Evening star., 1939-11-21
.kinnick Of Iowa
Rated Second
ToAg Star
Boyd Of Undefeoted
Southwest Team Is
Stundout Tackle
BY GAYLE TALBOT,
Associated Press Sports Writer.

NEW YORK, Nov. 21.-For the
benefit and guidance of those who
are burning midnight oil over the
annual all-America monkey busi-
ness, the following are a few notes
Of a returning football traveller
through the Southwest and Big Six
Conferences:
The greatest running back in all
that vast region almost certainly is
big John Kimbrough of the Texas
Aggies. John comes near being
everything they said he was. Though
he weighs 210 pounds, he resembles
a ight-heavyweight and he is tre-
mendously fast and rugged.
For a strange reason, Kimbrough
Is specified the best running back.
Several rival coaches and a dozen
other expert observers assured this
writer the best back in the South
west. If not in the whole blamed
country, was Kimbrough's unsung
teammate, Jim Thomson.
Iowa's Kinnick Praised.
Thomason is the Aggies blocking
back and their defensive thunder
bolt. I can testify that his blocking
ahead of Kimbrough and the other
Aggies is magnificent. Coach Matty
Bell of S. M. U. said after their
game with the Aggies that Thom-
ason and Kimbrough were the most
Furnishing pair he ever had seen on
one team.
The only other back who ap-
preached Kimbrough in the unanirn.
ity Of opinion among coaches and
scouts with whom I talked was Nile
Kinnick of iowa. One prominent
mentor said fatty: "Any all-America
team that doesn't include Kinnick
will be plain silly"
Coaches, when they relax after
hours and talk "off the record" can
be very enlightening. They and
their assistants see many things
that are not apparent either to the
big crowd in the stadium or to the
critics in the press box.
They say, fatty, that neither Jack
Grain Of Texas nor Paul Christman
Of Missouri is an all-America player
this year.
Christman Not Yet Ready.
Grain, they admit, is a running
genius when he breaks loose, and
Christman they describe as fine.
loose passer," but coaches say that
a truly great back must be able to
do more than one thing well. They
make slight exception in Kim
brough because he can bust through
or around a line, knocking of
tacklers like flies, and because he is
a power defensively.
Grain I didn't see, but Christman
didn't look all-America timber
against Oklahoma last Saturday.
Under extreme pressure he didn't
pass well at all, several of his long
heaves going nowhere in particular.
His running was only average.
This game did, however. bring
out one youngster who is likely to
be in a lot of all-America back
fields within the next two years.
Jack Jacobs, sophomore tailback of
Oklahoma, looked the answer to any
coach's dream. His passing and
running nearly salvaged the game
for the Sooners. A couple of re-
markable sophomore punters are
Preston johnson of Southern Meth
odlst and Ronald King of Missouri.
Boyd Is Superb Tackle.
Outstanding linemen are more
difficult to boil down to a true con-
sensus. Line play, the coaches
agree, has improved tremendously
IN recent seasons, and every really
good team has one or two fine for
wards. Only they are difficult to
single out.
In the Southwest Conference
and possibly because he is on the
winning team-Joe Boyd, 21o-pound
Aggie tackle, is regarded as ALL
America timber. Jack Sanders s
M. U. tackle, is considered about
as good. Oklahoma has an out
standing end in Frank Ivy-better
than Waddy Young was last wear.
tney say. The best men on the Mis-
souri, team appear to be Bob wal
dorf, guard, and Kenneth Haas.
tackle.