The Development of Coaching in Football

And a Word on the 1916 Coaches

WALTER CAMP

COACHING in football has reached such a position of prominence now that some contend it is not the university or the players who get the credit for victory, but the man in charge of the team. An investigation was made, by letters of inquiry, to football captains and managers, reaching back to the good old days of the introduction of this sport, in order to find out where this coaching principle first took root. It was discovered that, for the first decade of American football, the captain did most of his own coaching, with occasionally a former player back for a few days. Then presently began, in the middle west, a system of securing a man from a prominent eastern team to back up and introduce the theories of football into some more distant college. From this, in time, grew up the present system of head coach and his various assistants, until now a big university team has a head coach, a line coach, a back-field coach, a kicking coach, and these are supplemented by others from time to time.

But the man of greatest prominence in the football world today is the head coach, and to him the university and its graduates look for results, and hold him responsible for the position the university shall occupy on the gridiron field each fall. For this reason it may be interesting to study the personality and qualifications of the men who are notable in the group of coaches for 1916.

BEGINNING with Cornell, for Ithaca took the first honors last fall, we have Dr. A. H. Sharpe, of Yale, as the man responsible for Cornell football destinies. Sharpe was a back-field man at Yale and after graduation, studied medicine, then was in charge of athletics at the Penn Charter School.

Cornell, after many vicissitudes, obtained the services of Dr. Sharpe, who, in three years, put their football on the proper basis. Now victory has come Cornell's way, and last year the Ithaca team was crowned with the highest success. Sharpe is in charge again there this year.

HARVARD, before the defeat by Cornell last season, had for several years been holding a commanding position on the gridiron. Her progress out of the slough of despond came in the engagement of Percy Haughton. True he did not succeed any more than did Sharpe, until after he had had the situation in hand. He played a tie, won one, and lost one, but then started on a successful career. Haughton is a coach everlastingly patient in perfecting detail. His teams are characterized by the finish of each play and each position. He does not essay in spectacular but wins by execution.

AT New Haven football has been sadly out of joint for the last few years, until the season of 1915, which seemed to reach the limit of disaster. From its proud position of constant and consistent winner, Yale, through the folly of "too many cooks," fell to a position in the last season where almost any minor team came up with a hope, not as in the old days, of the possibility of scoring, but of actually defeating the Blue. And several of them did, too. There has been an upheaval and a return to the old men and methods this year at Yale. Tad Jones has been placed in the position of head coach and Arthur Brides and Clarence Alcott, both men who played at the same time as Jones, have been engaged as resident assistants. Cates, the old Yale end and later coach at Annapolis, will also aid. Dr. Bull is the only one of the old staff retained. Jones has had a most successful career as coach at Exeter his teams not only winning, but literally smothering the Andover elevens that have been sent against them. Jones was a wonderful quarterback as well as baseball player in his day, and is a man of highest character and an ideal coach.

AT Princeton, there has been a strange situation. For the last two years Princeton's showing against Harvard has been considerably better than that of Yale, but on the other hand, Yale has defeated Princeton in both seasons. Two years ago Princeton's situation somewhat resembled Yale's although the downfall and disorganization had, perhaps, not caused so much comment. At any rate things were not satisfactory and J. H. Rush, from school coaching out in Ohio, was brought on and given the position of head coach. In spite of the fact that he has not won and has been defeated by Yale, it is still true that he is*regarded as satisfactory and belief is strong behind him that he will develop winning teams. This year the first step towards a real solution of Princeton's problem has been made in giving Rush some assistants who are more experienced in the actual playing and working out of football attack among varsity teams. It is a strange but true thing that a school team is easier to teach attack than a varsity team, and this has been a weakness shown by Rush at Princeton. With Phil King, Hillebrand, Ballin, Church and Wilson and the assistance of Cruikshank, of Washington and Jefferson, it will be surprising if Princeton does not develop an attack far beyond anything she has shown in the last ten years.

AT Dartmouth, Cavanaugh continues in charge. Cavanaugh has produced teams for several years at Hanover that have been good ones. He has brought out two, at least, notable ones, teams that were powerful and alert. Last year the eleven was not as successful as usual and was very badly beaten by Princeton, 30 to 7, and had a close hard game with Pennsylvania, winning 7 to 3, and finally a tie with Syracuse. It would have been satisfactory for a university that had not formerly had such high records. At any rate Cavanaugh is continued and is expected to give Princeton a closer game this year.

PENNSYLVANIA has been more torn with football dissension, probably than any other institution, for it has produced stronger men and men who have made successes in coaching elsewhere, and the general shifts of policy have (Continued on page 142) (Continued from page 140)

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developed factions and bitterness which added to the difficulty enormously.

Last year Pennsylvania carried over on an old contract, George Brooke, but whereas the year before he had had sole charge, last year he was under a Committee and practically tied up, as far as authority was concerned. No sooner was the season ended and the usual defeats suffered at the hands of Cornell, than everybody at Pennsylvania started to determine a solution of the football difficulties. After a while it narrowed down pretty closely to Bob Folwell and Bill Hollenback. Folwell had been coaching Washington and Jefferson most successfully. Hollenback had been doing excellent work also and for a time it looked as though Pennsylvania might determine to take them both, but Folwell was the one eventually chosen and Holleaback went to Syracuse. Folwell is a student at the game, has always been a strong developer of attack and is very facile in the execution by his teams, of the forward pass. Altogether it looks like a bright prospect for Pennsylvania, provided Folwell is allowed full swing. Wharton, who did so well with the linemen last year, will assist Folwell as will Gaston I. Jourdet.

FIELDING YOST has been known for years as one of the most able and original of gridiron instructors. Originally from Lafayette he has for many years coached the University of Michigan. From his aggressive ways he came to be known as "Hurry up Yost," and his teams in the days whenthe great annual contest with Chicago was on, showed themselves wonders of power and speed. The last year or two things have seemed to go rather badly at Michigan. Last year they were defeated by the Michigan Aggies 24 to 0, by Syracuse 14 to 7, by Cornell 34 to 7, and just managed to squeak through with a tie in the Pennsylvania game. Altogether Michigan has had too high a position and Yost too prominent a reputation to be satisfied with such a season as this and particular effort will be made this year to produce something better.

GLENN WARNER, the old Cornell player, and lately for so many years the extremely successful coach of the Carlisle Indians, left the Indians two years ago and last year took in hand the University of Pittsburg. As was anticipated when Warner got hold of this material, he soon had it in excellent working shape and went through his season without a defeat, beating Pennsylvania 14 to 7, Washington and Jefferson 19 to 0, and Pennsylvania State 20 to 0, and putting Pittsburg permanently and positively upon the football championship map. This year he will be again in charge there and the teams that take on Pittsburg are going to find their hands full.

DR. H. L. WILLIAMS, a former Yale back field man, went out to the University of Minnesota many years ago and besides practicing his profession, coached the football teams of that institution, and his average has been high. He has turned out more winners in proportion than other middle western coaches, and has always been noted for the ruggedness of his teams. He himself is of this same type. His muscles are hard as iron and there's little doubt but that he could stand a contest with any of his men. Last year he won his games with Chicago and Wisconsin, but could, at the best, get only a tie out of the Illinois game. This year he is starting off with some good material and expects to make a lot of trouble in that section.

A YEAR ago the University of Illinois came to the front as champions of the middle west, and this brought into prominence Robert C. Zuppke, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, who has been coaching Illinois for several seasons. This was the first time Illinois had succeeded in coming to the top and was a great triumph. This last year Illinois, under Zuppke, defeated Wisconsin and Chicago, as did Minnesota, but the tie in that later game was disappointing to Zuppke as it was to Williams, and the chances are that both will be in deadly earnest when the teams meet this year.

A. A. STAGG, although a Yale man, has had his • name so linked with the University of Chicago and its athletics, and for so many years, that they claim him as one of their own. He has done much for athletics in that institution, and, with a rather limited supply of material, has developed most creditable football teams. As a rule it has been necessary for him to accomplish by strategy what, had he been possessed of more powerful line material, he could have accomplished by strength.