The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-09-26
Ky BIG BILL HOLLENBNCk.
Captain of U~niversity Of Penns,I-
vsnia zoos Football Team and
All American HaIfbacL,

MI hHheEtcAu t0ttDHck.
The old original Penn system was
unique in that II differed from all other
systems used by the so-called Big Four
universities. Its foundation was laid by
G. W Woodruff. known to football en-
wherever the game is played
as the inventor OF the famous guards
back play. and also as one OF the games
greatest strategists.
II was this same Woodruff who sue
ceeded in starting Pennsylvania on her
road to success; in other words he put
Penn on the football map. The Red
and Blue. until he took charge. held
about the same relative position as
lehigh holds at the ~present-it had a
team for a small university. and
II 1t could succeed in winning from
its chief opponent. or hold
Princeton and Harvard down &c a
twenty or thirty score. II was considered
"a good season.
when Woodruff assumed command
he had several pet theories as TO how
the game could be successfully waged
against an opposing team. Chief
among these was no other than the
ihiil'hS HuhTuS Daths which INFANT
bringing the two heavy guards back
from the scrimmage line and using
them TO carry the ball-acting as bat
tering rams. This style OF play swept
before Il for several seasons.
Princeton was defeated two years-'92
and "a: Harvard was defeated from
80 10 81 inclusive, while the famous
Yale team OF '93. which had not been
defeated. nor scored on. for three years,
not only had It's goal line crossed, but
was almost played to a standstill at the
annual game in New York. which, by
the way. vas the last battle betweenI
these two universities
While the offensive tactics were rip
ping things to pieces the defence was
almost impregnable, His idea OF de-
fence was TO sew the opposing team at
up in a half circle. This could be
accomplished by having the whole line
charge, hard and low. with lots OF leg
drive and stin back. carrying their OPP
ponents back into their own backfeld.
This play would trip up any play COM
ing through the line. wAile the ends, in
stead OF attacking the gunner, would
rush across the scrimmage line and strip
the interference away from the runner
thus making 1t comparatively Easy for
the halfbacks and the fullbrcks to cut
the runner back OF the line of
scrimmaRe without any material gain.
Owing 70 the use OF the famous Wood
run system Penn lost only thrc" games
from '92 to '9s inclusive-one to Prince
ton In 's3 and one to Lafayette in 80,
In '9S Lewis Of Harvard conceived a
way 10 stop the play. He found that by
"A low charge on his opponent
and grabbing all the legs in sight the
guards back could he checked for
very small gains. This f~orethought on
the part of Lewis was the turning point
in the successful football career OF
W. Woodruff. for although the
team was successful against 9TH
ers = could not win from Harvard.
Consequently from '9S TO 1904 the Red
and Blue team battled in vain against
the Crimson. Nevertheless. the Penn
system became amous
the country as one OF the
very best. Yale adopted the tackle
back play. while Harvard adopted the
Harvard tandem, both OF which
were the am ideas as Woodruffs,
When Woodruff resigned after the
disastrous year of 1901. DIR. Carl Will
Jams, DIR. JOIN Hedges and DIR. Al Bull
assumed charge. a combination which
a year-1s02, AZ the termina-
ton of that season Bull went TO Lafay-
ette. leaving Williams. who continued
to use the old Penn system during the
rest OF his football regime as head
From 1904 to 1910. under vari-
GUS coaches, this famous system, which
had undergone the necessary changes so
that II could be adapted to meet the
modern game, was continued with very
fair success. Most of the teams during
this period made good records in fact.
only one championship game was lost.
However. from 1910 until the present
year the Pennsylvania system has al
most been discarded.
Andy Smith had the right idea, but
he did not enforce It, owing to a slight
misunde rstanding with the advisory
During the last two years there
been IA woeful lack of the use Of the
system-in fact. II has been dis
entirely. This IL one OF the chief
reasons why the Red and Blue teams
rave made sue a sorrowful showing.
The teams under Andy Smith were all
well coached and invariably made a fine
In the larger games. However,
80 many OF the preliminary games were
lost that the seasons were spoiled In
spite Of the fact that he succeeded in
Cornell all four years that he
was field coach.
George II. Brooke. the present head