Evening star., 1945-12-16
Injury Hampers
Stellar Tosser,
But He'll PLAY
Tribe Coach Believes
His Club Has Defense
To Stop WoterfieId
BY LEWIS F. ATCHISON,
Star Staff Correspondent.


CLEVELAND, Dec. l5.-Dud De
Groot didn't come right out and say
SO, but there is strong suspicion
the Redskins will try to beat the
Rams with running attack to-
morrow afternoon in their battle for
the National Football Leagues 1945
championship.
Sammy Baugh didn't work out
with the squad at the National
Guard Armory here today, but DR..
Pete Moran says the singer will
be ready to take his place in the
lineup despite bruised rib. Baugh
hasn't worked out for three days.
He was kneed in the Giant game
last week and has trouble throwing
from certain positions.
Subfrezing temperature is pre-
dicted for the game, but both Cleve-
land and league officials are con-
fldent the attendance will be be-
tween $4,000 and 10000. Ticket
sales already have exceeded last
years record figure of $146,204.15
and fair. weather tomorrow may
send them as high as s175,O00. At
the moment the winners individual
shares would amount to approx
mately 81 500 each.
Cleveland Slight Favorite.
Cleveland renamed a slight ia
vorite tonight. The odds were 6-5,
regardless of which team you liked,
but there was a catch in the points.
The Rams continued as three-point
favorites. If you wanted to bet on
Washington you gave 6-5 odds and
got three points. On the Rams, you
laid the same odds, but had to give
three points.
Most OF the coaches and seasoned
football men congregated here look
for close, bruising game with a
slight edge for the Rams. 1t has
got to be that or a runaway and
neither team seems strong enough
to maui the other too badly.
Under these weather conditions,
however. a break early in the game
might decide it. The field should
be in good condition. A crew of
267 men, augmented by 100 high
school boys who will receive S6, q
free lunch and ticket to the game
each, began peeling off the stadiums
coats of snow, straw and tarpaulin
today. The job will not be finished
much before the teams come out
on the field
The Rams evidently are depend
ing on superior team play to con-
quer their eastern rivals. Coach
Adam Walsh seems confident that
none of the Redskins touted ball
carriers will be able to move around
his ends, Steve Pritko and Jim Ben
ton, or that Frank Atkins, Merlyn
Condit or any of the others will dent
his line. Rumors of Benton being
i'll were completely unfounded. He
used the illness gag. it was reported,
to duck speaking invitations.
Rams Jammed with Loops Best.
Cleveland has three all-league
selections in its lineup in Benton,
Bob Waterfield and Riley Mathe-
son, and the dope is that Waterfield
also will win the leagues most-val-
able-player award. Football men
like the Californian's cool ball
handling and shrewd judgment in
the Information. More than one
privately has expressed the opinion
he is the best T-quarterback to
come along since Sid Luckman of
the Chicago Bears and that he ex-
GELS Luckman in kicking and Is an
extremely dangerous ball carrier.
DeGroot isn't making any pre-
dictions on the outcome, although
he indicated he expects the Red
skins to win. He went into a hud-
die with the assistant coaches,
Baugh, Frank Fnchock and Larry
Weldon, after the workout and will
have last minute rehearsal of the
game strategy with them early to-
morrow morning.
The Tribe had something special
cooked up for the Giants last week
and didn't need it. So it's still good
for the title game. Steve Bagarus
figures Importantly in the strategy,
but more as threat than anything
else Bagarus and Bill DeCorrevont
will be the men in motion on most
of the running plays and what fol-
lows will depend on Cleveland's de-
(See REDSKINS page A-241