The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-12-01
(By Sol Metzger. Coach Washington
 and Jefferson Football Team.)

and Jefferson Football Team.)
 What about football next year? That question naturally arises as the curtain is being lowered on the sea- son of 1917. by all odds one of the most remarkable ever witnessed in America Are we going to continue with it? Is the game to be as it was this past year? Or will the colleges follow the lead of Harvard, Prince ton and Yale and see nothing but "bad taste'' in going ahead should the war carry on. as seems more than likely?
 A good many considerations, arise when the question of intercollegiate football comes up for 1918. But the one thing which will have least in- f1uence on the decision is the factor -"bad taste''-which was the official reason for giving up the game at Harvard, Princeton and Yale. The mere fact that the nation needs recreation during a time such as 1t now faces, that football has proven valuable asset in training camps, that Canadian soldiers have proven that a country can go in for sport in a wholesale way and still make the bravest and most aggressive fight at the front are factors that will not down in considering the future of football.
 The problem of having football next year and in the years to come-as long as this war continues upon the financial condition of the country and the draft If the latter is far-reaching it will wipe out about all the material, now under draft age, which has formed the bulk of our teams this year. That means that the teams of next year--if we have them-will be made up of younger men, inexperienced and untried, and that the chance for winning victory is a chance. Whether certain col leges will want to continue along these lines, whether they will want to build anew and take chances of losing games and with them, athletic prestige, is the dominating factor in this matter of whether or not we will play football in 1918.
 In short, in another year, the teams that played this fall are likely to be in the same shape that Har- yard, Princeton and Yale were in this past fall-for their varsity elevens | seem likely to be called into service. | Now, the answer to the question of whether they will play is a~doubtful one. My experience teaches me that none of them like to lose and that | this fact will have much bearing on 1 the answer
 | o1NnTIrdfr~ $oN those not wishing to continue. Bad taste," loss of entire varsity eleven | the financial situation and hundred and one others. but the controlling factor in making a decision will be the outlook for winning team. I Teams which have ranked at the top | do not want to fall by the wayside even in war times, should they play. Yet there is no good reason under the sun why college football should not continue If the colleges remain l open. It is high time we gave our coaches an actual job-that of start 1 ing even with the other fellow and winning on pure merit. There should be heap of upsets and a heap of fun out of such a situation. More over, there would be a lot of good resulting to everyone.
 One thing is pretty certain to hap. pen next fall and that is a lot of foot. ball will be played here and in France by the men of the army and navy The public fs going to take more and
 more to this kind of football It car be run at lower cost than college football has been run. it will con. I contribute much to army and navJ morale, it can be made to raise large funds for patriotic purposes and i can be made as good a game as thu | college game.
 Football of this nature and footba1 between college and army or nav. bet for 1918. And this sort of foot ball should be encouraged. Ther, was a tremendous opportunity for tn. colleges to do a big thing for the ma tion as we'll as for themselves whe1 this season closed by playing post season games for patriotic funds bu in the one big attempt, which was re quested by the Red Cross, I fear tha two of the sectional leaders in tn, gridiron world placed mythical cham pionships before 8 simple patriotic duty. That hurt football tremendous ly. I hope this was not the req son,
 For example, there was, and still is this opportunity of using our colleg, football teams for the purpose of aid ing the government fight this war One eleven I know of was asked. tt play a game with a certain army team on the Saturday after Thanksgiving The game followed a hard Thanks
 giving struggle and to play it fss71!; team had to travel about twenty-feu
 hours. The proposition was placed be
 fore the players first. Every man O
 them was glad to do this little bi to aid in raising 8. patriotic fund.
 Is this net evidence that the col
 lege student and the college footbal
 player is ready and willing to do tha which those who manage him in foot
 ball are not always willing to do
 The question of winning or losing il
 such @ cause is not a consideration
 with the undergraduate. Unfortun
 ately, if facts are correct, winning o
 losing is a big consideration witt
 those in control of our great ;ntercel
 legiate game.
 be no grounds for any objection, ol
 the part of those in control of col1eg,
 football, to post-season games in tn
 South during the holiday season. Col
 lege teams could be taken South a