Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-25
QUARTER MUST De
ALL-R0UND PLAYER
Walter ECkerSaIL Greatest Foot
ball Player in History, Dis
CusseS Needs of Position

CHICAGO, Oct 2A-The duties Of
defensive quarterback, the term being
applied to the man playing be-
hind the line of scrimmage, are more
comprehensive this season than at any
time since the inception of football.
He can do more to stop the attack Of
an opposing eleven than any other man
on the team. Under the old rules the
defensive quarterback could play COM
paratiVely close up on the line without
fear Of being tricked into a play This
year he has to drop back much farther
Quick thrusts, outside tackle and for
ward passes directly over the line OF
scrimmage are some of the plays he
must confront. Probably no one is
better qualified to speak with convic-
tion on the new duties of quarter
back than Walter ECllersall, Chicago
uniVersity's former All-AmeriCa play
err Writing on the subject of defen-
sive quarterback play Eckersau says:
Nov the qualifications of a defen-
sive quarterback are different. Instead
of being heavy and strong, a player
occupying this position must be fast,
alert, a good tackler a good judge Of
distance, absolutely sure in catching
kicks and forward passes, and, above
all, he must be able to direct his team
perfectly when his aggregation is
closely pressed near it's goal line. A
disorganized defense on the goal line
is the easiest thing in the world for an
eleven with a good offense to penetrate
An equal distribution of weight and
strength on the goal line is the secret
of a successful defense, unless all
signs point to an attack at one place,
which oftentimes happens. Under the
present rules, with the push and pull
eliminated, it Is practically a certainty
that no team is going to score by
sending one man through the middle
of the line. This was a bad enough
fault under the old rules, when the
man with the ball could be pushed or
pulled until his progress was stopped
absolutely.
'When a defensive team is hard
pressed the secondary defense is called
up, so that there is a halfback behind
each tackle and the fullback and quar-
ter are stationed at other Vulnerable
points. With practically two lines of
defense to penetrate, it is mighty hard
for an offensive eleven to make Its
required distance if the defense is
placed in the above mentioned manner.
"a player in the secondary line of
defense never should play so close to
the line that it is impossible for him to
shift to the point Of attack without
being interfered with. On the con-
trary, he should play in a position
so that his impetus also will have
some effect in checking an onslaught.
The defensive quarterback is in po-
sition to know just where plays VIII
be sent when the opposing eleven is
about to score. He should know
where the plays were sent whlch
gained most ground farther out in the
field, for it is an assured fact that a
good quarterback will use some of
these to place the oval across the line.
If the defensive quarter is wise
enough he will concentrate his defense
about these points instead of allow
ing it to be scattered about in po-
sitions where it is absolutely useless
to a team.
"When an offensive eleven shifts
player from one side of the line to the
other. the defensive quarter is the one
who orders his line to shift position,
and the sooner the order is given the
better chance the defensive team has
of checking the attack. The secret
of such an attack Is to start the play
the moment the shifted player gets
into position as the object of the play
is to hit the spot before the defense
Is set for the attack.
"If the defensive quarter is an OBJ
serving player, it will be possible for
him to ascertain an opponents attack
by watching the opposing backs close
ly It is only natural for halfback
to look in the direction of the play
If his signal is called, or he may even
turn his head in the direction of the
play. In this way the defensive quar-
ter can direct the defense accordingly.
with deception one of the secrets
of a teams gridiron success; the de-
fensive quarter now must be on the
alert for everything. He should play
at least five yards back of the line of
scrimmage and he should be constant
ly informing his teammates of the
possibilities Of the attack On every
formation he must be sure to scan the
side lines to see If a player is out
there to receive a forward pass. He
never should fail to see that the OPP
posing team does not take any ad-
vantage of the rules by not having
seven men on the line Of scrimmaSe,
and he must be certain to see that on
every forward pass the proper player
has caught the oval.
"In many other ways he can be of
the greatest assistance to a team
on the defense, but a player in this
position should know the game thor
oughly and possess those two great
football qualifications, experience and