"Great, old man—great! You’re a wonder!"
From the side-lines Frank Merriwell looked on. He stood like a statue when his brother made the play that prevented Hurting from kicking a field goal, his face not seeming to change expression in the least; but had any one looked deep into his eyes he must have seen there was a glow of satisfaction and pride.
Now Fardale began a series of mass-plays that resulted in gains that took the ball fairly to the center of the field. By that time Rivermouth was prepared for this style of playing, and the gains stopped. Fardale was held for three downs and kicked.
Hurting made a fair catch and bored his heel into the ground on the spot, which gave him a free kick in return.
Then the great kicker of the Rivermouth team booted the leather almost to Fardale’s goal-line, where Singleton got it.
Big Bob resolved to try at a kick in return, but he must have been nervous, for he sent the ball out of bounds at Fardale’s forty-five-yard line. Rogers fell on it and brought it out for a scrimmage. There the teams lined up again, Fardale having lost the ball and some ground through this exchange of kicks.
Now Rivermouth suddenly began a new style of playing, forming tandem fashion and spearing into Fardale’s line, picking out Stanton for repeated attacks. The first effort resulted in a gain of full ten yards before Fardale could break up the play and check the advance.
"That’s the style!" said Captain Rogers, of the home team. "Now we have them going, boys! They are easy!"
Again and again the tandem play was tried, and Stanton was battered and bruised and bleeding when the ball was held for three downs within twelve yards of Fardale’s goal.
The Fardale crowd was cheering, but it seemed that the home team was too heavy to be resisted. Still, if full four yards were not made on the next play the ball would go to the visitors.