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INTERCOLLEGIATE FOOTBALL RESEARCHERS ASSOCIATION ™ The College Football Historian ™ Expanding the knowledge and information on college football’s unique past—today! ISSN: 1526-233x June, 2010 Vol. 3 No. 5 circa: Jan. 2008 Tex Noel, Editor ([email protected]) http://www.secsportsfan.com/college-football-association.html Steve Greene has found Fordham in the annual Hall of Fame this… game held at Rutgers throughout the 1950s. The First College Football There is a photo taken either in Hall of Fame 1951 or 1952 of Homer Hazel, Heinie Benkert (Hazel's star While going through some old teammate who played on the Rutgers football programs, I 1925 inaugural New York Giants) ran across a photo in the early 50s. and Pudge Heffelfinger of Yale and Don't know if you know it or not but the man considered to be Rutgers was selected as the original professional football's first paid home of the College Football Hall of player back in 1892. Fame. * * * It existed, but only on paper, IFRA congratulates and remembers here until 1972. The first class of the… inductees was voted on in Old Queens, the oldest of Rutgers College Football Hall of buildings (1809) and where the RU President resides. It happened the Fame Inductees—Class of morning of November 3, 1951. 2010 The Honors Court of the National DIVISIONAL CLASS Football Foundation's Hall of Fame committee was given a list of 200 PLAYERS: nominees. After the vote that morning, 32 players and 21 coaches • Emerson Boozer, Maryland had been selected for the inaugural Eastern Shore, HB (1962-65) class. • Troy Brown, Marshall, WR (1991-92) Later that afternoon, Rutgers played • The College Football Historian-2- • Alfred Williams, LB Colorado (1987-90) • Brian Kelley, California Lutheran, LB (1969-72) • Milt Morin, Massachusetts, COACHES TE (1963-65) • Barry Alvarez, Wisconsin (1990-2005) COACHES: • GENE STALLINGS, Texas A&M (1965-71), Alabama • Willie Jeffries*, Howard (1984- (1990-96)** 88), Wichita State (1979-83), South Carolina State (1973- 78, 1989-2001) * Selection from the Divisional • Ted Kessinger, Bethany (Kan.) Veterans Committee (1976-2003) ** Selection from the FBS Veterans Committee + Deceased MAJOR COLLEGE CLASS * * * PLAYERS: [Charleston Daily Mail 1929] • Dennis Byrd, DT, North DOWN Carolina State (1964-67) THE LINE • Ronnie Caveness, C, Arkansas (1962-64) By W. O. McGEEHAN • Ray Childress, DL Texas A&M (1981-84) The Fumble Experiment • Randy Cross, OG, UCLA (1973-75) • WASHINGTON, Oct. 16.— Even the Sam Cunningham, RB, coaches, for whose benefit the new Southern California (1970-72) rule limiting the penalty for the • Mark Herrman, QB, Purdue fumble was passed, seem to be in (1977-80) doubt as to whether it will last or • Clarkston Hines, WR, Duke even as to whether it should last. In (1986-89) the two more or less crucial games • Desmond Howard, WR, which your correspondent "has seen Michigan (1989-91) there were instances where its effect • Chet Moeller, DB, Navy (1973- was illustrated. 75) • Jerry Stovall, HB, LSU (1960- In the Georgia-Yale game at Athens 62) Firpo Greene, captain of Yale, found • Pat Tillman, LB, Arizona State himself in possession of a loose ball (1994-97)+ with a clear field ahead of him. He ran a few feet and then remembered that ho was entitled to nothing staged since they reformed the game whatever but the possession of the of intercollegiate football. ball. The scattered old grads of Ell howled in the stands like a wolf Young Johnny Branch, the pack robbed of its prey. quarterback of the Tarheels, The College Football Historian-3- scooped up a loose ball. Previously the fleet footed Branch had swept through the Golden Tornado like a There was the chance of the lone counter whirlwind. With all the (sic) touchdown which would save Yale Tornado twirling about him, he was from what the boys call a able to twist and tear his way whitewashing. As Mr. Ed Thorp, through to a touchdown. who refereed the game, said afterward, “he might have written Branch received the ball and waited his name on the ball and made it." Just for a second. Then he grinned This was not by way of criticizing and moved rapidly in the direction the rule, for the relation of Mr. of the goal line of Georgia Tech. He Thorp to football at present is purely knew the rule. In fact, throughout of a Judicial nature. He does his best that game he showed that he knew to understand whatever rules are nearly everything concerning the handed to him by the rules game from the fundamentals, which committee and enforces them. they teach in the preliminary practice, to the greater puzzles that I gather that Mr. Mal Stevens, the the rules committee invents (sic) coach of Yale, is one of these who during the winter. favored the new rule. I am wondering Just what he must have When he had cleared the last been thinking when, with the little remnant of the Golden Tornado he Yale cheering section in the Sanford stopped abruptly and laughed as he stadium clamoring for one tossed the ball back in the direction touchdown, at least, and with one in or the point where he recovered the sight, any motion in the direction of fumble. It was a gesture that said: the goal line automatically was "The Tarheels could have had overruled. another touchdown, if it had not been for that fool rule." It is my Even the Georgia cheering section in notion that all the Impartial and the mass of red and black seemed to many of the partial spectators feel that it had been robbed of the agreed that it was a fool rule. only chance of melodrama. It is written that in the United An incident of the same character States it is easier to get a fool law or occurred on the previous day, when a fool rule passed than it is to have the University of North Carolina it repealed. But it is my notion that beat Georgia Tech in one of the most as the season progresses there will truculent games that have been be enough examples of the anti- climax it has brought to this game so that the rules committee will be Calderwood, a Northwestern doing plenty of reconsidering on this halfback, grabbed the ball when it particular point. It will be made was dropped by Westphal of quite apparent that this was one of Minnesota and outraced the whole the most radical changes in the Gopher team. His touchdown, which game since they started shuffling was instrumental in winning the The College Football Historian-4- game, 10-9, robbed Dr. Spears' eleven of a golden chance at the the goal posts back and forth. The title. committee should rule that it was a "noble experiment" but that, like However, had Thomason or many other noble experiments," it "Westphal recovered the ball either proved to be a fizzle. could have continued to run with it. That is the important thing to keep FOOTBALL RULES in mind. The ball is dead only when it falls into the hands of the team NEA Service that is on the defense. Roy Riegels, California center, would The new rule is covered in these two not have made his famous "wrong paragraphs taken from the Guide: way" run to the Georgia Tech goal "When a backward pass or fumble line last New Year's. strikes the ground and is recovered by an opponent, it is dead at the Minnesota might have beaten point of recovery." Northwestern instead of losing to the "Wildcats and the whole And: "If the side in possession of the complexion of the Big Ten race ball fumbles it and the ball, after would have been changed. striking the ground, is recovered by an opponent, it is dead at the point Had the "fumble rule," the most of recovery." important change in the1929 football code, been put into effect a Important Provision year sooner. Reduced to simpler language these are the things the fans should Riegels, it will be recalled, snatched remember: up a fumble by Thomason of Georgia Tech and, completely 1. If the ball is fumbled by a turned around in his directions, ran back, or the pass from the almost to his own goal line before center goes wild, or a lateral his teammates could flag him down. pass is missed or fumbled and the ball is recovered by the Under the new rule, the ball would opponents after it has have been dead at the spot where touched the ground, H cannot Riegels recovered it. be advanced. fumble Itself plus the average 2. The side that put the ball into distance of a punt—35 yards—and play can always advance it if is thought to be sufficient penalty. they recover. DAVIS WANTS FUMBLE RULE TO 3. The ball must first touch the BE CHANGED ground after the fumble, Parke H. Davis, a former member of which means that the the Football Rules Committee opponents still can intercept a advocates a rule prohibiting a man The College Football Historian-5- from picking up a fumbled ball. He advocates a radical change in the existing rules to eliminate the 4. lateral pass or rush through chance of a touchdown as the and grab a ball that is being immediate result of a fumble. Juggled or mishandled. "This feature of football is uncouth, unfair and a relic of a long bygone These changes were made with the era," argues Mr. Davis. "The proper realization that while a spectacular disposition of this fluke play is to part of the game—the run with a change the rules so that the ball fumbled ball—would be lost, the shall be put down for scrimmage at penalty for a fumble formerly was the point where a fumble is too severe on the side that made it, recovered by the side recovering the especially since it general was the fumble and no run allowed.