1951 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team

1951 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
CoachesNo. 13
Record7–2–1
Head coach
CaptainJim Mutscheller
Home stadiumNotre Dame Stadium
1951 Midwestern college football independents records
Conf.Overall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 2 Michigan State – 9–0–0
Xavier – 9–0–1
Wabash – 7–0–1
No. 13 Notre Dame – 7–2–1
Dayton – 7–3–0
Michigan Tech – 4–2–1
Toledo – 6–4–0
Washington University – 5–4–0
Wayne – 5–4–0
Bowling Green – 4–4–1
Marquette – 4–6–1
Baldwin–Wallace – 3–5–0
John Carroll – 3–6–0
Rose Poly – 2–5–0
Youngstown – 2–6–1
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1951 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team was an American football team that represented the University of Notre Dame as an independent during the 1951 college football season. In their ninth year under head coach Frank Leahy, the Irish compiled a 7–2–1 record, outscored opponents by a total of 241 to 122, and were ranked No. 13 in the final United Press (UP) poll. In games against ranked opponents, they lost to national champion Michigan State and defeated No. 20 USC.[1] The Detroit game on October 6 was the first night game in the history of Notre Dame football.[2]

Tackle Bob Toneff received first-team honors from the Associated Press (and second-team honors from the UP) on the 1951 All-America college football team. End and team captain Jim Mutscheller received second-team honors from the UP.[3][4] Ralph Guglielmi and Johnny Lattner emerged as offensive stars.

The team played its home games at Notre Dame Stadium in Notre Dame, Indiana.

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 29IndianaNo. 14
W 48–655,790[5]
October 5at DetroitNo. 5
W 40–652,331[6]
October 13SMUNo. 5
  • Notre Dame Stadium
  • Notre Dame, IN
L 20–2758,240[7][8]
October 20at Pittsburgh
W 33–060,127[9]
October 27PurdueNo. 15
  • Notre Dame Stadium
  • Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)
W 30–957,890
November 3vs. NavyNo. 13
W 19–044,237
November 10at No. 5 Michigan StateNo. 11
L 0–3551,296[10]
November 17at North Carolina
W 12–744,000–45,500[11]
November 24Iowa
  • Notre Dame Stadium
  • Notre Dame, IN
T 20–2040,685[12]
December 1at No. 20 USC
W 19–1255,783[13]
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Personnel

Players

  • Virgil Bardash, No. 79, tackle, junior, 6', 210 pounds, Gary, IN
  • Bill Barrett, No. 37, halfback, senior, River Forest, IL
  • Joseph R. Bush, No. 73, tackle, 6'3", 203 pounds, Oak Park, IL
  • Walter K. Cabral, No. 88, end, freshman, Honolulu, HI
  • Gene Carrabine, No. 20, freshman, Gary, IN
  • David Flood, defensive halfback, junior, 5'10", 185 pounds, Pittsburgh, PA
  • Fidel J. "Goose" Gander, senior, 6'1", 196 pounds Chicago
  • Ralph Guglielmi, No. 3, quarterback, Columbus, OH
  • Jim Hamby, No. 55, center, senior, Caruthersville, MO
  • Joseph Heap, halfback, freshman, 5'11", 175 pounds, New Orleans, LA
  • Albert Kohanowich, end, junior, 6'1", 189 pounds, Hempstead, Long Island, New York
  • Arthur J. Hunter, center, sophomore, 6'3", 213 pounds, Akron, OH
  • Johnny Lattner, No. 14, halfback, sophomore, Chicago
  • Frank F. "Fred" Mangialardi, end, sophomore, 6'1", 195 pounds, Chicago
  • Menil "Minnie" Mavraides, No. 71, placekicker, 6'1", 202 pounds, Lowell, MA
  • John Mazur, No. 1, quarterback, senior, Plymouth, PA
  • Jim Mutscheller, No. 85, end and captain, 6'1", 198 pounds, Beaver Falls, PA
  • Robert M. O'Neil, end, junior, 6'1", 193 pounds, Bridgeville, PA
  • Chet Ostrowski, No. 63, end and guard, 6'1", 197 pounds, Chicago
  • Donald Francis Penza, end, sophomore, Kenosha, WI
  • John Petitbon, No. 23, halfback, senior, 190 pounds
  • Frederick C. Poehler, No. 76, sophomore, 6'4", 210 pounds, Jackson, MI
  • Paul Reynolds, halfback, freshman, Springfield, IL
  • Dan Shannon, No. 33, linebacker/fullback, freshman, 6'0", 190 pounds, Chicago
  • Dick Szymanski, No. 52, linebacker, Toledo, OH
  • Bob Toneff, No. 75, tackle, 6'1", 235 pounds, Barberton, OH
  • Neil Worden, No. 48, fullback, sophomore, 5'11", 187 pounds, Milwaukee, WI

[14]

Coaching staff

  • Head coach: Frank Leahy
  • Athletic director: Edward W. Krause
  • Assistant coaches: Bernie Crimmins (backfield), William Joseph Earley, John F. Druze (ends), Joseph Andrew McArdle (guards), Walter John Ziemba (centers), Robert James McBride (tackles)

[15]

1951 NFL draft

The following Notre Dame players were selected in the 1951 NFL draft.

Player Position Round Pick Franchise
Bob ToneffTackle222San Francisco 49ers
John PetitbonHalfback774New York Yanks
Chet OstrowskiDefensive End10115Washington Redskins
Jim MutschellerDefensive End12134New York Yanks
Dave FloodDefensive Back13150Pittsburgh Steelers
Paul BurnsGuard16191New York Giants
Billy BarrettHalfback28327Green Bay Packers

[16]

References

  1. ↑ "1951 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Schedule and Results". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 17, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Notre Dame Football Review" (PDF). The Notre Dame Scholastic. December 7, 1951. pp. 32–35.
  3. ↑ "Toneff Named to A.P. All-America: Irish Tackle Earns Berth on Honor Club". The South Bend Tribune. Associated Press. December 7, 1951. p. 1 (sports) – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ Leo H. Peterson (November 29, 1951). "Midwest, South Each Place 3 on United Press All-American". Eau Claire Leader. United Press – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ Paul Neville (September 30, 1951). "Young Irish Stun I.U., 48-6: Worden Stars as N.D. Shows New Offense; 35-Point Explosion in Second Period Sets Record". The South Bend Tribune. p. 1 (main) – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ Lyall Smith (October 6, 1951). "52,371 See Irish Sweep Past U-D, 40-6". Detroit Free Press. pp. 14, 18 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ Paul Neville (October 14, 1951). "Mustangs Stampede Irish: Aerial Circus Gives Texans 27-20 Victory; Benners Hurls 42 Times for 22 Completions". The South Bend Tribune. p. 1 (main), 1 (sports) – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Pass-happy Mustangs defeat Irish". The Indianapolis Star. October 14, 1951. Retrieved March 18, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ Jack Henry (October 21, 1951). "60,000 See Notre Dame Crush Panthers, 33–0". Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph. p. 1. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ George S. Alderton (November 11, 1951). "Rout of Notre Dame Bolsters M.S.C. Bid for National Title: Near-Record Crowd Sees Stunned Irish Humbled by State". Lansing State Journal. pp. 1, IV-1 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Notre Dame edges Tar Heels". Asheville Citizen-Times. November 18, 1951. Retrieved December 28, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Joe Doyle (November 25, 1951). "Notre Dame Rally Ties Iowa Hawks, 20-20". The South Bend Tribune. pp. 1, 3 (sports) – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ Braven Dyer (December 2, 1951). "Irish Rally to Top Troy in Rain, 19-12: Guglielmi and Toneff Spark Win". Los Angeles Times. pp. 6, 8 (part II) – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "Notre Dame Football 1951" (PDF). The Notre Dame Scholastic. pp. 21–31, 43.
  15. ↑ "Notre Dame Football 1951" (PDF). The Notre Dame Scholastic. pp. 32–35.
  16. ↑ "Reference at www.pro-football-reference.com". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on December 10, 2010. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
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