The Washington times., 1912-08-31
NEW FOOTBALL RULES CALL
FOR CONTRACTED FORWARDS

sonable amount Of weight will Continue
to bwe the prime requisites of the men
who hold the line as well as the men
who play in the backfleld.
=. The necessity of a more restricted
line, with freely shifting secondary
string, will give better balance be-
that 1t is easier to stop moving body
at Its start than after 1t has once
gained its headway, has become to be
so generally understood and appreciated
fense is likely to be more generally in
vogue during the coming season than
heretofore.
The end who. from from E., E.. racing asEa
stSrs stSr into stride pav a MS ncepfon
before it is fully formed. scat
tering the Interference or hurrying the
forward pass or kick, is the man who
fense than the waiting end who Shoes
the play in. forcing the already over
worked halfback to bear the brunt of
the heavy work.
Fewer Punts.
As there promises to be considerably
fewer punts to cover, the end should be
better physically able than at any other
time since 1906, TO withstand the CRUEL
ling of an open, running offense. So II
would appear as though the more COM
pact line, from end to end, will be one
of the most noticeable features of the
defensive tactics OF the teams that
count for much on the white-barred
fields of the future.
The removal of the twenty-yard linn
itation on the forward pass is a sem
slble move but not calculated to greatly
change the offense or add much worry
to the defense. 1t is a rather easy
matter to find half a dozen or more
players on a respectable squad who
can hurl a football forty or even fifty
sistently successful In getting a man
even score of yards down the field
to receive the ball, much less build up
a scheme to protect the receiver TO
travel even farther.
twenty yards have failed with such
regularly that the eleven that makes
the longer throwing of the ball the key
stone of its style OF attack will prob
ably be as signally disappointing as
the teams that depended upon the OBJ
solete line-smashing plays the season Of
the Inauguration of the modern rules.
Helps the 0ffense.
The clause allowing a forward pass
to count II it is completed behind the
goal line, should result in a decided
advantage to the offense. To prepare
drop back one or more men, thereby
withdrawing part of the re-enforcements
, supporting the line and making the
front more vulnerable for direct dives
by speedy backs.
To count as touchdown the Tor
ward pass must not go farther than
ten yards behind the goal line, so the
field has been shortened to an even
hundred yards, allowing the extra
thirty feet behind each pair of uprights
for the completion of the play Inc
kick-offs are to be from the 1oIty-
ward line of the team kicking. instead OF
from the fifty-fve-yard line as IN the
past. ,,. str,,,tna
the ground cannot be recovered py tle
side kicking, until 1t has been touched
nv an opponent. This is calculated 70
do away with the so-called 'on-side
The presence of fourth official on
the feid proved such a hindrance TO
MAY that the office of field judge mas
been abolished. The removal OF the
twenty-yard limit from the forward
PASS and the elimination of the on
Side kick made the official unneces-
sary. With the passing of the fourth
official the duties of the head nnesman
will be increased as that official just
Tie time of actual play remains the