bUUkt Niffany Gridders Hold Opposition To Less Than Two Feet Per Carry Less than two feet per try! That's the average length of precious gridiron turf yielded by Penn State's stubborn football eleven each time an opposing ball carrier tried to budge the stout 1947 Nittany defense This phenomenal figure, compiled officially, heaps credit upon what Mentor Bob Higgins has called the "best team I ever coached" and marks the Nittanvmen as one of the great football defensive units of all time By restricting nine foes to an average of 17 yards per game by rushing, State established a new national record that displaced the former mark of 25.3 set in 1937 by Santa Clara. Three of the Lions' nine op ponents Syracuse, Colgate and Pitt—were held to minus yardage on the ground, while Washington State managed to collect 64 yards and Bucknell, Fordham, West Virginia and Temple each 40 yards or less. Only Navy's eleven dented the armor of State's grid machine to an appreciable ex tent-120 yards—via the ground. A national mark that stood within striking distance of the THE ANCHORAGE 210 - 214 W. College Ave. A DINNER DATE . With your best girl. Treat 'her tonight to a tasty home-cooked meal at the Anchorage.... the food plus a charming atmosphere will place you tops on her list. LUNCHES .50 to .I.'ss DINNERS .85 to 1.25 HARVEST BALL Dac. Dancing 9 12 REC HALL Huff Hall's Orchestra SEMI-FORMAL (No Corsage) Nittany Lions until the last quart er of the Pitt fray is the tol.al de fense record of 69.9 yards per game, held by Santa Clara. Figures compiled as the Lion— Panther scrap progressed show that State would have notched a new total defense mark had the Pittmen not unleashed a brief passing attack that was success ful enough to kill the Lions' bid for the new record late in the game. Still something to write home about, the Higginsmen's total de fensive figure of 76.7 yards per game ranks third among all-time collegiate marks. Next to Santa Clara's 69.9 is a mark of 76.3 yards yielded to opponents' rushes and passes by Texas A. & M. in 1939. THE, DAILY COLLLC;IAN. STATE COLLEGE, PENNSYLVANIA TKE Vicfor In Cage Tilt In a bitterly-contested game that extended through three over time periods, Tau Kappa Epsilon eked out a 21-20 victory over Sigma Phi Sigma in the banner game on Tuesday night's intra mural basketball schedule. The Tekes captures the victory shortly after the onset of the third and final "sudden death" stanza. "Murph" Dembroski, muscular Teke forward, stepped to the foul line after one of the opposing team was found guilty of com mitting a personal foul and calm ly swished his shot through the cords for the game - winning marker. HIGH SCORING CONTEST Gordon Wolfkiel led Sigma Nu to a 32-2 rout over Tau Phi Delta, scoring ten point s for the victors. Only a field goal by Bowden in the second half avoided a white wash for the Tau Phis. Phi Kappa found itself out classed by the sharp-shooting Beta Sigma Rho five and went down under a 23-5 count in another of the feature matches. Goldsbor ough with nine points and his team-mate Miller with eight were high scorers for the Beta Sigs. Other scores were: Alpha Gamma Rho 21, Kappa Si&ma 16; Phi Sigma Kappa 19, Alpha Sigma Phi 10; Delta Theta Sigma 14, Theta Xi 6; Phi Kappa Psi 25, Alpha Zeta 1 , 1; Triangle 17, Acacia 6; Delta Sigma Phi 25, Sigma Chi 15. TONIGHT'S SCHEDULE In the feature game tonight, Al- ,ha Chi Rho tangles with Lambda Chi Alpha in a clash between two previously unbeaten teams. Phi Delta Theta will be seeking its second win when it goes up against Sigma Pi, and Phi Epsilon Pi will attempt to keep its record , ;notless when it meets Sigma Phi Alpha. Tonight's complete schedule is s follows: B:4s—Alpha Chi Rho-Lambda 2hi Alpha, court 1; Phi Epsilon Pi-Sigma Phi Alpha, court 2; Kappa Delta Rho-Pi Kappa Phi, court 3. 9:2s—Phi Delta Theta-Sigma Pi, court 1; Chi Phi-Alpha Phi Al pha, court 2; Phi Gamma Delta- Sigma Alpha Epsilon, court 3. 110:05—Delta Tau Delta-Alpha Tau Omega, court 1; Zeta Beta Tau-Phi Kappa Sigma, court 2; Alpha Phi Delta - Delta Chi, :;ourt 3. Dribblers Drill for Opener; Simon, Biery Lead Holdovers Missing from Cage Line-up ? 4 , s 7 • ) :.' , • RtTSINKO "It's tough to try to fill a gap left by four varsity basketball players with only two men back from last year's squad to form the nucleus," said Coach John Lawther, Lion court mentor. "All four of the missing men helped to give the team control of the backboards, a factor that is sorely needing in this year's squad." Heading the list of board artists who have left the team is John Rusinko, stab-shot specialist who is now playing for the Wilkes- Barre pro team. Jimmy Lawther, a steady guard, ' Dave Hornstein and Bruce Dietterick, both able pivot men, were graduated last year and their loss left Lawther with a need for rebound men. REBOUND PROBLEM Trying to find a solution to his problem, Lawther has concen trated his efforts on Martin Costa, a 6 ft. 7 in. "beanpole" who, when he masters the Penn State style of play, should help to solve the mentor's "backboard blues " In contrast to Costa's soaring height, Coach Lawt h e r has diminutive Milt Simon, a pace setting forward, and Jack Biery, a six-foot courtman, who will form the one-two scoring punch in the coming season. John Kulp, Carl Nordblom, and Hal Rahn saw limited action during the 1945 or 1946 season and are making strong bids for varsity positions, along with sharpshooter Irwin Batnick who has to get back into playing trim from his present 200-pound-plus weight to make the squad. Coach Lawther believes that the coach should be right in with the team during practice, and he carries out his beliefs. In every scrimmage he Is on the court Co - Captain John Nolan' Pits Speed With Skill THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4, 1047 DIETTERICK LAWTHER calling fouls and directing the plays. If a mistake is made Law ther is right there stopping the play and explaining the error to the dribblers. SHOOTING CHARTS Even after the practice, the lanky coach and his assistant, Elmer Gross, pour over the shooting charts the managers make for each scrimmage. By means of the charts, the coaches map out their offensive and de fensive plans for the coming games. A schedule with no "easy touches" faces the Nittany cagers this year. After opening a week from Saturday with Washington and Jefferson, they face Buck nell, Pitt, American University, Colgate, West Virginia, Navy, Carnegie Tech, Georgetown, De- Pauw and Temple: Navy, West Virginia, and Georgetown held top spots in Eastern college ratings last year, and Pitt, and Temple produce powerful teams every year. In scrimmage games against neighboring teachers ^ ollege teams, the Lawthermen came out on top, but their playing attested to the fact that there is a lot of polishing to do before they meet the top competition in this year's schedule. • Tackle, co-captain, 228 pounds, 21 years old, 6 feet 3, Glens Falls, N. Y. A big man, the biggest on Penn State's 203 - pound line, Nolan has excellent control of his body. He's quick, and cat-like for a fellow his size. And he's mobile enough to pull out of the line and lead interference. His work and the work of Suhey have been largely responsible for Penn State's offensive drive this year. He's also surprisingly fast, and light on his feet. Milian comes from Irish parents, and came to Penn State via the Navy V-12 program. He liked it when he was stationed here, played on the Lion football team as a trainee, then returned last year as a civilian. He also has been a stand out in Penn State lacrosse, cap tained the team a year ago, and twice in a row won all-America mention. Agility and speed ac quired in lacrosse unquestionably helped him become the fine foot ball player that he is. He has also proved an able leader, and his inspired play plus the fine leadership of End John Potsklan has contributed to the fine team spirit of this Penn State eleven. HORNSTEIN JOHN NOLAN
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