Omaha daily bee., 1909-12-26


muscles Of younger boys, even when play
ing against their equals IN age weight ana
his would exclude from this list Arend,
aged 10; Becker, aged II; Entler,. aged 10
HeckeI aged lG. and Sulliyap, aged Il
q No boy should be allowed to play until
he has passed a satisfactory medical and
physical examination at the nsginnlns Oh
weakened lungs or heart ought not to
This would exclude Define, Houston,
:. Every Injured player should be i'm
mediately examined by a competent physi-
clan and 81 the injury is serious at once
removed from the game.
This might nave prevented the deaths
Of Arendy Byrne, Define, Entler, Moore
4 Every player should practice regu-
larry under the care Of a competent coach
at least five times a week, to Keep MIN
Iris would exclude Arend, Entley, Hous-
ton. Ludden, Moore, Peters, Sullivan and
Vogle.
organized. pickup teams, not trained to
follow the rules of the game.
This would exclude Evans, Ludden,
Luffsey. Moore and Vogle.
Moreover the deaths due to injuries re-
ceived before September, 1909, must not be
blamed on this seasons game; these are
Bagcock. Define, Jackson, Moore and
Ricketts,. Nor should we consider the
deaths Of players or spectators not caused
By injuries or games; these are Graham,
Houston, Nissan. Merrill, Peters, Ricketts,
and Trlmble.
List Reduced TO Fourteen.
Consequently, even without applying
too strictly these restrictions OF common
sense, the revised list OF deaths charged
against foot ball this season includes only
fourteen names: Burke. Byrne, Christian,
Evans, Gruber, Ludden. Luffsey, Near
| thur, Millfngton, Pierce Spybuck, Thurs
ton, Walsh and Wilberalshi But in five
of these cases (Gruber, Luffsey, Near
thur, Pierce and Thurston), the details
of the accidents cannot be ascertained.
OF the remaining nine cases., three were
high school boys, five college students,
and one a member of an athletic club.
Every one Of them had played before, so
that their deaths were not due TO the In
experience Of their FIRST season. Two of
them were severly hurt in the game be-
fore their fatal injury and should have
been removed earlier. All of the acct
dents occurred In the second half. when
they were physically exhausted. Six OF
the nine received their injuries while play
ing on the defense, and four of these
while making open field tackles. The
| IlIEA AaE@@ ~ Atl4+11 - - 1880
heads against the runners knee; the
fourth by striking his head on the ground
after missing a divine tackle. The other
Two were injured while stopping a play on
tackle. The three players who were fa-
tally injured while playing on the Of
tense we're all attempting to make a
quick plunge through tackle.
The conclusions form these concrete
facte are:
l. No one was injured from the partic-
ular formations of onside kicks or for
2. Inc most dangerous play is a plunge
through tackle.
3 Thtn danger in open field tackles lies
Ia the runners knees striking the tack
Proposed Change in Rules.
What changes in the rules might pre-
vent similar injuries? First and most i'm
portant should be the remova from the
game of every injured and exhausted
player. This responsibility and power should
not be eft to the discretion of the captain
or any player, for they are too busy tc
keep note of the condition of others and
they are too apt to be influenced by per
sonal, partial motives. Few captains hav'
the Judgment and the courage of Coy Of
Yale, in the beginning of the Harvard
game no removed his best tackle, Lilley
who had been seriously hurt on the kick
off. ~
Nor should the coaches be he'd re
sponsible since they are on the side line
too far from the players to judge. Thi
authority can best be exercised by thu
referees and the umpire. who from thet
positions close behind each team, car
easily watch the players, they have als'
the advantage of being impartial. TIL,
other officials, for instance, the field Judge
arc too far from the players, the condition
Of the payers is best noticed in actua
play, not during the intermissions.
The second change suggested by thi
investigation is TO abolish tackling a
the knees. The present rule prevent
tackling below the knees. Probably 1t will
be necessary to prevent tackllng below tn
hips.
The third suggestion Is to abolish a,
flying or diving tackles.
Such notifications are not radical an,
will not materially alter the present styl
Of play, But they will greatly lessen tn
probabilities of serious and fatal injuries.