REVIEW OF YALE SEASON

In the first game of the season Yale easily defeated Wesleyan 25 to 0. It was a game of open, spectacular playing, and Yale was much superior to the opponents in speed, strength, and team work. In the game with Syracuse the university team was able to score only two touchdowns and the work was very ragged and discouraging. The team made a somewhat better showing, however, in the game with Springfield Training School, in which 17 points to 0 were scored. Possibilities for a great eleven were shown, yet brilliant individual football rather than steady team play characterized the game. On October 14 an old-fashioned, line-smashing style of play enabled Yale to run up 52 points without allowing Holy Cross even a chance to score. The strong Army team proved the hardest proposition of the preliminary season. West Point's remarkable defense combined with repeated penalties against the Yale team allowed no chance for scoring, and the final score was 0 to 0.

With real dash and snap the university eleven tore through the Villa Nova team for a score of 44 to 0. End runs, steady line plunging and superiority in kicking left little need for the use of the forward pass or trick plays. On a field which was literally a sea of mud, Yale was played to a standstill by Washington and Jefferson on November 4, and was compelled to exert every effort to score two touchdowns in the second half, winning out by a score of 11 to 0.

During the first five minutes of play in the Brown game the visitors made repeated long gains around the ends and through the left side of the line. The Yale line quickly braced, however, proving almost impregnable through the rest of the game. The whole team played with a spirit and unity that had been wanting in nearly all the preliminary games; and their attack was irresistable. One of the touchdowns was made by a brilliant 40-yard run by T. Jones after catching a punt, the remainder by consistent gains through the line and around the ends. The team surpassed all expectations, winning by a score of 22 to 0.

In one of the most remarkable recoveries known to football history, the Yale team last Saturday defeated Princeton by the score of 12 to 10. Starting in the second half with the odds all against them the Yale eleven fought a terrific uphill battle that in the end brought victory. To Jones' headwork in running the team and his long runs, together with Coy's fierce line charges and punting, belongs the chief credit of the victory. Cooney, Congdon and Goebel were good throughout the game; Congdon's tackling in the first half and Goebel's great line-smashing in the second, were especially noticeable. Captain Biglow was always the first to get through on the defense and was strong on the offensive. In the first half Princeton easily had everything its own way and scored two touchdowns, but in the second half the Yale attack was irresistable and the defense impregnable. Princeton's only touchdown was made by Booth on a 70-yard run after catching a blocked kick, and the other score was made by a field goal by Harlan. Yale's touchdowns were made by long end runs, dashing line plunges, and clever use of the forward pass.

Development of the Team.

Early in the season the problem which confronted the coaches was to develop new men for the center trio and the backfield. With Wylie, Berger, Dunbar and Congdon of last year's squad, and Coy, Wheaton, Murphy, Cooney, Brown and Goebel of the 1910 eleven, however, the prospects seemed exceedingly bright. But the new center men were by no means in a class with last year's men, and the main trouble has been in training these men for their positions. In the backfield it has been a problem to get speed enough. Up to the last half of the Princeton game the line had not worked together as well as it should, and the attack had been rather inconsistent. The defensive work has, in the main, been good, although Princeton gained at will during the first half of the game last Saturday. During the latter part of this game, however, the team showed its real strength. The line was able to withstand the hardest kind of attack without weakening, and the offense proved to be exceptionally aggressive. The backs are still a trifle slow in starting but are very fast on end runs and good at line plays. The ends are able to stop plays well but are easily blocked in getting down under punts. The fact that Yale's opponents have been able to cross her goal line but once this season, and then on a long run, shows that the defense is really stronger than seems apparent.