New-York tribune., 1904-10-31
ON THE GRIDIR0N.
HarUard's Defeat Makes Champion
ship HOnOrs Hard to Place.

Pennsylvania surprising victory over the
Harvard eleven. which must have looked for
ward so confidently to rather easy conquest.
still further complicates already sufi-
ciently tangled Up to Saturday Harvard was
the only one OF the three so-called big teams
that had neither been scored against nor beaten.
Now she. too. has fallen. and they are all In the
same class. As regards the championship. 1t
very much looks as If there "an't goin' to be
no core" this year. To be sure. Pennsylvania
still maintains n clean record Of victories, with
Harvard and Columbia among her victims, and
she will later meet Cornell in the annual Thanks
giving Day match. But even should she beat the
lthacans. her title to the championship will not
he clear. for she has match either with
Princeton or Yale. and this years champion
must II would appear, defeat one or both Of
these eevens. On the other hand, should Prince
ton defeat Yale she will not thereby demon
strate directly her ability to defeat the ouakers
Ior she has TO match with Pennsylvania, nor
has Yale one by which comparative line might
be drawn. Harvard, apparently. has by Satur-
days defeat disqualified herself for the cham
pionship, even though she should win the Yale
match a thing she would doubtless prefer even
to winning any technical title. 1t is hard to
see. therefore how one is to name the cham
pion. One may, perhaps. conclude mere
speculation that Pennsylvania would defeat Yale
or Princeton, or vice versa, should they meet
but such speculation Is scarcely sufficient to
justify one in awarding the laurels.
say What one may ABOUT the possibility that
overconfdence played a large part in Harvard's
defeat at Pennsylvania hands. the fact is evil
dent that the Philade!phians have developed. in
the face of many obstacles, the best team they
have had In years. These two universities have
met Oh the gridiron every year since 1893. but
Saturdays match is the first the Quakers have
won since 1897, and in most of these Cambridge
victories the Crimson has won by a very COM
Portable margin, What wonder. therefore if
the New Englanders looked forward this sea-
sor in view Of their uabroken record of sue
cess. 10 a victory on Soldiers Field? But all ac-
counts Of the match agree that Pennsylvania
outplayed the Crimson individually and col
lectvely. from whistle to whistle What is TO
be thought Of the quality of Harvard's offence
when II IS reported that only four times in the
first half was the Crimson able TO carry the ball
five yards in three downs? The conclusion is in
evitahe either that Pennsylvania has the ablest
defence on the football field this year that
Harvard's attack has been greatly overesti-
mated. Most observers of the match are Of the
opinion that the weak point of the Crimson line
was at centre. and that Parkinson was entirely
unequal 70 the task set before him. Just why
he was kept in his place with man like Barney
on the sdelines is something that the coaches
may nave 4 good reason for. but which seems
odd 10 other folks.
At once the most !aInentabie and the most sur
prising feature Of Harvard's downfall was the
wretched play OF her ends Harvard has always
been noted for the regularity with which she
turned out each season a fast pair of ends fit to
match against the wing tips of any eleven in the
country Filley and Leary had given signs this
fall Of bearing out the Cambridge traditions In
this respect but il appears that Saturday
they gave exhibition Of end play to make
both coaches and spectators weep Especially
reniss were they in that prime requisite of a
good end-getting down under punts To be
sure. the punts they had to follow appear 10
nave been for the most part worse than second
F-Np hos FtG1 C-{r-,
and Stevenson and Smith time and time again
ran them back for twenty. thirty and even
thirty-fve precious yards, II is safe to say that
no team can win an important game with this
sort of end playing and ii is especially certain
that Shevlt and Neal will not ohge Harvard
with the same sort Of incompetency.
Right here. too we get little light on the
carefully shaded confines of Harvards coaching
system, of which much has been hoped this Sc
son Filley, one OF the ends that covorted about
so ineffectively on Saturday is captain OF the
crew. and this autumn has been busy with the
usual boating practice. He has never PLAYED
Rugby football before but has confined hts at
tent.on TO the Association game. He did not
appear on the field for practice once last week II
newspaper observers are to be trusted. nor for
several days before the game with the Indians
Yet ne Is selected to nil vital position in i'm
portant match. These dorgs, If they are as
represented. form a severe commentary on
coaching methods al Harvard and certainly
Filley's play on Saturday furnishes them a GER
tain amount II confederation. I am told too
that Starr. under whose generalship the Grim
son players took such good brace In the sec
ond half of the game has been chiefly confined
IL practice TO going through the snap-b back with
one of the disabled centres. 1t Is pity he was
not discovered beforehand ia ther odd too for
he was last year one of the most promising men
aIllo! preparatory school players. Certainly
ms play Of SATURDAY.. from all accounts. an
improN enl'At kernaus. though probably
Noy"s. " hos eyes az" keeping him out of the
freshman. Fumhies had much to do with the
CrimSon's Waterloo. Twice they occurred In
SIDE Peunsylvania's lI-yard line when a touch
down seemed nj hand. Poor punting also was
responsible for much trouble. Sperry proving no
where near The equal Of Nichols in this depart
ment "f the game, Captain Hurley is doubt
less much discouraged man. He fairly wore
himself out IN the first half trying to help his
backhOneless line withstand the assaults the
"urly Quak"TS made upon ii. and had TO be
taken ont though reports have il that he was
not hurt. Doubtless he missed Nichols sadly
for more reasons than the loss OF his punting
But. granted that Harvard's game was dis !
appointing in many ways. II must he said that
Pennsylvania seems at last 10 have turned
"ut an eleven that is somewhere near what
one has a right 70 expect Of an institution of
her, size and football history. She has several /,
first class men in her rushne. notably Piekar- 7
ski Lamson and Butkiewicz while behind the
line Stevenson, Reynolds and Smith are worthy .
OF comparison With OF the hackheIds OF
the countrs- Stevenson in particular appears
very nearly 10 ne in the first class OF quarter
backs. being fast az carrying the ball on the
quarterback run. swift and resourceful at
running his team and speedy and clever At run
ming back punts. though in this last particular
ne had little 10 contend with In the way OF op-I