The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-12-22
YOST TELLS Why
WEST IS WEAK
Declares Restrictions Placed
on Athletics Makes Good
Teams Impossible.

Detroit, Mich, Dec. 21.-'Results OF the
intersectional games leave to the western
man no ground for a claim that the grade
OF football played by the leading teams
IN his section Of the country was equa
to that of the best teams Of the east,
says Yost Of Michigan in an interview to-
day.
1T is an undeniable fact that western
IOotpall Tor the past two years has been
Iar below its standard of 1901 to 1905.
Mlchigan in 1901 defeated Carlisle
coached by Mr. Warner, p to 0, in two
twenty minute halves From 1901 to 19F
Michigan rolled UP an average OF fifty
points every time her team took the field
She scored S6 points against Ohio State
1gl against Iowa State, $50 against West
Virginia. 12S against Buffalo and lis
against Michigan Agricultural COllege.
Yet for the past two years Michigan has
been forced to extend herself 10 the limit
to win from these teams and others Of the
same class.
Freshman Rule Bad.
so radical a reversal of form must in
dictate the existence of cause. and that
cause is familiar to all who have fol-
lowed closely the rules and regulations
made by the western conference, restrict-
ing athletics.
I'm 1895. a year in advance of the adop-
ton of the freshman rule in the east.
the conference passed a rule debarring all
freshmen from varsity teams at the same
time abolshing the freshmen teams. thus
cutting off every freshman from one year
of competition and development.
This rule naturally drove from west
ern schools every athlete Of promise able
to go elsewhere, because they could en-
ter any university and compete on the
varsity their first year. This was not
only a loss to the teams of 1893, but to
the teams of 1896, '0I and OS as well
Naturally all the men who entered
in the fan of 1905 would be in college for
four years. -
further destructive legislation. A rlCid
three-year competition rule was passed.
the number of games for each team was
limited to five, the training table was
abolished. and all preliminary practice OF
any nature was forbidden.
Schools Less Attractive.
This made western schools even less
attractive to western athletes It prom
ised the football player a maximum Of fif-
teen games during his entire college
course Of four years. virtually about the
number he would play in one season as "a
member of any eastern team and robbed
him of the privilege af representing his
university at all for more than three
years.
''Au these restrictions naturally cause
any man with athletic tendencies to enter
those universities where more freedom
of competitor and development are per
mitted. Such restrictions have also made
it almost impossible to develop the men
who did enter conference colleges Five
games competition do not furnish enough
experience.
Theory is one thing, but it takes much
experience in active competition to apply
it quickly during the excitement of a big
game. In fact the best men for the teams
can hardly be selected before that number
of games have been played. These re
striCtiOns have a tendency 10 kill the
spirit and enthusiasm of the players, be-
cause they feel that everything is being
done that can be to weaken the team.
UNLESS there is q relaxation of the
stringent rules regarding the training and
opportunity for development that now eN-
lists in the western conference. football In
these colleges cannot help but decline IN
standard