The San Francisco call., 1899-11-25
FOOTBALL MEN
EAST AND WEST
Those Of the Two Great California Univer-
sites Lose Nothing by Comparison
BY j. F. sHEEHAN JR., STANFORD 80.

table houses at p. m. after a light lunch
con over 70 the training house. They are
on the splendidly kept turf field at 80 and
into the thick OF play until about o clock.
are behind them with the knowledge of
years-men who follow closely each sea-
son the constant change in many phases
OF play-having the rudiments at their
nngers ends from actual experience and
always Keeping abreast Of the football
times. Each set Of men has an adept in
ms position instructing them in detail.
while the captain and head coach strive
10 maintain harmonious policy of play
alter a corps of professional rubbers
mas attended the men they are of 10 1
o CLOCK recitation or other pursuits. At
Yale saw leo men. including the fresh
men, board i've special electric cars in
IrOnt or the gymnasium building at the
same hour, and until $3.50 one end of New
haNen seemed alive with athletes. Back
OF these players on the field were men
whose names have rung In football his
tory-Malter Camp. Laurie Bliss Hinkey
Bun, Rodgers, Thorne. Rhodes and many
others, for Yale was then performing the
miracle which only Sons OF Old Eli seem
capable of-putting green team to-
sether 10 play Harvard's wonderful eleven
q tie game on Saturday last at Cambridge
Al Harvard II was much the same. only
II anything, the candidates were more rI-
merOus Compared with our Western
simplicity, IL certainly seemed like bus
mess, well conducted business, where
every detail has its place.
So much for the generality Of the situ-
alton as II impressed me. AS for differ
ence in component phases OF which there
are many. the most striking was the
power OF the head trainer, especially evi-
dent at Harvard and Yale. McMasters at
the former university and Robinson at the
latter are solely responsible for the physi-
cal condition OF the men. A man plays or
he does not play al the word of the train
-. California has been fortunate in hav-
Ing Al Lean in charge. Stanford advances
= me Eastern standard this year for the
hrst time, when DIT. Murphy, Yale's old
BAN player, was retained 10 handle the
athletic teams.
AS 10 the men themselves, of whom one
seems TO lose sight in the Eastern dis
play Ike the men Of Stanford and Berke-
ley OF the past and OF the present? Divide
the question and IL may be more easily
answered. Individually the difference is
certainly not particularly noticeable.
would venture a personal opinion backed
by that OF Eastern players who have seen
our men perform, that Ransome. Walton
OlemanS, Frankenheimer. Sherman Hunt
HarrelsOn. Wilson of Berkeley Downing.
Sheehy, Morse, Carter, Code Cotton,
earle, Fickert, Pringle, Womble,
Smith, Hall and Murphy, and certainly
numerous others, would easily fit a big
Eastern team.
Indeed. our material here has been pro-
Dounced as strong, as supple and as quick
and possessed Of equally as clever natural
attributes as that OF Yale, Harvard
Princeton and Pennsylvania. More would
nave Deen got out or any one of the
men mentioned had they played on East
ern fields-obviously enough because of
conditions far more favorable. They
would have received better preliminary
training, been taught 20 keep their ewes
open In all sorts OF play, to "use their
head 10 better obtain advantage-in
short, to obtain the finesse of develop
ment, although their mere rushing power
or defensive cleverness might not have
been materially improved. Indeed. Stan
ford's teams OF 90. &c and 's7 and Califor-
MAS OF "a (while beaten, was certainly
possessed Of wonderful strength and OF
IS would bother any OF the big Eastern
elevens and in some instances certainly
score by reason Of the general individual
equality.
Under the vastly more favorable con-
ditions. team work Is developed to a
nicely; the play. owing partly to the
cool. sharp. bracing weather and the
never ceasing prodding Of many coach
IS. is immeasurably faster and fiercer.
Aided by more clever generalship. an
average Eastern team on the dav of
a big match is a manifestly stronger ag-
gregation than any the West has vet put
forth. our Western game has developed
more quickly than that of our Eastern
brothers at a Ike period. and with the
zeal Of youth we may close the gap in
shorter time than many imagine.