New-York tribune., 1918-10-20
Heisnan Has
Proven Crafty
Football Coach

ATLANTA, Oct. 1o.-"Football mas
ter strategist" is what they call John
". Heisman, coach of Georgia Tech.
And richly does he deserve the title.
No tutor in gridiron history ever has
eclipsed the Accomplishment of this
veteran teacher of football tactics.
Eeisman, together with Alonzo Stagg,
of the University of Chicago, and Glen
Warner, OF the University of Pitts
burgh, constitutes the football Trim
ity." These three men are the lone sur
vivors of the legion of football coaches
who began their careers more than
twenty-five years ago. Their deeds have
formed some wonderful chapters in
football history, and they are greater
to-day than ever before.
Hesman, progressive. has been
credited with bringing about many
football reforms. He was, perhaps. the
iirst football coach in America to ad
vocate the forward pass. Three years
prior to the introduction of this play
he had considerable correspondence
with the football rules COMMITTEES,
going into elaborate details in explain
ing it's benefits. For two years the COM
Inittec pondered over the suggestion,
and then adopted the greatest football
reform play since The games inception.
Perfected End Running
Heisnan years ago perfected end
running Unfortunate iii the fact that
y &c .rtr
~ light, he overcame the handicap by
developing speed and trickincss. lie
has been using for years an end rUn
ming interference unlqe that Of any
other coach in America, and his rivals.
failing in their every attempt to shat
ter it effectively, called il "inhumanly
perfect" 1T was the use of that end
running formation in earlier years and
the perfection of the forward pass in
this later day that has brought such
amazing success to all of !teisman's
teams.
But the most famous play which
Heisman has devised is called the
"Heisman Shift which he first trotted
out in 1910. The formation OF Che rush
| line and OF the backs is q gigantic
"r.' When the signal for play is made
the whole team moves as one niece of
mechanism. AL of the teams play is
made from that SHIFT. 1t has bewildar-
ed and baffed every team that has
! trieCs to break 1t up. The play starts
with the whole team back of the line
ard with the "I" whir]ng Ike chip
! in a maelstr0m.
Coaching Eight Years
| lteisman, during The past eight years
/ OF his career has had many opportuni-
ties to coach some of the biggest col
leges in America. Big financial induce
remained at Georgia Tech. And there,
through 1916, 1916 and 1917 he came to
him his greatets glory.
Three those three years Georgia
Tech mingled in twenty-five gridiron
tluels without suffering defeat The
| three clevens rolled up the amazing
total of 1,129 points-an average of IS
points per game while its rivals could
score only 81. The 1916 Georgia Tech
teach, playing against Cumberland, Won
by the big score Of 222 to 0.
The Golden Tornado" team Of Geor-
gia Tech in 1917 played - and won -
nine games. 1t rolled up 49l points
against II by it's foes, which numbered
among them the University of Penn
sylvania, Carlisle, Vanderbilt, Wash
which only week before had played
scoreless tie with Ohio State, cham
pion Of the Big Nine" in the West,
was beaten 6S to BY Tech.
Heisman lost nine members of the
1917 championship aggregation, but he
has leen building anew and already is
| showing a team-"green," though it is
which may class with the greatest
in America.