The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-10-15
SPORTS

As the football season grows older we are in a better position to state what effect this war will have on this most interesting branch of college sport than has so far been the case. Hitherto our views. for the most part have been sur misses Now we may deal with fact It is not surprising that the effect is some what different than it was expected to be.
 While we have lost many valuable play CTS because of the war and are prone 10 exaggerate our losses from this cause IL would seem as though the absence or these stars is not going to effect the quality of football we are to witness this fall. We have also lost substitutes and scrubs in as great proportion so that our present problem is building teams is one of lack of numbers rather than lack of quality Football players, unlike baseball or golf players, are readily de- veloped to a high point in playing pro ficiency during one season. This is so because the game holds greater ap- peal to the participant than any other sport and because our systems of coach ing are so systematized that results or the above kind-producing stars in a single season--are not exceptional
 COACHING DIFFERENT
 The problem this year in coaching differs from previous ones in that the coach has fewer men to work with. III case of injury there are few substitutes to draw upon and so small are some squads that practice scrimmages are largely done away with simply because there are not enough men in good con 6ition to put against each other. In my owr experience this fall at w. X J. our squad is limited to but 9 men and as several are always unfit for scrimmase we have had quite new problem to solve in our coaching. It is necessary TOT us to work along new lines, to build up the team with little scrimmage to ala us. In former years a squad of 40 play CTS made it possible to hold scrimmage on any day we desireds All sorts or makeshift arrangements have been neces- sary and they are working well. But we, like others do miss the second string men who have gone to the colors as much as the veterans, although the var sity men who have enlisted or been draft ed have been getting most of the pup licity praise everywhere.
 Then too this fall football squads have had more men injured so far than in previous years This is due to the cur- tailment of preliminary training. It is
 
 scrmmaged within three weeks of the starting of practice-before they are in good physical condition-injuries often occur. Fortunately, though, this period is now past and the work of developing the elevens will go ahead much as be- fore.
 CLOSER GAME RESULTS
 All of this is resulting in closer games in the beginning than has been the case in the past Those teams which wilL in the nature of things, come to the fore at the end of the season and in the big games are showing but little more form sight now than the so-called smaller elevens. Sherefore, 1t would not be sur rrising to see the so-called big teams get an upset or two. For one thing, their period of development must be so de- .ayed that they will reach top form in November and, for another thing with green men to be developed and bad bruises to be cured, teamwork is not likely to feature their early games-and it has not Within another week or so this stage of crudity will have passed and the big teams will be forging well to the front; the others dropping by the way.
 Because of the conditions governine football this season we are giving more attention than usual to the funda- mentals of the game-charging, tackling interference, kicking and passing-ano the reward will soon be noticeable in 8 marked improvement in those rudiments which are, after all, the foundation o1 success in all games. Lillard, the old Dartmouth player, once told me that al