Evening star., 1936-09-04
EIGHT TEAMS OUT
|. FOR FIRST PLACE
Minnesota Appears to Have
Greatest Eleven Ever.
HaWkeyes Seasoned.
BY FRANCIS :. POWERS.

NalOACO, september 4.-ln
4 Just one week Western Con-
ference foot ball squads start
practice for what may be one
OF the dizziest seasons the Big Ten
ever has produced. That is the opinion
Of the Big Ten coaches themselves,
and the professors should know. After
getting pointers from the coaches, who
spent 4 couple Of days In town for the
purpose Of interpreting the rules and
seeing the All-Star-Lion game, your
correspondent Is convinced the Big
Ten race will end In nothing less than
an eight-way tie.
Minnesota is assumed to have the
greatest team In It's history ready for
the making Bernie Bierman, Of
course, never would venture such in
formation, but 1t comes from some OF
his brethren who have traf1ic with the
Gophers in october or November. The
information concerning Minnesotas
greatness being correct, there Is MOTH
ing to do but hand Bierrnan and his
boys a part Of the championship.
Iowa Has Simmons.
NEXT you learn that Iowa will be
right up there with a tough team.
Ossie Solem lost only two regulars
and he has Oze Simmons ready 10
make his senior season the best Of his
career. Iowa picks up some very fine
talent from the sophomore crop, and
will have better requirements than at
any time since Solem started coaching
the Hawkeyes. From behind a pillar
In the hotel lobby comes the whispered
dope that Bob Zuppke has his best
squad in seven or eight seasons, and
that the sage Of Illinois will send out q
team that will be hard to stop. This
information will be Of value to Howard
Harding Jones, who brings Southern
California to Champaign early In Oc.
tober.
"Bo" McMillin never would fool a
friend, and when the old praying
colonel tells you that Indiana will have
the best team ever found in Bloom.
ington you can write it down that the
Hoosiers will be among the front run
ners. With few breaks early in the
season, Indiana easily can tie for the
Big Ten championship.
Michigan Has Lots Of Talent
NO WONDER team is expected at
Ohio State, but the Buckeyes
again have q wealth Of material and
will be championship contenders right
down to the finish. Up at Michigan
the coaches admit to having the best
sophomore squad since 1881, and not
more than two Of the 1885 regulars
are expecte dto win starting positions.
Purdue Is bound to be stronger than
last year, with q large group Of vet.
erans backed by some splendid sopho-
more talent.
Lynn Waldorf, the Northwestern
coach, predicts his men will lose three
October games. but the writer found
none Of the other coaches agreeing
with the Purple professor. Northwest
ern Is rated as one of the darkest
horses in the conference, but has the
misfortune to play Ohio and Mime.
sofa during the first month of the
season. Not much Is looked for from
Chicago and Wisconsin. However, de-
spite the loss Of Jay Berwanger. the
Maroons viii be as strong as last sea-
son. Wisconsin's none-too-good pros
poets have been crippled by the loss
Of several veterans who failed In Sum-
mer school assignments. Chicago and
Wisconsin can be assigned to the bot :
tom Of the Big Ten, but any one Of
the other eight may win the cham
pionship. If you take the coaches
opinions rs gospel.