Most of Englewood's gains were made around the ends, the Hyde Park line being stronger than had been anticipated. Teetzel, as usual, proved the star player of the day, and made one unusually good run. This was in the second half, when he was sent through Hyde Park's tackle, and after clearing his hole and dodging the half-backs, he put down the field for sixty yards, and scored. The team-work of Englewood was better than has been developed by that eleven in any previous game; and as for individual work, Henry and Ferguson deserve mention. Henry followed the interference well, and got through the Hyde Park line whenever he had the ball. Ferguson's strong point was in protecting the runner.
The best work for Hyde Park was done by Captain Linden, who got into every play, and made a gain almost every time he took the ball. He did the scoring for his side. He took the leather on Englewood's twenty-five-yard line three times in succession, making short gains at every plunge, and finally managed to get himself pushed across the line. This is only the second time that Englewood has been scored against in a League football game this year.
The Chicago High-School Football-Players seem to have little pride in making any kind of a showing against out-of-town teams, if we may judge from the performance of Englewood against Elgin, and of Hyde Park against Madison. The Englewood High-School had a game scheduled with Elgin for Thanksgiving day, but as soon as they had won the Cook County championship the eleven disbanded. Manager Knox was at his wits' end to get a team to go to Elgin, and only succeeded in enlisting the services of three of the regular players, filling the other positions as best he could.
Of course this was not a High-School eleven, and had no right to represent itself as such. The Elgin players even claim that one of the men who came along with Manager Knox's patch-work team had played this year with Lake Forest University. The Elgin eleven was the same that has represented that school all season, and which has not been defeated. The game against Englewood, or rather against the eleven that was masquerading in Englewood's colors, ended in a dispute, and was awarded to Elgin. The best element among students at Englewood believe that if the regular team had gone to represent the school the result would have been different. As it is, however, Elgin claims the championship of the Illinois High-Schools.
The Hyde Park H.-S. football-players also went out of training as soon as they had been defeated by Englewood for the Cook County championship. Consequently, when they were called upon to play against Madison High-School, it was impossible to get the regular eleven men together, and a few outsiders were taken in to make up the team. As might have been expected, the influence of these outsiders was of the worst possible kind, and they resorted to methods during the game which would not have been countenanced by the regular players.
This sort of thing brings a bad reputation to the Chicago High-School football-players. Of course this is to be regretted, but it is richly deserved, and unless some of the better element take a hand and introduce rigid reforms in matters athletic, things will go from bad to worse, and the spirit of semi-professionalism, which has proved such a dangerous thing in other quarters, will effect the ruin of sport in Chicago.
The championship of the High-School football teams of Wisconsin and Minnesota was won by the Madison High-School, which defeated the Minneapolis South Side H.-S., 21-0. Both teams played good, hard football, but Madison, although the lighter of the two elevens, had the better system, and plunged through its opponents for repeated gains. Captain Dean of Madison massed his plays on tackles, where he was very successful in gaining ground. The best work for Minneapolis was done in the second half, and their gains were chiefly obtained around the ends. The feature of the game was a goal from the field, kicked by Anderson of Madison H.-S., toward the end of the first half. Madison had forced the ball down to their opponents' 20-yard line, but Minneapolis here took a brace and managed to hold. The ball was then passed back for a kick, and Anderson succeeded in making a beautiful goal. Some of the best work for Madison was done by Wheeler and Curtis at tackle, and by Nelson, who made many fierce plunges through the Minneapolis centre. Davis at centre held well on the defence, and likewise put up a strong offensive game. The best work for Minneapolis was done by Von Schlegell. He did excellent work in the interference, and tackled hard and low; he likewise made a number of gains around the ends. Other good work for Minneapolis was done by Dumas and Shepley.
It is announced that again this year the Knickerbocker Athletic Club will hold a large in-door interscholastic track-athletic meeting. The success of last year's venture will probably help to make the coming occasion one of the biggest interscholastic affairs in any city of the country this winter, and if it is properly conducted it ought certainly to achieve this distinction. I believe it has already been decided that last year's experiment of a dirt track in the Madison Square Garden will not be tried again, and that at the coming meeting the runs will be held on a board flooring. In addition to securing entries from the schools of Boston, Philadelphia, Hartford, New Haven, and other near institutions, an attempt will be made to induce the young athletes of Baltimore, Washington, and possibly Chicago to compete. If this could be done, the meeting would be fully as representative as the National Interscholastic out-door meeting of last June.
EXETER FOOTBALL SQUAD.