“Good night, sir,” answered Dan. “And—and thank you, sir.”
“What for?” asked the coach, turning at the doorway.
“For letting me stay on the squad,” replied Dan.
“Humph! Maybe you won’t thank me later on. I don’t believe there’s a ghost of a show for you to get on the First, Vinton, although you may get into the Broadwood game for a few minutes. Good-bye.”
When the door had closed Dan listened until Mr. Payson’s footsteps had died away down the corridor. Then he gave a bound onto his bed and turned a somersault, his heels landing with a thump against the wall and seriously impairing the appearance of the wall-paper. When Tubby came in a moment later he found Dan lying on his back with his feet on the pillow. Tubby snorted derisively.
“I guess it’s gone to your head,” he said.
[CHAPTER XV]
GERALD VISITS YARDLEY
The next afternoon Dan got into the scrimmage for a few minutes at left end on the Second and put up such a snappy game that many of the fellows opened their eyes, while Norton, whose place he had taken watched him anxiously from the side-line. The Second was using the forward pass and onside kick for all they were worth, and Ridge, the captain, had taught it two or three rather clever variations of these. The First was learning to hold its own, but now and then the forward pass was pulled off successfully. In the second half of the twenty minute scrimmage which followed practice Dan got by Dickenson twice and in each case captured the ball on a forward pass for a good gain, the second time getting away from the First Team players and landing the pigskin on the twelve yards before being downed by Capes. It was a run of forty yards and it brought the handful of watchers in the grandstand to their feet. King, the Second Team quarter, hugged him ecstatically. The First held and got the ball away and kicked out of danger, but it had been a near thing for them and after the whistle had blown and the players were back in the gymnasium Dan was viewed very respectfully by the First Team fellows.