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ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1953
1
Michigan s
Greatness
Is
Based
on
Spirit
s s *
* R *
* *
4
. e "
S S 9 9 * *
THE ONLY WAY-to stop a good passer is demonstrated by the Michigan forward wall. Laurie
LeClaire (39), Jim Balog (72), and big Gene Knutson (86) team up to throw Illinois' sensational
quarterback Tom O'Connell for a 10 yard loss in the third period of last year's game at Ann Arbor.
Michigan didn't do enough of this however, and the Illini took home a 22-13 win.
* * * * * * * *
'M ridders May Havel
Banne r Season in..1.1953
By IVAN N. KAYE
Daily Sports Editor
Michigan's football team this
year may well be the strongest
seen in these hills since the na-
tional champions of 1948.
Bennie Oosterbaan finds letter-
men abounding on all sides as he
begins his sixth season as head
coach, and twenty-fifth in the em-
ploy of the university at which
he achieved athletic immortality
in the roaring twenties.
a FOR THE first time since that
all-victorious 1948 season, there
is sufficient depth at most posi-.
Review of '52
MICHIGAN
MICHIGAN
MICHIGAN
MICHIGAN
MICHIGAN
MICHIGAN,
MICHIGAN
MICHIGAN
MICHIGAN
13
7
28
48
21
13
49
21
7
Mich. State 27
Stanford 14
Indiana 13
N'western 14
Minnesota 0
Illinois 22
Cornell 7
Purdue 10
Ohio State 27
tions to enable the Maize and
Blue to weatherthe rigors of the
Big Ten schedule.
The schedule itself, though
its conclusion is murderous,
with Illinois, Michigan State
and Ohio State to be faced on
successive Saturdays, is easier
in the beginning than any in
recent years. For the past three
seasons Michigan has been de-.
feated in its opening game by
Michigan State's meteoric grid-
iron machine. Loss of the open-
ing game is perhaps the worst
psychological setback any team
can suffer, and although the
Wolverines came back fighting
during the last two seasons af-
ter defeat in the opener, the
aftereffect was to shake the
morale of the varsity.
The Wolverines will play their
first four games (Washington,
Tulane, Iowa and Northwestern)
on the home turf of Michigan
Stadium. Not only is the opposi-
tion weaker at this point in the
schedule than it was last season,
but the advantage of playing at
home further strengthens the
varsity's chances for a successful
beginning.
* * *
THE ONLY dark spot in the
personnel picture is the shortage
of experience at the all-important
quarterback position. Here 'the
Into their corresponding defen-
sive positions. That is to say
that the linemen- retain their
positions on defense with the
center moving to linebacker,
and the backfield quartet yields
one linebacker to team with the
center, and three defensive half-
backs.
This problem of fitting the men
into positione ondefense has been
a major headache at many schools.
O'Shaughnessy, who had been
regular offensive center for two
seasons, could not play the defen-
sive linebacker position as well as
Dean Ludwig, so the coaches shift-
ed the Michigan captain to right
guard, where he will operate on
offense and defense, turning over
the center-linebacker role to Lud-
wig.
THE VARSITY is particularly
strong in the line. The ends are
led by big Gene Knutson, Bob
Topp, Tad Stanford and Jim
Bates. Knutson is an established
performer, having won the Meyer
W. Morton Trophy in the spring
of 1952 as the most improved
player of the drills that year. The
giant 218 pounder from Beloit,
Wisconsin is a terror on defense,
a rugged blocker, and is decep-
tively fast as a pass-receiver. Bob
Topp, one of the state of Michi-
gan's finest prep school athletes,
has finally come into his own. He
was unexpectedly rugged on de-
fense, where some observers had
thought his slim (6-2, 180 pound)
build might be -a detriment. Topp
is the best pass-catcher in the
Michigan camp. He is a senior,
and like Knutson he should have
his greatest year this autumn.
Tad Stanford is a letterman
golfer who missed spring prac-
tice due to activity on the links.
He can play either left or right
end. It should be noted that
.,m the Michigan system the left
end is primarily a pass-catcher,
while the right end is mnainly a
blocker, though each will do a
good deal of both during the
course of the season. Because
of Topp's unexpected rise dur.
ing the spring drills, it remains
to be seen who will team with
Knutson at the end positions.
Stanford had previously had the
inside track on the left end spot,
but Topp and Jim Bates of
Farmington, a rugged 6 foot 2
inch 195 pound junior, should
provide plenty of competition.
and is presently torn by friendly
strife as brother Dean stars ;at
end for the modern-day IBuck-
eyes. Last year at Columbus,
both Dugger boys were carried
from the field within a few
minutes of each other. It was,
needless to say, a tough after-
noon for mother Dugger. Mich-
igan's Dugger was co-recipient
with Tony Branoff of this year's
Morton trophy as the most im-
proved player of the spring
drills. At 5-10 and 175 pounds,
Dugger is small for a Big Ten
guard, but his aggressiveness
more than makes up for the lack
of weight. ,
Ron Williams, like Dugger, is
possessed of great competitive
spirit, and coupled with an ideal
(5-9 185 pound) build for a guard,
is a wealth of experience which
goes toward making him one of
the key figures in the 1953 line.
Williams hails from Massilon,
Ohio, the spawning ground of All-
Americans. He captained the
Michigan Junior Varsity in his
sophomore year.
* * -*
IN ADDITION to the aforemen-
tioned quartet, there are some oth-
er promising candidates for the
guard positions. Ted Catchey and
Cass Chomicz will be heard from
before the season hasdpassed.
Catchey is stocky, reminding one
of Dominic Tomasi of earlier
Michigan fame, while Chomicz is
tall and rangy. Both will be jun-
iors.
The tackles are headed by
Art Walker, all conference de-
fensive star last year, Jim Ba-
log, a giant 6-3 215 pound sen-
ior from Wheaton, Illinois, Dick
See 'M' FOOTBALL, Page 8
By IVAN N KAYE
Daily sports Editor
MEMBERS OF THE CLASS of 1957: you are to be congratulated
'on selecting as your' place of matriculation one of the greatest
universities in the world.
Michigan is a shining name in the academic ranks, a feared ad-
versary on the athletic field, and above all, a well-balanced all-round
school which brings out the best in its student body.
Many have searched for reasons why Michigan is great,
but the only answer is its combination of the essentials of college
life in a manner which imparts to those who study in its halls
the stuff of which success is made.
The one factor which ties these essentials together and holds
this university apart from and above its contemporaries is the in-
tangible item called "Michigan Spirit."
* * * *
'Michigan Spirit' ...
MICHIGAN SPIRIT IS more than yelling at a football game, or
singing the "Victors" on Friday nights over a glass of beer at
the Pretzel Bell; it is perhaps looking at the gray ugliness of the Ro-
mance Languages building and instead of seeing only.its imperfec-
tions, seeing the generations who have gone before, and realizing
that great men trod these same time-worn halls of learning.
Maybe Michigan spirit is the pride you feel when you find
out that your university was the pioneer in admitting women;
teaching education, forestry, dentistry, pharmacy and internal
medicine; building a fieldhouse, having a glee-club and a news-
paper with over three score of years in continuous publication.
Maybe Michigan spirit is a walk around the campus on an Indian
summer afternoon, and a look at all of the marvelous edifices which
bear mute testimony to the pride that other men in other years had
in their university. The Law Quadrangle, the Rackham Building, the
Union, the League, and Burton Tower with its majestic Baird Carrilon
are but a few .reminders of Michigan's proud past and wealth of ac-
complishment.
+ + " s
MAYBE MICHIGAN SPIRIT is the Tappan Oak, or the Druid Rock,
or the Engine Arch or the steps of Angell Hall. Maybe its open-
ing night at the Union Opera, or the Junior Girls Play; or a week-
end on the sports desk at the Daily. Maybe its a thousand little things
accumulating over a four year period that turn the brash young fresh-
man into the nostalgic, sentimentalist who goes under the title of
senior; but whatever Michigan spirit is, it binds all of the good things
of life in Ann Arbor together and makes of college days an unfor-
gettable experience.
Athletics for All...
SINCE THIS SECTION of the Daily is devoted to sports, it might
be enlightening to review the opportunities for athletic partici-
pation here at Michigan. First and foremost are the varsity sports,
which are handled by the finest all-round group of coaches in Amer-
ica today. There are Big Ten teams operating in football, basketball,
baseball, track, swimming, tennis, wrestling, gymnastics, golf, and
cross country.
In addition Michigan has the nation's finest Ice Hockey
team; a team which has been national champion four times in
six seasons. There are other sports such as soccer, rifle-shooting,
sailing, skiing and bowling which are offered to interested par-
ticipants on a club basis without actual varsity standing.
Touching the lives of almost every student is the vast Intramural
Sports program in which competition is offered on both an individual
and team basis. The leagues encompass the Dormitories, the Frater-
nities, the Independents and the Faculty. I-M competion is spirited
and the caliber of athletics is extremely high. The intramural sports
program is administered by Earl Riskey and his assistant Rod Gram-
beau. These men preside over what is considered the finest student
athletic program anywhere in the nation.
* * * *
Top Facilities ...
HOME OF ATHLETICS, both varsity and intramural, at Michigan
is historic old Ferry Field. This tract of 225 acres, donated back
at the turn of the century by Dexter M. Ferry of Detroit, is the site
of the Intramural Sports Building, Yost Fieldhouse, the Michigan
Baseball Stadium, the track grandstand, 34 tennis courts, and var-
ious football practice fields. Bordering the area is South Ferry Field,
on which are located the Intramural football and baseball playing
fields.
Adjoining Ferry Field, on the West is the gigantic Michigan
Stadium, scene of the varsity's home football games. The stadium
rests solidly in the ground, with no posts to obstruct view, and no
running track to push the spectator farther from the actual playing
field. The stadium is only partly visible from ground level, three-fourths
of it being below the ground, carved into one of Ann Arbor's more
prominent hillsides.
See 'SPORTSCRIPT', Page 5
November Games
Test
Of 1953 Football Slate'
STOPPED-Mchigan's rugged linebacking star Roger Zatkoff (left) and defensive halfback Dave
Tinkham (right) team up to stop Minnesota's great All-American tailback Paul Giel after a short
gain in last year's;game at Ann Arbor. Michigan's defense was rough that day, and the Wolverines
kept the "Little Brown Jug" with a 21-0 victory.
* * * * *S **
By IVAN N. KAYE
Daily Sports Editor
The University of Washington
will open Michigan's nine game
football schedule on September 26,
at the Stadium.
The meeting will be the first be-
tween the two schools. The Hus-
kies will be playing their first
game under new coach John Cher-
berg. Washington had previouslyj
been coached by former Yale men-
tor Howie Odell.
* * s
THE HUSKIES have long been
a power in West Coast football.
Last season, with Don Heinrich
leading the team, Washington won
seven out of ten games, including
a surprising 22-7 conquest of the
powerful California Bears.
Michigan has dropped its last
two games with Pacific Coast
opposition. Stanford pinned 23-
13 and 14-7 losses on the Wol-
verines in each of the last two
seasons.
Tulane will follow Washington
into Michigan Staduim in the
second of four consecutive home
games for the varsity. The Green
Wave under coach Raymond
(Bear) Wolf will sport an all-sen-
ior backfield and a line which
should average better than 205
pounds per man.
* * *
TULANE MUST face Georgia at
Athens before coming to Ann Ar-
bor, and a tough game with a ma-
jor sectional rival should take
something out of the Greenies.
Iowa's Hawkeyes, coached by
former Michigan gridiron hero
Forest Evashevski, will furnish
the first Big Ten opposition for
Bennie Oosterbaan's Wolverines.
It will be the fourteenth meeting
between the two schools. Michi-
gan has won tin and tied one.
The Hawkeyes lost five of sev-
en conference games last season,
and were generally a poor team,
but on 'October 25 they rose to in-
credible heights to upset mighty
Ohio State, 8-0 in the gridiron
surprise of the year. Iowa seems to
play at least one great game ev-
ery year, and coach Evashevski
would like nothing beter than to
lead a team to victory in the sta-
dium where he achieved fame as
the great blocking back for Tom
Harmon.
THE IOWA coaching staff un-
der Evasheviski includes some
prominent Michigan names. Chal-
mers "Bump" Elliott, Archie Ko-
dros and Bob Flora are all han-
dling key positions. Elliott was an'
All-American on the 1947 Michi-
gan team, while Kodros was cap-
tain of the 1939 squad.
Northwestern will be out to
avenge last year's humiliating
48-14 loss to Michigan when it
invades Ann Arbor on October
.17. The Wildcats will have their
pass-catching star Joe Collier,
who holds the conference record
with 34'receptions for 650 yards
last season, in addition to a vet-
eran line and some promising
sophomore backfield candidates.
The Wildcats gave Wisconsin,
Minnesota and Ohio State ter-
rific battles last year, and
seemed to have their only bad
day against Michigan. The last
Northwestern team to appear in
the Stadium defeated Michigan
6-0 in 1951.
Michigan's first away-game and
first real test of the 1953 season
will come on October 24 when the
Wolverines journey to Minneapo-
lis for the annual clash with Min-
nesota.
a little confident. The Wolverines
however, are not accustomed to
such treatment from a team which
they have beaten 25 times in 38
games, and this might very well
be the end of Illinois' current dom-
ination of Michigan.
Illinois has 26 lettermen re-
turning, but key losses are
quarterback Tommy O'Connell,
the nation's best passer last
year, and star end Rex Smith.
The Illini will have a good line,
and that alone will mark them
as a contender for conference
honors, but they lick suffidei7i~-
depth to be considered a major
threat.
Illinois is always primed for the
Michigan game. As with so many
schools on the schedule, the
Michigan game is the big one. In
Minneapolis, Columbus, Cham-
paign, East Lansing and Evan.
ston a victory over the Wolver-
ines means a successful season.
The coaches know that and so
Future Foes
1953 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Sept. 26-Washington at A. A.
Oct. 3-Tulane at Ann Arbor,
Oct. 10-Iowa at Ann Arbor
Oct. 17-Northwestern at A. A.
Oct. 24-Minn. at Minneapolis
Oct. 31-Pennsylvania at A. A.
Nov. 7-Illinois at Champaign
Nov. 14-MSC at East Lansing
Nov. 21-Ohio State at A. A.
do the players, and that is why a
Michigan conference schedule is
always murderous, no matter
what the pre-season predictions
concerning the strength of the
opposition.
* s *
THE GAME with Michigan
State on November 14 at Mack-
lin Field should he one of .the
ALMOST, BUT NOT QUITE:
Wolverines Came Within, One Game of]
graduation of 215 pound Ted To- L
por leaves a pressing vacancy. Top Line coach Jack Blott is loaded
choice to fill the signal-caller void with outstanding performers at
is sophomore Lou Baldacci, a rug- the vital guard and tackle spots.
ged 205 pound Akron, Ohio pro- Michigan has four guards who
duct, who runs, passes and blocks constitute the finest quartet of its
with exceptional skill. Behind kind in the country. In addition
Baldacci are Bill McKinley from to the converted O'Shaughnessy,
Norwalk, Ohio, Ray Kenaga of there are Dick Beison, Don Dug-
Sterling, Illinois, and the great ger and Ron Williams.
forward passing star from Flint, * * *
Duncan McDonald. Kenaga, quar- ALL FOUR are seniors with
Michigan's 1952 football team
came within one game of winning
the Western Conference cham-
ionship.
Going into the final game
against Ohio State in Columbus,
the Wolverines were in first place'
in the Big Ten, but the Buckeyes,
who had not tasted victory over
Michigan in eight seasons, rose
to great heights and stunned a
vast homecoming crowd of 80,000
with a 27-7 win.
MICHIGAN had the better of
the statistics, but fumbles and in-
tercepted passes stalled the of-
fense. Ohio State took advantage
of every Michigan error, with the
great little defensive halfback
FreddBruney being the player of
the day.
The game had been figured
to. ho ,,or.,nlncp n A.to 4.. la Ifat
Michigan managed a consola-
tion touchdown.
The Wolverines began their
season on the wrong foot by drop-
ping games to powerful Michigan
State and a weak Stanford team
out on the Pacific Coast.
*: * *
THE MICHIGAN STATE game
began with a rush of excitement
as Michigan struck for two quick
touchdowns, but the Spartans, four
deep at every position, gradually
wore down the Wolverine linemen
4 * S
IT WILL MARK the fiftieth an- greatest of the season. It will be
TI,* E rul . I niversary of the first "Little Brown televised across the nation as the
Bi en "1tle Jug" game. Michigan has held the game of the week, and might well
sacred crock since 1943, and Wes turn out to be the game of the
Fesler's strong team will be year.
and emerged with a hard-earned primed to return the trophy to The Wolverines will get a
27-13 victory. Minnesota's halls. break from the schedule which
The following week the Stan- The Gophers will have 30 will see the Spartans face pow-
ford team pulled a mild upset returning lettermen, including erful Ohio State on the Sat-
by beating Michigan, 14-7. The the great All-America tailback urday before the Michigan
varsity seemed to be suffering a Paul Giel, around which to build game. That kind of competition
let down from the previous their 1953 team. Last season is going to take the edge off the
game, and could not put any Minnesota tied both Purdue Spartan offense, and there is
kind of offense together against and Wisconsin, the schools an excellent chance that the
the Indians. which shared the conference Buckeyes might beat Biggie
Returning home, the Maize and championship. Experts rate the Munn's team.
Northmen a definite contender Michigan State was the nation's
Blue plunged into the Big Ten despite a rugged schedule which finest football team last year,
schedule and captured games finds them meeting Southern and will have 21 lettermen re-
from Indiana (28-13), Northwes- California, Michigan State, II- turning from the squad that
tern (48-14) and traditional rival linois and Michigan before the swept through nine opponents
Minnesota (21-0). Tailback Ted season is half gone. while stretching its unbeaten
Kress ran for 210 yards in the Michigan's homecoming game .streak to 24 games.
Northwestern game as the help- will feature an old rival, the Un- * *
less Wildcats were crushed by a versity of. - Pennsylvania. The THE SPARTANS are in the Big
Michigan team which was at its Quakers, a frequent football op- Ten this season, and the compe-
offensive peak for the season. ponent in the bygone days of tition will be the toughest the
Illinois moved into Michigan Fielding Yost, will appear on the East Lansing lads have ever
Stadium on the Saturday follow- Michigan schedule for the3, first known. If Michigan State goes
int,...+. Minnfsfna~.+a cmarva nr ii- tie cn. 14-;.-onrara AA A crvr.,. t....hrouh this ~an n~ain
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