Parke H. Davis

“ Harvard was playing Yale at Boston, November 20, 1880. A hard, grueling battle was drawing to a close without a score by cither cleven. Just as the last five minutes began, Walter Camp kicked a goal from the field for Yale. The teams quickly lined up for a kick-off, and Cutts, of Harvard, sent a long, swirling kick to Yale's twenty-yard line, where it was caught by R. W. Watson, captain of Yale. With the catch of the ball Watson leaped into flight, and sped straight up
the center of the field. ”

“ The attempt to make a full-field run upon the kick-off does not come unexpectedly, like a sudden thrust at end following a prolonged attack upon the line, as in scrimmage. Before the ball is kicked, every man upon the defense knows that only two plays can follow, either a return kick or an attempt to make a run, and such is the informidable character of a return kick upon this play, that the defensive eleven may devote its entire attention to preventing the run. ”

“ There is no exploit in foot-ball so difficult of achievement and so rare as the full-field run from kick-off to touch-down. Theoretically, such a performance would seem to be impossible. Actually, however, it has been accomplished thirteen times against elevens of major strength in the past forty years, and probably has been achieved as many more against minor teams. ”

“ The disposition of these eleven men within this space is not made at random. Indeed, their system of deployment represents the study and experience of forty years, and presents the most ingenious arrangement that can be devised to protect every inch of the field against any and all contingencies. ”

“ Rinehart, feinting to have the ball, continued his flight up the left side-line, preceded by five of his comrades as interference. The remaining four Lafayette players, who were the most skilful interferers on the eleven, suddenly parted to the right, and, out-flanking the last straggling Wesleyan men coming across the field, swept them also into the trap on the left, while Walbridge, swift as Mercury with his winged shoes, and only detected by a few Wesleyan men who were helpless to reach him, swept up the field, and over the line. ”

“ With machine precision, Pennsylvania’s secondary defenders closed in, but Kennedy went down before Knight and Davidson was blocked off by Chalmers. As all four went to the ground, Bray leaped forward into a clear field save only Woodley, a swift, low, hard tackler. This clean-cut player, seeing the grave danger, came up the field on a curving course so as to intercept Bray near the side-line, a safe forty yards from Pennsylvania’s goal-line. ”

“ Here are eleven men, deployed in a space 160 feet wide and 300 feet long, to prevent a solitary runner from traversing the lime-line stripes that mark this space and reaching the last line for a touch-down. ”