THE DAILY NEBEASKAN
:
. .
H IRevtew of tbe Season of nineteen Zen
"Champions of tho Missouri Valloy
Conferonco" is tho titlo "King" Colo
has attached to his Cornhusker foot
ball team during tho season Just com
ing to a close. "King" Colo has done
himself proud, has silenced tho knock
ers, haB turned out one of Nebraska's
best football elevens, and has won him
self a place In the hearts of all loyal
students of tho University of Nebras
ka. It has been a truly wonderful sea
son, both in tho class of football
played and tho spirit of tho students
backing up tho team. As to .tho for
mer, tho claBS of football, tho results
will toll tho talo. Ab to tho latter, the
student spirit, too much cannot be
said. When tho crucial test of tho sea
son, tho gamo with Kansas, came, and
when tho members of the team know
they would have to use every ounce
of energy and every bit of strategy
thoy could command, and when the
backing of tho students was actually
needed, it was forthcoming in a way
that fanned into flamo overy spark of
determination in tho team. After it
waB over tho players were of one
voice in declaring that tho student
demonstration had done the work.
To go back to tho grade of football
produced, Nebraska had a piece of
gridiron machinery which will go
'down in history as one of the most
powerful the school has over had. In
overy gamo played during tho season
the Cornhuskers fulfilled every expec
tation. With a gamo to be played
with tho HaBkell Indians, Nebraska
haB had only one defeat Minnesota
27; Nebraska, 0 and no one has put
on mourning for thiB loss, for the Ne
braskans more than held their own.
ThewondGriBthat-the-score-was not
twice ns large as it was, for the Go
pherB havo a terrible team.
Outlook Not Bright.
To begin at the beginning, when the
Bquad first came out for practice the
outlook was not very bright. An en
couraging number of men answered
tho first call, but they made only a
mediocre showing and everyone was
wondering how thoy would turn out.
As tho season progressed tho outlooR
did not improve as rapidly as rooters
had hoped and expected, and predic
tions began to circulate to tho effect
that there would be "nothing doing on
the championship," and that "'King'
Colo would lose nis fame forever."
As a matter of fact, tho coach was
up against tho hardest proposition he
had over faced in his football career.
In tho first place, and what was by
far tho moBt important, ho was handi
capped, by having to drill tho now
rules into his candidates. While the
rules placed a problem before every
team in the country, NobraBka had as
much, if not more, difficulty than any.
It was not so bad to start tho old men
along tho right track, but more atten
tion had to be. given those who had
.not been in tho gamo before, and over
half the pien who finally won their lot
tors had never iplayed varsity football1.
It took several weeks of constant
pounding beforo tho team was well
enough acquainted with tho now regu
lations to start placing tho men and
to commence working out new plftys
and now formations.
Still another great difficulty to he
met was tho change in plays made
necessary under tho now rules. If
.was up to the coach to work out a sys
tem, of plays which had never been
tried beforo and teach his men how to
nut them through without a hitch. It
was necessary to work the forward
pass down to a science. Open playB
had to bo used to a far greater extent
than over before. Interference had to
bo perfected to a finer point than in
the old style game. The backs had to
be-trained-to-recelvfl passes, from the
center and the center had to be
trained to snap back to almost .any
By G. X. LIDDELL
distanco and at nlmoBt any angle. Ev
erything, in fact, had to W done a lit
tlo bettor or a llttlo differently than
undor tho rules of a year ago.
Thus, with so much to learn, it was
no wonder tho students began to look"
forward to tho soason's big gameB
with moro or Icsb doubt as to what
the outcome would bo.
Peru the First Victim.
Tho first opportunity tho Cornhusk
ers had to show what they 'could do
was on October 1, when tho Peru Nor
mal team came for tho opening game.
While tho score ended G6 to 0 in Ne
braska's favor, It was hardly more
than had been expocted and the game
did little toward helping the students
form an estlmato of what tho team
could really do. Tho Peru gamo did
ono thing, however, and that was that
it proved beyond all question that
there was an abundance of good mate
rial for tho coach to work on. Peru
backflold which could comparo with
tho defense on the lino.
Next came Minnesota with the score
of 27 to 0 tho ono gamo of tho season
in which the Cornhuskers wero out
classed. But this does not look so
badt when Chicago and Wisconsin
wenl tho samo routo and with much
similar bcotcb. Dy this timo tho Ne
braska team was beginning to show
what it was mado ofH .for although
they wero hopelessly beaten in the
first quarter they camo back, after
each touchdown was marked up
against them, with a grit and stub
bornness that won tho admiration oi
Minnesotans and Nebraskans alike.
And from tho Minnesota gamo on No
braska played football.
The "Hike" Is Used.
Tho Denver head was tho noxt to bo
laid on the block, which was on Oc
tober 22, ono week after tho Minne
sota gamo. As if to make up for the
j if
JtL
RICHARD RUSSELL
A New Man on Cole's Squad Who-Has
Shown Up Well as an End.
HERMAN 8EIDELL
A 'Varsity, Sub Who Has 8hown That
He Is a Natural Line Bucker.
waa outweighed by every man on the
team except one. Their line was un
able to withstand tho rushes of the Ne
braska backs and the ends could not
stop tho wide runs.
The second step in tho evolution of
tho Cornhuskers "was tho gamo with
South Dakota on October 8. South Da
kota had a clover team and tho Ne
braskans earned all they mado. It
was this game which settled one of
the many questions in tho mind of tho
coach there was nothing the matter
with tho line. South Dakota could not
put a play through the line, try as
they might, whereupon Coach Colo be
gan to pay more attention to the back
field. He thought the line from that
time on could take care of itself. It
'could and did.
The South Dakota game did another
thing.. It showed up tho great weak
ness of the team, which was the weak
ness of the backfleld on offensive play
and the poor interference on running
the ends. This at once became the
nblectlvo of tho coach's attention. For
tho next few weeks he did Utile 'aside
I from building up an offense in the
Minnesota score the Cornhuskers
'chalked up the samo number, 27, to
their opponents' 0. Nebraska opened
with a whirlwind attack, played the
Denvorltes off their feet, and virtually
won tho game in the first quarter. It
was in this game that the coach first
'brought his now plays into operation.
Thoy worked like a charm. .Tho new
"hike" play kept tho Mountaineers
guessing; they never know what 'to
expect, and the backs "would sail away
around an end or tear through the
line for big gains while the visitors
were trying to decide where to look
for the play. The Interference was
better than it had been before during
frtho season, and the offense, on the
whole, was brilliant. Things wero be
ginning to look up and hammers wore
being laid away. It was tho beginning
of tho open season on knockers and
they wero keeping out of sight.
Doano' was tho next contributor to
the Cornhuskers' collection of scalps.
Thoy handed over their llttlo dona
tion to the melody of 6 to 0. Tho
Doane gamo, It sems, had little to "do
with things in general. Cole gave or
ders that only enough football was to
bo playod to keep Doano from carry
ing off tho gamo. Somehow Colo
could not lmagino a Missouri Valloy
championship team which had boon
boaton by Doano. His ordors woro
obeyed and Doano was handled with
caro.
After Kansas,
Tho plot thickens. Kansas was
noxt on tho list. And it was here that
tho students did their part toward
making tho season a buccobb. On
Thursday night, when tho team loft
for Lawrence, thoy woro paraded to
tho do pot in stylo by a band of GOO
howling, dancing studontB, who woko
up tho town with tholr nolso and lit
up tho town with tholr torches. This
display .of spirit sent tho squad to
Kansas so full of grit thoy could not
lose. And a few similar displays of
enthusiasm since have kept the play
ers so busy being dotorminod thoy
havo had little timo for anything, olso.
When that poetic soul unburdened
himself wlth n sontiment liko, "Six to
Nuthln' for Nebraska; I Jost can't
keep back tho choors," or words to
that effect, ho spoke for every living
bolng who has ever had anything to
do with tho university. He probably
didn't know it, but ho did, neverthe
less. Tho Kansas victory was tho
(crowning triumph of the. season. Tho
Cornhuskers showed what thoy could
really do in football and played one
of the greatest games over soon by
either Kansas or Nobraska, cinching
tho Vnlloy championship. While tho
score was only G to 0, it doos not
show how badly Kansas waB boaten.
The Cornhuskers had tho ball on Kan
sas ground during the greater port of
thVgamo, and three times woroMvll
In ten yards of tho goal, but each
time tho Kansans put up a stubborn
resistance and the ball was lost on
downs or a fumble.
The last gamo which has been
played up to date was with tho Ames
Aggies. Hero, again, tho Cornhusk
ers proved themselves tho logical
champions, outplaying Ames from tho
word go, and taking tno gamo by a
score of 24 to 0. In the gamo with
tho IowanB, as in all tho rest, Cole's
elovon played with a dazzling brills
ance and a puzzling system of plays
which tholr opponents could not solve.
Tho open formations, over which so.
many eyebrows woro elevated at tho
beginning of the season, went through
without a fumble. The Cornhuskers
had mastered the rules.
Haskell Is the Last.
There yet remains tho Thanksgiv
ing gamo to bo played with tho Has
kell Indians, and the football team is
through. While this contest does not
affect tho Missouri Valley champion
ship, tho outcome will be almost as
closely watched as if it wore for the
championship. The Haskolls havo al
ways been keen rivals of Nebraska,
with tho advantage of late on the
side- of j the Indians. Last year-the-Cornhuskers
woro played off their
feet and wero not given a look-in.
These, In closing, are a few of the
things the Cornhuskers have done
during their turn in the spotlight.
Thoy have brought Nebraska moro
football fame than she has had for
several years. They played Minne
sota a game which put them in a
class with Chicago, Wisconsin and
other big middle west schools. They
decisively defeated Denvor, Ames,
and Kansas and have an undisputed
title to the championship banner.
They stirred up a spirit of football en
thusiasm in the school which will
never die out. And thoy yton from
Peru and Doane.
What's the matter with the Corn
huskers? Those having criticisms
and derogatory comments to make
will please step one .pace "to the front.
