Evening star., 1942-10-21
NcKeever, Eliot
Put on Spot by
HappySquads
Ridden on Shoulders
After Victories, May
Be Due for Tumble
BY ARNOLD DERLITZKI,
Associated Press Sports Writer.

CHICAGO, Oct. 21.-Football
coaches. long accustomed to Mon
day morning quarterbacking, are be-
ing taken for a new kind of ride"
this Season-atop the shoulders of
their players.
Illinois gridders hoisted their
coach into the air after upsetting
Minnesota. So did Notre Dame play
ers after their stunning conquest OF
the Iowa Seahawks.
But for Ray Eliot, Bob Zuppke's S
successor at Illinois, and Ed Nc
Eeever, subbing for the ailing Frank
Leahy at Notre Dame, it was a
ride that, come Saturday, may lead
to fall. For then the two surprise
teams of the Nation 60 about trying
to mystify one another at Cham
paign, Ill.
Illinois, unbeaten in four games,
retained It's fifth-place ranking in
the Associated Press national poll
this week; Notre Dame, beaten once
shot into eighth place-all this un-
der the guidance OF unheralded
coaches.
Eliot took over this year after
Zuppke had not been able to direct
Illinois to conference win in two
seasons. In his first conference
test Eliot saw his Illini machine roll
over none other than Minnesota, the
Big Ten champion
Put Out for Eliot.
A former Illinois player and later
assistant coach, Eliot was overlooked
in the Illinois hunt for a coach
until the players themselves turned
on the heat. They have been turn
ing it on for Eliot ever since.
Notre Dame. unbeaten last year
started 1912 with tie against Wis
consin, lost to Georgia Tech and
then lost its coach, Frank Leahy,
who has been at the Mayo Clinic
the last IL days for physical
checkup.
Backfleld Coach McKeever, al
most an anonymous figure on the
Irish scene. stepped in. Notre Dame
spanked Stanford, then the previ-
|otasly unbeaten Seahawks. But Nc.
Keever, who also was Leahy's as
sistant at Boston College, declined
70 take credit for the successes.
People seem to forget Leahy gave
the squad its groundwork, 4" he said
But he couldn't decline Satur.
days ride off the field on the
shoulders of Notre Dame players
1t was something of a dream full.
filled. Back in October, 1881. Nc
Keever was an ambitious sophomore
fullback on the Notre Dame var.
sity. But he quit in disguest wher
he believed he wasn't getting a fair
chance from Coach Hunk Anderson
and went on to star at Texas Tech
Irish Practice New Plays.
Yesterday Notre Dame practicec
on several new plays in a signal drill
and McKeever commented that I'll.
linois may be better set for us de.
fensively than the Iowa Seahawk
were. Illinois has secuted us In ever,
game" The Illini held a 90-minut,
offensive workout behind locked
| gates.
Practice high lights from othel
Midwest football camps:
Purdue worked on blocking ant
line play for the Wisconsin game
The Badgers held their first scrim
mage since before the Missouri con
test. Iowa placed emphasis on it
running attack in a scrimmage fo
Indiana. The Hoosiers worked OF
defense. Michigan also sought t,
perfect its defense for Minnesota
In brisk Gopher drill, Bill Dale,
and Herman Frickey rotated at lef
and right half Ohio State ant
Northwestern both returned t,
fundamentals in preparing for thei
clash. Great Lakes, which may pre-
sent an entirely new lineup agains
Michigan State, had Paul Anderson
and Bill Decorrevont in key back
field positions. Lectures and a gen
eral dummy scrimmage was tn
order of the day for Iowa's Sea
hawks, who will be idle until tn
Indiana game October 81.