Los Angeles herald., 1906-09-09
ON SIDE KICK
IMPORTANT RULE
F00TBALLISTS PREPARE FOR
CAMPAIGN
New Regulations Will Doubtless Re-
suit in an Exceedingly Open
Play, as Line Smashing
Cannot Be Effective

In just four weeks football play will
begin in the smaller colleges, and the
larger ones will be in line week later.
Within a fortnight fall practice will for
mally begin, having been conducted in
formally for more than month past at
various places about the country.
The experimentation necessary to de-
velop the new game that is to be played
under the altered code will make this
preliminary practice of exceptional I'M
terest, though the season will be well
advanced before any certainty as to
the trend the game Is to take will be
possible.
The work of the various big institu-
tions in their spring campaigning has
been carefully guarded AT West Point
there has been less secrecy about the
practice than at any other place The
Developments at the military academy
have convinced the leaders of its foot
ball policy that the game will be mark
edly changed in both offense and de-
tense and materially opened up and i'm
proved, from a spectacular standpoint
at least.
In discussing the results obtained in
the experimentation done there one OF
the most prominent men Interested in
football at West Point said recently:
IT believe there will be marked
changes in both offense and defense
but L do not believe that the factors
that were expected to bring it about
have done so.
Forward Pass
"The forward pass which was ad-
vanced as so potent a factor in open
ing up the play, 1 do not believe Will
be very prominent The pass is too un-
|
handling the ball, something that was
extremely difficult under the old rules
to make it of great value.
'1ts moral effect, in keeping the op-
posite side on the qui Vive of expec-
fancy watching for its appearance, Will
be of greater value than the pass itself
believe you will see few passes and
unimportant gains made with them
when made.
The change which 1 regard as most
important in opening up the play is the
on-side kick. When a ball is free to be
secured by either side when kicked 1t Is
obvious that it introduces the greatest
possibilities for forward passing imagi-
nable.
For instance, il a forward pass is
desired the pass must be made to GER
| tain prescribed men, in certain pre-
scri bed directions, and must be cleanly
by simply kicking the ball short dis
tance ahead of the scrimmage line and
allowing any man on the kicking side to
secure 1t.
TT will be recalled what a powerful
factor the quarterback kick was when
| first introduced. Then It was requisite
that the man who secured the bal
should be on side at the time it was
kicked. This limited the play nightly
yet II was terribly effective.
1.-The first time II was used by Penn
sylVania against Princeton, Rosengar-
ten made fifty yards down the field
That the ball was called back because
the referee did not understand the play
is immaterial. He later acknowledge
his error.
Ten Yard Rule
"I believe the ten-yard rule would
have been ruinous without this one
change. Especially would this be true
in view of the fact that mass plays are
absolutely rendered ineffective by the
rule requiring a man TO retire FIVE yards
behind the line. II he be one OF the fire
center men withdrawn for that pur'
pose.
"Every one viii acknowledge that 4