The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-11-19
MERCER SQUAD
vICTORS over
SILvIS team
Tit Played ON slippery Grounds
Ends In Score of IL to g.
Attendance Small.
Especial to The August

ball yesterday afternoon the Mer-
Ger county Independents scored q
victory of IL to over the Silvis
Independent eleven at the local
William and Vashti college grid
iron. Despite the poor conditions
for staging a tilt, the match was
clean and fast rom start to finish.
AT noon a heavy rain started fall
ing and continued almost up to the
time the whistle for the start OF
the game sounded. Because of this
the attendance was small, about
125 witnessing the game.
With the exception of a few min
utes the entire game was played on
Silvis territory. There was no
scoring in the first quarter. SilVis
won the toss and chose to kick.
The bail was returned to the mid
die of the field and after making
their downs once the Mercerites
were held for downs. Silvis was
unable to do better. They tried sew
eral passes which failed and then
punted. The Mercer squad worked
the ball forward and at the end of
the first aGsE.nF had the ball with
in one yard of the goal line and
four downs to score a touchdown.
With this fact in mind in the
start of the second quarter the
Silvis team bUcked up strong. The
Mercerites after four terrific line
smaShes were unable to gain an
inch and the ball went TO Silvis on
their one-yaTd line. Their punt
was a failure. netting them only
one yard and the Mercer eleven
were given their previous chance
over again, two yards to go with
four downs to make the goal This
time the Silvis line failed to hold
and bud" Brown, left halfback Of
the locals. Went over the goal for
the first touchdown of the game.
The remaining part of the quarter
was unevendul and the quarter
ended, Silvis, @, Mercer County, 6,
Mack of the Mercer eleven having
failed to kick goal
The main feature in the third
quarter was the touchdown which
netted Silvis ard tieing the game,
they also failing to kick goal. Sill
4 Wis by skillful lnaneuvering man
aged TO work the p:gst;n to the To-
Gals 25-yard line. On 15-yarl
pass, Ellinwood to Nicholson, the
latter went over the line for their
nrst and only touchdown. He was
tackled hard by Yea and dropped
the ball just over the line but re-
covered it. They failed in the
goal kick and the quarter ended
with the score tied at and 6. I
The fourth quarter beyond a J.
doubt belonged 10 the Mercer team. /
with the except on of perhaps a
minute the ball was never on Mer-
Ger county territory. The local
squad worked the ball to the Sill
Wis eleYen's thirty-yard line and
were held for downs. SiIyis then
tried long pass which was inter
oepted by Mack. who made pref
~ catch and with an open field
before him crossed the line for the
locals second touchdown. Again
the goal kick failed and the score
stood Mercer County, u, Silvis, G.
No other material gains were made
by either side and the game ended S
at that count. =
Aledo fOnth With Silyis. |
Wilburn Butcher, right tackle for I
the Silvis Independents, is the son {
or Mr.. and Mrs. W. S. Butcher of |
Aledo. He is in the employ OF an 7
undertaking establishment in East
Moline. Butcaer played an excel !
lent game al tackle and many I
times the local players were stop q.
ped by his swift and sure tackles. 7
The backfield OF the SilYis aggre- J
CATION were all fast men and had :
II not been for the muddy field the
long end Of the score might have
been in their favor.
BIZ Smith. quarterback for the
locals. showed up very well in Of
fensi7e work. Mclaughlin, full
back, and Brown and Mack, of the
DacSneld, were consistent ground y
gamers. Zea, who substituted in
The third qIartar for Smith and is
noted for his heedwork in tight E
places, did exceedingly fine work. Ii
Jones. playing right end. was I'M Il
loubtedly the star of the line, al Il
.hough none OF the linemen were Il
'ound wanting.
Handicapped by Mud. 81
me baseball diamond on the r
'r4dIron which has been skinned 81
proved great handicap to both
cams. Though fumbles were few II
" either side the ball was ad- -
ancec but little when worked on AZ
~ N--'----SA0- IAS ICSI Ul the Netd
5 socoed we'll and Slipping WAS LII
eiCom seen. After a few plays on m,
he diamond Il was hard to dis -.
.nguish the red Jerseys worn by ~
ne Siivis eleven for the black of
he Mercer squad. The Silvis team -,
about ten or fifteen pounds light e.
in weight than the locals and 40
this respect the mud served as IN,
benefit to them and a detriment
me Silvis squad. The game was =
Epscted to be very slow but fans al
gree that it Tas fast from start LA LA
finish. so
ID SiiTiS Team Sportsmea. at
when interviewed last night sew y
al or the Mercer players stated a.,
at the S!lyis team carries a good GU
can cut set OF men and were trua =
'ortsmen- Although they were r.
eaten and hard luck at critical SIN
mes In the game, they never start {
GRABBING or rough playing. "a.
The Lineups. Dr.
me hneups for yesterdays toll, a,
Mercer County independents IL
yam. lie; Taylor. II. Jobn~-- an