Sportsmanship Rampant

After the dismal morass of scandals into which college football sank this past summer, even the smallest act of sportsmanship in the gridiron game would be welcome. Thus the Holy Cross decision not to use freshmen when it plays against Harvard and Brown (who are following an Ivy League decision not to use them) seems encouraging out of all proportion to its importance.

Of course, the principle behind this one action has wider applications. Colleges which enticed players with convertibles would not use these players against teams which only provided their footballers with straight scholarships. Men who were only able to stay in college (and on the team) through special academic dispensations could not be used against the stricter schools which refused to lower their requirements. These rules would have the double salutary effect of enabling colleges to buy as husky a team as they wished while making individual games more highly competitive.

Meanwhile, the Holy Cross action has had a couple of salutary effects of its own. It will give Harvard a somewhat better chance to extend its one-game winning streak. And it will give some Crusader freshmen a two-week chance to get acquainted with their college and perhaps do a little studying on the side.