PAGE SIX
Houck Had Long
Pro Ring Career
The boys call Boxing Coach
Leo Houck “the honorable Doc
tor” and the title is well bestow
ed. Leo earned his doctorate of
pugilism in the college of exper
ience. He was an honor student,
too, a Phi Beta Kappa in the art
of boxing.
Leo Fred Florian Houck start
ed his professional boxing career
in 1907. Before he retired from
the ring in 1923, when he took
over as boxing coach at Penn
State, he fought approximately
200 bouts, winning over three
fourths of them. Houck was
never knocked out and was
knocked off his feet only three
times.
Although he was never recog
nized as middleweight champion
of the world, Houck defeated
both George Chip and Johnny
Wils'on several times. Both Chip
and Wilson later became title
holders but they never gave
Houck a crack at the laurels
while they ruled.
Houck won the middleweight
title of Europe when he decision
ed Harry Lewis of Philadelphia
in a '2O round battle in France in
1912. He took over the Canadian
middleweight crown by defeat
ing Roddy McDowell at Halifax
in 1919.
In 1922 Leo gained the light
heavyweight title of Cuba by
scoring a fourth round knock-out
over the Cuban Esparagara. The
great Gene Tunney’s record of
eight straight KO’s was spoiled
by Houck in 1919 when he fought
Tunney in a no-decision bout.
Leo repeated the feat the follow
ing year in a battle which caused
Tunney to go into temporary re
tirement because of a smashed
hand.
During his 16 yegrs of profes
sional boxing Houck gained vic
tories over Mickey Gannon, Gun
boat Smith, Frank Mantell,
Young Erne, Kid Locke, Dave
Smith, Bob Moha, Jimmy Gard
ner, Chip, Wilson, Lewis, and
many others.
“The Doctor” retired in De
cember, 1922, and became boxing
coach at Penn State. His teams
have won seven EIBA titles since
the tourneys began in 1924.
Houck has developed 39 indivi
dual eastern champs and three
national collegiate title holders.
Stahl, Gault Top
Lion Riflemen
Riflemen Co-captains Ben Stahl
and Gil Gault have compiled the
best individual averages for the
Nittany Lion marksmen. Stahl
has a .952 average in 29 games
and Gil Gault followed him with
a .944 in 26 games.
Averages were figured on the
basis of the number of matches
each member shot and all of his
individual scores, much the same
as baseball averages. However,
riflemen’s averages are much
higher because of 300 and 400-
point matches.
The averages
Player
Stahl ....
Gault ...
LeWorthy
Yount ..
Cuthbert
Richwine
McCoy ..
ROTC Glasses Changed
All freshman students in. the
Engineers will report to Room
110 EE Building for classes
from 1 to 4 p. m. on Monday and
Tuesday. A training film will
be shown.
Grade Deadline Nears
; Below grades must be hand
ed in by faculty members to
their respective deans’ offices
before 5 p. m. Wednesday, it
has beefct annouhced."
‘Doctor Of Pugilism’
Leo Houck, Lion boxing men
tor and host to the seventh
NCAA tournament, was the un
crowned middleweight of the
world. He defeated both George
Chip and Johnny Wilson before
they gained the title but Houck
never gained a title bout.
Nitfany Lions involved In First Dual r
Eastern And National Boxing Meets
Three firsts—the first intercol- and Leo Houck—have held the
legiate dual meet, the first na- reins during the 22 years of Lion
tional tournament and the first fisticuffs. Harlow started the
eastern tourney-have fallen to “ V 919 T a T nd continued un
the credit of Nittany Lion boxers W I ® 23 * w ? en Hou 4 f’ P resent
and have brought Penn State to coach > took over the 3°b
its present position as one of the Bot h men have been unusually
leading colleges in fistic circles, successful. Frankie Goodman,
State’s participation in the first Bou Ritzie, Billy Soose, Allie
dual meet was purely accidental. Wolff, Steve Hamis, Izzy Richter,
In 1919, the Lions entered a A 1 Lewis, Sam Donato and a doz
tournament in Philadelphia but en other ex-Lion greats need no
when the boxers arrived in the introduction to any collegiate
Quaker City they found that all boxing fans,
the other teams,-with the except- In W years of EIBA competi
tion of Penn, had decided not to tion State has had 39 individual
compete. titleholders—ll more than Syra!-
Two teams can’t very well hold
a tournament so 'the country’s
first collegiate dual meet was
scheduled on the spot. Six bouts
iZir Four '40165-pound Place
bS oToi S 'KK Winners Fight This Year
the Eastern Intercollegiate Box- All four 165-pound place win
fg J'Yf, 5 . organized in ners last year’s NCAA boxing
1921. The first EIBA tournament tournament at Sacramento, Cal.,
was held m the Penn State Ar- are entered in the three-day box
mory in 1924, the Lions annexing j ng f es ti V al here this weekend,
the first of their seven eastern Laune Erickson, the defending
team championships. _ champion from Idaho; Gerry
In 1932, when the National Strang, runner-up, from Cath-
Collegiate Athletic Association olic University; Stanley Dila
woke up to the popularity of tush, third place, • Washington
boxing, the first national tourney State; and Freddy Logsden,
was scheduled to select U. S. fourth place, from Southwestern Carolina, Southern Conference
Olympic finalists and again Louisiana, have, all signed up for champion in ’4O and ’4l; Phil
State was chosen to play host. a- crack at the 1941 165-pound Prather, Wisconsin; and Joe Ces-
Seventy-five fighters, repre- crown. towski, outstanding Michigan
senting 30 colleges, entered the Six other . ringmen, all with state entry.
1932 nationals. Penn State play- impressive records, will- battle
ed the perfect host, walking off with last years place winners ih A novel honor system of con
with the unofficial team title. this division. They include Fen- ducting matches, without a ref-
Only two coaches—Dick Har- ton Somerville, Virginia, EIBA eree in th e ring, was introduced
low, now Harvard grid mentor, champion; Elden Sanders, North at San ■ Jose ' State College last
1 ■ year.
Avg.
.952
.944
.935
.934
.932
.931
.928
THE DAILY COLLEGIAN
Leon Gajecki's Picture
Placed In Pec Halt
With 5 Other Greats
All-American Leon Gajecki,
1940 grid captain, entered Penn
State’s hall of fame in Rec Hall
yesterday when his picture was
placed among other Nittany Lion
greats. ,
Gates’ full-length picture took
its place beside All-Americans
William T. .Dunn ’O6, Robert A.
Higgins ’l9, Charles A. Way ’2O,
W. Glenn Killinger ’2l, and F.
Joseph Bedenk ’23.
The Lion captain was given his
place in. Rec Hall after he was
named All-American on teams of
the National Enterprise Associa
tion, Liberty magazine, and was
chosen to play on the All-East
team. Kate Smith also selected
him for her All-American team.
Phi Kappa Elects
Newly-elected officers of Phi
Kappa are William F. Finn ’42,
president; Raymond F. Bednar
’43, vice-president; Adrian'” J.
Krebs ’44, secretary; and George
B. Kaiser ’43, house manager.
cuse in second place: Navy is
third with 19 and Western'Mary
land ranks fourth with 12.
Another McAndrews
. Johnny -McAndrews, one of
three brothers who were on the
boxing team continuously for
nine years. .
★ ★ ★
McAndrews Brothers
Boxed 9 Straight Years;
Fought At Every Weight
For nine consecutive years—
from 1928 to 1936—there was not
a single Penn State boxing team
withoua a McAndrews. More
over, the McAndrews boy fought
just about every weight-they had
in those days; seven in all.
This pugilistically inclined clan
consisted .of three brothers,
Marty, John, and Francis. Marty,
the-oldest, is still here, coaching
the freshmen football squad.
Marty McAndrews boxed 160,
175. and heavyweight in his three
years on the varsity, from 1928-
1930. ,He was captain of the.
team ano EIBA 175 champ in his
senior year.
John followed Marty in his
path of glory at Penn State. He
fought 135 and 145, and was cap
tain in 1933. John captured the
EIBA title at 135 in 1932 and
1933.
Francis, the' youngest of the
three brothers, was the “black
sheep’ of the family. He was
unable to win an EIBA cham
pionship nor become captain of
the team. The last and lightest
of the McAndrews fought 115
and 125 in his three seasons here,
1934-1936. \
SATURDAY, MARCH
Charlie Short Ist
Leading Referee
Among the * many., -.familiar
men who will; take, partthe
seventh annual National Colleg
iate- Athletic Associatiom.boxmg
tournament this weekend wHI-fee
the well-recogliized ligufe of a
man who is said, to have partici
pated in moire boxing matches
; than any other living man. ’
He is. Charley. Short, nation
ally known' professional, colleg
iate, and amateur boxing referee,,
who has been the “third rtifeh” in
well over 20,000 bouts, and has
boxed in 300- professional-bouts.
Having spent over half, of ; his -
46 years officiating, Short ire i - J
fereeing career antedates by, a
short time the rise of organized* ’
collegiate and amateur boxing.
His yearly .officiating : average,
counting collegiate dual meets
and tournaments, amateur.-tour- .
naments, army tournaments, and
professional bouts, adds .up _to :
about. 1000 bouts, 0r,20 a week.
His great reputation and pop
ularity among collegiate boxing /
fans and participants lies in. the
fact that he is one of the quickest
referees to save - a beaten ■ man
from punishment by stopping the -
fight and rasing the hand;of the .
victor in recognition of a tech
nical knockout. Because of his
swiftness in halting a ■ bout -in
which a contestant is injured, he
has never had a fatality in any .
fight in which he has officiated.
Born in Galena, Mo.,‘ Charley
s.tarted to box when he was
about 15 years old' and : still iri
high school. He entered the Un
iversity of Missouri, but stayed
only a short time and didn’t
bother with other colleges to
which his parents tried to send
him.
He boxed on the Pacific Coast
with varying success until 1917
when he enlisted in the army.
.Ending- with a second lieutenants
commission, he went" to', work; in
the Philadelphia' after
his discharge.
In 1822 he began; his officiat-
ing career and "is'mow -listed as
the premier referee on the staff
of the Maryland' Athletic Com
mission. He has refereed be
tween. 12,000 and 14,060 bouts in
Maryland alone.
Hew Hospitalization Plan
Defeated By Faculty
The proposed plan for extend
ing group hospitalization to de
pendents of College employees
has been defeated according to.
John. T. Law, secretary of the
American Association of Univer
sity Professors.
Failure to adopt the plan was
based on the results of a faculty
questionnaire'which showed that
the project is not favorable to
the necessary 75 per cent-of Col
lege employees.