Evening star., 1941-08-13
Draft Toll May Bring College Football Back Strictly Amateur Basis
Gives Unpaid Players
More Opportunity
To Make Team
Competition as Sharp
As Ever, Game Won't
Suffer This Fall
BY GRANTLAND RICE.

6V uhAN lLAND h1SE.
Many are called-and many will
be chosen. At least 400 football
coaches, not to overlook more than
$500 assistants, are scanning the
present and future draft lists with
anxious eyes.
After all, both Army and Navy
officials want football to keep NOV
ing at its old pace, without any ex-
emptionS for those who happen to
be forward pasSers or blocking backs
whenever their number comes along.
1t is only reasonable that footballs
headmen should be busy checking
on season that now is less than
a month away. 1t is only human
for coach to hope for as good
break as his rivals draw in the big
gridiron lottery of 1941
Just at present there is no way
to arrive at any informative facts.
I asked DR.. Nicholas Murray But
Ter, president of Columbia Univer-
sity, just how the draft situation
was in the lair of the Lion.
'As closely as I can make an esti-
mate" Dr. Butler said, "enlistments
and the draft together will take
away something like 900 students
from Columbia. The college or uni
Versity toll all over the country will
be heavy. I haven't any idea how
many on the Columbia list are foot
ball players. There will be some,
of course. But the majority called
out will be seniors or postgraduate
There has been heavy demand for
engineers and chemists all over the
country. 1t would be my guess that
football will have larger number
Of younger players than we normally
have seen upon the field"
250,000 Students Affected.
Columbia is one of the country's
larger universities. But if the uni
versity count is around 900 there. it
should be nearly the same at Cali
tornla, Michigan. Illinois, Ohio
state, Minnesota, Northwestern and
Southern California.
There would be no such total at
Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Cornell,
Dartmouth, Stanford and most of
the Southern and Southwestern uni
versities that fall we'll below a
10000 enrolment.
They will lose the same per-
eentage, however.
The college contribution to Army.
Navy, air force and marines will be
something more than 25O,OOO stu
dents, dating from July to October.
But all of this will have no hurt
ful effect on the football campaign
of 1941.
There will be Just as much keen
competition as there ever was.
There Will be just as much Nation
VIDE excitement and interest-there
VIII be just as many big crowds.
After all college football was
started and for many years carried
on as the greatest of all competitive
sports.
In the last 10 or 20 years the pres
sure put upon coaches to bring along
winning teams has done the game no
good IN any way. 1t has developed
not only proselyting, but direct pay
W oil uIiUtleVdDle extent,
The bidding for winning coaches
has gone beyond all sound reason
Ing. There has been far too much
so-called national championship"
winning big-time stuff" in a game
supposed to be played by young
college students seeking, in the
main, an education.
I never have believed that anv
college football star should receive
In any way any more financial as
slstance than any good average STU
dent should get. whose main idea
was an education.
There isn't any question that there
has been too much big business" in
college football.
There have been too many paid
players" And many of these have
been no better than hundreds of
others who loved the game and
could play good football-and often
never had a chance
Chance to Clean Up.
The fellows who we're taken care
Of" who had cost money, had to
have the first call
With the draft cutting in. with
the element of chance now involved
this seems to be the right spot for
general cleaning up, where the
alumni pressure and the coaching
pressure for winning team can be
removed.
There is a big chance at hand to
bring college football back to its
proper place in amateur sport. There
never will be a better opening if
college presidents, alumni and foot
ball coaches only can see the light.
(Released by the North American
Newspaper Alliance, me-