The Lafayette Test

It was the first meeting between Lafayette and Dartmouth in football history, and two evenly matched teams come together. The battle ding-donged up and down the field during the first period when Lafayette gave a final scare to the Green by marching right down to the seven-yard line. Here Dartmouth held and a field goal failed.

The second period saw the game carried to Lafayette territory during the entire time, but Dartmouth just couldn't seem to click around the last 'two white lines. It was not until very late in the third period that a fellow named Wilbur Langdon Powers, about whom we told you last month, was inserted into the game and things started to happen. It was Dartmouth's ball on the 30-yard line when Mr. Powers made his entrance.

On the first play he started out of his tracks like a startled deer and hit for the right tackle. He was pushed out and ended by swinging way out around the end, and it looked for a minute as though he was going to run right up into the stands, but he cut to the sideline and outraced three Lafayette men. Well, Powers' run carried 24 yards before he was downed eight yards from the goal, and after a short plunge by Dave Hedges, Fishman galloped over, using the Powers' reverse play on the other side of the line. There just wasn't any more story to the game, which was a contest very sparse of good runs and mainly a kicking duel in which Bill Clark far outdistanced, outplaced and outmanoeuvered his opponents.

What we cannot understand at this writing is how this Lafayette team was walloped by six touchdowns yesterday by a Colgate eleven which apparently went berserk. Apparently that throws our figuring all out, for either Dartmouth wore Lafayette to a frazzle or else the Indians weren't up against such hot opposition after all.

The makeup of the team had resolved itself pretty definitely in this Lafayette game. Ward Donner had been injured the week before, and his place was taken by another veteran, Jack Trost, but the rest of the team was intact. Al Baldwin and Phil Glazer fitted very well into the tackle positions, and Capt. Bill Hoffman and Bob Michelet drew the guard assignments. Harold Mackey stepped into the left end position. The backfield was composed of Sammy Fishman, Bill Clark, John Donovan and Roald Morton. Donovan was injured and another veteran, Dave Hedges, stepped into his position.

That lineup carried through the Pennsylvania game and will form the offensive strength for the Harvard game.

As you know, the Dartmouth attack has been radically shifted this year. From the first day of practise Jack Cannell and his mates evolved a shift play which involved both the line and backfield and the forward passing attack was changed over to take in more tossers and receivers.

This system was not put into effect until the Lafayette game. If its working was disappointing in that game it must be borne in mind that no system which entails such a radical departure can be expected to click on the first try. Naturally the execution was a bit ragged and the men did not seem any too certain of themselves. Lafayette was not particularly bothered with the shift.