Army Coach Blasts Critics
Of Cadets 'Soft' Schedule
Bv OSCAR FRALEY
(United PreM Sports Writer)
New York, Dec. 1 U.R Earl
(Red) Blaik, Army's football
coach, usually is a mild, genial
man but be exploded today all
over the critics ot undefeated
West Point's "soft" schedule
with the assertion that "we don't
give a damn how we are rank
ed."
"We may appear to be a foot
ball power but we aren't," insis
ted the tight-lipped Blaik, whose
teams have gone 20 games with
out defeat. "We have a lot of
players who are not above aver
age and maybe not even average.
The square cut army touch
down teacher also asserted:
1. The Army-Navy game
should not be shifted about
the country, particularly not
to the west coast.
2. The extra point is not un
fair, because the breaks bal
ance up.
3. Banning the two-platoon
system would set football back
a generation as it speeds up the
game and is safer.
Army has been criticized fre
quently for "padding" its slate
with such weak rivals as ua
vidson and V.M.I, instead of
playing an all-major slate such
as Navy's. But Blaik asserted
that the schedules are drawn up
so far in advance that the
strength of any opponent can
not be anticipated.
"They talk about V.M.I.,"
Blaik said a bit bitterly. "The
last time we played them they
had Joe Musa and Bosh Prit
chard, now with the pro Eagles,
and we had a hard time beating
them, 26 to 21.
"Our policy is seven major
games and we don't care
what anybody thinks," he ad
ded. "We don't want to force
the cadets into any harder
football and we don't give a
damn how we are ranked by
anybody. If they want to put
us ISth it's okay with us. All
we want to do is to enjoy our
football."
. Accepting the Lambert trophy,
emblematic of eastern grid sit
premacy, for-the fifth time in
six years, Blaik said he was
against shifting the Army-Navy
game to the west coast.
'The corps deserves to see the
game," he argued, "ana we ii
gure it would cost more than
$1,500,000 to go to the coast,
Figure it out, there are 2,500
cadets and it would cost about
$400 for each one."
As for next season, tne
Army coach disclosed that his
team will meet Colgate, Penn
State, Michigan, Harvard, Col
umbia, Penn, Stanford and
Navy "with New Mexico
thrown in."
Indians Confident Gordon
To Return to Second Base
Cleveland, Dec. 1 VP) The
Cleveland Indians acted pretty
confident today that Joe "Flash"
Gordon will be back at second
base for them in the spring.
General Manager Hank Green
berg says: "I'm convinced Gor
don will be back."
At his home in Eugene, Ore.,
Gordon says: "I'll think it over."
Gordon earlier this week said
he wanted to drop out of major
league baseball next year and
play in the Pacific Coast league,
preferably with Portland, which
is much interested in his pro
posal. But Greenberg told Joe by
telephone yesterday that a deal
like that is out of the question."
Asked later whether his hope
to play in the minor league still
stood, Gordon replied: "Well, I
can still hope, I suppose."
Greenberg said he told Gor
don "we consider him the best
second baseman in baseball and
we couldn't possibly turn him
loose.
'We'll send Joe a contract the
same time we send out all the
others, and I'm sure he'll sign
it and send it back. We can use
him."
Incidentally, Gordon heard
that the Sacramento Solons of
the Pacific Coast league were in
terested in his services. Just to
cover the angles, he telephoned
his pal, Sacramento City Mana
ger Bartley Cavanaugh.
Then he requested the follow
ing home run dope:
How far is it from home plate
in your stadium to the left field
wall? Also, what direction is the
prevailing wind in your ball
park? .
Gordon hit 20 home runs with
the Indians this past season.
Aiken's Gift Car
Traced to Reno
His Former Home
Eugene, Dec. 1 VP) Univer
sity football coach Jim Aiken
may soon have his gift car oack
Eugene police expressed this
hope Wednesday after they had
received notice that a quartet
of auto thieves had been captui
ed in Seattle.
In custody in Seattle were Al
bert Brown, June Lowery, Mil
ton Dolan and Jessie Griffith,
two youthful couples who had
admitted auto thefts, service
station holdups, and bad check
crimes throughout the far west
They said they stole Aiken s
1949 sedan about a montn ago
from in front of his home and
had traded it soon after in Re
no to a used car dealer, getting
a cheaper car and cash. Eugene
police have wired the auto deal
er in Reno for information on
the car.
Lewis Didn't
Shoot Santa
Chicago, Dec. 1 (P) In
Pittsburgh a news broadcas
ter began his program: "John
L. Lewis just shot Santa
Claus" and then went on
telling of the coal strike.
In Chicago a dozen children
promptly grabbed their tele
phones last night and called
Athletics Sign
Last Member of
Champion Trio
Philadelphia, Dec. 1 VP) It'll
be like old home week around
Shibe park next spring with
Mickey Cochrane, Jimmy Dykes
and Bing Miller whooping it up
as they did in the Philadelphia
Athletics' championship days 20
years ago.
The triumvirate was complet
ed yesterday when the Athletics
announced the signing of Coch
rane and Miller as coaches to
replace the dismissed Al Sim
mons and Earl Brucker. Dykes
was with the club last season as
coach.
The signing of Miller, for the
last eight years coach of the Chi
cago White Sox, was expected.
But the signing of Cochrane
came almost as a complete sur
prise. Cochrane has been out of the
major league picture since Aug
ust, 1938, when he was released
as manager of the Detroit Ti
gers after winning two Ameri
can league pennants and one
world championship in five
years.
Warren Changes
Webfoot Platoon
Idea for Star
Eugene, Ore., Dec. 1 A
sophomore hot-shot has changed
Coach John Warren's plans to
install a two-platoon system for
the University of Oregon basket
ball team.
Warren had planned to have a
"big team" and a "little team,"
alternating them to throw the
opposition off-balance. But along
came "little" Ken Hunt of Coos
Bay, Ore. He showed so much
ability that Warren now thinks
Oregon will fare better by mix
ing the two platoons together.
Hunt will be in the starting
lineup tomorrow night when
Oregon tackles Utah State at
Salt Lake City. With him will
be Urban at the other forward
post, Bob Amacher at center.
and Paul Powers and Mel
Krause at guards.
Capital Journal, Salem, Orejjon, Thursday, Dec. 1, 1949 19
the Sun-Times. "Say it isn't
so!" they begged. The news
paper obliged.
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