Norwich bulletin., 1912-11-16
HOW THE WING SHIFT
 CAME INTO EXISTENCE
pr. Harry Williams Invented Famous Play to Help Minnesota.

No play in the present football game is more often used by players and is | less understood by spectators than the Minnesota wing shift'' The play originally was brought east by Tom Shevlin, the former Yale captain, who 1 taught it to the Eli team in 1910. Since then many wing shifts have been de- veloped, all based upon the one orig tnally used by Minnesota.
 Today the play Is so well known that the larger colleges all have a good defense for the once mighty move. However, it still is used and 1t is interesting to note its origin. as told by John R. Richards, the west ern football authority.
 The regular formation, as 1t is | called, Of an aggressive line shows l three men on each side of center. The rules require seven men on the line at the moment the ball is put in play" says MT. Richards. If these men take their places slowly, the de- l fensive team will, of course, adjust itself to be in the best position to meet what is likely to happen. Old Style Shifts. i Many plays have been devised in the past to get more than three on one side of the center, so as to throw a superior number of men at a numer- l ically weaker defense. But this ! shifting was always done in such a i way that the defense had time to re- I adjust itself before theattack. The shifting of linemen from one side to l the other was done by having them go directly from their places on one wing to the other side.
 The backs might, or might not, shift at the same time However. the process could not prevent an alert de- fense from shifting and bring up re- endorsements to the point threatened.
 Three years ago this problem of outfanking was given little addition al strategy by Dr. Harry Williams coach at Minnesota university. There in Dr. Williams contributed the fourth really fundamental development to football.
 Dr. Williams's Shift.
 ''Dr. Williams is a practicing phy- sician of Minneapolis. His recreation is football coaching and planning.
 Tn 1909 Minnesota worked havoc with their rivals by means of a new shift principle. Two linemen, us- ually tackles, were pulled out of the line and stationed back of center The holes they left were not closed, and Wnlle these CackleS stood behind the line the defense could not tell which side would be reinforced.
 "The tackles suddenly jumped into one of these holes, the other hole closing and the backs shifting in the same movement Bang went the play before the defense could call up re- Inducements or while so doing.
 By this strategy Minnesota suc- ceeded in getting endorsements over per cent. nearer the point of attack before 1t could be determined where they were going.
 How It Helped Yale.
 During the season of 1910 Yale had hard sledding. The Army beat Eli Brown murdered it 21 to 0. Novem- Der arrived and Princeton remained to be faced. Help! HeTR!' was the cry from New Haven,
 From Shevlin, former Yale cap tain, living at Minneapolis, and one of Dr. Williamss aids, heard the call and hurried to New Haven. He took drawings and ideas of the Minnesota shift with him.
 "Shevlin was given command on Yale field and behind closed gates be- gan teaching Minnesotas plays.
 1.-TWO weeks later the team beat Princeton, an absolutely unexpected outcome. A week later Yale tied Har-