New-York tribune., 1907-11-23

IsOO-YaIe 2S Harvard o I9O5-YaIe 6. Harvard
I9OI-HarVard %. Yale oI9O6-Yale 6. Harvard o
The football elevens of Yale and Harvard
viii take the field in the Stadium at Cambridge
to-day and fight out more their annual
battle the gridiron, before a crowd of some
3JO00 persons, limited. by the way, to the seat
ing capacity Of the big amphitheatre. Yale is
an overwhelming favorite, at odds varying from
. to ] TO > 10 ]. Those who have watched the
development of the two elevens and seen them
in action do not hesitate to, predict that Har-
ward is doomed to defeat. 1t might be well to
postpone judgment, however, of the Harvard
team until the referee blows his whistle for the
last time tonight, the football is an un-
certain game at best and the Crimson players,
many of whom viii in their last game will
not acknowledge defeat without a stubborn
fight. Those who are predicting a rout for
Harvard are likely TO be nightly surprised. for
while Yale should win all football form she
viii not find herself at a pink tea at Cambridge,
and those who sit and stand in the Stadium
can count on watching a struggle worth going
far TO see.
The Yale team left for the scene OF the strug-
gle yesterday strong and confident. II will line
up to-day TO round out a season in which there
has not been one defeat and flushed with the
success of a remarkable victory over Princeton
last Saturday-a victory that proved the grit.
resourcefulness and sEll of the eleven to a
marked degree There have been few better
and stronger teams ever developed at New
Haven, and it is only reasonable to believe that
IT viii be quite strong, quite as versatile. to-
day as il week ago. With the possible
exception of Congdon who strained his ankle
last Saturday. the eleven will take the field as
il did against Princeton. Yale men ask moth
ing more than that it play the football 1t did
in that wonderful rally in the second half with
the Tigers. Then Yale must win.
While the Yale eleven has proved itself the
Harvard team has not. There can be no ques-
p tion about the individual ability and latent
strength of the Crimson players, but for some
reason or other they have. not been able up TO
this time to work together as a coerciVe whole
There have beer flashes of concerted strength
and unity Of action, but only flashes. and then
the team would settle back into a go-as-you-
please sort OF way which was discouraging to
the coaches and Gisheartening to the undergrad
uates. If the men should rise in their might
to-day, throw off the depressing effect of two
defeats at the hands of the Carlisle Indians and
Dartmouth end play the kind of football they
are capable Of, then Yale viii have battle on
her hands that will require her best efforts TO
win. It is a great big If" however.
AS paradoXical as it may seem, taking the
records Of the two eleyens individual COM
pa<ison Of the players does not point to any
particular advantage for Yale. So good punter
as Coy is, Burr, the big Harvard tackle, is his
equal if not his superior both in distance and
direction in this important feature of the new
game. Wendell. Rand and Apoonio. the Har-
ward backfed, are fast and hard to stop, whether
in circling the ends bucking the line, and do
moi SuIer IN comparison WIFI boHndI, hIIueS
and Coyle. the Yale trio, in the running game.
At quarterback Yale has the call, Tad" Jones
has equal. with the possible exception of
Eddie Dillon the Princeton star, in handling
punts. running the ball back through a broken
feId deadly fackliag, eternal vigilance and keen
generalship, NssHhall, the Crimson quarter is
above the average, showever, and will give good
account Of hft4aseif If the cut over the eye re-
ceved in the Dartmouth game does not bother
him. In Starr he mas good substitute.
In the line there is also little 10 choose in
dividually. Grant, the Harvard centre, has been
playing particularly well all the season and Is
- looked on as an AIl-American possibility He
is likely to OutpIay Dunbar if COngdon is unable
TO line up. and should hold his own with the lat
Z. ter. Captain Parker. who played centre year
2 ago, and ". Peirce are fair guards who should
not be one whit behind Cioebel and COOney, OF
Yale who stin lack experience. Burr and Fish,
the Harvard tackles, are hardly up to the stand
ard set by Captain Bigow and Paige, Of Yale.
but they are not outclassed in any sense. Burr
was an All-American guard last year, and he
has been playing we'll in his new position at
tackle. On the ends Yale may also claim a
slight advantage. Howard Jones and Alcott
found themselves last Saturday and quite held
D their own against such strong pair as Wlster
and Brown. Houston and Browne, who are
: likely 10 start the game for Harvard, are un-
known quantities to a large extent, but Dave
e Campbell, than whom there are few better
? coaches discovered their possibilities and be-
ueves he has solved a knotty problem for the
counted on to play well UP to the standard, and
Starr too. may get a chance TO go into the
game at end if he is not needed at quaTteTback.
All this is interesting but means little IN
reaching a reasonable conclusion as TO the
probable outcome OF the game. Individual
stars DO not make football team. The men
must play together one man. and in this
. Harvard has failed this year, whereas Yale mas
not In alMthat goes TO make up a winning
team Yale fairly outclssses Harvard, on whaS
has been seen. Yale has shown greater scor-
ing ability and more sturdy ana e1ectVe ue-
fence Yale has developed the forward pass
and the plays made possible under the revised
rules 10 a higher point of perfection, perhaps
than any other team Yale has proved her
strategic strength and resourcefulness in beat
ing Princeton with defeat staring her IN the
face No other arguments are necessary. ana
unless the biggest surprise Of season. partlcu-
Iarlv fruitful in the unexpected, is sprung at
Cambridge Yale will beat Harvard to-day.
There is q strong probability that Harvard
NAV have something new in the way OF TRICK
plays that have been carefully prepared ana
saved for Yale If so, ii took great courage TO
keep them under cover and accept deteaI ps
Carlisle and Dartmouth. Still, the Aale gaIho
has been Harvard's goal since the season oesah'
i as is always the case. and H would be poor
eleven indeed that did not hold something III
reserve for the time of fits greatest need. II Is
more than probable that Yale showed her fuli
strength against Princeton-the need was there'
but even il Yale has nothing new TO show the
old should suffice. with such a man as Tao
Jones 10 mix the plays up and strike where
least expected.
The average weight OF the Yale eleven Is l9l
pounds as against Isl for Harvard. In the line
Yale averages 19s pounds TO 1S9 for Harvard
In the backfeld Yale has distinct advantage
in this respect. as the average is 1sS pounds as
against 1876 for Harvard.
looks was STA enough de-