Evening star., 1960-11-03
WIN, LOSE OR
DNAV By FRANCIS sTANN
One Who Made the Grade

THIS FELLOW BILL ELIAS of George Washington
you know he's got to be football coach at first glance
He's only S6 but he's iron of head and he that
look of one who's played The clues diminish when you
learn that he doesn't have an ulcer.
AT yelling Hall, where the scholarship Coonals live
1ngrd Voge the diecan asked the coach if steak
with moose gravy would be all right for lunch.
MY brother shot it." she said.
Fine just fne Elias replied absenty. An older coach
would have demanded milk toast but Elias is not an older
coach As matter of fact he is riding Cloud Nine
moose steak or short ribs of mountain lion couldn't shake
him.
Elias and his downraed CIV football team whipped the
Air Force Academy last Saurdayand in Denver no less
and now Bill has 2-3-1 record for the far.
I'VE hope to win two of the final three games-Rich-
mond vP1 and West Virginia., he said Would that be
too bad?"
Foolish question lot of people didn't think CIV
would win game.
WOULD YOU SAY" a luncheon guest asked "f beat
ing the Air Force did anything for your recruiting pro-
gram?"
"But of course" Elias said "we've given our bird
dogs big pitch Imagine. beating team like the Air
Force! Have you that academy? It's fabulous
28 practice fields We have half field you might say
and it doesn't even belong to u.s."
bird dog is talent scout usually unpaid but highly
dedicated When he left Purdue as backhed coach to
head CIV last January, Elias retained few bird dogs
via friendship.
They're in Indiana, Pennsylvania, Ohio . . lots of
Places he said "They do good ob and beating the Air
Force certainly isn't going to hurt"
IN THE POSTWAR II years Elias, if one studied
the University of Maryland rosters carefully was listed as
quarterback. He served under three coaches Paul
Bryant Clark Shaughnessy and Jim Tatum
Il hardly ever played" Elias saying. "Vic Turyn
was the No. boy at quarterback kid Bryant brought
up from the Navy PreFlight School at Chapel HILL N c.
Then came Tommy Mont and played back of him. too
Il couldn't match the passing range of those fellows
couldn't nit a target over 20 yards. They could"
Elias, after graduating from Maryland took Job as
assistant coach of the Richmond Gnd) High School team
Big DEAL" he said. Il made $4,000 year. But then
got to be head coach at Richmond and there was little
more And there were those years at Purdue"
BILL D1sMER, the afabe public relations director at
CIV had statistics to prove that Elias as backed coach
at Purdue had sensational record Elias shrugged it off
Il took $2,5oO-a-year cut salary to become head
coach of CIV, and don't regret it," he said "Ill admit
there decision to make After Bob Faris athletic
directory made the offer, turned it over in my mind
went to bed this night comparing Big football against
this classification, and awoke the next morning with NV
mind made up.
1T was CIV. come hell or high water"
LET'S DON'T KID ourselves" Elias went on "The
Big Ten has and bigger better players than you'll
see in this But here head coach and gosh knows
where we'll wind up
i've got threeyear contract That's all I'll sign for
at this time People say If you finish you'll have done
heluva job
L don't see it that way feel that we'll be 500 this
year and a little bit better later on"
Elias isn't going to be coach year on national
basis but he's pretty we'll his way one of the top guys
in this neck of the woods