Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-12-09
SEASON A SUCCESS
In Some Ways and Disappoint-
ing in Others.
GRIDIRON SPORT IMPROVED
New Conditions Have Made q Better
Game-Ranking of
Teams.
BY EDWARD R. BUSHNELL.

The intercollegiate foot ball season of
1912, which closed with the Army-N Navy
game a week ago, was q success In some
ways, but a great disappointment in
others. From the standpoint of the re-
duction in injuries it. was perhaps the
most satisfactory season on record. There
was not a death on any of the leading
college gridirons. nor even a serious in
jury. In fact, the great scarcity of minor
injuries was quite remarkable. Hereto
fore there has never been a season in
which some Of the big teams did not
lose one or more OF their best players
through broken bones or some other all
ment due to foot ball. This year. while
some of the elevens were handicapped
by small hurts to some Of their players
all Of them lined UP for their champion
ship games with their best team intact
OF course, the statisticians have COM
piled list of fatal and serious accidents
attributed to foot ball. But close study
of them reveals the fact, first that hardly
half of the deaths referred to are really
traceable to foot ball. and secondly, that
virtually all of the fatal and serious ac-
cidents were received by immature
boys playing either without training or
against teams very much their superiors
physically. Such conditions are bound to
produce injuries, and are due not so much
to the nature Of foot ball as to the care
lessness of school officials and parents.
The only fair test Of the dangerous ele-
ments of any game Is where 1t is properly
supervised. Foot ball is properly super
vised at all of the leading universities
and colleges of the country. as we'll as at
most OF the best preparatory and high
schools. AT the universities usually re-
ferred to as the big five" Harvard, Yale,
Pennsylvania, Princeton and Cornell.
there has never been a fatal accident in
foot ball. This is because the authorities
insist upon a strict physical examination
Of all candidates and Invariably decline
to let their men play unless they are in
good physical condition.
The discouraging feature of 1912 foot
,uost nothing in the line Of a progressive
'fense. Indeed. there was not single
new play of any importance developed
by any Of the eastern colleges. The only
possible exception to this sweeping state
ment Is the Carlisle Indians. Glen War
ner. the Indian coach, has always been
the most inventive foot ball man in the
country. and this year he developed a
number of new formations, but nothing
of a radical nature. There was even no
Improvement In the operation of the
forward pass.
The writer witnessed the four cham
pionship games OF the east, namely, Yale
vs.. Princeton, Yale VS.. Harvard, Penn
sylvania vs.. Cornell and Army vs.. Navy.
The one thing which featured every one
OF these games was an ultra conservative
attack. So cautious were these teams that
they did not include the forward pass
as play Of primary importance, but used
1t only when unable to advance the ball
with other plays. Princeton. for in
stance. did not call upon the play once,
and Yale employed 1t only when the
Tigers had q SO lead and seemed certain
to win. But with the Ellis it was a hit
or miss play in which the ball was heaved
down the field prOmiscuously. The play
was a failure and deserved to be such.
The same conditions were repeated In
the Harvard-Yale game. In this contest
Harvard used the forward pass just once,
and although Yale tried 1t a half dozen
times it was failure on every occasion.
Pennsylvania and Cornell found them