Evening star., 1945-10-22

Eagles Bagged, Tribe
Coach Now Worries
Over Giants Game

Over Giants Game
There's only one thing worrying
me-" said Dud De Groot, easing
himself onto a trunk in the Red
skin dressing room after yester-
days 24-14 upset win over Phila-
delphia. That's the New York
game next Sunday"
The Tribe today found itself in
a flrst-place tie with the Giants
in the National Football Leagues
Eastern division with two OF its
first three games in the bag. All
the coach has to do is figure out
way of keeping it there in one
of the dizziest, most unpredictable
races in the leagues 26-year history.
In the West Cleveland's Rams
continued to ramble with a 41-2l
victory over the tattered Bears for
their fourth straight, but the road
to the title Is strewn with land
mines that can blow any teams
title hopes sky high.
Washington may have hit the
jackpot yesterday in walloping the
supposedly unbeatable Eagles. There
was a marked difference In the
dressing room after the game. You
almost could feel the change. It
was unlike any previous dressing
room scene this year-even when
the Tribe won. You got the idea
that the team had found itself,
had just realized 1t was as big as
any outfit in the league and that
1T could win the championship.
Van Buren, Great Runner.
The lineup yesterday was sort of
screwy, but purposely so, and the
idea worked. Coach Greasy Neale,
looking it over from the Eagle bench
and trying to figure an offense to
throw at it. frankly was puzzled. He
looked once and saw a five-man line,
then six, then four tackles in the
middle, where the Skins were sup
posed to be the weakest, then no.
body at all.
The Eagles had power, pounds of
it in Steve Van Buren, the best
running back to gambol on the tint
ed greensward of Griflth Stadium
since the late Frank Goettge
ploughed through outmatched op-
position, spraying tacklers in all di-
rections. They had speed in the
same Van Buren, and sprightly
Sonny Karnofsky and Mel Bleeker.
And they had passer, a T-forma-
ton operative supposedly on a par
with the Bears Sid Luckman In
Roy Zimmerman, who was expected
to rock the Skins back on their
heels with bewildering assortment
of power and sleight of hand, but
it didn't work out that way. The
Eagles didn't have it.
The confidence the Skins gained
yesterday is immeasurable. Ger
tainly Sammy Baugh, completing 10
out of Is passes for 161 yards, proved
he can throw from the T or any
other formation. The timing on his
34-yard heave to Wilbur Moore,
putting the ball on the 3-yard line
and setting up the third touchdown,
was work of art. Moore did nice
bit of running and feinting to get
behind AL Sherman, but he found
the ball waiting for him when he
reached the appointed spot.
Baugh's field generalship, too,
was above reproach. The Eagles
came to town ready to stop the Red,
skins overhead game and found
themselves up against a double
barreled running attack. The best
runner on the field was Frank
Atkins, who averaged 7 yards a try
in rolling up 168 yards from scrim-
mage and twice got away for sizable
jaunts. Atkins also battered his way
by Vic Sears for 5-yard gain and
the second touchdown in the third
period.
Lolotai High Glass Guard.
Better still, the Tribe discovered
it has a grade-A guard in AL Lolotai,
the silent Samoan, who looked as
though he had been born there after
only a weeks work. Lolotai was like
a cat pouncing on Eagle ball car
riers and late in the final period
intercepted an errant pass thrown
by Ernie Steele to interrupt Phila-
delphia drive.
The Redskins had a wide edge on
the ground as well as in the air and
1t was apparent from the very outset
that the Eagles were in for a rough
afternoon. Philadelphia was bottled
up in its own backyard throughout
the first period. The Tribe marched
from its own IS, where Baugh in
tercepted Roy Zimmerman's blooper
pass, to the Eagle 27, where Phila-
delphia braced and held. But Joe
Aguirre dropped back and booted
his first field goal of the season, a
40-yard shot that sailed as true az il
guided by radar.
The Eagles came back after an
exchange of punts and went Sc yards
for their first touchdown with zim-
norman mixing an assortment of
laterals to Mel Bleeker and Van Bu-
rem with straight running plays. Van
Buren went Is yards for the score,
cutting back inside right end with
out a hand being laid on him.
Tribe Marches so Yards.
Washington drove 80 yards for
It's first touchdown, regaining the
lead on Sal Rosato's 1-yard plunge.
Baugh's passing to Aguirre on a
cross-over play, Atkins line -plunging
and Lolotai's recovery of Redskin
tumble on the Eagle IL, which saved
the day, featured the attack.
The Eagles went 86 for their next
score, with Bleeker and Van Buren
again sparkling the attack. Van
Buren came wide at left and bowled
over Micka in going the final 81
yards for the score.
Another blooper pass, tossed by
Zimmerman onJ ipfarocrfod hx