Omaha daily bee., 1908-06-14
CORNHUsKER ATHLETES SORE
Resent Action of Iowa at BiE Eight
Conference.

Resent Action of Iowa at BiE Eight
Conference.
LINCOLN, June Observation-Disclosures,
three times refused admission to the big
eight. and the last time after assurance had
been given that II would be welcomed with
open arms, Is sore and vjndlctive. The
athletic authorities feel that they were not
dealt with i'm a fair manner at the confer
ence meeting Saturday and they are smart
ing under the sting Of a trampled dignity.
They are disposed to get even with the
men who were responsible for the turning
down of the Cornhusker application for
membership.
In the opinion of the Nebraska authori-
ties, the chief offender in the action taken
against them was Iowa and they have
anything but a friendly feeling for the
Hawkeye conference representative. A
prominent Cornhusker athletic mentor. who
has much to do with the scheduling of the
intercollegiate games, Is the authority for
the statement that were contracts not al
ready signed the foot ball game scheduled
with Iowa. for next fall would be cancelled.
Iowa" said this Cornhusker authority,
did us dirt in the conference meeting and
/ shall play to get even. The only thing
that keeps me from canceling the foot ball
game scheduled with the Hawkeyes for
Iowa City next fall is that fact that /
have signed contracts with them. As far
as i can learn Iowa was responsible for
our not getting membership in the big
eight. Their representative, A. @. Smith,
opposed letting US in and his influence was
enough to get action against us. Wiscon-
sin and Minnesota were strong for taking
our school into their circle and voted for
us, but Iowa. the school we have tried to
help. sent a man who turned the trick
against our membership. OF course, I am
sore and 1 feel that 1 have a good reason
for being. While 1 am one of the Me-
braska athletic forces Iowa will get few
contests with the Cornhuskers. The Hawk
eyes gave us an unfair deal and they will
get no favors from us from now on.
There would have been little real gain,
however, II we had been given member
ship in the conference. Probably the only
advantage would have been in the voice
we would have had In making the rules
governing the athletics of that body. At
the present time when we play the big
eight schools, we have to play under the
rules made by them and which we have
not had a vote In making. But on the
other hand, many disadvantages would
have come with membership. We would
not have been able to play a game on
Thanksgiving-a day on which we have al
ways made a big sum. Our schedule would
need to ave been cut down to seven games
in order to comply with their rules. II
would have necessitated the reduction Of
the price of admission to contests, and
this cut might have put Nebraska athletics
on a losing basis.
at is not the fact that we did not get
admission to the big eight that makes me
sore, but 1t is the way Iowa treated US
and worked against our membership that
hurts. During the last eight years we
have been superior TO the Hawkeyes in
most branches of athletics, and present
prospects mark us to continue in that DO
sltion for several years to come. 1t seems
to me that we ought to have some IN
fluence in western athletics during that
period, and we surely ought to be able to
let Iowa feel our weight on more than one
occasion"
The reason given for turning down the
application of Nebraska at the meeting In
Chicago Saturday was that the Cornhusker
membership was not expedient at this time,
the geographical position of Nebraska being
such that II would be impossible for the
Cornhuskers to take their full share in the
big eight activities. But the Nebraska
mentors regard this reason as a subter-
fuge to shield Iowa's policy in getting the
application turned down. They argue that
the objection to Nebraska on account of
location is the poorest kind of a reason.
the present time" they point out,
'the Cornhuskers are playing games with
many of the big eight schools and find the
distance from them no disadvantage. Why
should our location then be any factor in
our not being allowed membership in the
conferenco? They had no good reason for
keeping us out. Iowa simply did not want
us and we were not taken in. There is
every sound reason why we should have
been given membership, and yet one school
was able 20 keep us out. II is easy To
imagine how we feel toward that institu-
ton"
How far Nebraska will go to get even
with Iowa is only a matter of conjecture.
1t has been broadly limited that the Corn
huskers would attempt to discredit tine
Hawkeyes in the eyes of the Missouri
valley conference members and In that
way destroy their influence in that body
Such a move on the part of the Corh-
huskers, however, is unlikely, for they
will attempt no dirty work" In getting
even with the school that played them
false in their effort to secure member.
ship in the big eight. The action of the
Cornhuskers is more likely to take the
form OF entirely ignoring the Hawkeyes
and striking them off their future
schedules