San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1926-01-06
IE%az4i
Coaches Not Honest.
Include Their Own Men.
Are Theirs Always
Best?
Latone, of Pottsville,
Pa.
Non-All-American
Timber.
.--By Damon Runyon---
By Damon Runyon-'
Copyright, 1926. International Feature
Service. Inc.)

Copyright. 1925. International Feature
Service. Inc.) =,
I have read with some care the all
sectional selections Of divers and sun
dry football coaches, and / have yet
to discover a selection by any coach
that docs not include one or more of
his own men, though his team may
have been the chopping block Tor all
other teams in its own particular set.
Wherefore, l am inclined to ques-
tion the honesty Of some Of these
coaches in making their selections, as
1 question the honesty Of baseball
managers who select 'all' teams and
invariably slip in Z couple OF their
own men.
1t is inconceivable to me that il a
coach had bad team--one that could
not win-that there were not better
men for every position on other teams
in his section than he was able to
produce. You can't convince me that
Of several hundred players in a sec
ton, every coach had at least one of
the eleven best.
Thus the Judgment of the coaches
in selecting these all teams is value
less, because somewhere r'ong the line
their personal interests enter into their
selections. Yet / note that some OF
our most estimable all-American pick
ers enlisted the services of the coaches
in different parts OF the country, and
based their selections largely upon the
opinion Of these gentlemen.
-
IL Won are n reader Of this column
you may recall that / stated not long
ago that it isn't so much what play
err is but where he is that seems to de-
termine his fitness for an all-American
appointment.
/ said that there are probably many
better players scattered around
through the country on small college
teams than any in the big colleges, but
that they would never attain all-Amer-
lean rating because of their lack of
publicity.
I find one eminent all-American
selector in making his selections quot
ing from some unnamed Eastern coaSh
rs follows:
"Borclli of Muhlenberg, Harrington
of Bowdoin, and McEver of North
Carolina. among others. might have
been hailed as all-American had they
played with more prominent teams"
Which is exactly what | said. prom
'nence meaning publicity. The East
crn coach. in other words, admits that
all-Amcrican rating is more matter
Of publicity than it is football ability.
But isn't this rather an astonish-
ing admission?
If Borclli. Harrington and Mclver
lad the ability, what difference where
they played IL this all-American bust
ness is to give prorer ranking TO the
best players in the country?
/ notice that of number OF coaches
who remarked during the course of the
football season that Mr.. Red Grange
had several superiors as a football
PLAYER, not one of them had the nerve
to leave Grange off their selections. If
they believed what they said. then
chey didn't have the courage of their
convictions.
And l notice that no all-American
selector had the courage to name
eleven men us the best in the country
in his opinion, and let it go at that.
They resorted to the cover of second
and third teams that gave them three
guesses at each position.
The all-Americans are now practi-
cllly all in, and someone has suggested
that it is high time that settle down
to the selection of my famous non-all-
American team. which is to be COM
posed, as you may remember, of play
crs not mentioned by any all-Ainerican
chooser or any Of his first-to-tenth
-pams.
They were to be players have seen
n action. and ] was to back my team
for n prodiguous sum against any all
American in the business. j fear |
shall have to defer my selection I'M
til later in the winter. because the all
have so restricted my
'irld that | need time for minute study
Of the situation. They have named
about everybody in the city directory
nd the telephone book.
l think. however. / shall start off
by placing Mr.. Tony Latone in my
Mr. Tony Latone PLAYS
plenty Of backfield for the Pittsvilc.
Pa, team, and was the star of the