Hinz Keeps Making the Anticipation Worth the Wait

His name is pronounced like the ketchup, and he started last season just like it--slowly.

It took Tony Hinz a while to get rolling, but once he did, he didn't stop pouring it on until the gridders were Ivy League Champions.

Was the anticipation worth the wait?

"Whatever helps us win an Ivy League Championship is worth it," Hinz says. "Initially we had a different emphasis on the running game. It was fine. We were winning."

But like any good running back, Hinz would have liked to have carried the ball more.

He gained only 101 yards in 29 carries in the first three games last season. (In the same span, Yohe threw 91 times.)

"When you're on a team, you always want to contribute," Hinz says. "I just want to help the team any way I can."

By clamping down on Air Yohe, opponents eventually dictated the way Harvard attacked. Mr. Multiflex, Coach Joe Restic, went back to the drawing board, lined his backs in the I-formation and gave the ball to Hinz 18 times (77 yards) against Cornell in the fourth week of the season.

The cap had been popped off the bottle, and Hinz has been flowing ever since.

Hinz pounded Dartmouth for 152 yards (on only 12 carries), including an electrifying 73-yd. touchdown run. He followed by running for 90 yards or more in each of the last four contests, (90 vs. Princeton, 110 vs. Brown, 98 vs. Penn and 161 vs. Yale.).

He finished the season with 789 yards rushing and nine touchdowns. Hinz also caught 16 passes for 258 yards (a 16.1 average.)

Hinz might never have had the chance to shine as a tailback. Three years ago, he started at fullback on the freshman team, averaging 3.4 yards per carry.

But the coaching staff--and his teammates--knew Hinz would come around.

"Tony is a kid who came here with great potential," guard Tony Consigli says, "and he developed it into something special."

As a high school senior, Hinz set a Montana school record by running for 1650 yards and scoring 20 touchdowns. When he wasn't dominating the gridiron, he could usually be found off in the woods, hunting and fishing with his father and two brothers.

"Oh, that's become a real joke now," Hinz says. "People are always asking me about it. It's really been blown out of proportion. We do a lot of big-game hunting in Montana, nothing special though."

As a sophomore, he made the varsity as the backup fullback. He started twice, gaining 150 yards during the 3-7 season.

It was not until last year, though, when he replaced injured starter Rufus Jones at tailback, that he realized his potential. The wait was over.

"Tony Hinz came on for us and filled a void when we lost Rufus Jones [to a foot injury]," Harvard Coach Joe Restic says. "And he had just an outstanding year. I look at what he did for us and the team in the last ballgame against Yale. He's just an outstanding performer."

Opposing coaches were impressed with Hinz's stats and his clutch performances a year ago. They rave even more about his combination of size and speed. At 6-ft., 1-in., 205-lbs., he is bigger than most Ivy League fullbacks. Yet his 4.4 speed in the 40-yard dash makes him almost as fast as some of the big-game deer he hunted in Montana.

What Hinz's teammates notice about him is his tirelessness on the gridiron. He is always one of first on the field and one of the last to leave the locker room.

"People look at how big and fast he is," senior wideout Neil Phillips says, "but his work ethic matches his physical attributes, and that is what makes him such a great back. When I see him run the ball, I just say I'm glad he's on my team."

Consigli, one of the four offensive linemen returning to block for Hinz, also offers high-praise.

"He's a hard worker, he has a great attitude," Consigli says. "Everyone knows he has great speed, how big and tough he is, but a lot of running backs have that and yet they aren't able to do the things he can do."

If Harvard does repeat this year, Hinz probably will be a major factor. And if he's not, it will be because opponents have decided to key on him, a move Hinz says will backfire.

"I don't think that any team can key on one particular person because our offense is so diverse," Hinz says. "I don't think any team can say `O.K., just key on Hinz,' because the next guy will step in and do the same job."

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Hinz hopes to pick up where he left off last season. He gained 161 yards and scored both touchdowns (including a 57-yard run) in Harvard's 14-10 victory in The Game. Yet, Hinz says the last play of The Game--in which Yohe fell on the ball to run out the clock--is the play he will always remember.

"Just to sit on the ball and watch the seconds tick away was the one play I'll never forget," Hinz says. "I'll probably never forget falling on Tom so we could protect the ball and run out the clock. We had all come so far. We all felt so deserving because of how hard we had all worked."

When the Crimson opens its season tomorrow at home against Columbia, Hinz says there will not be a let-down, even though the Lions have dropped 41 consecutive contests.

"We're taking Columbia very seriously," Hinz says. "We want to show the league we're very serious about defending our crown. A goal we have this year is to go undefeated. If we lose, we'll try to pick up the pieces. We'll be disappointed if we don't win the Championship."

The waiting is over. It's time to dig in.