WEDNESDAY, .NOVEMBER 18, 195.3 Son** 1 There’s an old saying that footballs take funny bounces. It’s been used for years now and should be worn out. But nevertheless, it still holds true. That old pigskin calx, take you for some pretty dizzy rides. It seems that the sportswriter will never learn that you just can’t pick the winners—at least not all of them. This 1953 football season has been a prime example. With the return of the one-platoon game some of'the most astounding upsets of the last decade went into the record books. They occurred in a year when college football was supposedly back to normalcy—a year when football would steady itself, or so they said. \ ' Anyway, after floundering hopelessly as a Friday night quarterback for eight weeks,, we'd like to make one last dying stab. This one concerns the Penn Stale-Pill blast, naturally. . To say that one team or the other was going to win would be sure insanity. It was just a year ago that a powerful Panther team waited for the Lions in the Smokey City with one foot in the Orange Bowl, only to have its New Year’s Day dream shoved right down its teeth on Saturday afternoon. However, it's conceivable that the Lions could win again. Man-for-man we think the Nittanies are three touchdowns better. Bui when two such teams as the Lions and Panthers- meet, the simplest formula is to throw the comparisons out the window and take a light hold on' your seat. Anything can happen. Someone remarked last night, “It’s going to be fun to watch Rip (Engle) and Dawson (Red, the Pitt coach) hand this game to each other this week. But'just let anyone try and take it from them Saturday afternoon and then you’ll see fireworks.” The situation is little, different this year. Both teams have suffered more losses, particularly Pittsburgh, which has won only three games. The Lions, 100, are off their 1952 mark. However, (here’s where we put our head' in the noose), if the Nittanies play the kind of football in Panther Hollow that they played against West Virginia, a team that beat both schools, they should make it three in a row over the Pitts. Dawson has a big, rough ball club to field Saturday at Pitt Stadium. However, he has had backfield troubles all season. He lacks ah outstanding • quarterback and hasn’t found a left halfback to satisfy him. Bobby Epps, a battering-ram fullback, takes up some of the slack but not enough. His line has been weakened consider ably with end Dick Deitrich and alLAmerican tackle Eldred Krae mer, sidelined with injuries. Engle, on ihe other hand has the East's best passer in Tony Rados, five excellent halfbacks, two ripping fullbacks, four fine ends, and a two deep line from tackle to tackle that is tops. Sounds good huh? As we said before, man-for-man the Lions have the edge. But this is still Penn State vs. the University of Pitts burgh and individual abilities, or seasonal records don’t mean a thing. About the only concrete prediction that anyone can make is that .the. team that scores the most points will win the game. However, we can’t resist. Just one last try . . . The Lions to win it by one touchdown. Amen. dick McDowell Assistant Sports Editor * * THE DAILY COLLEGJAW, STATE COLLEGE, PENNSYLVANIA Werner Credits Lions; Praises Hollers, Smith Chick Werner, Nittany Cross- Country Coach, yesterday praised his harriers for their showing in Monday’s running of the IC4A championship race. Captain Red Hollen and La mont Smith recorded the two fastest times ever turned in by Penn Staters in IC4A competi tion, Werner pointed out. Their times were 24:59 and 25:18. In 1947 one of Penn. State’s finest runners. Curt Stone, won the ti tle with a time of more than 27 minutes. Hollen’s sixth place time last year was 25:13, while Smith was clocked at 26:14 for 28th place in 1952. . Winners Deserve Credit “Maybe the reason we didn’t win was because Penn State is now a university and we couldn’t give it the ‘old college try’ any more,” Werner said smilingly. The likeable Nittany mentor said that, Michigan State and Pittsburgh deserved credit for All-University Ping-Pong Title Won by Bray Harry Bray became the first All-University ping-pong cham pion Saturday at the TUB by 'de feating Louis Landon, the frater nity champion. The independent champ, annexed the second annual Penn State ping-pong champion ship after previously winning two independent crowns. * Bray continually overpowered his opponent and won in four games. The scores were 21-16, 22- 24, and 21-11. ‘ Landon, representing Sigma Pi, reached the finals by defeating William Ziegler, Phi Kappa Psi, 21-16, 21-18, and 23-21. This en abled Landon to play Bray for the All-University Championship. The champion, Bray, decision ed Ron Hart to take the Inde pendent title. Hart had previous ly defeated Hans Giesecke, a Ger man exchange student and Bray had beaten Eric Omholt. Matmen Lose Three Penn State’s national champion ship wrestling team will -lose three starters from its unbeaten 1952 team. ,• their fine showing. He said that he felt the Spartans and the Pan thers performed “over their head.” Lions Seek Comeback When the - Lions met Michigan State at East Lansing earlier in the season John Cook, one of the top runners for the Spartans, failed to finish the race. Hov/ever, in Monday’s title run on Van Cortlandt Park’s five-mile course Cook was one of the big guns in Karl Schlademan’s attack. Dur ing the .regular campaign the No. 5 man for the Spartans never came within one-and-one-half minutes of the front man on the team. In the IC4A race the gap between Michigan State’s first and fifth men was narrowed to 43 seconds. Werner asked Smith how he felt about the coming NCAA race on Monday. “We’re looking forward to a comeback against Michigan Stales On OampuS at %}. 135 S. Alien St. State College, Pa. smart smart neat smart and neat and casual No one offers such a wide variety of collar stylestailored for these times. No one offers such a wide choice of fab rics and such a wide range of. patterns as... © 1953 THE MANHATTAN SHIRT CO., 444 MADISON AVENUE, NEW YORK, N. {, State and Pittsburgh," Smith said. Despite Syracuse’s fourth place finish Werner said that he be lieved the Orangemen have the best squad he has seen all season. “They just folded under the pres sure,” he said in defense of the team which he felt would cop the title. The Lions will travel to East Lansing for the final meet, on the slate—the NCAA champion ship run on Monday. Some of the finest runners in the country will be competing in this race, Kansas’ fabled Wes Santee is the favorite to cop the individual crown. He was the top distance runner in the nation last year and competed in the 5000- meter race in the Olympic Games at Helsinki. Ken Hosterman is one of four brothers to play at Penn State under Bill Jeffrey. RANGE—widespread soft collar with stay* BLAlR—new shorter point collar, medium spread CREW—Rounded spread button down PAGE SEVEJf
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers