New Britain herald., 1921-12-28
COACHES HOSTILE TO PRO FOOTBALL
Firm Stand Is Taken When Men,
 tors Gather at New York

New York, Dec, 2S. - Football coaches representing every section of the country met at the Hotel Astor last night and formed the American Football Coaches association, the out growth of an idea promulgated last year by Major Charles D. Daly, the West Point Military Academy men tor. The meeting was one Of the most representative football gather ings ever held, about one hundred gridiron coaches, including represen- tatives not only of the leading foot ball institutions but of many of the minor colleges, being in attendance, From New England came Robert l.. Fisher, coach of Harvard university; while from the other eastern field were Coaches Hugo Be2dek of Penn State: Gilmour Dobie of Cornell; Frank O'Niel of Columbia; Poster sanford of Rutgers and Glenn l.. Warner of Pittsburgh. The western intercollegiate conference was repre- sented by Dr. John w. Wilce of Ohio State Fielding II. Yost of Michigan and pr. H. l.. Williams of Minnesota. From the far west came C. E. Van Gent coach of Sanford university, and from the south came l.. T. Bel mont of the University of Texas.
 The following officers were elected:
 Major c. l.. Daly of West Point, president; John Heisman of the Uni versity of Pennsylvania, Vice-prcsi- dent; Dr. J. w. Wilce of Ohio State university, secretary and treasurer
 Walter Camp, the dean of the Am erican game, and General Palmer F. Pierce, president of the National Col egiate association, were elected hon. orary members of the new association and Coach Robert l.. Fisher Of liar ward and Fielding H. Yost of Michi- gan were elected members of the board of trustees.
 Action On Pro Football
 At the conclusion of the work of organization, the body took up seV- eral questions relating to the game One of the most important was to take definite stand in the matter of professional football. After discus sion, Dr. Wilce moved that it be ac- cepted as the sense of the meeting that professional football was, in it's opinion, detrimental to the best inter- ests of American football and Ameri- can youth and that the football coaches lend their influence to dis courage the professional game.
 This motion was adopted unanl- mously by the meeting and at the same time an amendment was added to the effect that the meeting heartily seconded the stand made by the east ern conference a year ago, when 1t was ruled that undergra duate play CTS taking part in professional foot ball should lose their varsity letters and that officials who acted in profes- sonal games should be removed from the accredited list of officials for col lege games.
 Clipping Discussed At Length
 Among the topics that came before the gathering were those relating to clipping from behind, the shift plays and interference with defensive back on the forward pass.
 Clipping came in for lengthy dis cussion. Some of the coaches main- 1 tained that it was an unnecessary part of the game and one likely to cause severe injury, while others were oi the opinion that further Legislation against clipping would result in toe complete a change in the modern game. Some of the coaches wanted to have side-clipping included in the objectionable phases of the practice but it was finally agreed that the coaches confine their attention to a more severe penalty to be inflicted for clipping from behind.
 The question of the shift was brought up by Major Daly and it was finally agreed that the pause between inc shift and the starting Of the play