The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1920-09-22
BY Bruce Copeland.

-
There will b no changes n the
1ndspendents' backhsld 20 far -
the regular positions are concern
"a, Captain UrsslIA announced to-
day after careful confederation Of
players In tho Held, along with
what promises to b. one Of the
hardest campaigns on the gridiron.
TT would b amiss to disrupt
such Z forceful scoring machine %
the 1919 backhe1d, and !, do not
propose that n shall b done"
Rube said. Last year W had the
greatest backneld II tho country,
and this season I prupose that it
shall turn out seqasll5 % effective
BY running up such heavy scores
that the championship will be nm
disputed"
However. Ursella believes the
utter necessity Of reliable reserve
backheld players such as Waddy
Kuehl and Paddy Quinn. In addi-
ton, he will have Johnny Shuler
Of Davenport to consider when the
former Cornell university star A.
nally decides to Join the Independ-
snts. But Jay Mansfield, Fred
Chicken and Eddie Novak will have
1rst call.
Manifold Q Marvel.
Naosfield's great driving power
- second to none IN the country,
barring no professional Of big COL
lege team. For his inches, Jay
hits the line Ike . 200-pounder. al
though he hardly tops the 1866
pound notch. He 10 . physical
marvel when It comes to advanc-
ing the ball. Modest and unassum-
ing. he IL always in there saving
wood and tearing OF gains that
would well nigh exhaust and, per-
haps. inturs any other player Of
his size.
Fred Chicken ranks Is the best
all-around ground-gainer In the
professional class. He abandona
al thoughts Of personal injuries IN
! order to charge through a broker
Aeld with half the opposing eleven
\ striving frantically to down him
He hits the line with the best
twist Of them all, shaking on tack
lers with superhuman agility.
Novak Supreme.
In Eddie Novak, the Independ-
ents have one Of the worlds great
est end-runners. Novak's propen-
sity in this line was demonstrated
last fall IN every game ut Douglas
park. There Is something almost
uncanny about Novak's elusiveness
He has . style all his own. Per
haps it might look awkward and
disastrous to other than Rube Ur-
sella, but Ruhe and all close fol-
lowers Of the team will agree thai
Movie" knows his game and will
continue to tear OF gains with the
name effectiveness.
It must also be understood that
In Mansfield, Chicken, Novak and
Ursella the Independents have one
OF. II not the greatest combination
Of interference-runners on thu
gridiron. 1t was their combined
efforts a. interferers last fall that
routed completely all opposinl
teams, with the exception OF Ham.
mond and Pine Village. The In.
dependents were still in the embry.
onte stage. Poor luck simply best.
cd them In the Pine Village tussle
although splendid team work KEEP,
the bail constantly in opposing ter.
Tttory.
Line Stn In Doubt
Captain Ursella also announced
that he might make . couple Of
line changes, but Is not quite ready
to divulge them. Bob Fosdick Of
last years team holds q lucrative
teaching and football coaching
berth in an Iowa high school ano
10 not expected to report, although
he might succeed in negotiating fol
his release later ON to come here
70 perform over Sunday.
The team will indulge In its first
dress rehearsal tomorrow after.
neon ut Douglas park. Nightly
practice continues, with the eleven
showing gradual improvement in
psrfecting last years effectiveness
with the Minnesota shift. There is
stu no change In the plans for the
6ISt game Sunday with the Ideals
Of st. Paul; and. to all intents and
purposes. the contest will ensue
Manager Flanagan said today,