Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-10-03
THE NEW FOOTBALL
AS SEEN b A GLANCE AT THE REVISED
RULES GOVERNING THE GAME THIS YEAR
A Concise Summary.

new rules will provide an improved
game. Last season too much stress
| was placed on the defense, to the det-
| riment of the offense and the recent
changes We're made to gain better
| balance. Field goal kicking will not
be at a premium and the allowing of
tour downs to make ten yards will re-
suit in more rushing. Forward passes
will be permitted behind the goal line
as a reward for team carrying the
| bail to within striking distance of the
| enemys fortifications.
Two important changes in the rules
stand out prominently. one of them
relates to the field itself. The field
this season will be $50 feet long, thir
| ty feet more than the customary $50
| feet The actual playing field. that is.
| the ground between the goal posts,
has been shortened to 800 feet, how
ever Thirty feet beyond each of the
| goal posts is a zone wherein the for
ward pass is legal The width of the
| field remains the same, 100 feet.
This season a team will be allowed
four downs TO make the necessary ten
yards, instead of three downs as last
| season AS a result more attempts
| interference plays and other forma-
| tons of deceptive character will be
used more than last year. when the
forward pass and the onside kick
were called upon too frequently. The
attack can take chances this season
that We're not possible last year. so
much stress was placed on the de-
Tense last season that most OF the
crucial contests developed into punt
ing duels, each team depending ON the
element of luck that might result from
muffed punts or fumhles.
The onside kick has been abolished
that is the men on the kiekers' side
who are offside are not put onside by
the ball touching the ground. The for
ward pass. which was restricted to
twenty yards, now may be thrown any
distance, and that should result in
lot of spectacular open field work and
n weakening of the defense and
gaining of a better balance with the
defense. The forward pass now can
lie completed beyond the goal line
When within range of the goal
POSTS the defense will have TO play at
least two men behind the goal line
to intercept any passes. Hitherto as
a team approached the goal line the
secondary defense invariably was
brought up TO reinforce the line. Now,
however. with the secondary defense
thrown back to cover forward passes
the line will offer a better point OF at
tack. More touchdowns will be at
tempted by straight football methods
than last season.
Among the minor changes is one
that says that if kicked ball strike
the ground before going over the goal
it will not count as goal. 1t will be
remembered that Princeton defeated
Dartmouth last season on just such a
fuke kick, DeWitt's drop kick from
| the 47-yard line ricochetting along the
ground and finally taking weird
bound over the goal for the only
score of the game. The same sort of
thing took place in the Andover-Exe-
ter game, the officials giving different
interpretations of the rule. the goal
not being allowed in the big scholas-
tie game The Rules Committee did
well in making definite rule regard
ing the play.
The limit of the kick out is now the
20-yard line. instead of the 25-yard
bane of both officials and players, has
been abolished and the kickoff now
is made from the kicker's 40-yard line
instead of from centre field, as for
merly Players may interfere on
kick, but not on a forward pass.
One thing that will please specta-
tors and players alike is the doing
away with the field judge, leaving the
game in the hands of three instead of
four officials as formerly. Too much
officiating marred several games last
ason, when officials became mixed
in their rulings or exceeded their au-
thority Hereafter the head linesman
will keep time and assist the umpire
and referee in the things that were
left for the field judge to do last year
Last year three coaches We're al
lowed to walk up and down the side
lines at the same time. This season
only one coach will be permitted on
the side lines The intermissions be-
tween the first and second and the
third and fourth quarters has been
shortened to one minute. That VIII
give the players breathing space,
but will not cause unnecessary delay.
Much interest in the game has been
detracted by the constant changes
that annually have been made since
| the abolition Of the mass play in 1913.
Football has been so complicated that
players and officials ofttimes have
been as bewildered as the ordinary
spectators. A perusal of this seasons
rules, however. shows that the Rules
| Committee at last has gone long
way toward simplifying the code, and
spectators at the big games this sea-
| son will understand more fully what is
going on and what each team is try
| ing to do
| The defense was so much stronger
| than the attack last season that the
| comparative ability of two teams
| could not be adiudged by the scores.
| Many apparently strong teams were
| held to scores out of comparison with
| the elevens which they were playing.
| The coaches in charge of the attack
| this season seem to think they are in
| clover. They think that the march
| down the field of the good old days
will be resumed and that there Will
be no such thing as an "impregnable