South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1922-03-22
my O0er Johnny Rubin Round by Knockout
Rockne InterpretS Effect of New
Football Rules in Talk at Club

shift play viii affect the famous
Notre Dame shift but little. The
coach said IL probably would slow II
up a bit, because there must be no
momentum behind it. Il will more
seriously affect teams employing a
10 man shift than one using the four
nlan. the coach said. Do had the ef-
feet anyway OF clarifying the langu-
age of the rule taking away he am
b.guity on the play and placing the
Interpretation wholly in the hands
OF the officials.
In tracing the origin of football,
Coach Rockne said that the first
mention OF it is found between the
Greeks and Romans when they play
ed with some sort Of an object kicked
back and forth between the oppos-
ing players. Next it appears in
Shakespere's time, when he said IL
was pronounced "A low form Of
amusement INDUCED IN by members
Of the lower classes. II was played
without any general set Of rules.
sometimes between residents Of
various cities. without respect TO dis
lance or numbers. 1t was most
brutal and the field was so long on
which it was played that it became
contest Of endurance rather than
skill.
Submerged Game.
Football was submerged in the
time Of the Puritans for so or 40
years when it again appeared in the
18th century. Whereas Il was for
merry played between old men, the
sport was now played between youns
men, and the schools took il up.
Rugby was played at Rugby where
tackling and running was allowed
but at other schools like Harrow
and Elton, there were not fields large
enough for this purpose.
They Played Association Football.
out Of this grew two different
kinds of football, one soccer and the
other Rugby, from which the Amer
lean game developed. The first con-
crete rules in England were made
in 1871 by an association of col
leges which later gave that branch
of the sport its name Of association
football
In America the game developed
from the custom Of New Englanders
going out after a Thanksgiving din
ner and kicking the inflated pig
bladder around They usually
evolved their own rules and then in
1910 there were football games be
tween the freshman and sophmore
classes at Yale. Spectators said they
resembled a riot and were similar 20
class rushes. They were abolished
in 1860 and for five or 10 years
thereafter because of the danger,
they were not held.
Awaken Interest.
It was redeveloped by a Yale stud
ent from England who awakened
interest in the game. In 1873 repre-
sentatives from Yale, Princeton.
Columbia and Rutgers got together
and made a rough draft of rules.
/ But there consistently arose perpleX-
ing situations. knotty problems. and
new rules were constantly made un-
Ill today there evolved the American
game as il is played today.
Since 1873 there has been a meet
( ing Of rules committee and the game
was changed much from 1890 to
! 1905 when the number Of football
/ injuries created press comment and
/ faculties threatened the existence OF
/ the game. The greatest modiflca-
/ ton yet made, that OF the forward
pass. elimination OF the guard and
! tackle back plays were announced
in 1905.
/ 80 -
/ contest and the spectacular points
! Of the game.
Mr.. Rockne also traced the de
/ velopment Of the American football
/ from the English rugby by a de
velopment of the onside kick. which
he said Englishmen called unsports-
manlike.