Evening star., 1941-12-06
'0|e Miss Loses
AS Back Downs
His 1eamnate
Scoring Guards, Pass
Caught by Posser
Among Freaks
BY AUSTIN BEALMEAR,

NEW YORK, Dec. 6.-Forward
passes boomeranged, guards turned
scorers. a water boy reached star
dom-and the 1941 football season
produced enough gridiron oddities
TO keep the customers chuckllng un-
til the opening kickoff next year.
Players, coaches, officials and fans
participated in the football foolish
ness which an Associated Press sur
vey uncovered in all sections OF the
United States.
Perhaps the play that hurt the
most was a tackle that cost Mlssls-
sippi a chance to gain at least tie
for the Southeastern Conference
championship only last Saturday.
Mississippi State won the title bv
blanking Mississippi, 60, but Ray
Poole of Ole Miss took a pass from
Junie Hovious in the second perlod
and was in the clear. Then Pooles
own teammate, Halfback BOBBY
Yandell. tackled him by mistake As
yards from the goal line.
One of the freak plays came IN
Big Six Conference game between
Missouri and Iowa State. Howard
Tppee. States sophomore quarter
back, hurled a pass that was inter-
cepted by a Missouri back. The MIS-
sourian tipped a lateral to a team
mate. who attempted a second lat-
eral as he was tackled. The ball was
DETECTED forward into the arms OF
Tippee, the origina throWer, who
was downed in his tracks.
Catches His Own Pass.
Blondy Black of Mississippi State
tossed a pass against Alabama ana
a 'Bama lineman batted the ball IN
the opposite direction. So Black
caught his own pass for a 10-yard
loss.
Virginia Techs leading scorer for
the season was Roger Mcclure,
guard who never carried the ball. He
kicked II straight conversions and
four field goals for a total OF "a
points.
Another guard, Carl De Temple.
was Denver's best ground gamer IN
the Colorado game. He carried the
ball twice on a deceptive guard
down-the middle play and averaged
1612 yards per try.
Pomona College furnished the Pa
cifc Coast with the case OF tho
water boy passer. Coach F1lzz Mer-
ritt. sadly shorthanded. saw Water
Boy Billy Kern passing a football!
L.. - oh
drafted him for the next game.
Kern didn't win it. bur he com.
pleted couple of touchdown passes
and was the teams throwing ace
through the remaining four games.
After workers had marked Cf1 the
University of South Carolina field
for the opening game with Wake
Forest, Freshman Coach Frank
johnson went out to inspect the JOB.
AS he walked from goal line to goal
line. johnson discovered the work.
men had made the field lis yards
long.
Oddity Strikes Tragic Note.
Some of the oddities struck .
tragic, rather than comic, note. At
Washington and Jefferson lineman
out of a game to allow a minor
shoulder injury to heal. was assigned
to hold one of the yardage sticks on
the sideline. A play came mis- way
and he was knocked to the ground.
His shoulder was hurt so badly he
was out for the season.
In a game with Southwestern Of
Memphis, the same Blondy Black
who caught his own pass against
Alabama. unWittingly injured four
Mississippi State teammates by run
ming into them. One of the four.
Fullback Charley Yancey, came Lp
with a triple jaw fracture sfteI
Black had run over him.
The Missouri Valley contest be.
tween Drake and Washington Uni
versity of st. Louis drew only l0a
fans at Des Moines Conference
rules provide for a guarantee of 81
600 to the visiting team. Thus the
game cost Drake $40 a spectator,
and Washington won it, 1910.
Probably the most surprised player
of the year was Adrain Dodson.
speedy L. S. U. halfback, when
big Holy Cross tackle walked up
and kissed him on the cheek after
the game which Holy Cross won.
1913. Dodson have given the Cru
saders fits in the 1910 game, won
by L. S. u, $50.
Twelfth Man Is in Again.
Said the affectionate tackle: IT
wanted to get my arms around you
just once before I finished playing
football You sure were hard to
catch last year"
The inevitable 18th man turned
up again, this time in the Michigan
Ohio State game. A shirt-sleeved
spectator staggered onto the field
to give Tom Kuzma a hand, appar-
emily bent on making up for the
1910 incident in which fan ran
out to tackle Tom Harmon.
Aldo Buff Donelli held the dis
tinction of coaching a winner and
loser in the same season. He re-
signed at Duquesne to coach the
professional Pittsburgh Steelers.
who hadn't won a game at the time.
then returned to Duquesne and led
the Dukes through an all-victorious
| campaign.
OF all the officials who suffered
embarrassment, those with the red
dest faces handled the Santa Clara
st. Mary's game Santa Clara came
out of the huddle after moving
down to the 19-yard line on q pass
interference ruling. But the ball
wasn't there. The officials had left
1t on the 45-yard line, where ths
pass play started.