Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1948-02-04
Rockets 10 GET New
Name and All Irish
Players They Can
NINA As.asiatsd Press

CHICAGO, Feb. A contest is
being planned to rename the Chi
cago Rockets. smilin' Ed McKeever,
new coach Of the All-America Con-
ference club, wants to start out COM
pletely fresh.
In keeping with the spirit Of re-
building the team from as many
former Notre Dame players as he
can grab, McKeever might consider
calling his group THE Shillelaghs. I"
This would be about as close as he
could come to Fighting Irish" and
would be In keeping with such Irish
players already lined up as Angelo
Bertelh, Halfbacks Dippy Evans and
Bob Livingstone, Tackle Casper Ur-
ban, End Bob Dove, Center Herb
Coleman and possibly that beloved
Irishman, Ziggy Czarobski.
This wrecking crew picked up
much of its football savvy while per-
forming for McKeever at Notre
Dame several years ago when the
Texas Tech alumnus was elevated
from assistant to head man on the
departure of Frank Leahy into the
Navy. Since that time, McKeever
has been skipper of Cornell and
San Francisco University, resigning
the Pacific Cast job recently to try
reviying the rockets, a financial bust
for two years.
Czarobski Not Yet Signed.
TIC date, Czarobski, an outstanding
Notre Dame tackle, has not been
signed The afiable fellow has been
in such demand on the banquet cir
cult that McKeever hadn't had a
chance to catch up with him.
Monday at a Cedar Rapids, Iowa,
luncheon, Czarobski said, "McKeever
is so well liked that he could get any
player he wanted from Notre Dame. -
The 37-year -old McKeever failed
to land Johnny Lujack, however, but
the voluble Czarobski even had an
answer to that one.
II think Lujack would have signed
with the Rockets if he had known
McKeever was going to be the
coach" he said. But by the time
McKeever had joined the club, Lu-
jack already had committed him
self to the Chicago Bears" dujack
signed for about $4,000
Czarobski was drafted by the Chi
cago Cardinals, National Football
League champions, and also by the
Los Angeles Dons of the All-America
Conference. The Dons have shifted
their draft rights to the Rockets.
"Ziggy- is the best morale builder
I have ever seen on any football
squad" McKeever declared. Il
don't know of any other player I'd
rather have for our rebuilding pur-
poses"
Operating Out of Hotel Room.
McKeever, arriving in Chicago
yesterday, so far is operating out
of o hotel room. Reorganization OF
the club Is SO new an undertaking
that an Office hasn't been estab-
lished yet. In fact, McKeever not
only Is without a swivel chair and
desk but also is building a club
ostensibly without an owner. His
new boss, or bosses, will be an
nounced before the All-America
meeting here February IA, accord
ing to R. E. earn, Chicago bond
broker and spokesman for the
Rockets.
McKeever is happy about having
Bertelli, who was replaced by
Johnny Lujack as Notre Danes
T-master and passing sensation
when he entered the Marines in
midseason 1913.
So, come the 1948 season, Chicago
fans can take their choice of watch
ing Notre Danes two greatest
aerialists-Bertelli, pitching for the
Rockets, or Lujack for the Bears. Or
they might prefer watching Charley
Trippi of the Cardinals.
There seems to be enough pro
football In Chicago. It's ques-
ton of enough fans to go around.