Evening star., 1931-12-11

n yEW YORK, December IL
M Whatever may be the
1 opinion Of the Army, and
whatever may be the edge
it may have through its undoubt-
edly thorough knowledge of the
so-called Notre Dame offenSe,
Navy people seem imbued with an
unusual feeling of optimism.
Word has gone out from West
Point, and with good foundation,
that Army should bottle up the
Navy offense because it knows
that offense and has bottled it up
when attempted by Notre Dame
team with much better material
than Navy. But despite this fact,
that is just as well known at Navy
as at Army, Navy is not in the
least worried over the outcome.
The actual truth of the situation is
that Navy has an unbounded faith in
its team and feels it has pretty close to
an even chance. During November
Navy has played far better foot ball
than it played in October, and its fine
games against Notre Dame and South
ern Methodist have given it a conf
dence that could have been gained in
no other way.
Against Notre Dame the Sailors
played brilliant foot ball, although by
some sports writer's they were not given
the credit they deserved. They should
have whipped Southern Methodist, and
the defeat by two touchdowns to one in
that game was something of a fluke.
And last week Navy whipped a Penn
Sylvania eleven that Cornell, one of
the greatest elevens of the East, had an
exceedingly difficult afternoon defeating
and which in charity game a few days
ago 1t was not able to beat at all.
IN other words, Notwithstanding Army's
L brilliant record and its fine achieve
ment in whipping Notre Dame. Navy
has some real foundation for its appar-
emily unWarranted optimism. Navy has
much bigger and more powerful eleven
than it generally is thought to have.
Its backfield is not as heavy as it
should be to match its line, but if Army
thinks it will have a walkaway with
tomorrow'S contest, then it may get
rude jolt.
On the face of Army's victory over
Notre Dame one ordinarily would be
justified in picking it to beat Navy with
ease, but Navy does not feel that way.
And, knowing its own power, Navy
seems TO be somewhat in the position
OF the stud player who has an ace in
the hole without a pair showing but
who has just followed along in the
betting.
Down at Annapolis yesterday a man
connected with Navy foot ball ex-
pressed the out-and-out opinion that
Navy expects far better things tomor-
row than the public and sports writer's
expect for it.
I'VE believe we are in far better
shape for the game tomorrow than
most people and look for the hardest
kind Of battle" said this man, land
l don't mind expressing that opinion.
Mind you, I'm not saying that we have
an even chance to win, but that we
do have chance. We know something
OF what the Army has and know what
We have, and still we believe that Army
Is due for something of a surprise.
We also are fully familiar with the
close study Army always has made of
the Notre Dame system of offense and
defense, and We know what a great
ball carrier Stecker is, but, even with
al that, we still have greater conf
dence IN our team than anybody seems
to think We should have. Wait until
the game. Strange things have hap
pened in foot ball, and may happen
again. Maybe not again tomorrow,
then again maybe"
A ND now another matter In regard
"A to the Navy foot ball team, which
has nothing to do with the Army
game, but may shed something of a
sidelight on Navy's optimism. While
the writer was in Chicago the first half
OF this week he talked with two Notre
Dame men who sat on the bench at
the NaVy-Notre Dame game in Balti-
more in November, the game that re-
suited in a 20-to-0 victory for Notre
Dame and in which Notre Dame was
said by several sports writers to have
pulled its punch" In other words, to
nave let the Navy down easily With
out discussing the pro and con of that,
the writer is inclined to let the state
ment OF the Notre Dame men stand on
lts own merits, as he believes it to be
the actual situation that developed in
mat game. Here Is what the Notre
Dame man said:
No SACdtCH 1lJuSLlCe ever was done
any foot ball team than that done the
Navy by several sports writer's who in
tlmated In their stories that we let the
Navy off easily and that had we so de-
sired we could have whipped Navy by
80 points. Nothing ever was further |
from actual fact. In the first place |
the Navy played fine foot ball against |
US, and, in the second, we just were not |
Wnat we have been in the previous part
OF the season. We began to slip in that |
game. We came back somewhat in the |
game with Southern California, but |
not enough. and then against Army we |
SIMPLY could not produce. 1t was a
combination of our slipping and Navy's
prnllant work that gave Navy its good |
game against us. Swartz came out of |
the game simply because he was NOT |
Iiunctloning, and when he came to the |
pench he told me that he simply could |
not go and could not make ANYTHING
work right. 1t was a shame that some
stories were written that reflected on
the flne work Navy did, as they were
entirely unjust and unappreciative of
a flne Navy team, a splendid Navv