PERHAPS MORE THAN any player in the history of college football, Red Grange captured the imagination of America during the 1920s and beyond. It was on a warm October day that Grange inspired the great sportswriter Grantland Rice to coin the nickname “The Galloping Ghost,” as he dismantled an undefeated University of Michigan team that was on a 20-game winning streak. By the time the final gun sounded, Grange had amassed a total of 402 yards on the ground and through the air.

Much has been written and said about Grange’s mythical feats on Oct. 18, 1924, but little has been examined about it from a technical or strategical standpoint. The following accounts have been gathered from scouting reports, school archives and actual game coverage.

Opening Kickoff
Illinois won the coin toss and elected to receive as Michigan defended the south goal. Grange took his usual position deep in the kickoff-return formation. Grange caught the ball near the Illinois 5-yard line in the northeast corner and began to run straight toward the short side of the field to the 20, and then cut diagonally across the field, running at about a 40-degree angle to the center of the Illini 40-yard line. Grange then abruptly cut back again toward the east side and sprinted past the last defender and into the end zone.

The Illinois capacity crowd of 67,000 went wild and Illinois took an early lead. Illinois 7 - Michigan 0.

Play No. 12
On fourth down inside the Illinois 30-yard line, Michigan tried for a field goal, but the holder fumbled the ball, recovered it and was thrown for a loss. Two plays later, Grange stepped into a short-punt formation and took the snap.

DIAGRAM 1: Play No. 12. Grange secured the ball and began running what looked to be a designed play to the right. He then cut back and went through a hole cleared by the left guard and tackle and headed toward the short side of the field. He outdistanced the secondary and sprinted 67 yards for another touchdown.

Illinois 14 - Michigan 0.

Play No. 20, 24
Pinned at their own 35-yard line, Michigan punted to Grange who returned it to Illinois’ 43-yard line.

DIAGRAM: 2: Play No. 20. Grange took the ball 6 yards deep from the center and ran to his right, cut inside the end and scrambled for a 56-yard score. The point after touchdown failed, but Illinois took a commanding first quarter lead. Illinois

20 - Michigan 0.
On the next Illinois possession, the Illini decided to punt on third down, which wasn’t unusual in those days as football was a defensive game of field position. The strategy worked as Michigan fumbled the punt return and the Illini recovered the ball on the Wolverine 45-yard line.

DIAGRAM 3: Play 24. Illinois head coach Bob Zuppke called for another short sweep to Grange, who ran wide around the end, side-stepped a few secondary defenders and ran into the end zone standing up. Illinois 27 - Michigan 0.

After the fifth Michigan punt, Illinois’ quarterback “Swede” Hall called for a time out. The team trainer came out to the Illini huddle and asked Grange how he felt. “I’m dog tired, I can hardly stand up,” gasped Grange.

With 3 minutes left in the first quarter, Zuppke sent Ray Gallivan in to replace Grange and gave him a breather. In less than 12 minutes, Grange had scored four touchdowns of 95, 67, 56 and 45 yards and had a total of 303 yards, as well as playing safety on defense.

Play No. 93
Midway in the third quarter the game began to have a more even ebb and flow for both teams.

DIAGRAM 4: Play 93. On third-and-six from the Michigan 12-yard line, Grange sliced wide to the right side, found an alley created by some outstanding blocking and ran for his fifth touchdown of the game.

Illinois 33 - Michigan 7.

Play No. 112
As the Michigan defense tightened, it became increasingly hard for Grange to make headway with his feet, however, what he couldn’t do with his feet, he could do with his arm.

DIAGRAM 5: Play 112. Midway into the fourth quarter, Illinois once again slipped into the tandem formation and Grange rolled right. He threw a short pass to a substitute right HB, Marion Leonard, who caught it on the Michigan 18-yard line and took it down the sideline for Illinois’ last score. A missed extra point left the final score: Illinois 39 - Michigan 14.

Legendary Player
During his career Harold “Red” Grange was a three-time, first-team All-American at halfback in 1923-24, and at QB (which was more of a throwing, single-wing TB in those days) in 1925. He was named to college football’s All-Century Team. At 5-feet-11 and 175 pounds, Grange’s style was not to waste a single motion. He would start wide, cut back, then cut back again, carving a big “S” on the field. He had real speed at 9.8 seconds in the 100-yard dash in full gear. He had a great initial burst, excellent balance, quick change-of-pace moves and an uncanny ability to see tacklers coming from the side.

During his career at Illinois, he scored 31 touchdowns and carried the ball 30 to 35 times a game. He played in 21 games and had a total of 4,280 yards. The “Galloping Ghost” was a unanimous selection into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951.