The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-10-26
CRITICS ARE AT SEA
Think Game Between Michigan and
Minnesota Is Very Doubtful
=. -. .>s ,.z=- x ,
Former Slight Favorite.
All Agree that This Is the Great
Game of the Year in the
. g. West.

Chicago, Oct. 2e.-The Tribune this
morning says: sf..- -
Out Of the mass of football scores on
Saturday, but two are of particular in
terest. One is the result Of the Chicago
Illinois games; the other the tally of the
Columbia Pennsylvania contest. The east
ern score is interesting as beeing the
weekly ''surprise.'' The outcome of the
western game attracts attention as in
measure determining the ranking of two
of the ''big nine" teams.
Judged on the basis of Saturdays
games, in the light Of the showing of the
teams turnout the season, the order of
merit appears to be Michigan first, Min
nesota second Wisconsin, Chicago, North
western and Illinois closely punched as
contestants for third place. Thus they
stand now. Next Saturday will settle
what Is likely to be the order until the end
of the season. ~,.s -.-s =..
Saturday will be an eventful day in the
history of western football. Seldom have
+ so many critical contests been grouped on
one day. At Minneapolis, Michigan and
Minnesota will fight out the battle which
is likely to decide the western champion
ship At Madison, Wisconsin and Chicago
will settle on the field of combat which is
to outrank the other. At Champaign,
Northwestern and Illinois will determine
which is the better team and how much
Chicago really improved in one week after
the "disa ster'' of Oct. II. &s.< .--"
On the probable outcome of the Mich
| igan- Minnesota game the showing Of the
| two teams Saturday had little bearing. In
both contests the scores run up were much
! lower than had been expected. Michigan
| beat Drake by ~ to 0, while weak Iowa
] defeated the same team two weeks ago by
a score Of % to 6. Minnesota ran up only
As points on Beloit. against which Michi-
gan two weeks before ran up a score of
| RI Ix-bi1 WISCONSIN week before
made a record of 81 to 0.
No Attempt at. Big Score.
In each case, however, it was evident
no attempt at a big score was made. Both
| coaches realized that only one week re-
| NAMED before the crucial test of Oct. 81,
and neither cared to risk injuries. In the
Michigan Drake game the men played
| carelessly, putting up the poorest game
of the season during the first half, altho
/ they improved during the second period.
/ In the Minnesota Beloit contest DR.. Will
! liams' team was patched up affair,
! Schacht being still laid up O'Brien's re-
cent injury keeping him out, and Current
being the only regular in the back field.
Minnesota's injuries, in fact. seem to JUS
tify the gloom which prevails in the Min
neapoIis camp, for O'Brien is one Of DR..
Williams stars, and the loss of a good
quarterback just before the Michigan
game makes the probable defeat almost
certain. It is said to be unlikely that
O'Brien can get back into the game DR..
i Williams did not attend the game Satur-
/ day, coming to Chicago instead to watch
Illinois play. Minnesota plays Illinois at
Champaign, Nov. IA.
4 The Record Herald says: a
Results of the football games of the
past week leave five of the "big nine" col
ileges in the running for the western
4 championship and pave the way to make
L, Cej,, rlou IF no tac,f
4 days in the history of the sport in the
4 middle west.
i Chicago's victory over Illinois put the
4 maroons, temporarily at least, iE the
same class with Michigan, Minnesota
i Wisconsin and NorthWestern-all unde-
i feated-and by a peculiar coincidence in
j the schedules, the, close Of this week will
4 see three contests which, unless unex-
i pected ties occur, will cut the list OF
i e1igibles in two. Michigan meets Min
nesota at Minneapolis Chicago Journeys
d TO Madison for a struggle with wisconsin
and Northwestern at Champaign will try