Evening star., 1954-12-30
.Niddies Show
Signs Of Losing
Best Weapon
High Morale Slips
As Knee Injuries Hit
Weaver, Monohun
spseie, pisps,sh y N. Star

spsciei pispoish b The Star
NEW ORLEANS. Dec. So
Morale. q key factor In Nays
great football season, is In dam
ger Of tumbling and the result
could be q jittery team from
Annapolis facing Mississippi here
Saturday in the Sugar Bowl
game,
The Middies, who smiled their
way through q nine-game sched-
ule, are finding less and less to
smile about each day. And with
Navy. more so than with most
college teams. q deyil-may-care,
we1l-lick- 'em-regardless attitude
has been q tremendous assist on
the field.
All season long, Coach Eddie
Erdelatz has faced each op-
ponent with a nonchalance that
bordered on disrespect. He may
have corned it up with his talk
Of a "team named DESIRE" but
the results were more than sat-
isfactory. The players picked up
the idea and flashed through
the season by beating everybody
except Notre Dame and Pitt, and
even their two victors won by a
total Of only eight points.
Worry Creeps In.
Now q change has been noticed
in Erdelatz. For the first time
this season the good-natured
coach has let worry" get in the
same room with him. Injuries
to key players and Southern
propaganda that Navy just
doesn't have 1t are having their
effect.
Tackle Jim Roger, Fullback
Phil Monahan and now Halfback
John Weaver are on the injured
list. Roger came up with a
badly bruised hip in Tuesdays
practice. Weaver, the likeable
youngster vino lost his quarter
back job only to find a better
one at halfback. pulled o tendon
in back Of his knee yesterday.
He needed heat treatment and
Erdelatz. who plans to start him,
has his fingers crossed.
Monahan and bad luck have
been synonymous this season. This
hard-running fullback from
Burlingame, Calf, was counted
on to be Navy's top runner this
season. He has played a total
Of 80 minutes. The captain of
the team and a real inspirational
figure, Monahan has had one
knee trouble after another. It
was hoped he would play some
Saturday. but yesterday he came
UP with more of the same and
now is on the very doubtful list.
ErdeIatx Closes Drills.
The attitude of observers here
hasn'tsadded to the Navy coach's
well-being either. All hands and
the ships cook were free with
the opinion that the Middies
have been overrated. So Erde-
latz, who was all in favor Of pub
lie drills a week ago. abruptly
changed his mind yesterday,
Only the working press now is
admitted.
Not only have the free on
lockers been calling Ole Miss q
much better team, they've also
been disrupting the practices.
Several had q habit of cornering
the players.
The net result is understand
ably a wearing and tearing of
the coach's nerves. His big job
now viii be to keep calm around
his players and to get them all
fired UP with more desire" talk
by Saturday.
Welsh Is Impressive.
One thing Erdelatz can smile
about--the work of Quarterback
George Welsh.
"He has never thrown the BAH
as well as he has this week, !"
Erdelatz says. "He really looks
terrific and so far this week
we've concentrated on passing
by 8 to ! over running plays"
Word from Biloxi, Miss, where
the Rebels have been training, is
that, Coach Johnny Vaught does
not fear Nays passing game.
After watching pictures Of
Navy's victory over Army,
Vaught came away duly un-
impressed with Army's pass de-
tense. His team will not be
guilty Of such lax conduct, he
vows.
Both coaches have named
their probable starting back
fields. Vaught. whose team
winds up practice at Biloxi to-
morrow, leans toward Eagle Day
over Houston Patton at the
starting quarterback slot, with
Jimmy Patton (no relation) and
Billy Kinard at the halfbacks
and Paige Cothren at fullback.
Erdelatz wants Welsh at quar-
terback, Joe Gattuso at fullback