The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-10-13
FOOTBALL
RATE GOPHERS HIGH
Chicago Critics Have More Words
of Praise for the Minnesota
Eleven.
Umpire Clark Says It Is the Best
Gopher Team in Many
Years.

The Minnesota football team is fill
ing a lot of space in the Chicago pa
pers these days. The windy city eX-
perts all concede that the gophers are
better than last year, and one of them
hints that DR.. Williams men may be
the leaders of the west this year. The
majority do not think Minnesota will
beat Michigan Oct. 81, but all regard
her as the most dangerous contestant
after Chicago and Michigan.
The Record-Herald, summing up
the situation, gives much praise to
Minnesota, and intimates that Wiscon-
sin will be stronger than was pre-
dicted at the opening Of the season.
All the critics, in fact, think Wiscon-
sin will show up well in the champion
ship games. The RecOrd-Herald says:
Minnesota's forty-siX points against the
husky Ames eleven makes the team that
played Michigan for the championship last
season look decidedly dangerous, and
shows that the Michigan Minnesota con-
test on Oct. 81 will be worth going miles
to see. The gopherS, faster last year than
many critics gave them credit Of being,
have more speed than ever before. The
Minnesota men are always strong individ-
ually, and some Of the wise ones, who
have discovered DR.. Williams has chosen
speed in preferment to weight, are al
ready picking the gophcrs as leaders of
the west this year. Minnesota meets Iowa
next Saturday. and, while the hawkeyes
are not rated high, the game will show
what the northerners can do against
conference team. 1t Is certain Minnesota
will bear watching.
WiscOnsin'S green team, by making
forty points against Lawrence which was
defeated by the maroons only % to 0, has
shown that the badgers must also be
reckoned with in the competition for hon
orS. The Lawrence team was so weak
that the score does not mean great DEAL
but the badgers, always slow beginners,
have new men and q new system to de-
VelOp this year. and their work so far in
dicates that when the big games come
they may surprise those who have hur-
ried to count them out Of the running.
Michigan Still Hurrying Up.
That Michigan, whose championship rec
ord Of last year will long be remembered.
Is still playing hurry up football is as
sured by its seventy nine points against
Beloit. Jack HOLSTERS boys were recent
1y beaten by Purdue, IT to 0, and are I'M
doubtedly weaker than usual, but they are
always fast and hard fighters, and a score
Of such proportions in the third game Of
the year, with but few veterans in the
lineup, makes Michigan appear formid
able indeed. Next Saturday Yost's men
meet Indiana, while Beloit plays at Mad
1son, and these games will give a line on
which to compare the wolverines with
both the badgers and the maroons.
The Chicago Purdue game-the most
important in the west last Saturday.
showed that Midway rooters have a good
basis for strong hopes for a winning sea-
son. While the Purdue attack was not
Of the first class, the fact that the ma
rooms, allowed but one first down in fifty
minutes Of play speaks we'll for Coach
Stages defense already and makes it
plain that Chicago will be hard team to
gain against when it has acquired the
finishing touches which another month
will bring. E
The Chronicle does not attempt to
compare Minnesota with the other
leading team, but says that the
gophers have a cinch in this week S
game with Iowa. Chicago is picked to
beat Northwestern easily, and Illinois
TO win from Purdue. In regard to the
Minnesota-IOWa game the Chronicle
says:
Another big game of the west will be be-
tween Iowa and Minnesota. It is even
easier at this date to pick the winner of
this game than the Northwestern Chicago
contest. Minnesota is easily to shot
and ought to rOmp all over the hawkeye
team. Minnesota has speed to spare this
year. something quite unusual for the 60
piers; it has weight, too and Coach Will
liams is out again sure enough to deter
mine what he do with Michigan and
Chicago. defeat by Iowa is not thought
of and in all probability the score will be
above thirty points.
But while Minnesota should win
Saturdays game, it does not follow
that the contest will be too one sided
to be interesting. Gilmore Dobie as
sistant coach of the Minnesota team
returned to Minneapolis yesterday
after witnessing the Iowa-Drake game
at Iowa City. He says that the con-
test Saturday will be we'll worth see
ing, and that iowa will give Mime
sot the severest test the gophers have
had this year. Dobie said of the Iowa
team:
1.-THE wolf stories sent out from
Iowa do not do justice to the team.
Chalmers has a very fast bunch there,
and his eleven is improving steadily.
Drake sent team Of giants to Iowa