things going and consistently hit Knute Rockne and other receivers in stride with passes of 30 yards and more, which was a revelation to the Cadets since no one out East had such a passing game.
The hubbub over the victory at Army has led us to forget Notre Dame’s game the following week at Penn State. Notre Dame was undefeated, having beaten three weak teams before topping Army, while Penn State had gone undefeated in 1911 and 1912 but had stumbled to a 2-3 record so far in 1913. Still, the Nittany Lions had never lost or been scored on at New Beaver Field since it opened in 1909, so they were optimistic entering their homecoming / Pennsylvania Day game.
It proved to be an odd game. Penn State moved the ball well in the first half. However, they were penalized near the goal line and threw two first-half interceptions. The second of these led to Notre Dame responding with a 40-yard pass, a 35-yard run, and a Dorais-to-Rockne pass for a touchdown. Dorais converted to give the Irish a 7-0 lead.
Early in the second half, the Irish fullback, Eichanlaub, netted a 10-yard run before skirting the left end on a long TD run. Dorais' conversion gave the Blue and Gold a 14-0 lead and finished their scoring for the game.
Penn State quarterback and captain Shorty Miller was stellar in the second half, with runs and passes that netted one touchdown. Still, Shorty fell short as the Irish held firm after that to win 14-7.
Penn State ended the season with losses to Navy and Pitt, finishing 2-6, while Notre Dame beat Christian Brothers College in St. Louis and Texas in Austin to earn a 7-0 record, their third straight undefeated season. The Irish would get their comeuppance in 1914 at Yale and Army, but the South Benders felt mighty good as the 1913 season closed.
The Penn State-Notre Dame all-time series currently stands at 9-9-1.
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Coach Harlow later became head coach at Harvard where he popularized many defensive tactics such as stunting. He also was an expert in oology--the study of birds' eggs. The two were not related. I think.
There is great history here! Consider how outstanding Dorias' accomplishment of throwing for 240-some-odd yards in that era was. The other amazing thing we may not appreciate now is that Penn State was not considered the power house college team of the Keystone State. Penn, Pitt, and even W & J were in many cases, unfairly held in higher regard. Oh and by the way... Go Irish!