This loss drove St. Mary's to turn the program around by hiring Knute Rockne's protege, Slip Madigan, who helped SMC win four consecutive conference championships from 1925 to 1928.

The famously red-clad jersey-ed 'Galloping Gaels', were known for their flashy style that reflected the personality of their flamboyant coach.

Madigan traveled to New York for the game with 150 fans on a train that was labeled "The World's Longest Bar."

They featured the first version of a defense known as the "Seven Blocks of Granite," a formidable unit that later would include Vince Lombardi.

In 1934, the Gaels beat Fordham and Cal, but were upset by Nevada, 9–7, and lost to UCLA, 6–0, and another national title had slipped away.

Many home games of this era were played to sold-out crowds at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco.

[7] However, after eleven seasons as a Division I-AA independent, Saint Mary's ended its football program on March 3, 2004, citing budgetary reasons.

Oregon and Saint Mary's College competed in an annual Thanksgiving Day classic between 1929 and 1935, played at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park.