The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1933-12-29
1t
Seems
to
Me
BY Haywood Broun

entirely composed before I get
back from the Caribbean. 1t has
to do with football, but this,
think, is merely a symptom Of some
deeper ferment at work within the
colleges.
Yale had bad season, and, &C
cordingly, the more militant Of the
old grads are roaring around that
the undergraduates have turned
soft and sybartic. There is, per-
haps, a little irony in the sight Of
some paunchy gentleman Of so
leaping up and down until he's
purple in the face and wailing that
the old Spartan days are over in
New Haven.
AS I understand it, the charge
runs that, in addition to being de-
feated in several important games,
the men of the blue eleven took
their disasters far too lightly. Two
of my friends wrote indignant
newspaper articles based upon the
fact that after Locke of Harvard
carried the kickoff for a touch
down two Yale men were observed
TO be laughing That is not &C
cording to tradition.
Every tackle who missed the fly
ing Locke should have burst into
tears of rage Immediately and grit
III in, hn Err1
that such things should never hap
pen again to the name and fame
of Eli.
But some OF the players them
selves have raised the poirt as to
whether intercollegiate football
should be a fight or a frolic, for
it is considered grave heresy for
any rangy tackle to admit that
he had fun during a big game. He
is not out there to enjoy himself.
His duty is to do or die. At least,
that is the way the custom runs.
T HOPE that the controversy at
: i Yale is not merely a. local issue.
y
charge of sOftness has now been
handed all the way around among
the members of what used to be
called the Big Three Only a couple
of years ago Princeton was in the
process of self examination and
filled with recrimination that the
boys were more interested in con-
~ la,-fd fV1 EnII 1c nj
touchdoWnS. Harvard indifference
has been a matter of comment for
twenty years, even though the uni
versity did produce some few eX-
cellent teams within this period
Captain Bob LaSSiter of Yale
drew upon himself a major part of
the criticism from the older Bull
dogs because he was quoted as say
ing in a speech that in these days
football couldn't be everything to
a college man, since he had other
interests.
I doubt very much that the en-
battled alumni will succeed in
getting away from this palpable
fact The glory of the athlete
has been going on ever since the
war Football is the last strong
hold of the do-or-die boys Base
ball, for instance, has come out
of the limelight.
Those who attack the growing
casualness of college athletics are
fond of saying that the old spirit
&c hn al l0f
in dancing, twenty questions and
other parlor games. This would
seem to me all right IN its way,
but I have a feeling that the fun
damental thing which is happening
is a change in perspective. For
instance, there seems to be far
more interest in the formation of
liberal clubs. study groups and
other organizations concerning
themselves with the state of the
world outside the campus.
TWENTY years ago a boy went
Il from high school to New
Haven with the ambition of being
an all-America half back and then
coming out to get a start in Wall
Street by selling bonds. OF late
there haven't been any all
America half backs from Yale, and
even fewer bonds have been sold.
I think an undergraduate today
would be fool if he undertook 10
turn his back upon the world in
which he is destined to live the
major part of his life.
For instance, the abolition of
war is far more vital concern to
a college student than the fate CT
the football team. I am ready to
admit that a good game is eX-
citing to me, that I much prefer to
see Harvard win than lose, but two
or three hours after the final
whistle the result is not much on
my mind. In 1910 even those of us
who were merely spectators spent
two months discussing what the
team would do and after the big
game an additional four months i'll
talking about how and why it
failed to do it.
Now, obviously, there isn't any
sense III iIldl. nave ItdIQ ltlaG
the harsh and arduouS grind Of
football makes for the development
of character. but even after man
has developed character it is of
some Importance that he should
know what to do with it. Person
ally. I would not be at all in favor
of developing character merely TO
come out in the world and be a
stanch. standpat Republican. I
would just as soon the tories didn't
have any character. In fact. I
doubt that they have. no matter
how slashing a game they may
have played at guard or center.
From a sporting point of view. it's
better all around that no college
should outdistance all its rivals.
But the game can be just as excit-
ing when neither team is very
good I cite the last Harvard Yale
game as an example Whenever a
c0ocb becomes extreD,eIx- ayT1ar+ no