The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-10-28
Talking On Gridiron
What the Cry "COme on, Yale,' ,
 Means to Old Eli
Va'ue of the Players Calling to Each Other as They Follow the Ball Down the Field Carlisle Indians Always Noisy
 Two Ends Who Made
 Wagers on Their Tackling

Toward the close of the Army-Yale football game, when it seemed a cer- tainty that the Blue would be defeat ed. Merritt, the quarterback, who was running the team, began every string of signal numbers with the low-voiced Yalei" The plays began to go just little faster. the men to leap a lit- tie more grimly to their work The | rallying cry was not enough to stave
 off defeat, but it did put new life into the team, and it made a lasting im-
 pression upon those who were near standing on the side line, shut his teeth together and growled: Listen to that, listen to it-One short word only four letters-and just see that team answer. One short word with
 more than 150' years behind it. How did we ever manage to beat that sort of thing?''
 It is not alone the sight of the blue jerseys that has upset many an ops
 posing eleven before the game was five minutes old, but the constant call of 'Yale, Yale.'' A subtle and who do not understand what such a cry means in the heat of a hard fought battle. Does talking in foot ball count? Indeed it does. In the game iu question, although the sol- diers had no such rallying cry as the Yale men, they did some talking that was so effective that it had a direct bearing on the result Down the field l under kicks and again in chase of a blocked kick or a fumbled ball, the men who were following the leader called to him constantly. I'm conn ing, I'm coming" they cried, and the head of the procession did not, as a snatching up the oval, knowing at | once that he was we'll covered. It took time to teach the cadets the value of that sort of thing, but it bore fruit when the real test came. In the course of the big games one ! man in the line gives the proper de- fence signals to his comrades, and as. rule, constantly urges them on with encouraging words. This man is usually a guard, or, if the captain plays in the line, it is upon him that the duty deyolves.
 CARLISLE A TALKATIVE TEAM The most talkative team on the field is usually the Carlisle Indian eleven. Conversational football was started ! at the government school by Bemis | Pierce, who in his day acted as the l little father of the team. Later his | brother, Hawley Pierce, took up the l work, and the Indians have talked | ever since, not forgetting last year,
 when the booming voice of Pete Hous- | CT, the captain, could be heard all over the field, crying "Get into 'em,
 get into 'em; have little pep just 1 a. little more pep"
 | Only a few years ago the redskins l had the whiteskins of Harvard on the 1 run as a result of constant talking | I,x rIx~ ,h1,, >f | An end would spill Harvard back,
 and as the teams lined up again would call to his captain. ''I got him that
 time, Captain ''Yes, you got him | that time," the captain would shout
 in answer, and then. Joking over his
 men. would dry. Come now. who'll get this one?" Instantly the answer
 would be heard from some volunteer
 'I'll get him, Captain, watch me. I'll get him this time" And the volun-
 teer usually got his man.
 This running fire of talk so upse, ! the Crimson players that their work fell off in consequence, and they were
 defeated. It may be that the Indians l'would have won in any case, for they had one of their best teams in the l field, handled from quarterback by Frank Mt. Pleasant and the Chippewa found little difficulty in eluding tht 1 Harvard tacklers for long gains. but
 
 size of the score.
 It is difficult to make clear to any
 one who has not played the game thu
 subtle effect of this talking, ever
 when 1t is confined to giving defenc,
 signals in a low voice, but it must bt
 remembered that the men are at higi tension, and that the talking adds tt
 their confidence, even when it is no
 intended to upset the opposing eleven
 YALE URGED ON BY COY.
 When Ted Coy explained the Yal
 eleven he kept up running fir
 of comment praising, scolding ant
 exhorting in the course of the play | Usually, there was more praise thai , blame, for Coy believed in encourag g
 ing his men. Arthur Howe, the Yal , captain, makes a practice of coach ing his men while under fire, ant
 when he is talking to the team i goes at a faster pace than when hand
 led by any of the other quarterbacks Good coaches have maintained tha
 a pair of ends not too fond of eacl , other do the best team work, an, ! certain it is that when the rivalr. between the wing men is keen, tn , l back who faces them catching kick l has a serious afternoons work befor , | him. There was one pair, among tn |. most effective in the East, that wa r constantly making bets. As the, spread out to go down the field unde punts one of these men called to tn
 | other, "I'll get this one, Bill-fiv , bucks says I will" You're on," wa : the answering cry, and when the bal was sent booming down the field tn
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