The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-06-27
stage TALKS ON NEW
RULES FOR FOOTBALL
Athletic Director of Chicago
University Discusses Changes
In Regulations

/ CHICAGO. June 26.--Athletic Director
! A. A. Stage, of Chicago university, has
made an expert analysis of the football
rules that win govern the game this fall.
/ Director Stagg says:
eliminating all personalities. / believe
/ that the West is to be congratulated in at
| rules committee. The recognition. though
very tardy is nevertheless welcome, and
no matter who the representative is who
sits Tor the -, West SO long as he honestly ,l
VIII serve a good purpose The time IL
! long past when all of football is played in
the East and Central West.
| The game is now scientifically played in
all sections of the country from the East
| to the Pacific and as far south as Texas.
! II |, then, as a member of this commit :
1 tee, am to represent all but the East, l
certainly have big task before me. AS
the rules committee is at best an arbi-
| trary body, not only in the matter OF the
selection of its members, but also in Its
assumption to represent the football in
terests of the country, until some better
4 plan or organization is adopted the pres
4 ent system viii have to be accepted
graciously. partially representative though
it is.
| AT the first meeting which attended
as the Western representative, not sin
gle point was raised which the interests
! of the East and those of the West
| seemed to present any great differences
game is not one limited to any climate
4 or section of the country, and there is
no reason then why the rules suited to
| the East should not be those best suited
to the West No aspects of the game
1 are additionally Eastern; none tradition
ally Western. 1t was easy then for a
| Western representative to meet with the
committee without at once raising any
| questions as to Western policy or East
! ern policy. 1t became simply matter of
each member presenting recommendations
obs In aFti
thought might in some way better the
game and make it a purer and better
/ sport.
/ Probably the greatest thing done by the
| committee was to provide for codifica :
| ton of the rules. And perhaps the great
est work for the future will be along this
! same line. Heretofore the rules have been
almost unintelligible. The best of officials
had trouble in applying the rules or to
find exactly what one to apply. Much
| time was wasted and much wrangling
participated. The only reason for it all
| was due to different interpretations placed
| on the rules.
! codffcation of the rules Under penalties,
| the rules will apply the five yards pen
atty to 'unsportsmanlike conduct, etc,
| etc Under this head are twelve offenses
| specified-all that require the infection of
| this penalty. Under the fifteen yards
| penalty, four offenses are listed, including
! Interference with a fair catch etc. etc.
/ Under disqualification one 0ffenSe is
| listed, and under forfeiture. two offenseS
| are listed. Thus every possible excuse for
the infection of penalty is named and
| the required penalty named. 1 consider
| that this work in itself is the most i'm
| poTtant thing accomplished by the re-
| cent Philadelphia meeting of the COM
| nittee.
9"Next year the committee should take
up other parts of the rules, other than
those applying to penalties, and cedify
| them. The rules will then soon be made
| ineligible to all. And this is the one
4 great aim that the committee should haye
10 Aalli rr4lo Il -
| body.
checkerhoard Plan
Another important work was the ex-
tension of the checkerboard scheme. The
new rules hold that any player may re-
, ceiye the ball from the snapper back and
|, advance it, if he goes five yards outside
of center. The twenty-five yards rule as
J applied last year has been eliminated and
. the checkerboard will extend over the
entire field this year.
NO there was no disposition to wider
the field, so that there would not be the
| narrow, two-and-a -half-y strips along
the side of the gridiron. 1t was the gen
eral opinion that this narrow strip would
be a decided advantage instead Of a dis
| advantage, as the runners attention weul6
| be attracted by the narrow strip and he
would be apprised that he was near the
side line. whereas if the spaces We're al
five yards wide the side line might be
overlooked.
PERSONALLY I was in favor of ALLOWING
! any formation desired requiring six meT
in the line in any part of the field. AS il
| is, you can have but six men in the line
Of scrimmage but one of the eleven has
to be outside of end on one side. / would
| have liked to have had freedom so that
d more could have stood back-pra ctically
! the Dule of two years ago. What is meant
I | by outside of line is, as interpreted BY
b | committee, wholly outside not one foo
0 outside, but clearly outside, body as vel
. as feet; while h,i1 'on the line means no
0 The -abolishtng of the twenty yards
/ loss with privilege of keeping the bali wa.
: recommended by the East. The genera
3 opinion in the committee was that tn,
| rule was being overWorked and that 1
4 | was not wise rule.
8 No Ten Yards Penalty
e The ten yards penalty was dropped
e | altogether. Fifteen yards penalties Wer,
t ! adopted for holding, tripping, Illegal u.s.
| of hands and feet and arms, illegal run
!, ming. interference with a fair catch, am
, the hye-yard penalty was adopted for al
t | other infractions except those for forfeit
ure and disqualification Some of the in
!, fractions to which the five yards penalt,
!, applies are coaching from the side lines
delay of the game, interference with cen
ter. off side plays when not in possession
of the ball, starting before the ball. etc
: THE provision for a distinct signal 70
n each official was decided upon to do ava!
5 over fouls committed by any other thai
J. | the player with the ball. The signal here
tofore usually caused the runner to stol
4 anu lne sue carry IlS tne pail mad a JUS
=; | right to object to having their MIA,
Y stopped. The new rule provides that 'Whei
= the referee has made decision and a pla1
l resulting in more than the foul Wouit
y | have resulted, the team may take full
y ! gain up to twenty-five yards unless sucl
y gain would result in a touchdown
1 ! The revision says that no attention
y | shall be paid to the umpire's signal bu
0 the play shall continue and the penalty b
= inflicted for the foul afterward. The pIay
z ers will be able to distinguish between tn
signals and there will not be any neces
2 sity for the usual misunderstanding. On
4 official will be provided with a whistle an,
: the other with bell or horn.
;, This is a very good provision, l be
a lieYe.
), "A good rule was introduced which doe
n away with tricks by players to draw OBJ
Y | ponets off side. The old rule provide,
& that if any player on side with the bal
:, shall by any attempt to draw player Off
!; 1 side on the other side succeed the offend
: er shall be penalized. This rule tended t
| penalize one of the strong points of tn
game-that Of quick charging. Hereafte
g no penalty will be inflicted in such a case
d New <iclooff Rule
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