game.

"I think that one of the hardest games I ever played in was the game
against Princeton in 1908, when they had such stars as Siegling,
MacFadyen, Eddie Dillon and Tibbott. The game ended in a scoreless tie
with the ball see-sawing back and forth on the 40-yard line. I had been
accustomed to carry the ball, and had been successful in executing a
forward pass of fifty-five yards in the Yale game the week before,
placing the ball on the 1-yard line, only to lose it on a fumble.

"I had the reputation of being a good-natured player, and indirectly
heard it rumored many times by coaches and football players that they
would like to see me fighting mad on the football field. The few
Syracuse rooters who journeyed to Easton the day we played Lafayette had
that opportunity. Dowd was the captain of the Lafayette team. Next to me
was Barry, a first-class football player, who stripped in the
neighborhood of 200 pounds. Just before the beginning of the second half
I was in a crouching position ready to start, when some one dealt me a
stinging blow on the ear. I was dazed for the time being. I turned to
Barry and asked him who did it. He pointed to Dowd. From that instant I
was determined to seek revenge. I was ignorant of the true culprit until
about a year afterward, when Anderson, who played center, and was a good
friend of mine, told me about it. It seemed that just before we went on
the field for the second half Buck O'Neil, who was coaching the Syracuse
team, told Barry to hit me and make me mad."




CHAPTER X