Evening star., 1927-10-24
BY III. C. BYRD.

the games played so far, including
many of those of last week. it begins
to seem that the offense is becoming
the big part of foot ball. and that
1t will not be long before some switch
favorable TO the defense will have ia
be made in the rules. The rapidity
with which offensive foot ball is be.
ing developed is indication that it is
Likely to be only a short while before
the defense is far outstripped.
Unquestionably many of the big
scores, and much Of the success Of
teams on the offense, is dependent on
rules that favor offensive tactics and
put greater burdens on the defense.
II is not likely to be long before teams
that are evenly matched will come
pretty near scoring two touchdowns
or 50 against each other. instead of
playing with desperation to get a
score.
Pleases Spectators.
It may he that the situation is very
desirable. so that with more scoring.
more ground gaining. foot ball will
be even more interesting for specta-
tors than now. But it is not going TO
be long before the scoreless game
between two fairly well matched
elevens will be thing of the past.
Take the games of last Saturday.
for, instance. Princeton got three
touchdowns on Cornell. while Cornell
made touchdown and field goal
Dartmouth ran over Harvard with 80
points, but could not prevent Harvard
scoring. Johns Hopkins beat Loyola
by % to 81. Holy Cross got % points
on Catholic L., but could not keep
Catholic L. from making eight.
Navy ran up 80 points on Duke
University in game in which it made
IL first downs and Duke 16, an almost
unprecedented number for two teams
to get, especially when one is defeated
by 80 to 6. Pittsburgh scored 23 points
against Carnegie Techs z. City Col
lege of New York was victor over
Rhode Island State. 20 to 10. Geor-
gia Vanderbilt. Washington and Lee
and Alabama all ran up big scores on
opponents generally in their class.
Midwest i'm Line.
Out in the Middle West some big
scores also were made, and it is likely
that more will be run up before the
end of the season. 1t is noticeable
that the teams that possess coaches
who are UP to date and take advan-
tage of everything they can in the
way of offensive foot ball are the ones
whose teams are running up big
counts. The teams more conservative
ly coached are not dong so well.
More ground gaining is taking place
in foot ball games NOW than ever was
seen in two games a few years ago,
and the main reason for it is that the
rules give so much latitude for often
sive tactics that it is getting to be al
most impossible for any defense com.
pletely to stop any team, unless that
team is so far outclassed as not to be
comparable under any con-
6itions.
Vanderbilt at the beginning of the
season was rated by many as having
In prospect the greatest eleven In its
history. The Commodores so far are
coming pretty close to living up to
that prediction. A little more than a
week ago it lost to Texas, but in that
game it gained a total of 372 yards, |
while Texas gained but little over L50. |
Vanderbilt took the measure |
Of Tulane, heretofore rated as strong. |
Ind which gave Georgia Tech a terrific |
battle, by 80 to 0. 1t is said that Van |
ierbilt has in Spears, quarterback, the |
best man behind any line in the South. |
Georgetown's victory, by 25. to 0, |
over team OF the usual caliber of |
West Virginia is pleasing to its sup |
porters and must be highly gratifying |
10 its coach. And incidentally it is |
worth while to mention that the team, |
instead of suffering by the suspension |
ot three players. seems to have gained |
thereby. At least, If re- |
suits count. then that bit of discipline /,
was one of the best things the George |
town coach, Lou Little, has done for |
his squad in a long. while.
No doubt existed of GeorgetoWns s |
superiority. The Blue and Gray played |
better foot ball in every particular, |
ana West Virginia never could stop |
is hard-driving offense. The contest |
vas gratifying to Georgetown also be. |
cause of the defeat suffered here last |
year at the hands of West Virginia. |
Then the Blue and Gray had the game
snatched away from 1t in the closing |
by a forward-passing drive |
t could not stop.
Georgetown is playing good foot !
ball. 1t played good foot ball against |
syracuse, the game it lost, but seems |
% have been considered to be against |
weaker team at that time than IT |
actually was. Especially is that true |
I comparative scores count for any
20 to 0, the latter put up a great |
struggle with Chicago, yet Penn State
could barely take the measure of Syra. |
,use by 3 points.
Georgetown seems to be much |
stronger than it was thought to be OH |
The result Of its game with Syracuse.
lot of people simply underestimated
the strength of the New York eleven.
When il comes time to make all.
star selections for teams picked at the
snd of each season, a young man of !
he names of Barnes at Virginia Mill. !
AIRY Institute should come in for more |
han ordinary consideration. He is |
about the best-looking halfback seen
IN this section in many day. 1t Is |
doubtful if there has been a better !
He can do everything and do IL all |
about ten times better than even the |
good backs Barnes weighs about ITO |
pounds, is fast, has a clever hip sway |
and dodge and twist that makes it |
almost impossible to hold him even |
after tacklers get their hands on him. |
As Maryland scout described him |
4 week ago, ''he is Mike Stevens with |
Is pounds Of weight added and with |,
about twice the strength as far as |
running is concerned and he can do |
4 lot OF things that Mike couldn't"
And as Stevens was rated one of the |
best backs in the South last year at
Maryland it may be conceived that |
Barnes is quite a back. especially AS |
he just about measures up to the |
qualifications attributed to him by the |
who saw him play.
And when Maryland went against |
him Saturday it found him everything !
That had hppn Drpdicf ed What
Barnes did not do as an Individual
against the Old Liners in the game
at Richmond is not to be found in
loot bah vocabulary. He simply is a
great player, and II was reported
from Georgia Tech after the " NJ. l. |
game there that he almost drove the
Tech eleven crazy" and If the same
person had seen him against Mary
land that person would have left out