"Go on, Pennington!" bawled the Red and Blue.
A lanky individual now loomed up in the path of the oncoming trio. It was Pole! He hurled himself straight at the knees of the interference and the men went down like ten pins.
All save Knapp. Small of stature and a veritable rabbit on his feet; his interference now gone, he depended upon his own cleverness to gain more ground. He eluded the too eager arms of Benz who missed his tackle completely and struck face downward on the sod.
The spectators were now become fairly wild with excitement. Such a brilliant run at the very outset of the game was entirely unlooked for!
"He's got a clear field!" screamed some voice above the din.
"A touchdown from kickoff!" cried a Pennington enthusiast.
Knapp, in order to escape all opponents, now skirted the edge of the gridiron. He passed within a few feet of the Bartlett substitutes who were wildly hoping that some one might down him.
Judd's quick eye saw only one man between Knapp and a touchdown. That man was Cateye!
"Get that guy, Cateye!" bellowed Judd, making a megaphone of his hands.
In that frenzied moment, above the terrific din, Cateye heard and recognized Judd's voice wafted out to him. The words seemed to give him added zeal. He raced across the field toward the speeding Knapp. The little quarterback, confronted with this new obstacle, turned in sharply as Cateye lurched through the air, in order to avoid the tackle. But Cateye had judged the distance too true and Knapp had dodged too late. There was an impact as shoulder met thigh and a crunching sound as the two rolled over and over upon the turf; then mighty cheers.