The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-02-06
SUGGESTIONS FOR
FOOTBALL RULES
Intercollegiate Committee Has
Accomplished Something
SOME PLAYS DOOMED
1t VIII BE Very Much Restricted
and the Onside Kick VIII be
Abolished

New York. February 5-(Special)-The
intercollegiate football rules committee,
in session at the Cumberland hotel, ad-
| Journed this afternoon until March "A
without doing much toward the legisla-
ton of a safer gridiron game. The board,
however, is pulling in harmony. 1t has
arranged the various suggestions received
| from all quarters of the republic in such
manner as to effectively sift them to the
bottom before the March convention.
While little action has so far been taken
| there is no doubt from the determined
manner of the committee that next sea-
son will witness a radical change of the
dangerous phases of American sport.
No one would venture an opinion as
to what these changes would be. If the
forward pass Is retained, 1t will be much
more restricted now. General sentiment
favored its use only behind the line of
scrimmage. The on-side kick seems
doomed. There will be no more piling up
of players on a PROSTATE man. Mass
plays will be modified, If not prohibited.
L.ine-shifts are likely to be forbidden, as
1t Is generally believed that seven men
the center rush. Tackling will be made
less vicious. Exhausted players will be
protected and persistent mass-plays pre-
vented
Cause of Injuries
Indeed. the committe decided that in
juries In football were due principally
during the past season at least TO the
diving tackle, to persistent massed attack
at a given point and in certain cases, to
the exhausted condition of the player
It's work will lie principally in Kidding
the game of these evils. The committee
was of the opinion that those who are
to participate in intercollegiate or inter-
scholastic athletic sports should be sub
jected to physical examination at the
beginning of their training and that they
should be under further careful medical
supervision throughout the playing sea-
son.
With this end in view, subcommittee
was appointed to consider what, If any,
recommendations the rules committee
ought to make in this connection. The
subcommittee consists of A. A. Stage.
Chicago university: DR.. w. l.. Dudley,
Vanderbilt. Nashville, Tenn; C. w. Saw
age Oberlin, Ohio. To this same commit
tee has been referred the task of ex-
aiming the records of all games played
between college and secondary school
teams.
The idea is to prevent strong college
elevens engaging for early practice teams
that do not compare with them In
strength. The new committees action will
have to be given all such games in
future
The rules committee spent the last
two days in bringing the thousands of
suggestions received into some sort OF
order. Naturally many OF these were
long the same lines. BY extracting the
meat of the general ideas three marked
combinations OF suggested reform We're
found, as follows:
Suggested Reforms
Combination /: A. Seven men on line
of scrmmage
B. No pushing or pulling of man with
ball by members of own team
c. First man receiving ball allowed TO
carry 1t anywhere.
D. Some restriction of tackling-ellm
mating driving or flying tackle where
tacker leaves feet.
T.. Forward pass allowed over any part
of line to men on ends of line those
behind the line when ball is put in play.
r Ends going down field not to be
body-checlSed.
G. Men on either team to use hands or
arms TO get opponent out OF the way
in order to get at the ball on forward
pass.
II. Forward pass touching the ground
before being touched by player of eth
err side may first be touched only by a
player in the defense.
l. Players going down field under a
punt not to approach nearer than yards
To catcher of punt and cannot tackle him