What's His Number?

Bulldog Fight

Coach Ducky Pond is bringing another typical Yale underdog football team into the Stadium Saturday. The Elis have a good defensive line, a weak running attack, and a dangerous aerial offensive. On Saturday, that forward wall may become a ball of defensive fire capable of making Crimson ground advances painstaking, the running attack may function like a well-oiled machine, or the Blue passers may drop their deadly bombs right on their targets.

It is doubtful that all of these things will happen and that a very mediocre Bulldog eleven will transform itself into a great eleven Saturday. But any one of the three may conceivably take place when Captain Macdonald's men find themselves lined up with a Blue team facing them Saturday.

The most probable development is that the Blue line operatives will rise to great defensive heights when the specter of Torbie Macdonald, Charley Spreyer, George Heidon, Fran Lee, and Joe Gardella becomes a reality. The Yale line averages 201 pounds from tackle to tackle, and many of them haven't forgotten how the high-powered Crimson attack stalled and sputtered in the mud of the Yale Bowl last November.

Pressure on Elis

Harvard's running attack is built on a firm foundation, and it will take more than an inspired bunch of Elis to prevent it from reaching pay dirt at least once. Bill Stack is a fine center, Bob Brooks and George Seabury are a pair of powerful tackles, and Cape Burnam and Jim Dern are capable guards, but the pressure on them Saturday is going to be terrific. Moreover, the reserves for these men have the doubtful distinction of not having worn themselves out against Princeton. They sat on the bench all afternoon and picked up valuable experience.

The Eli starting ends Brownie Brinckley and Al Burtholemy, usually play a floating rather than a smashing game. The thought of Macdonald catching them flat-footed and scooting around them on reverses is apt to make them even more wary. Harvard's attack should be able to function for a succession of short gains even if there are no long touchdown dashes.

The most improbable of all the possible Eli surprises for Harvard is a smooth-functioning running attack. Hovey Seymour has lots of individual class, but in previous games his mates haven't been able to give him much in the way of blocking assistance. The Crimson line appears too tough a barrier to allow any sustained individual scoring marches by Hovey Seymour so the Elis will probably have to go to the air to find scoring lanes. Fortunately for the Crimson, Hovey Seymour is not a passing threat.

Passing Threat

Passing is left to Fred Burr and Ted Harrison, two talented tossers. It is quite possible that Harvard will see more flying footballs than ever before this year, but they won't be too dangerous if the Elis have to resort to passing as a last-ditch measure. The Harlow aerial shelters have not received a real test since the Penn game and their strength is difficult to estimate. Cautious Yale did not fill the air with passes against Princeton, but these may be their only dangerous offensive gestures Saturday.

A muddy field would raise havoc with complicated Harvard offensive operations, but Yale passing would obviously suffer considerably. In rain or snow, the Harlowmen should pack just a bit too much running punch for the New Haven Invaders.