The Washington times., 1921-09-18
HARVARD GETS
(. FULL POWER
+ FROM ELEVEN
Princeton Coach Tells About
systsrof Getting Every Man.
In Eeach Play.
BY w. w. fBILL) ROPER.

Harvard football teams have played
the most consistent, up-to-date and
brainy football of any teams in the
country. The Crimson may have
had an off year or so. but, since
1910, they have been beaten once
by Yale and once by Princeton.
Truly a remarkable record.
The rejuvenation of Harvard foot
ball really dates from the Harvard
Yale game of 1907. In this con-
test, contrary to general cxpecta-
tons. the. Harvard players put up
q fine individual exhibition, but
showed an utter lack Of team work.
The whole season had been partic-
ularlY disastrous, and the eleven's
individual play against very for
mldable Yale team was great sur
prise. This game, however. proved
a VERY good illustration of how
impossible it was for any team, no
matter what the individual spirit
Of its members, to cope with an
opponent who had been drilled
along proper lines.
Obvious thought may seem, don't
think many Harvard men realized, UNI
til that game, that no play is a good
one which does not use every man on
the team and that the best forma-
ton is the one which includes every
man to the full limit of his individuaT
powers. A man wasted Is play
spoiled. however good its occasional
result may happen to be. II a drive
directed at the right leaves a left end
with little or no part in II, there Is
something radically wrong with the
drive itself, and the team which Is
taught on that basis will also lose to
elevens inferior, in power but better
coached which waste nobody.
Haughton Changed Harvard. y
With the advent of Haughton, the
pendulum at Harvard swung the other
way with vengence. I have never
seen such exhibitions Of concerted
team play as his masterful elevens
haye shown.
Plays. as see them, are something
like words. Some of them may convey
complete meaning when used alone,
bur they are most effective when ar
anged in correlated groups and the
man whose vocabulary consists of
nothing but one-syllable words, which
he-suses wisely Is a better speaker
than the one who knows a dictionary
fuu OF polysyllables but cannot put
thsm together intelligently.
II is this correlation of plays which
hag been the very life of the Harvard
system OF attack. Haughton and
OF formations and plays from them
which were each adequate to it's indi-
vidlial purpose and which were also
susceptible of being woven into q
heterogeneous attack
When the rules prohibiting pulling
and pushing went into effect, was
vety dubious whether offensive line
play was going to figure to any great
extent. The play of the Harvard
teams has shown that offensive line
play Is about as important as 1t ever
has been. .a.,.
The entire Harvard attack has been
predicated upon the play of the line |
Onsoffense, the designation of the line |
Is sdisregarded entirely, Four men
adapted to each others play are al
ways placed on what has been known |
assthe strong side of the line. These
men may ordinarily play guards with |
one tackle and one end rush. or they
may be two tackles with a guard and
are end.
The two other line men. an end with
q guard or tackle always flank the
cenfer on the weak side. The same |
four men always play together and
the same two. They naturally |
become very much accustomed to each |
Others style of play. An element of |
uncertainty Is introduced at the very
s.eft by the roll Of the offensive line |
y Atch Is apt to shift several times |
before the ball is put in play.
IN shifting one side will always pass |
In front Of the center and one side OF |
the line always behind. 1t .s import |
ant for the defensive line on any UNI
balanced offensive line formation to |
shift q corresponding number of posi- |
tons, thus meeting the offensive |
strength. Simple as this may seem, Il |
II often hard in reality to ges defen- /
sive line to shift far enough. the |
guards especially always like to hug |
the center and the tackles will also |
frequently get out OF place. This shift |
ing Of the Harvard line has tendency
TO further confuse the opposing line.
Requires CLOSE Line"
II IL a fundamental in offensive line
play for the entire line with the excep-
tion OF the ends. to play what Is term
ed q close line. OF course. some teams |
others, never remember seeing any
line men sift through the Harvard of. |
Tense and spoil plays before they get |
started. The line has been well coach |
ed to- stay compactly together so that
the backs always get plenty of start |
The. Harvard theory OF offensive line 1
play has disregarded the idea of max |
ing openings. While this idea Is not |
original with the Crimson, they have |
developed II to remarkable extent.
(. Basically. the most effective attack |
has. always consisted Of getting there |
fastest with the most men" just as I'll
did when General Forrest applied It to /
the science of warfare. In the good
old days OF push and pull" Yale had |
q decided edge on both Harvard and
Princeton as far as offensive line play |
went. ~
While they depended upon plan Of |
attack based primarily upon the /
strength and weight, they certainly |
got everyone around the man with the |
ball There would be no attempt TO |
force an opening for the runner; the
whole line would stick together with |
the man carrying the ball following be-
hind and practically the entire team
pulling and pushing. NJ. ~ 80