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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (April 11, 1946)
By TOMMY WRIGHT CO-SPORTS EDITOR In St. Louis January 7 this year college baseball coaches got together for the first annual meeting of the American Associa tion of College Baseball Coaches and out of that meeting may well come the start of a great boom for the collegiate diamond garde. Coaches representing every section of the United States attended the initial get-together and probably the most im portant resolution was pointed to raising baseball of the campus variety out of the doldrums and into the same class with foot ball and basketball. PLAY-OFFS IN SIGHT More recently the results of the meeting began ' to' show progress and the possibility- of a play-off between the Northern and Southern Divisions of the Pacific Coast conference may Ik* arranged for this year. The ultimate aims of the association include National Collegiate Athletic Association championship play-offs between the several sections of the United States, and a Collegiate World Series. The NCAA divides the country into eight sections and the coaches hope to get intersectional play-offs under way during the 1946 season with the idea in view of having NCAA assist in these similar to the way basketball play offs are handled. Tentative plans for the Colleg.iate World Series fall into the same line with the two top teams meet ing for a five game series. Certainly the whole idea would give college baseball a big boost if it works—and it can. But, there are many obstacles to be overcome before the idea c;\n become a reality. For one thing college baseball has a very limited season which would mean that intersectional play-offs and championship games would necessarily drag into the early summer after the usual school year had ended. And then there is the old economic problem of where are the finances coming from to pay the bill. FINANCES A PROBLEM Probably the first year or so. finances would have to come from other sources than the game itself, but, given proper em phasis and promotion the idea in its ultimate aims would create enough interest to bring' baseball out of the red. Other college sports, football and basketball for example, have proved a paving business for college coffers and baseball, with the proper emphasis and buildup that the play-off system could give it, would also click at the turnstiles. One of the bitterest spots in collegiate baseball has been the practice of the major leagues and their scouts to invade the campus and gallop off with the star players. In the past deals between professional baseball and college players has made many a coach plenty hot under the collar. So on the Association agenda was included a resolution” to make an earnest endeavor to improve its relations with organized baseball.” A committee from the coaches sought and gained a conference with Baseball Commissioner Happy Chandler, ' President Ford Frick of the National League, and Presi dent Will Harridgr of the American League. While these three top men in professional baseball weren’t actually at the meeting, they were represented by a ‘‘school committee" representing organized baseball. The two committees met in February and openly and fi.mklv discussed the problems and made tremendous gains in preventing premature contractural arrangements between pi ofessional baseball and college players. Branch Rickey, as spokesman for organized baseball, backed up the coaches in their plans for promoting college baseball and offered a few e-eellent suggestions. Among these suggestions were such items as improved publicity, careful keeping of records, and s< lections of all-star teams. HOBSON REPRESENTS COAST Before closing- tip shop on their first annual meeting. Presi dent K. 1). Barnes of Colgate university named a membership committee for each of the eight XCAA districts. The duties ot H e district representatives is to keep baseball coaches informed (• the progress of plans and work for the promotion of the game. Oregon’s Coach Howard A. “Ilohhy" Hobson was selected to represent District S which includes California, Ore g; n. Washington, Idaho and Nevada. Clint Evans, coach at the University of California, was appointed chairman of the play-off committee and is 4 presently working hard to get the first series going this • summer. If the plans work out, collegiate baseball will be , on the upgrade and too naturally the caliber of college base Colonel Bill Rates OSC As Rugged Opponents Both Coaches Pessimistic On Saturday’s Outcome By AL PIETSCHMAN Are Oregon’s Track Coach Bill Hayward and Oregon State’s track mentor, Grant Swan twins? In one way, yes, for they both strongly assert that they don’t have much in the way of varsity trackmen and are pessimistic about the strength of their teams in-the Oregon-Oregon State relay clash Saturday. “We have a good sprint relay squad and several other teams show promise,” stated Hayward when questioned about the coming meet, “but we're short of a strong fourth man in some of the teams. We can’t run a relay with three men per team!’’ With only three lettermen, Bob Stevens, Bill Blackledge, and Bob Reiman returning, Beaver Coach Doc Swan has the look of a gloomy man and contends that his team doesn’t possess the needed ex perience of a strong unit. Swan, usually confident of his teams, might be reporting truth fully, but Hayward thinks Swan has his tongue in his cheek when making such statements. A quick glance at some of Swan’s leading trackmen supports Hayward’s con tention. Besides the three field-event lettermen, Stevens, Blackledge and Reiman, the Beavers also have Bill Austin. Austin is no newcomer to followers of track as he is the former state high school champion in the shot put. Two Navy R.O.T.C. men, Don Humphreys and Boh Laidley carry the burden for the Orange sprint squad. Their times has not been revealed but it is known that they are no slouches when pressed in the dashes. 1945’s mile prep champion, Dick Petterson leads Swan’s list of miler’s. Petterson's outstanding advantage is that he is still in shape and has not had the layoff GI’s returning to track have had. Still Swan is pessimistic! R.O.T.C. Navy man John Cherry is Petterson’s running mate in the mile. A native of Bloomington, California, Cherry has overcome the weather difficulty in Oregon and is noted as State’s number two miler. With three Navy R.O.T.C. men definite starters on his squad, Swan is probably grateful that the Navy is still on the Corvallis cam pus, allowing him to add recruits to his team. Coach Hayward would be a happy man if he could have some Navy R.O.T.C. boys to look over! Preparing for the opening track contest, Hayward field attendants have been giving the oval and turf a general face lifting during the past few days. The track, ready for competition Monday, is soft and soggy again due to the recent "showers.” Special rain protectors have been constructed to keep thei high jump takeoff area dry, but jumpers will find themselves roll ing into sawdust ladened with ‘dew’ unless the weather changes. Field caretakers have mowed the turf, brought out judges stands, started liming the track and cleared the shot put circle. The field, runners, coaches, judges will be ready Saturday—will the Sun Gods be here. THii^ lovviiiju ii (JUT. Ralph “Pest" Welch, University of Wash ington football coach, is crying the blues. The school raised the required GPA for out of state stu dents to a 2.75. While Pest be moaned his fate, more than 100 candidates for the 1946 team romp ed on the practice field. Golfers Hit Road Friday For Seattle The Washington Huskies play host to the University of Oregon golf team this weekend as the 1946 golf season officially gets under way. The Webfoot linksters will leave the campus Friday morning on the Seattle trip. Leading the Oregon team in their first competitive play will be Cap tain George Kikes, winner of the California junior college golf crown in 1940. Filling out the Webfoot golf sextet will be Bill Barash, Ralph Huestis, Jack Nicholson, Ozzie Seida, and Wayne Leigh. Bill Barash will act as team manager. The Huskies are reported to have an outstanding golf squad this year including such shot artists as Harold ‘•Toss” Gjolme, Chester Gor don, and Jack Haslett. Gjolme is a former runner-up in the National Inter-collegiate Golf Tournament. “Was your sailor friend heart broken when you jilted him?” “I should say not—he was per fectly horrid!” “What did he do?” “When I gave him back the ring he took a file out of his pocket and cut a notch on the inside. “What was so bad about that?” “There were five notches there already!” Tadcen Topics ball will improve, the interest of fans will take a stepup, and baseball will move into its rightful place alongside football and basketball in the national spotlight. It is a little early to tell just what Oregon's team is going to be like this season, but the Webfoots are shooting to improve an already enviable record. We sincerely hope that a Duck team will be the first to represent the Northern Division Conference in the play-offs. | A Tout’s j 1 Report | By LARRY LAU iiiiimiiiiiimmiim)iiiiii!iti]iiiw:i[iiimmmiiuiiuiiMi!!i!uiniiiii!iiiiimiminiimiiiii!iil “Everybody says spring is truly here,” I said, holding my aching head. “After we get our shoes dried out, let’s wander down to wards Hayward field and see what is going on.’’ My new girl; Cynthia Flannel, unplugged her electric razor, smeared Stag oyer her face, chip ped the accumulated Ipana from her teeth and smiled sweetly. “Sounds O.K. to me. I’m a sporty kid.” The waiter clip-clopped over, tweaked my nose, slapped me on the back, told me a weary joke, and said, “What’ll you have, dude ?” “Bring me some tomato juice for a pickup,” I said, mentally counting to ten. “Allrighty,” he breezed, “that takes care of the girl. Don't you want anything?” “Coffee,” I growled, thoroughly hating him for being so cheerful. “Say, by the way,” Cynthia ask (Please turn ta^pagesix) Around The Clock With Duke By Duke Dennison Football has gone from a war to a peacetime basis along with the rest of the world in general. There has been considerable ado over the potentiality of the West Point and Naval Academy teams for the future, but that can be stowed away by the opponents of the West Pointers due to action taken by the present commandant in dividing the present sophomore class into two sections, one of which will be graduated in the spring of 1947. Whereas Glenn Davis and Felix “Doc” Blanchard, the power of the Army squad of the past couple of years, would normally have haa- - two more years of eligibility left, they will now be seniors and will have graduated before their eli gibility will have been terminated. That should seem to ease the situation for the potentially pow erful peacetime teams in the na tion and make for a mad scramble for the mythical national title, and my fast green is hereby plunk ed down on the nose of the Ram blers from Notre Dame. Subsequent to the announcement by Major General Taylor, the team met and elected Davis and Blan chard co-captains for the ensuing season, which should see another undefeated and untied Cadet squad, and the annexation again of the mythical title, with the possibility of Blanchard walking in with another and final leg on the Sul livan Trophy. This will be the first time that - the Cadets will have elected co (Please turn to page six) Sports Staff This Issue Bernie Hammerbeck A1 Pietschman Art Litchman