The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-11-13
PENN'S POSITION.
Lack of Early Season
Training Causes
Low Standing.
TEAM NOW SHOWS ITS GAIT.
Men Are Prepared For It's
Greatand Final Games
of the Year.
TEAM NOW SHOWS ITS GAIT.
Especial to The spy.


Philadelphia, Nov. 1.-THE slump in
University of Pennsylvania eleven,
this season, has been a common sub
ject at the club houses throughout the
city. The decline in team work was no
ticed after the game with Lehigh, the
past. the first two contests opened with
large scores for Penn, viz. against
Franklin and Marshall As to 0, and
against Lehigh 20 to o.
An off year among the best teams is
in the line of the expected. And this
year this statement has been conclu-
sively demonstrated, in the case of the
Red and Blue. The on year is as forci-
bly, shown in the Harvard eleven, the
revival beginning year since; and to-
day Harvard is acknowledged the star
of the Big -Four. Yale in '98 fell to the
Crimson by the score Of II to 0; and
this strongly suggests that Pennsyl-
vania's defeat, Nov. 4, declares her
eleven no easy proposition, and the
more so, since the Crimson's strength
is superior to any Cambridge eleven in
recent years, or in the past
All foot ball teams have one or more
of the fine plays more or less perfect
ed, and that scoring against the best
elevens should be seen, is most nat
ural the only wonder is that the scor-
ing did not begin year earlier. Penn
sylvania has had q severe schedule to
meet; and in the face of the records
made, it is hardly right to mark her
lower than fair OF course, this is
counting by last years scale of reck-
oning, when we must recognize that
Yale's condition then, among the Big
Four, was that of the Red and Blues
today; and Yale was not generally
considered second class. The tie game
with Chicago, with PENIS condition,
far from enviable, attests to this truth.
1t must be remembered that Chicago
defeated Cornell, II to 6, and that the
| Ithacans, two weeks later, soothed
their troubled hearts, apparently for
all time, by shutting out Princeton,
score to 0; and on Tuesday added
further laurels to her crown by reduc-
/ ing Columbia, 20 to o.
| But expert testimony Is at last here
! testimony which drives at the core OF
/ things. 1t comes from one who is in
touch and sympathy with PENIS ath-
letio life, DR.. J. William White, of the
medical faculty. There is no higher au-
| thority. DIR. White has reviewed the
situation, starting with the first game
and has declared the non-success Of
F., the team due to the great need foI
early practice. The want of the pre-.
liminary practice, to which the team
has heretofore been accustomed, lef
the players unfit physically to NEE
1 the stiff schedule. And that Penn has
scored more points than any of the
larger elevens thus far only goes t.
prove that her condition is at present, g
| natural result Of starting in a month
late. Both spirit and drill, elements
| invaluable to an eleven, a foundation
without which no team may look fol-
| good records. were sacrificed and the
! cost must always be dear.
/ The Michigan game can have no de-
cisive effect upon Penn. Penn is start
| ing a new life, born of defeat; and in
the budding stage it can suffer little
| though the score be against her, as
| Columbia sustained Nov. Z. Much
| counting is staked upon this feature,
signs of new life 1t is a regret, of
course, that the prospects Of any re-
naissance should be so long in coming,
but we feel inclined to believe it gen
uine. The nth Penn meets State Col
lege. Bucknell has suggested that there
can be no anxiety about the outcome
at that date, and that the Red and
4 Blue may cease all fears until Thanks
| giving. If Penn wins the 30th, all will
| be forgiven, and the lessons of the
year will be her most valued legacy of
| the season of SO.
If history repeats itself, we cannot
| look for good words from New York
| or even fair play. The following clip
ping from the N Y Evening Sun is in
| line with the past, and is mentioned
here only because it places Penn in a
very false light before the public:
"Davidson's low standing had been a
matter of more or less common knowl-
edge on the Pennsylvania campus long
before he was disqualified at the elev-
enth hour.
LAS Davidson was a new man, whose
work against Chicago had lacked brill
| liancy and defensive strength, and as
| Barnard was regarded as a coming
man, those conversant with the facts
| that have now been made public looked
| upon Davidson's disqualification at the
| eleventh hour as grandstand play to
| the outside public and an action de-
| signed to placate Harvard while not
| weakening the team.
If any answer to these transparent
words were needed, we could say that
| Coach Woodruff knew nothing of Dav-
| idson's low standing before the official
| notice came, and that Barnard is man
| ifestly his inferior in that position.
Another instance in line with the
above, Is the great ado made by the
New York Journal over Overfield' s
| starting from the field with the ball,
just after the Harvard game. 1t is
common fact here that Overfield made
immediate apology at the Harvard
quarters for attempting to carry off
the ball, and was so chagrined him
self at his action that he left college
several days Certainly this attitude is
not unworthy a gentleman, whatever
adverse turnirigs printers ink NAV