SPRING FOOTBALL
Earl Melvin Brown, Dartmouth's youthful mentor who will not reach his 29th birthday until this coming October, has started preparing for his second year at the helm of the Big Green eleven by holding informal spring football drills which will terminate May 26. Informal because no man who is participating in any other spring sport is expected to report at these practice sessions which began May 3. This explains why Charley Bodley and Art Young, stellar guards, Larry Bartnick, clever halfback, Jack Burroughs, hardhitting fullback, Jim Washburn, giant tackle, and Hal Clayton, 200-pound fullback from Andover, all of whom were awarded insignia at the close of last season, were among the missing. However, of these men, the only two who are not due to leave the V-ia Unit are Washburn and Clayton, both of whom are figured to hold down starting berths.
Brown was greeted last year with a world of talent and put it to good use as the Indians won 6 out of the 7 games they played, dropping only a 7-6 game at Pennsylvania. This year it is a different story, because the former All-American must work with high school material and form his team around mostly inexperienced men, although several candidates are holdovers or transfers from other colleges.
From other colleges have come Ted Youngling, reserve guard at Cornell last season, and Charlie Holt, who was a reserve halfback for Captain Bob Kast in 1941 when Tuss McLaughry was coach. Outside of these two men, college play was seen only by Franny Black and Bob Harvey, who saw a little action in the closing games that Dartmouth played last fall.
Unlike normal times when Earl Blaik, Tuss McLaughry and other former head coaches were sure of having the same men report for regular practice, Brown is uncertain just who will be around after the present semester ends, and even more uncertain about who he will have after the Notre Dame clash in Boston October 14, since 54 of the 106 aspirants have only one semester remaining. Moreover, Brown is not relying on securing much material from the transfers, new V-12 men, and the 125 civilians entering in July.
Practice sessions are held for two hours daily in shorts and football cleats, but the only contact work is with the blocking bags and dummies. Since Milt Piepul, backfield coach, will not report until July 20, when practice resumes, last season's few remaining stars are on hand to help Brown in his "experimental laboratory." Walt Mercer and Frank Mace, dependable reserve ends, are handling the end material, which is woefully weak; Don Kasprzak, the East's greatest passer last year, Milt Fromson, scat-back, and Hal Bowman, reserve back and center, are helping teach the "T," and big George Evans is putting the linemen through their paces and showing them the intricacies of the Brown system.
After two weeks of fundamentals, a temporary first team was chosen with alternate backfields, but this does not mean positions are closed—far from it. The present line of LaBoy Morter and Tom Williams at ends, Franny Black and Bob Harvey at tackles, Ted Youngling and Nick Fusilli at the guard slots, and Brad Winans at center averages 201 pounds and 6 feet 1 inch, a far bigger front wall than Brown had last year. The backfield is smaller but faster, and has Ed Pogozelski calling the signals, Dick Bennett at fullback (Hal Clayton should start the season), and Norm Miler and Jack Gilbert at the half back positions.
Bennett was an All-State back from Waltham (Mass.) High before he joined the Marines, and Norm Miler was the same at Roosevelt High in lowa.
Having successfully operated the T formation and single-wing attack last year, Brown plans to continue with it, although he has added new variations to his running and passing plays. The defensive formations for which he was famous will not be touched until Piepul reports the latter part of July.
When the opening whistle blows September 30 against the Holy Gross Crusaders, Brown may and may not have a great ball club, but he will certainly have a welldrilled one, and a fighting one.
SPEED DEMON of Harry Hillman's track team this spring is Walt Newman, Cornell transfer, who ran a 9.7 century at West Point and who also stars in the 220 dash.
