The Port Gibson reveille., 1913-10-30
TEAMS ARE TOO SLOW
Football Follower Says Modern
Play Lacking in Speed.
Contention Is Upheld, in Small Way,
by Recent Showing Of Maroon and
Hoosier-Hyde Park the First
Real Fast Team.

Ever and anon some old time fol-
lower cf football rises to complain Of
the sIowness of modern teams as com
pared with those Of a decade ago. A
man who played the game in the lat
ter eos and the early part OF this CEN
tury was among those at the Indiana
Chicago contest, and after the con-
test the chief subject Of his converse
ton was regarding the lack Of speed
displayed in the teams lineup.
"If teams we're as slow as that when
/ played the game, 2 he declared, they
would have been drilled for speed to
the exclusion of everything else.
Coaches in the old days would not
permit loafing in lining up, and once
lined up the plays went off with a
snap that / have not seen IN the last
five years.
His criticism was partly justified,
for both Chicago and Indiana were Ia
mentally slow getting the ball into
action. This was partially explained
by the failure of the Maroons to know
their signals. With only two weeks
of preparation, Stagg was compelled
to give his men more than they could
digest in the way OF formations, for
Indiana was so strong it was not wise
to take chances with the Hoosiers. In
consequence, only three or four OF the
plays we're fixed firmly in the minds
of the players and there was notice
able confusion in getting the plays un-
der way at various stages OF the
game.
Indiana contributed her share tow
ard slowing up the game by lack OF
condition. Criticism of lack Of speed.
however, is not always so just. II
anything, the speed Of teams now Is
better than it was in the days Of fold"
football. There were few teams OF
ten or fifteen years ago with more
than ordinary speed despite every fav-
oring factory. The first "fast" team
was the famous Hyde Park High
school eleven Of 1902, and although
the college teams on which members
of this squad played later were fairly
fast, none Of them we're much better
than the teams of the present. With
weight at a premium. 1t is scarcely to
be expected the old teams could class
in speed with the ones today, where
speed is the chief requisite for indi
vidual candidates.
The growth of formation" football
has much to do with the seeming slow
ness. 1t is the exceptional team
which goes on the field nowadays with
less than thirty formations to re
member, while it was the exceptional
eleven in the old days which had more
than ten or twelve to remember. The
old style attack consisted of straight
bucks, cross bucks and end runs, with
their variations. The lineup was near
" always the same, only q few for
nations, Ike the tazdeu the whoa
back and few more, having beer
invented
Series plays were the rule rather
than the exception. One set of sig
nails usually served fer three or foul
successive plays in the old days, ant
often a team would traveres half th'
length of the field without the guar
ter-back calling numbers more thai
three or four times Now the serie:
signals have been abandoned owinl
to the exigencies of the game. Eacl
play is separate problem, and its SO
luton depends entirely upon the posi-
ton Of the ball, the amount to be gain
ed and other circumstances whicl
could not possibly be prepared for il
advance.