The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-12-02
/ ALKING
IT OVER
BY JOE WILLIAMS

NEW YORK, Dec. 1.-The all
IN teams are beginning TO burst
into typographical flower. This
business of selecting an all-star
football team is peculiar to the
great autumnal frenzy. 1t is a
harmless, innocent diversion and
nobody is expected to take 1t too
seriously.
Until some genius hits upon magic
formula by which eleven individuals may
be singled out from group Of 300 or 400
stars OF almost equal ranking. IT is going
10 be hard to accept anybody's all-tesm
as being truly representative Of the coun-
trys greatest.
That IS just one of the trivial draw
backs the courageous expert faces when
he strips himself Of all caution and
plunVes into the turbulent waters Of clair
voyancy. There are no fewer than 5,467
other dangers.
And vet It appears that these all-teams
are a necessity. The customers demand
them. Perhaps they merely want 70 see
how wrong the experts can be. although
one would think by now there Wouio DC
little or no interest IN that phase Of
journalism.
aWalter Camp OF Yal, was. as far as
history shows. the author Of the FIRST
widespread all-team. In moment OF
mental alteration in the fall Of 1899. ne
iotted down the names of eleven players
conspicuously skilled in their respective
positions and said: "If I could have all
Of those players together on one team.
I would have the greatest team in foot
ball" Let's take peak at that team.
Cumnock, Harvard. end; Conan. Prince
ton, tackle; Cranston. Harvard, guard;
George, Princeton, center; Heffelhnger,
Yale, guard; Gill, Yale tackle; Stage,
Yale. end; E. A. Poe. Princeton. quarter
back; Lee. Harvard half back; Ames.
Princeton half back Ames. Princeton full
back.
This probably was a very fine all-team.
For one thing, 1t was not as difficult to
make individual selections in those days.
Football was more or less in its rompers,
and the aristocracy of ability was pretty
we'll confined to the Big Three. Then in
the heyday OF its athletic glory.
It will be noted that Camp did not go
beyond the Big Three for any of his
players. Five Of the honors went to
Princeton, there to Harvard and three
to Yale
NNE Of those eleven pioneers
~ Heffelfnger-is still looked on
as one of the greatest players of
all time. He is one of the all-time
stars, and whenev@r any one feels
the urge to contribute one of those
super all-teams coming on he al
ways starts by putting the old Yale
stalWart at guard and Jim Thorpe
in the back field after which he
affects studious mein and starts
guessing.
Camp had Heffelfnger on his team for
three straight years, and he was the first
of the all-stars to receive this distinction.
ii distinction is the word
Hefelfnger was undoubtedly one of the
standout players of the sport. 1t wasn't
so many seasons back that I recall read
ing how he went into a charity game out
in the middle west at the age of so some
thing and played a whale Of a game
against a crew of young whippersnappers
who imagined they knew something
about this game of football and he
PLAYED without pads or helmet.
There was plenty of man in him. BY
contrast. Thorpe was just weakling The
papers told how the Indian folded up
Thanksgiving day in a benefit game of
corresponding date out in Chicago. The
kids stopped his tracks every time he
started to run. And Thorpe is only AZ.
Stagg is the only player on the first all
American. who is still actively connected
with football in any way. He went
from Yale to the University of Chicago
to coach. and has been there ever since
Stagg also was a baseball celebrity at
college. I have heard it said he was one
of the greatest pitchers any college ever
developed and had he so willed he might
easily have been another Matthewson in
the professional game.
The old-timers still like to buzz about
that game he pitched against Princeton
in 1883. when he famed twenty and
yielded two hits.
CTAGG has just gone through one
~ of the worst seasons of his
coaching career. His teams haven't
been a power in the western confer
ence in fourteen years.
One reason is that his health is falling
and he is no longer able to devote as
much time, to the business as he formerly
dld. Another is that he has never taken
Whole-heartedly to the modern style of
play. He clings to ideas on offenSe that
served him well in the past, but that have
hecome antiduated. Usually. he has a good
defensive team, but his ofTense is stolid
and numbering
Some one once wrote of Stage that If he
had had Red Grange on his team Grange
would now be known to the world as Three
Yards Grange" With him a sure yard
has always been better than a gamble that
might bring fifty.
Perhaps that's why the parade has
passed him by. But in his day he was
one of the best-both as player and coach
and. perhaps, above all as genuine in
fuence on young men.