PERSONAL DATA:

Home of Record: South Bend, Indiana

Date of Birth: Nov. 26, 1920

Location of Birth: Portage, Indiana

Notre Dame: Dec. 20, 1942 degree, Bachelor of Science, Physical Education; member of the class of 1943

 

MILITARY DATA:

Service Branch: U.S. Marine Corps Reserve

Rank: First Lieutenant

Unit: Co. D, 2nd Bn, 29th Mar. Inf. Regt., 6th Mar. Div.

Commendations: Purple Heart

 

CASUALTY DATA:

Date of Death: May 15, 1945

Age at Death: 24

Location: Okinawa, Japan

Remains: Recovered

Casualty Type: Hostile—Killed in Action

Casualty Reason: Mortar round

Buried: Riverview Cemetery, South Bend, Indiana

 

“Lt. George E. Murphy, ’43 South Bend, captain of the 1942 football team, was killed on Okinawa on May 15 while fighting with the Sixth Marine division. Commissioned in June, 1943, at Parris Island, S. C., George was stationed at Parris Island as an instructor until July, 1944, when he was transferred to the West Coast. He went overseas on July  29, the day after his daughter was born in South Bend, and continued his training at Pacific bases. Graduated from Central High School in South Bend, George ‘made the team’ at right end in his sophomore year, 1940, and continued through three years of spectacular competition. He was the first South Bend boy in 33 years to be elected captain of a Notre Dame football team. Surviving George are his wife, the former Mary Miles of South Bend, his parents, a sister and a brother, John, ’38, Endicott, N. Y., also a former football player at Notre Dame.” (June 1945 Notre Dame Alumnus, p. 14)

 

The following story appeared in newspapers around the country. This version came from the Mansfield News-Herald (Mansfield, Wisc.) 19 June 1945, p. 18:

 

 ‘Irish George’ Met Death on Okinawa

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Former Notre Dame Football

Captain Carries on Tradition

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(The following story was written by Sgt. Harold T. Bolan of Dayton O., a Marine Corps combat correspondent formerly of the Dayton News.)

 

Okinawa—(AP)—The lieutenant typified “the Fighting Irish” when he met death on Sugar Loaf Hill.

During his years at Notre Dame University, where he captained the football team in 1942, the name “Irish George” was given Marine First Lt. George E. Murphy of South Bend, Ind.

 

The lieutenant’s platoon of the Six Division’s 29th Regiment, was one of the first ordered onto bitterly contested Sugar Loaf.

He maneuvered his men more than halfway up the hill, where they pitched grenade after grenade over the crest to Japs on the reverse slope.

But there were too many Japs, too well emplaced. Murphy’s men couldn’t reach the summit. Casualties were mounting. Finally, the former star end ordered withdrawal. As the able—bodied walked off, the lieutenant helped evacuate the wounded.

After his second trip to the aid station, when he carried back in his arms a wounded machine gunner, Murphy sat down to catch his breath. A mortar shell landed within a few feet of him.

“Irish George” staggered to his feet, aimed over the hill, and emptied his pistol in the direction of the enemy. Then he fell dead.

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This story in the “Jim Costin says” column appeared on page two of section two in the May 24, 1945, issue of the South Bend Tribune:

 

Lieut. George Murphy

 

On last Monday evening the following paragraph appeared in this column:

“Lieut. George Murph of South Bend, captain and end on the 1942 Notre Dame football team, is in the think of the fighting with the Sixth marines.”

There was a tragic error in that paragraph, about which none of us knew at the time, because George Murphy had been killed in action six days before the little item appeared here.

You find it just a little bit rugged to try to write something about a kid you knew so well, but here was a South Bend boy who had made his mark in the tough going of varsity football at Notre Dame and who came out of it one of the best liked players ever to wear the Irish colors. This was attested to by the fact that he had been elected captain of the team in 1932, his senior year—the first South Bend boy in 33 years to receive that honor, the late Howard (Cap) Edwards having been the captain of the 1909 team. George Murphy had starred at end for the Central High school team previous to his graduation in 1939. Then he entered Notre Dame and speedily won his spurs on the varsity squad, first under Elmer Layden and, in 1941–42, under Frank Leahy

He played brilliantly on the 1941 team, Notre Dame’s first unbeaten squad in 11 years, and was rewarded by his teammates with the 1942 captaincy. He entered the marine corps the following spring and won his commission as a second lieutenant.

*  *  *

 

Two monogram men of that Notre Dame team have now given their lives in the Pacific fighting. Besides Lieut. Murphy, Ensign Herky Bereolos [link], a guard, was killed in action when his navy plane crashed just off shore as Herky was completing his first combat mission a year ago.

 

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BOTH NOW DEAD,

Two South Bend boys played stellar roles in the memorable Illinois-Notre Dame football game in 1942 and, by tragic coincidence, both are now dead. One of the most brilliant of the Illini players that day was Dick Good, who, as a Riley High player, was a friendly rival of George Murphy throughout his scholastic career. Dick threw the pass that gave Illinois its second touchdown, while George leaped high in the air and caught a critical and daring fourth down pass in the fourth quarter that kept a Notre Dame drive alive and enabled the Irish to keep on going to score the touchdown that gave them a 21-14 victory. As a lieutenant of infantry, Dick was killed on the western front last November, and now his friendly rival of high school and college days has joined him in death upon the battlefield.

Another great star of that game, Pfc. Tony Butkovich, who scored the first Illinois touchdown, was killed nearly a month ago while also fighting with the Sixth marines on Okinawa.