Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-04-17
MUCH INTEREST IN
THE GR|D|RON GAME
All the Big Colleges Have
Started Spring Practice for
the Fall Contests.
BY Edward r. Bushnell.

last week practically every big university
in the country has begun spring practice,
and with an energy never known before.
All this interest is due to two reasons.
One Is the growing belief that longer
period of spring foot ball practice is one
OF the first essentials to successful sea-
son in the fall More important than
this, however, is that every college that
plays the game is eager to put to the
practical test the new rules as already
agreed upon, and those which are to be
decided upon at the coming meeting of
the committee, April 20, in Philadelphia
1t is not stretching the truth in the
least to state that there are practically
two principles of foot ball that the big
universities are now putting to the test
THESE are the forward pass and the rad
zeal proposition to enact legislation which
will limit the defense to a scrimmase line
OF the same width as the offense. At its
last meeting the committee was almost
unanimous tor the elimination of the fly
ing tackle, the requirement that there he
seven men on the line of scrimmage at
all times, the abolition of the five-yard
restriction from the quarterback run, and
the other minor changes made then
But there was no common ground in
reference to the forward pass and the
limitation of the scrimmage lines. The
committee debat both OF these points
until its members. fguratively speak
ing. were black in the face, and at the
end there was no more unanimitv of
opinion than there is between an in
surgent and a regular republican over
the final disposition of Uncle Joe Cam
What they could not agree upon by
debate the delegates determined to
work out by. actual foot ball practice.
Of the time intervening before the next
meeting OF the committee the various
universities will devote to practical
n w@s1 for the the so solution Of these two
tention will undoubtedly be devoted to
Mr.. Camps revolutionary proposal for
the limiting Of the width of the scrim-
such rule are almost as wide apart
as the east is from the west What
the committee hopes to gain from, this
rule is the elimination Of massed at
runs. The general belief among ex-
perienced foot ball men is that if the
defense is Obliged always to keep with
it almost impossible to stop end runs,
and that instead of having too little
scoring we will have too much. In
committed the various delegates viii
bring to the next meeting of the COM
m n';te detailed reports on the avail
ability of the new rules as worked out
In the spring practice.
The general public is just awaking
to realization of the radical changes
the game will present with the rules
new rule which permits a player to
advance the ball on direct pass with
out being obliged to go five yards out
side of center marks the passing of
the quarterback as a distinct part Of!
q team. The previous necessity of the
double pass required man who. was
player was usually to be found only
among small men, and this accounts for
the fact that most quarterbacks have
weighed less than 1853 pounds. even on
seven men on the line of scrimmage, and
1t is made legal to advance the ball
anywhere on the direct pass there will
be practically no differentiation in the
duties of the four backs. Consequently,
it is likely that these four men will
be much of the same size, and all be
known as halfbacks. One eminent
foot ball authority has even advanced the
theory that under the new rules they will
line up side by side and parallel to the
line of scrimmage.
oxfordCambridge Athletics Below
After examining the records made in
the recent Oxford-Cambridge track meet
1t is wonder that the Rritons are
showing no disposition to accept the
challenge of Yale and Harvard for a
dual international meet. UndeniabIy this
meet was one Of the poorest held between
these institutions in many years and the
Americans would undoubtedly trounce the
Brftons soundly. In previous meetings
the events usually contested were nine
in number the 1GO-yard dash. 44O-yard
run, haif-mie, mile, three-mile high
hurdles. high jump, broad jump. hammer
throw and shotput. With the exception
of the three-mile run the Britons would
fla ne n pofo Gil, 0lo
Torrance Of only 10 30 seconds for the
1OO-yard dash, with the second man four
yards in the rear. was not up to the scho-
lastic standard in this country. The
quarter-mile in II 10 seconds was a lit
tie better, but still not up to our col
legiate marks. The half-miIe in 1j7 3-5
was very good. but kirjassoff of Yale
recently ran the distance indoors in
SO 4-5. Jaques Of Harvard could easily
beat the English time of 4.271-5 for the
mile run. That three-mile victory of
Gator of Oxford in 4.45 40 was SPLEEN
did piece Of running, which no Harvard
or Yale man now in sight could dupli
cate.
worse than mediocre, barring the ham,
mer throw of 146 feet 3 inches by Putnam
Gan American Rhodes scholar, by the
way. Better performances could be seen
in many schoolboy meets in this country
than the high jump won at sos, the
broad jump at u .051s, the hurdles in 16
seconds and the shotput at 81 feet.
1t is reported that Yale and Harvard
are very keen for the meet, but have
met with extremely little encoura cement
from the Britons. On this point is a
most interesting comparison of the in
tercollegiate records in America and Eng
land Taking as basis the nine events
decided in the Oxford Cambridge meet
the Britons are superior only in the half
mile. the records being the same in the
mile. The table follows:
America. England
Event: Record. Year Record Year: