The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-01-31
Fate Of Football Depends on
Rules Committee.
VIII Meet This Week in New
York.
ILL NOT BE RADICAL
College Sport Managers Are
Certain of That.
Modification of Forward Pass
Important Change.

New York, Jan. Gilt is likely that
within the next two weeks the inter
collegiate world will have some tangi-
fie information concerning the future of
football. The combined intercollegiate
Hules committee has arranged to hold
q two day session here on February
and 5. 1t is impossible, of course, to
state with any definiteness just what
the committee will do at this time,
whether it viii accomplish anything
more than merely to discuss the general
problem, or whether it will appoint
various subcommittee to report at a
culture meeting.
If the committee follows it's usual
course of procedure it will probably
spend .he first day of its session in
frank interchange of opinions to learn
what amendments can be made to the
game that will be acceptable to the
other members of the committee and
the colleges the delegates represent.
Then if it be found that there is q
general unani1lity of opinion as to what
the game needs and what new rules
are advisable the second day may be
spent in enacting these ideas into the
l.resent code. g.<-*
1t may be pretty definitely stated that
abe changes actually made in the rules
will not be as radical or as many as
some persons think. Naturally the
newspapers were nOOQeQ WIN SfSSeS-
items at the close of the season of 1909.
This was just what the rule makers
wanted. The majority Of the Sugges-
ATOMS, though, were of such a nature
as 10 result in their prompt elimination.
Few of them, even those made by we'll
known coaches, were other than mere
1lit and miss IDEAS and have little ex-
ccpt novelty to recommend them.
The only changes suggested about
which there is real unaninity are those
II
restrictions which now handicap the
operation of the forward pass and a
modification of the rules governing the
diving iackle and the diving interior
ence. These are points on which the
rules committee is certain to legislate.
hut what they do in addition is wholly
problematicaL
w. N. Roper, Princeton's new athletic
director, is losing no time in making
his presence known in Tigertown. Since
the former coach was selected for the
post the announcement has been made
that Princeton will have some serious
spring football practice during the COM
ing April. This is something the Tigers
have not had in several seasons, and in
some quarters this lack of preliminary
work is blamed for the teams poor
showing. --s----l "a, 4s--,.-a.- ssA-.s
1t may be that Roper has taken a
leaf out of Yale's book Of footbaH ex-
perience. which, by the way, is about
will be recalled that when Coy was
elected captain of the Yale eleven he
announced that he would hold not only
spring preliminary practice, but winter
practice for the linemen as well. There
may be difference of opinion as to
whether or not this preliminary train
ing was responsible for the magnificent
football machine Yale turned out. but
it undoubtedly had it's effect. At any
rate Yale men were SO we'll pleased
with the results of the system that it
will be made a fixture.
1t need not be surprising If this COM
ang spring all of the big universities Of
the east devote more time to spring
practice than ever. Almost without ex-
ception fall preliminary work between
September / and Is has been discon-
tinued, not only because it violates the
spirit of fair play, but also because 1t
works injury to the final conditioning
of the players themselves. The Uni
versity of Pennsylvania probably pays
less attention to spring work than any
OF her rivals. but the Quakers may have
learned a lesson On this point within
the last few months, for it is under
stood that they will devote more atten-
tion to It this year.