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