The San Francisco call., 1898-10-08

 OLYMPICS AND STANFORDS ON THE GRIDIRON
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The season is bit too early to form Judgments on the efficiency of the col iege teams on account of the variable quantities which the Olympics present There is as yet no qualification in the athletic club team as it has not found its measure and Is in the experimental stage.
 The great surprise to football players and enthusiasts was the showing made by California in the game last Saturday. The victory with its score, TO, looks well on its face for the people from across the bay, but when all is told and the proper deductions are made the result Soes not appear in such brilliant colors. (he team that played the college men was, perhaps, the weakest opposition that has ever been offered in the way of an athletic club eleven in many years. The Olympics had not segregated into any kind of d team at that time and the col lege athletes played in a surprisingly CO., herent manner The one week they utli- ized in training for the game was spent in signal practice and the preliminary work of the field with the result Whlch the score shows.
 As far as California Is concerned 1t may be safely said that never ill the history Of blue and gold gridirOn attachments has so much been accomplished in so snort a time. Cochran, if nothing else Is done for his team. has shown the people Of California that he is d coach and that he understands the intricate and simple de- tails of the game. His material Was noth- ing of the remarkable order, yet lie has unified Ii and laid the foundations Of d complete organization. The idea or star has been eliminated and now the men work COheSiNelN with d common SnG III view. This is what has won the victories for Stanford in past years, and would certainly have wrought like success tnls season mad not a man arrived on the scene who knows what Is needed and has the ability to do it. The intercollegiate game this year will be well worth the seeing. and il will be d test Of well Qe- fined and organized strength and skill.
 Before a real Judgment can be placed on Californias eleven there must be a contest with much stronger team than that which the Olympics put in the field last week. The club has been more than unfortunate in the loss of Pete smith, their captain, who Is now laid on the shelf for the rest of the season. He in- 1ured his left shoulder last SaturQaY, ana before t had entirely recovered rom the strain he recommended playing and the result i6 q diSdbIement which will pre- Clude his appearance on the grldlTon until very late in the year, practically until the end Of the season. His position cannot be rehIIed unless Hobbs will come out sOmet hing which he says is well nigh inn possible. But that has often been told in football and is found wanting In truth, for the recalcitrant player rarely stands out when he sees his fellows III harness and is under lire from his friends who work necessarily to have him don the can vas jacket. The loss of Smith has a more or less demoralizing effect upon the rest of the team as he was a captain of rare ability and possessed the confidence of his men, Erskine, who has succeeded him, is a player of dash and spirit and will handle the team in good style.
 The Olympic team is not a strong team. and though fortified in some respects, will not present a very strong front when 1t meets Stanford this afternoon. Tom Code will play as quarter and this Will allow Weldon to return to the position which he has played for several years. He Is good man as full back and but an indif- 1 q tendency to strengthen the back field, which with the possible addition of Morse and Taylor, will make good strong quar- let.
 A new man has come out on the Olym- pics to practice, or rather an old man who has done good service on the grid iron. has come out anew. Milton ". Franklin of the University of California Medical School has been Practicing with the club men during the week, and if he can regain the dash and daring he used to display on the field in the old days he should be acquisition of some value to the Olympic team.
 The Stanford team is now in the hands of Harry P. Cross. q coach who has come before the Western public before and won their confidence. His team of '96 proved 8 winner by 20 points and gave evidences of the strongest kind of play. He has be- gun his work systematically, and In the course of a few weeks hopes to have the Stanford eleven well in hand The center at Palo Alto is the weakest portion of the team and will absorb the attention of the coach for a little time. Stanford is strong
 
 tried ability.
 over sixty men show up on the campus at Stanford, more than enough to form two games, which will undoubtedly be done before the season has advanced far along The preliminary practice has giv way to regular games, in which the players are changed at every interval of rest. As soon as 1t Is feasible Cross will form a team and then begin to work his A feature of the games this year will be the freshman contests. The freshman classes, of both colleges are enthusiastic over the game and are working assdu- ously toward comparative perfection of team play. California's freshman eleven has arranged for number of games dur ing the season. On Tuesday next they will play the lightweight Olympic eleven hitherto invincible and a strong lot of young players. In a practice game be- tween the Olymptcs and the lightweights on Thursday evening the latter rtddled Olympics proper scratched their heads and wondered. On Saturday next the California freshmen will meet the Santa Rosa High School eleven. Stanford fresh men have also arranged a series of games before the intercollegiate freshman game Cochran is putting his men through practice that is gradually developing into the regulation hard practice game Cad walader appeared on the field In the be- ginning of the week and it is thought that he will cast his fortunes. with the California eleven and sacrifice his chances playing guard and his presence lends poth support and strength to the rest of the team. Some notable improvements have been made in individual playing. but the general character of the past weeks work shows slight improvement in team work and the indications point toward some good ball from the blue and gold this year.
 The Olympic line has been changed con- siderably. Tn the game to-day Sheehy will be in his old position. right guard. Billy McLaine, formerly of Stanford and Q crack player. will be on the left ex- tremity of the line. The backs, with the exception of Code and Weldon, are un- known quantities
 The lineup is follows:
 Stanford. Positions Ol,n,ntcs Parl5er----.-..--.-R E L-.............. .McI1aine Rusk......-.........R. R. T. L............ Sexton James or Cairns. R G. L.. Hobbs. Hoge or At
 kinson.
 Bigelow.. ..........C Center Bandv Blanchard Ea-
 Wilson. T. R............... ErsItine smith h....-.........l l1 E. McNutt Murphy y...Qu Quarter .................. Code Fisher r..-......-....R R. H. l.. King, De Barister Dole. ......-.-.......-L. H. R. Franklin, McNevin Burmeister. .....-............. Weldon