The New York herald., 1921-11-27
Superior Line Play q Big Help
In Victory Of the Mid
shipmen.
SOLDIER SHIFT PUZZLES
Wet Field Handicaps That
Borrowed Man@uvre-Acrial
Game Weak.
by WILLIAM b. HANNA.

Yardage isn't always an indisputable
sign of superiority, but in the 1921
renewal of the service football game
the Navy was stronger than the Army
In proportion to its ability to carry the
ball for greater distances and was
fully entitled to its to victory.
The Navy had a better running
game and was assisted to that superb
ority by better line than the Army
had. The Army line was not the su-
perior Of the Navy's string of forwards
at any one spot and the Navy had the
better Of it at the tackle and end posi-
tons. 1t was the excellence Of the
Navy line as compared to the Army's
that beat the latter, and that notwith-
standing the very considerable supe-
riority Of the Army in the kicking de-
partment Of play.
Here was a game in which the Army
delivered two punches and punches OF
sufficient quality to threaten the Navy
with defeat One was in the first
period near the start, when the Notre
Dame shift, taken up by the Army
right after it's defeat by that team
and card which the soldiers had UP
their sleeve, puzzled the Navy men
until they got the hang OF it.
Army's Second Fnil&re.
The other was near the close OF the
game when the Army was banging
away for q touchdown eight yards from
the Navy goal line and the nearest SOL
ders went to that goal line. The Army
didn't have the equipment to score from
either of these vantage points. the first
of which was hardly close enough to be
much Of a vantage point
Here also was game in which the
Navy with its one punch when oppor-
tunity beckoned, was equal to the op-
portunity and won the game. Tha,
same quality Of striking hard and for
a. prolonged advance at which the mid
shipmen have been proficient all season
got in its deadly work on this occasion
The Navy went fifty-two yards for thai
touchdown, and the drilling and cam
paigning they have had all fall at thai
sort of thing. the speed and good or
ganization Of their interference in run
ming with the ball bore the fruit of VIC
torv in their last and most important
game
THE NEW YORK HERALD Of Saturday
made it known that the playing OF
Smythe at quarterback was probable
ity. That was one unexpected move by
the Army. Another was the disclosure
TO the public and the foemen OF the
Notre Dame shift, the shift in which
the backs hop to certain positions Jus'
before the snap of the ball ana the
line widens out by lateral hops.
The shift strategy had the Midshipmer
hefuddled for a time, but not for suf'
fcient time to accomplish its purpose
Morale. experience, resourcefulness have
been Navy attributes all fall and In thu
case soon had the Navy out OF It's per
plexity.
Wet Field n Handicap.
The Army hadn't had time to make
the most of the manoeuvre, and tnt
,rmv men were bitterly disappointed
that rain fell and made the field SOL
and slow. OF all things, in order te
make the shift go they wanted dr3
Same soft field that handicapped the
ARMY must have affected the Navy
similarly. 1t is obvious that formations
denendng on speed and interference
ouicl<Iy assembled, such as the Navy's
must suffer by treacherous footing.
The immensely better kicking of Wood
of the Army, and later French. over the
Navy's punting made the game much
harder for the Navy to win WOOD
kicked with rare skill, leaden and mud
creased ball at that, and placed his
punts.
II was in the first half that the Navy
was the better team. The Army pract
IN the second half was splendid. tri-
bute to the recuperative pluck of that
ensemble, to the discernment OF the
coaches and rallying influence OF the
coaches. and what might have been q
rout of a team of weaker morale really
developed into a game In which the
Nayy was hard pressed to hold It's adj
vantage.
THE usual questions of generalshir
arose--second guesses all. To the writ
or's way Of thinking the midshipmen
showed shrewd judgmenet in hanging on
10. that ball in the moments when the
game was fading out in the soddcn dark
ness. hanging on as long as possible, for
80
Navy's kicking was poor. so that kick
might have left the Army In position
for another assault on the goal, which
would have been all the more dangerous
because the West Pointers had the BIZ
in their teeth and were finishing strong
Navy Never FltEhty.
To my way of thinking the Navy
though hard pressed. never was flighty
The Army made q mistake of judgment
in not declining a penalty on a kick OF
Woods which sent the ball out OF bounds
at about the Navy's 10 yard line. A
moment later Wood punted across the
goal line, allowing the Navy to put the
bali in play on the 20 yard line. There
then was ten yard loss for the Army.
The game had considerable definite
ness and skill for one played on a slip
perry, slushy field and with ball hard
TO hold. II was football Of real class
under the circumstances, and as good as
any other teams or players could have
done under tn circumstances. 1t was
hard driving. grinding football and with
enough runners flung loose to electrify
and inject pyrotechnics. Tho Army
played its best game of the year and
aid admirably in view OF its unpromising
outlook at midseason.
IL is true that no player of either side
performed as well in the mud as did
Naw of Cornell against Penn on
Thanksgiving Day. or was any such
long gaining juggernaut. but Kaw was
piayirg against an outclassed enemy
which the respective contenders yester-