The Washington times., 1913-10-07
CRIMSON LOOKS
BEST COLLEGE TEAM
Seems To Be Easily in the Van
of All Eastern Football
EIevens.
By HERBERT REED.

Harvard. with a superb set of backs
barring the quarters-coHtinues easily in
the van of the Eastern elevens, and
there is every prospect that the Grim
son will be a warm favorite until some
team Of unexpected strength makes
some sort Of an inroad upon the as
yet untried Cambridge defense
II alertness all over the field. keen fol-
lowing of the ball. splendid individual
interference and thorough grasp Of
the foundation principles of attack are
to count as heavily this year as they
did last, and there is every reason to
believe that they will. then Harvard is
on The high road to the development of
another standard eleven.
Fortunate. indeed, were the pupils Of
Percy D. Haughton in striking the snag
furnished by Bates on Saturday, for II
there had been any tendency toward
overconfidence the game against the
plucky Lewiston eleven promptly
checked 1t. Here was a small college
team made up of little more than boys
fresh from the high schools, yet these
youngsters thought no more of facing
Harvard than of tackling Maine or any
other team in their own class They
played good football and sound football
from start to finish. and albeit the
breaks Of the game were against them
they made a heap of trouble for the
Harvard stalwarts. The Lewiston team
was coached by Green, who played
guard on the Pennsylvania eleven last
year. and the Quaker star turned out
line that was all but a match for
Harvard's star tackles, Hitchcock and
Storer. and a shade more than a match
for the substitute guards. Mills and
Trumbull.
Owing to a scorers error. Mills was
blamed for being boxed in by the Bates
men. whereas the real culprit was
Weston, a man who san hardly be con-
sidered varsity timber. at least Judging
by his showing at this writing.
The glaring fault In the Harvard ma
chine at present is in the quarterback
position, where neither Bradlee nor
Freedley seams to be up to the standard.
The link that binds the backs to the
line certainly creaks. and were the rest
of the Harvard back-field less brilliant
the fault would be even more noticeable
AS II is. Harvard has in Hardwick
Brickley. and Mahan a trio that seems
to have carried the retrieving Of erroA
TO a state bordering on perfection.
Never before have / seen three men
do so much toward covering uD poor
quarterback play. These men. all quick
starters, simply refuse TO be slowed up
by poor quarterback play. and even In
their first public appearance as a trio
were so nicely together that one would
have taken them to be a veteran set Of
three years standing.
The real beauty of the combination
lies in the fact that while each man Is
very much of an all-round player. each
has a speciality or two Of his-own.
As the Harvard square" was used
on Saturday. the business" side was
made up Of Brfckley and Mahan. 1t is
proba BILE that Brickley. because Of his
stocky build and powerful physique,
will be used for heavy work from tackle
TO tackle. either to lead the square or
carry the ball: Hardwick to make those
pretty sharp-turning dashes off tackle
that earned him a great reputation last
year. and Mahan, he Of the terrific turn
Of speed. to swing wide. outside Of end
in the long gamer" plays that so often
are effective near midfeld. to make the
forward pass and to run back kicks. in
which last depa -tment Of play. by the
way. he should be one of the stars Of a
season Of stars.
Add that all these men are kickers
and there would seem little for a coach
to ask. All three men can punt, al
though at this stage trihe erratic, and
both Brickley and Mahan can drop kick
accurat telv and for long di sta nces
The principal difficulty with Mahan's
punting TO date has been that II has
been too slow, but he is gradually get
ting more lift to the leather and by No
rember ought to be in Hardwicks class
Tho Crimson kicking. thea. may be de-
uended upon to improve not only rapid-
ly hut stcadilv from now on. so that
when the eleven harnesses up for the
battle with Princeton the Tigers may
ret another taste Of the sort Of clsveyly