The Waterbury Democrat., 1939-10-18

Charley Bowser,
Pitt Boss, Named
Coach Of the Week
BY HARRY FERGUSON
UNITED Press Shorts Editor

on the spot in the battlefields Of
France during the World War and
he was on the spot on football fields
when the season opened this year.
Both times he. came through.
The United Press nominates for
the coach Of the week.
Charles william Bowser Of Pitts
burgh.
Pittsburgh lost more than q great
coach when DR.. Jock Sutherland
resigned; it lost the backbone Of
what was one Of the great college
teams of the nation last season,
Six varsity nnemen and three
fourths Of the 1888 dream back
field" were gone when Bowset
stepped in and took charge OF
football at Pittsburgh this season.
But today, to the surprise of
almost everybody, he has an UNI
beaten, united team and last sat
urday he conquered mighty Duke,
eastern representative in the Rose
Bowl last year, by IA to 10.
At the start of the season there
were storm signals flying at Pitt,
warning those who would heed
that Bowser was going to have q
pretty fair club. He took his bows
to the Pacific coast and gave WASH
ington a az to licking. Then
he trimmed West Virginia, 20 to O.
Football may be e-emphasized al
Pittsburgh, but you would have q
hard time convincing Washington
West Virginia and Duke Of that.
An-Around Man
Bowser is a product Of the great
days of Pop Warner at Pitt. He
played on the varsity in 1920-21-22
One of the odd things about him Is
that he established a reputation as
a good football player, although he
played every position except full
back and halflback. He shifted
from end to quarterback to tackle
to center to guard without losing
efficiency.
Born at Ligonier, Pa, on Nov
20, 1898, Bowser went to public
schools in Ligonier and Johnstown
In his senior year, he left high
school to join the army and was
assigned to drive an ambulance He
never had driven an automobile, but
in Italy he received training fol-
half an hour and was sent to the
front. One of the mysteries to
Bowser was how to put his ambu-
lance into reserve fear, but when
an officer came up to inspect him
he got by without wrecking the
machine.
He entered Pitt after the war
spent one year playing freshman
football and three on the varsity
shifting to whatever position need
ed strong player. E
His coaching career began at
Grove City college in Pennsylvania
as assistant to Chalky Williamson
He became head coach IN 1924
Three years later Bowser went to
Pitt as assistant coach, remaining
there until 1929. In 1880 he switched
to Bowdoing college, Brunswick, Me-.
where he was head coach for five
years.
He returned to Pitt as assistant
coach in 1885 and remained until
the spring training season Of 1888
Then he resigned and was out OF
football until chosen to succeed
Sutherland.
Fishing, bridge and golf Che Is
getting so he can break 80 now
are his hobbies. He is married and
has two children William z, and
Ann, S.
Bowser never drives his players
believing that if they don't have
it in them to play good football mo-
body can force them. The princi-
pal change he has made in Pitts
style of play is that he uses the
forward pass as a scoring weapon
whereas Sutherland used 1t chiefly
to spread the opposition defense pre-
paratory to striking along the
ground.