The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1910-09-20
Rule Changes Eliminate Once
Important Place
NEW FORMS OF ATTACK
Coaches Win Get Squads Together Early
to Try Out Different Plays--MOre
End Running Likely-Radical
Changes in Defense.

1Ho QuhFteFDdCkt uftueFtO tue most
conspicuous and most important posi-.
ton on football team. is a thing OF
the past The new rules have done
away with all those features OF the
game which made such position nee
essary. Since the Inauguration Of foot
ball spectators have been accustomed
to hear a little man shout out his sig.
nails, crouch behind the center and
then put his football machine in mo-
ton as he received the ball from the
center and then passed II 70 one or
another Of bis teammates as bis signal
directed. lie was the life. the vitality,
the brains Of the team. On his head
work IN selecting plays. on his han
ding Of the ball and on bis ability to
instill spirit and fight into bis team
mates largely depended victory or de-
feat
The practical reason why one man
has been played In the quarterback
position. In advance Of the other
backs. has been because originally the
man receiving the ball from the snap
back was not permitted under the
rules to run with It across the line Of
scrimmage. Half dozen years ago
rule was passed permitting him to nd
vance the ball. but with the restric-
ton that he must cross the line Of
scrimmage at least Eve yards from the
point where the bah was put In play.
This necessitated the use Of the quar-
terbaek for all line plunges.
Under the new rules the man re-
ceiving the ball on the snapback may
advance It at any point The necessity
for the quarterback Is therefore gone
The handling Of the ball by an inter-
mediate man necessarily takes time
and makes fumbling more likely. so
that now that the necessity for It has
been removed the quarterback position
will exist no more.
The rules require that the team hav-
ing the ball shall have at least seven
men on the line OF scrimmage. This
leaves four men for the back field.
There viii doubtless be much expert.
menting with these men before the
most effective method OF lining them
UP win ne discovered.
The passing Of the quarterback is
only one Of many changes wrought in
football by the new rules. The style
Of play win necessarily be greatly
changed in many respects. and all the
big colleges will start work a trife
earlier than usual in order to try out
the possibilities Of the new game and
instruct the candidates thoroughly
In 1t.
Ii past years when team has had
but yard or two to gain on the third
down 1t has bit the line. knowing
that IL would almost surely make a
short advance there Now. with the
mo pushing or pulling clause In ef-
feet. this avenue Of advance is closed.
This means that team IN such a po-
sition win kick On the first and sec.
ond downs forward passing will prove
more popular than heretofore. for now
the pass can be made over any point
IN the line. while the opposing team
can interfere with the man receiving
the pass only In bona fde attempt TO
catch the ball Then. too, the fifteen
yard penalty for an incompleted pass
has been taken away. This means
that forward passing and kicking win /
form the backbone Of the offense. in.
stead Of the old style Of line pIunging.
On the defense the changes in play
win be equally great. Under the rules 4
Of dozen years ago the coaches
sought men OF gigantic frame and
weight for the line. They were told to
hold their position, no matter what
happened. II they prevented advances
through or over themselves that was
all that was expected of them. Then
came the changes OF 1905. permitting
the forward pass and the onside kick.
1t now became necessary to develop
guards and tackles who could get
down the field speedily and recover
the bah on the kicks as well as hold
their place as under the old rules. IN
6upAAs HNthcA htSh Mct6 hCEdNd.
Now the possibility Of attacking the
line successfully BY any save trick
plays has been done away with. At
first glance 1t might be thought that
this would tighten the requirements OF
the linemen. but instead it has the OPP
posite effect The old style guard. who
fought to retain his position in the line
without thought Of activity In the open
field. would be useless today.
With the death of the mass play end
running win be doubly popular. and
linemen will be expected to leave their
positions to break these up. But at
the same time they must be heady
players. ever ready to size up the play
of their opponents, for If a lineman
can be drawn out to the end by fake
It would be an easy mat
ter to slip a trick play through the
hole be has deserted for a considerable
gain. The linemen will also be re-
quired to get down the field under
kicks both to tackle and recover the
ball as never before. In short. the big.
beefy lineman Of a few years ago has
been suppIanted by a lighter. shiftier. ,
quicker man. I