Evening star., 1926-10-26

Knute Rocknc, Gilmour Dobie,
W. w Roper, Tad Jones. Robert {.
who have gained fame as coaches III
know how to get to the bottom OF t
Much foot ball strategy occurs
is planned in conference by the coac
What a team does in a game de-
pends to large extent upon the
mental condition of that team. The
coach created the mental condition.
He must often resort to strategy to
bring his team to the proper pitch.
Several years ago a leading South
ern team played leading Northern
team in the South. The game was
looked upon as Il mere practice romp
by the Northern team.
The unexpected happened. The
Northerners encountered the stiffest
opposition that they had met all
year. The Southerners fought like
eleven demons and held this crack
combination from the North to
scoreless tie. 1t was the only game
the Northern team failed to win that
year.
The Southerners had apparently
played we'll above their speed. On
comparative strength the Northern
ers should have won by three touch
downs.
A story was told later which eX
planned the showing of the Southern
team.
Refoueht Civil War.
Before the squad took the held. q
few minutes before the start Of the
game. it's coach told his players:
Boys, over yonder lies a cemetery.
Most of its graves are the graves
Of Confederate dead, the graves of
Xour grandfathers, your great'uncles,
the graves of your forbears. over
yondcr are the graves where rest the
men that fought for your beloved
South. They were killed on the field
of battle, fighting against the North,
Boys, you are going out this aft
ernoon to meet the descendants of
the men that opposed your forbears
on the field of battle. You are GO
ing out to meet the men OF the
North. You will be face to face with
the erandsons of the men that op-
posed the cause that your forbears
fought for nobly. honorably, but
without success. Boys, go out there
and show them what the South can
do today
And any man who opposed the
Southerners that afternoon will tell
YOU today that the descendants of the
Confederacy did nobly. Also, to their
further credit let it be said that they
did it c1eanly.
A coach must be resourceful. Key
ing up a foot ball team is not an
easy task. 1t frequently becomes
difficult.
There was a time when college foot
ball boasted comparatively few good
teams. A major college eleven, with
a schedule of nine games would not
play more than two good rivals. rms
simplified the task of the coach. He
had to key his team up for only
two games, and this was not difficult.
Seven games would be little more
than practice tits and the team could
continue on winning way because
it had so much more mechanical
ability.
It is different now. The majority
of ma ior college teams today do not
epgaere in more than two or three
easy games; all their other engage
ments are with opponents as good
or nearly as good as they are. That
makes it much harder for the coach.
He has to keep his team keyed up.
He has to get his players in the de
sired mental condition week after
week for six or seven weeks. That is
next to impossible.
Kew for Few Games Now.
Leading coaches now point for two
or three games, knowing that they
cannot key their teams to the highest
pitch for any more than two or three.
If they can win the few that they Sc
lect as the most desirable, they will
call the season successful, even If
they are tied or beaten by few other
opponents.
Crowd psychology plays its part in
the general scheme OF things. If you
have never played foot ball, you can
not imagine just what an effect
crowd can have on a team. You can
not appreciate what it means being
down inside your own 5-yard line with
Your opponents smashing against the
tired bodies of your teammates. to
hear the battle cry. Hold 'em, team
roll across the gridirOn propelled by
several thousand throatS.
1t has prevented many tOuchdowns.
this cry. 1t has brought out what is
called the extra ounce" the linger-
ing shreds of reserve energy. 1t has