JANUARY 1, 1945
CANNONS, PIONEERS MAKE MAJOR DEAL
The Cincinnati Cannons are clearly 'All-In' with their quest for a third straight World Championship Series title after adding two more veterans from the St Louis Pioneers in a move that saw a pair of first round draft selections in this month's FABL rookie draft head west. The full deal sends talented but injury prone 33 year old centerfielder Gail Gifford and 36 year old righthander Sam Sheppard to the Cannons in exchange for two first round draft picks (Cincinnati's and the one the Cannons previously acquired from Boston) along with AAA pitcher Bobby Horner and minor league outfielder Dutch Peters, who is presently serving in the Army.
The key to the deal for the Cannons is Gifford. The 3-time all-star hit .317 with a Federal Association leading 26 stolen bases last season but has missed substantial time each of the past two seasons with various injuries. Cincinnati will be hoping he can stay healthy and take over the lead-off role in the line-up from Bob Griffith, who was called to military service in November. Sheppard is a former Allen Award winner who had a tough 6-17 season a year ago but won 21 games the previous season and the Cannons are confident he can fill a spot in the bottom half of their rotation. It is clearly another win-now move by a Cincinnati club that has loaded up on veterans the past couple of seasons and had that move pay off with back to back World titles.
The Pioneers are headed for another rebuild with the deal but after a last place finish a year ago this gives them a jump start on young talent with a potential pay off similar to what the Detroit Dynamos accumulated with their 4 first rounders a year ago. The Pioneers have 3 first round selections and Peters gives them a solid corner outfield prospect when the war ends.
Cannons Make CA Title Tougher For the Wolves in 1945
A trade between St. Louis and Cincinnati over the Christmas season has changed the landscape in the CA just as thoughts of Spring Training are beginning to stir in the minds of all baseball fans. The Cannons got a present under their tree from Santa Claus in the form of 3 time All-Star P Sam Sheppard, 36, CF Gail Gifford, 33, also a selection to the mid-summer classic three times. The cost was high as the Pioneers, with a definite look to the future, acquire two late first round picks in the upcoming draft plus OF Dutch Peters who is currently serving, along with P Bobby Horner.
When asked about the trade there were a number of comments from from Toronto management. A front office insider, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, said "This is nothing new for that GM we saw it constantly when he was in Brooklyn. All moves are generally focused on the short term, draft picks and younger players with potential are pieces to moved around the chess board for the FABL team. Our scouting department feels that Peters, 24, will be an above average OF if the time in the Army has not diminished his skills over the last 2 years. Horner, 32, should be able to fulfill a role as an innings eater while the Pioneers wait on development of some younger pitchers. If St. Louis hits the jackpot on either or both draft picks this already formidable team with be a pennant contender every season for the foreseeable future. Cincinnati's acquisition of Sheppard, the first overall selection by Detroit in 1931, should strengthen the Cannons' rotation if he can return to his 1943 form after a disappointing 1944. Gifford a career .300 hitter who will not hurt the team in the OF, but is prone to the strikeout. He will be a short term asset if he can overcome his recent injury history.
When asked if the Wolves were planning a move to counter this trade the same insider said "We are always looking to improve the product in Toronto, we do not make specific moves in response to other teams trades. This season is especially complicated by the uncertainty going on in the war. George Garrison has already returned, the recent reports of the Battle of the Bulge has now probably delayed the return of more players from the European theatre, no one knows how long the fighting will go on in the Pacific. Our plans now are to set up the entire organization with what we know we have then make adjustments if players return from this seemingly unending nightmare. Our philosophy is somewhat different than the Cannons, we rely on our scouting department to provide an unending stream of players trying to challenge for a spot on the big league roster only moving prospects in trades in extreme circumstances. The great unknown of when the war will end forces all FABL teams to have several different plans for 1945, 1946 and beyond; the phones were ringing off the hook before Christmas with teams willing to trade picks in the upcoming draft. Those teams seem to feel players will be returning in the immediate future.
When Manager Bob Call was asked about the trade he said "Playing the Cannons with a possible rotation of Rufus Barrell II, Butch Smith, Sam Sheppard, Jim Crawford and Tom Barrell will be a challenge but I feel the Wolves are up to the task. Do not forget the teams in Chicago, Philadelphia were in the race at some point last season. Montreal, the Stars, Cleveland, Brooklyn all have teams that are formidable, we cannot worry about one team we just play the schedule as it comes hoping to have a pennant when the dust settles in September."
THE FUTURE IS NOW FOR CANNONS
There is no off-season when it comes to the Cincinnati Cannons as the club made another major deal. They are certainly the oldest team in baseball now with the addition of 33 year old outfielder Gail Gifford and 36 year old pitcher Sam Sheppard. Between them the duo own 6 all-star game appearances and an Allen Award. There are questions about both but they certainly apprear -at least at this juncture- to have solved the Cannons needs following the latest scalpel work done by Selective Service to cut appendages off the Cincinnati championship machine.
Gifford will become the third all-star to patrol centerfield at Tice Memorial Stadium in 3 years following Bob Griffith, who took over for Fred Galloway when Galloway left for the Coast Guard. Griffith is in the Army now so the Cannons dipped into their future once more to bring Gifford over from the Pioneers. Gifford, 33, is coming off an all-star season when he hit .317 and looks to be the perfect replacement for Griffith at the top of the Cincinnati batting order. The worry is durability. Gifford has missed substantial time the past few seasons and the Cannons are gambling he can play 120 games in center for them this year.
Sheppard also has a lot of question marks. The 36 year old was one of the best pitchers in the game a decade ago, and won an Allen Award after a 28 win season in 1935. He fell out of favour in St Louis -and his poor work ethic and questionable attitude did not help- but then he had a resurgence in 1943 when he won 21 games and finished third in Allen Award voting. Last year was a down year, but the same can be said about the entire Pioneers club, so Cannons brass is hopeful he can pitch somewhere in between his outstanding 1943 season and subpar 1944 campaign. If he can, Sheppard will be a more than adequate replacement for Chris Clarke, who also departed to join the war effort.
*** Cannons Look to Special Achievement ***
The future might be a big problem but the Cannons brass is clearly 100% focused on doing something that has only been accomplished once before in FABL history - winning three straight World Championship Series. Assistant General Manager Red Franklin summed up the clubs approach very succinctly, "Winning three in a row would be a special achievement. We are going to do our best to accomplish it and we will handle whatever the future deals us when the time comes. Plus," Franklin added with a twinkle in his eye, "who says we are done dealing yet."
1944 IN REVIEW
IT HAD ITS UPS AND DOWNS, BUT '44 WAS A YEAR TO REMEMBER IN SPORTS
Despite it being another year where many of the star athletes from all sports were away from the game and focused on the war effort, 1944 was still a banner year for sports. It was one filled with great performances, incredible suprises and immense disappointments.
The year began with a surprise National Collegiate football champion in Wisconsin Catholic finishing off a perfect season with a New Year's Day win over Northern California in the East-West Classic. That victory capped a completely unexpected run to the AIAA title for the Cavaliers and a performance by a mid-level team that might never again be duplicated.
January also gave us the FABL draft and perhaps the early stages in the building of a dynasty in Detroit after the Dynamos- having traded Red Johnson to the Gothams- were starting over with four of the first nine draft selections and 6 in the top 18. Detroit would also go on to enjoy a surprisingly good season, defying many of the so-called experts with a second place finish in the Federal Association.
As winter turned to spring we received positive news from the play-for-pay grid group as the American Football Association announced it would return to ten teams after dropping to 8 due to war-related roster shortages the previous year. It brought a return of football to the nation's capital after a one-year sabatical for the Wasps and a brand new entry in the Cincinnati Tigers. The news was not all good in Cincinnati during the spring as two-time Allen Award winner Deuce Barrell suffered a season ending elbow injury in March and would miss the entire season. The Barrell injury combined with losing reigning Whitney Award winner Adam Mullins to the war effort seemed to put an end to thoughts of a second straight World Championship Series win for Ad Doria's charges.
April brought us a second straight collegiate cage title for Rainier College thanks to a memorable 27 point effort in the championship game from AIAA Player of the Year Gary Harrison to lead the Majestics past Annapolis Maritime. April also marked the beginning of perhaps the best two months of baseball ever played by a FABL ballclub as the Chicago Cougars raced out to a record setting start to the Continental Association season only to suddenly fall apart, and suffer possibly the greatest collapse in FABL history in the second half. After the All-star game, which was a dandy and won 1-0 by the Fed, the Cincinnati Cannons got hot and -following a colossal deadline deal with the Chicago Chiefs to acquire Rabbit Day and Tom Bird- the Cannons rolled to a second straight pennant.
Meanwhile the Federal Association was a dogfight all season long before the Philadelphia Keystones -led by one of the best offensive seasons ever recorded courtesy of Bobby Barrell- emerged as the winners. Barrell would be an unanimous choice as the Federal Association Whitney winner but he and his mates could not get past a Cannons team - one aided by a comeback season from Bobby's big brother Tom Barrell on the mound- and the Cannons prevailed in a dramatic World Championship Series that went the distance for the third year in a row.
Autumn gave baseball fans plenty of bad news with Rabbit Day's retirement announcement after 18 seasons and 321 career victories, plus the loss of many more star players to the war effort. The tide was turning in the war -which was the greatest news of all this year- and it meant there was at least a slow trickle of athletes returing to the professional sporting scene. And not just in baseball. World Heavyweight Champion Hector Sawyer was discharged from the Army in December and will return to the ring to defend his title in February of 1945. We have had a World Title Fight for the first time in nearly four years as Archie Rees defended his Middleweight crown before 20,000 soldiers in England with a 13th round knockout of former champ Jorge Cuellar. That bout seemed to drive home the fact that there was indeed an end in sight, and the world could hopefully soon return to a sense of normalcy.
Football gave us a mighty Rome State team - perhaps one of the best in collegiate history- led by their backfield All-American duo of sophomores Gus Thompson and Chet Donelson. The pro game gave us the emergence of Billy Bockhorst - the 1942 Christian Trophy winner at Noble Jones College- as a dual threat quarterback in Pittsburgh, the dominance of New York Stars running back Jerrry McElheny and the Philadelphia Frigates defensive backfield. It also gave us the swan song of Stan Vaught - the great Detroit end who almost singlehandedly was responsible for the new reliance on the passing game. Unfortunately for Detroit fans there was no celebration to go along with Vaught's trip off in to the sunset, as the Philadelphia Frigates defense -with 6 interceptions- was just too strong for Vaught's Maroons in the championship game.
1945 promises to be a banner year, with hopes that much of the world -sporting and otherwise- will return to normal. There are many great things expected in the year ahead including two brand new professional football leagues, world championship boxing and perhaps even the return to the game of many of the FABL stars who -like the rest of us- have had our focus in a different direction for so much of this decade.
TALES FROM THE WOLVES DEN
Let's see if we can put together a roster of the greatest players who have donned a Wolves uniform through their 63 year history. It will give you, the reader, something else to debate over the Christmas season rather than the events of WWII which has now dimmed the last six Christmas seasons in Canada. I have searched old copies of the Mail & Empire for stories about the early days. Although they are not numerous they do provide some stories of bygone years and players. To compile this list the writer also talked to old time fans and reporters about the early days in an attempt to gain insight on the 19th and early 20th Century teams. This Mail & Empire article is meant to spark conversation, it is one man's list. Comments will be welcome from the fans, reporters all throughout the FABL.
First of brief franchise history:
1882-91: The team began as the Provincials in the Border Association. After winning the championship the inaugural season the Provincials never again came close to a second championship season.
Overall record (10 seasons) 514-701
Best Finish 1st 1882
Worst Finish 8th 1890, 1891
1892-99: Toronto joins the FABL after the decline of the Border Association that is well chronicled by other reporters.
The team replaces the Provincials nickname becoming known as the Wolves in 1899.
FABL holds its first World Series between the Federal and Continental Association pennant winner in 1893 after the demise of the Border Association.
Toronto recovers after a mid-decade slump to win the first franchise title in 1898.
Overall record (8 seasons) 525-582 (.474)
Best Finish 1st, win World Series 1898
Worst Finish 8th 1893, 1895, 1896
1900-1909: Most successful decade in terms of winning percentage for the team.
NY Stars are the most successful CA team, Boston Minuteman win five pennants consecutively fashion in the Fed.
Start of the big two era for Toronto Allen, Sis then hope to hang on until they can pitch again for the Wolves. Julious begins his four decade career as a manager.
Overall Record 869-669 (.565)
Best Finish 1st, lost World Series in both 1904 and 1909
Worst Finish 7th 1906, 1907
1910-1919: Wolves begin a rapid decline after a title in 1911. One wonders how bad it would have been without Allen and Sis.
CA sees the rise then decline of many teams only the Clippers repeat as pennant winners. FA also has a competitive decade Detroit are the only winners back to back.
Overall Record 645-712 (.457)
Best Finish 1st, win World Series 1911
Worst Finish 7th, 1917
1920-1929: Another decade of misery for Toronto fans, finish no higher than third after Allen and Sis hang up the cleats.
CA sees the Stars win three in a row mid-decade with the Philadelphia Sailors becoming dominate at the end of the Roaring Twenties.
FA has no repeat pennant winners.
Overall Record 657-816 (.446)
Best Finish 3rd, 1926, 1927
Worst Finish 8th, 1921, 1922, 1923
1930-39: Worst decade winning percentage in Toronto. Light appears on the horizon after the acquisition of McCormick, Howerton in 1938. Garrison, Hancock drafted. CA sees many classic battles between Cleveland Foresters, Brooklyn Kings go down to the wire. FA has NY Gothams win four pennants, Philadelphia Keystones win back to back in 1932-33.
Overall Record 657-875 (.430)
Best Finish 2nd 1938
Worst Finish 8th 1932, 1933
1940-44: Toronto led by Fred McCormick wins title in 1940 as draft picks from the lean years populate the lineup. WWII changes the entire landscape. All FABL teams are confronted with manpower changes necessitated by players going off to serve their country.
Overall Record 411-359 (.540)
Best Finish 1st 1940, won World Series
Worst Finish 5th 1941, 1942
ALL-TIME TORONTO WOLVES TEAM
C: Jake Ebner- Catching over the years has never been a strong position for the team. Ebner started 696 games for the Wolves 1909-15, the New Orleans, LA native compiled a career .262/..358/.317 with 235 RBI. Ebner's highlight was leading the league in BB in 87 in 1909. Current catcher Clarence Howerton could be considered for this position but he only came north at age 28 had he spent his entire career with the Wolves he would probably easily replace Ebner once he decides to hang up the cleats.
1B: Bill Harris- A position that was adequately manned over the years but with no one standout. Harris started 1048 games in Toronto 1909-16 this Crosse, WI product put up consistent, but not spectacular, numbers finishing with .292/.350/.426 520 RBI in 1109 games. Harris will be easily replaced on this list if and when Fred McCormick returns from the current conflict with even a modest decline in skills after leaving in 1941. McCormick's issue is the lack of time in a Toronto uniform, he has only spent three full seasons in Toronto, but what seasons they were for the fans. McCormick has a line of .360/.455/.570 in 477 games. At age 35 already can he be considered an all-time team great if he does not put up at least a few more above average seasons? Walter Pack also has shown the potential to be considered for this honour if he can return to his 1943 performance.
2B: John Partain- Partain's was tremendous second baseman robbing countless hits from the opposition. No telling how many games, big innings he literally saved for the Wolves. Spent entire 15 year career in Toronto 1900-15 starter 1902-10, native of Philadelphia, PA was also no slouch at the plated finishing with .287/.333/.380 604 RBI over 6103 times at the plate. Current players Hal Wood, Mike Rollinson look to have more offensive contribution but neither have anywhere close to the fielding prowess of Partain. Either Wood or Rollinson would have both up their game with the bat and improve significantly in the field to even be considered as a replacement for Partain on this list.
3B: Ossie Julious- Brett had difficulty here due to Julious' relatively short career in Canada 1897-1906 after coming from the Gothams in spring training 1897, Oyster Bay, NY started 821 games .327/.450/.408 402 RBI. The decision was to include him because "How do you not include a member of the Hall of Fame?" . A close second was Charlie Nabb who was a starter for entire 17-year career in Toronto, Brett thought a line of .277/.338/.360 over 9276 times in the batter's box deserved at least some consideration for this team. Nabb was also another defensive gem taking away sure hits off the bat into LF. It was as though Ockie Holliday when he was drafted he would challenge for this honour after his retirement, he will have to have a number of high performance seasons, his first 4 years as a starter have been lackluster for the this highly touted 1937 draft pick.
SS: Al Stout-The second half of the middle infield double duo, balls on the ground to the middle of the infield rarely made it on to the OF grass. Friendship, ME native spent 9 years in Toronto starting from 1909-15 in 1072 games .275/.361/..391 377 RBI. Stout and Partain kept the Wolves close in many games with the starting pitcher's best friend, the double play, during the first half of the second decade of the 20th Century. Charlie Artuso may eventually be brought into the conversation in the future. He was the first overall pick in 1934, he has already held down the starting SS job for 7 years at age 29.
LF: Jeff Greene- Greene is oldest player Brett selected his team. LF has not been a position of power over the life of the franchise. Only in Toronto 1891-97 put up .306/.389/.435 with 94 triples 457 RBI for this native of Pittsburgh, PA. At this position there is room for replacement. Can someone like Juan Pomales with his two-way abilities have a career that would vault him to all-time status?
CF: Freddie Malley- If LF has never been a real position of strength CF has not been any better over the years. This Ledyard, CT native was the best of a substandard bunch, steady but not spectacular .270/.324/.392 682 RBI over a 12 year career, all in Toronto. With the players in CF for today's Wolves there is definitely room for one on this team. Will Stickels stay long enough in Toronto to be considered for a Wolves team? Will Tom Frederick continue his promising play when he finally returns from overseas service?
RF: Rich Rowley- While the other two outfield positions has no obvious choice that was not the problem in right. Rowley, a Bedford, TX native spent entire 11 year career in Toronto .328/.402/.450 702 702 RBI. In ten years as a starter he led the league in RBI during 1899 with 116. In the days where field conditions were nowhere today's standards Rowley was an above average fielder at his position. Any of the current players at this position have a long way to go before they are even in the conversation to replace Rowley.
P: Allan Allen- Toronto only has three former players in the Hall so you cannot leave anyone off the team. Allen is a legendary name, the current Pitcher of the Year award is named in after him, he spent 10 season in Toronto leading the league in wins twice 1904, 1906. To mention all the categories he led the league in while in Toronto would take up too much newspaper space. Almost half of his 514 wins, 251, came as a Toronto hurler.
P: Charlie Sis- Another pitcher of legend, spent 13 years in Toronto after coming out of retirement in 1908. For the next decade he dominated CA hitters with seeming ease leading the circuit in wins three years running 1915-17. In 12 of 13 seasons he won more than 20 games for Toronto.
P: Birdie Smith- Smith spent 16 years with the Wolves his 155-192 4.33 career is not going to get into the Hall but he was best pitcher for bad teams logging over 230 innings for 10 straight seasons leading the CA in wins (21) in 1925. Birdie gave everything he had and more to the Wolves organization.
P: Don Cannady- Cannady suffered the same fate as Birdie Smith, a good pitcher eating up innings on a bad Toronto Wolves teams. Even with his lack of support Don managed a 129-130 3.95 record leading the league in wins (25) in 1926. Ten years in Toronto must have seemed like an eternity after he came over from the Gothams in 1922.
Although the present day Wolves seem to have a wealth of strong starters it will be a herculean task to replace either of the top two on any list but Smith and Cannady could be targets for present Wolves hurlers Garrison and Hancock in the future.
Manager- Ossie Julious- Julious will make the all-time team in two locations 3B, Manager. He is in the Hall due to his managerial skills, as skipper in Toronto from 1906-28 led the Wolves through both good times and bad. He led the Toronto squad to a World Series victory in 1911 over the Detroit Dynamos after coming up short in 1908 against the same team. After leaving before the 1929 season Julious went on to manage the Baltimore Cannons for 8 years then moving on to Detroit for his final season in 1937. In 32 seasons as a FABL manager he compiled a record of 2276-2418 (.484), his only championship was the 1911 title with the Wolves.
There are no relievers on this first rendition of an all-time team due to the fact this is a relatively recent addition to the game's strategy.
BANNER YEAR AHEAD EXPECTED IN FIGHT GAME
Like the rest of the sporting scene, the boxing world is anticipating a banner year and a return to normalcy as the year progresses. More and more fighters are returning from long stints in the army and navy and when the war finally ends there will be plenty more pugilisitic talent ready to make it's mark on the sport.
1944 finally saw the first World Title Fight in over 3 years when Archie Rees stopped Jorge Cuellar on a September evening in Liverpool before a screaming crowd of soldiers and sailors. Nothing is finalized at this point but it is expected that Rees will defend his middleweight title again sometime in the year ahead and Heavyweight king Hector Sawyer will also make his first title defense in 4 years. The welterweight division, without a champion since early 1939 when Brit Jimmy 'Kid' Simpson retired at the age of 37 with a 59-2-0 career record, should also have it's new belt holder at sometime this year.
Here are the champions and top contenders in each of the major divisions
Code:
HEAVYWEIGHT DIVISION
RK NAME AGE REC HOMETOWN
CHAMP Hector Sawyer 30 49-3-1 New Orleans, LA
2 Cannon Cooper 23 15-0 Rockford, IL
3 Mark Fountain 26 18-1-1 New York, NY
4 Scott Baker 25 11-0-2 Philadelphia, PA
5 Ken Taylor 24 10-1-3 Sacramento, CA
MIDDLEWEIGHT DIVISION
RK NAME AGE REC HOMETOWN
CHAMP Archie Rees 32 34-4-1 Tadcaster, England
2 Edouard Desmarais 28 34-0 Paris, France
3 Frank Melanson 27 27-0-1 Pittsburgh, Pa.
4 Jack Rainey 30 21-2 New York, NY
5 Jorge Cuellar* 35 42-2-2 Zaragoza, Spain
*is believed to be retired now
WELTERWEIGHT DIVISION (no champion at this point)
RK NAME AGE REC HOMETOWN
1 John Gregory 26 13-1-1 Vista, CA
2 Dennis O'Keefe 28 17-1 Jacksonville, FL
3 George Gibbs 27 13-0 Pueblo, CO
4 Mark Westlake 33 18-1-1 Biloxi, MS
5 Mitchell McFadden 30 21-3-1 Detroit, MI
McELHENY NAMED AFA MOST OUTSTANDING PLAYER
New York Football Stars halfback Jerry McElheny was named the American Football Association's Most Valuable Player after a record setting campaign. The second year back burst on to the scene last year when he finished second in the AFA in rushing yardage with 783 while also leading the league with 9 rushing touchdowns. This season he became just the fourth player in modern AFA history to top the 1,000 yard mark while also establishing a record for rushing touchdowns with 15, smashing a mark that was a decade old.
It has been quite a start to McElheny's pro grid career, especially when you consider how close he was to having no career at all. The Atlanta native was a two-sport star at Georgia Baptist -running track in addition to playing football for the Gators- but suffered a devastating knee injury that cost him all of the 1942 season and made him 4-F for the war effort. He was content to begin life in business until a chance meeting with Tom Barrell at a Georgia Baptist alumni event in February of 1943 in which Tom Barrell put him in touch with his brother Dan. Dan, thinking of his own football injury and how he overcame it to have a successful big league baseball career, convinced McElheny to give foobtall one more chance. It has clearly paid off for McElheny, and the New York Stars.
McElheny is also one of just 3 players who made the all-star team for the second year in a row. He is joined by Detroit Maroons veteran end Stan Vaught and Chicago center Bus McLean. Here are the 1944 All-Star Team members.
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1944 AFA ALL-STAR TEAM
POS NAME TEAM
QB Billy Bockhorst Pittsburgh Paladins
B Jerry McElheny New York Stars
B Ollie Bishop Philadelphia Frigates
B Tommy Milatz New York Stars
E Stan Vaught Detroit Maroons
E Don McIntyre Philadelphia Frigates
T Glen Winters New York Stars
G Paul Kline Washington Wasps
C Bus McLean Chicago Wildcats
G John Michaels New York Stars
T Justin Thomas Philadelphia Frigates
AVIATORS NEED BIG WIN IN EAST-WEST CLASSIC
Chances are very remote that anyone will overtake Rome State for the National Championship of collegiate football but a pair of schools will do their best. The Centurions do not accept Classic bids so their season -and a completely dominant one in which they outscored their opponents by a 452-52 margin- is over with a perfect 9-0 record. Central Ohio can do one better and finish 10-0 if the Aviators can prevail over Coastal California in today's East-West Classic while Iowa A&M can run their record to 9-0 with a win at Dallas in the Lone Star Classic against Payne State.
In all there are 5 classic games on the docket for today with the Hawaii Classic once again cancelled as it has been since the attack on Pearl Harbor. Most eyes will be focused squarely on Santa Ana where the Great Lakes Alliance champions from Columbus, Ohio will attempt to prove they are worthy of the number one ranking. It is likely a losing cause -even if the Aviators win- as the chances of swaying support away from a dominant Rome State eleven seems remote at best.
NEW YEAR'S CLASSIC SCHEDULE
EAST-WEST CLASSIC (Santa Ana, CA) Central Ohio (9-0) vs Coastal California (8-1)
SUNSHINE CLASSIC (Miami, FL) Noble Jones College (8-1) vs Easten Oklahoma (7-1)
LONE STAR CLASSIC (Dallas, TX) Payne State (7-1) vs Iowa A&M (8-0)
CAJUN CLASSIC (New Orlenas, LA) Alabama Baptist (8-0-1) vs Frankford State (7-2)
DESERT CLASIC (El Paso, TX) St Blane (6-3) vs Darnell State (8-2)
U.S. LOOP WOULD DRAW GRIDMEN FROM POOL
Representatives of the newly organized United States Football League, which now plans to operate with teams in just six cities next year, discussed an entirely new method of selecting players at a session in Akron, Ohio last week. League President Urban Dane, who won fame as a 3-time All-American back at Lincoln College, said players who would play on league teams would be distributed from a players' pool selected by a league scouting organization.
Members agreed not to deal with any player under contract to an American Football Association team, but said they considered the AFA reserve list "open territory and will sign any player not definitely under contract."
The U.S. loop had originally envisioned 10 to 12 teams for next season but now find themselves with only six planning to compete in 1945, with two others -Washington and New York- eyeing a 1946 kick-off.
SOLDIERS HOLD THEIR OWN CLASSIC GAME
Spaghetti Classic HQ, Somewhere in Italy, Jan 1 --Battle weary soldiers, flaunting the noisy German radio, which insists that their festivities will be interrupted by a Nazi bomb attack, were ready today for their own New Year's Day football game in which teams from the Twelfth Air Force and Fifth Army will battle for the championship of the Italian war theater, before 25,000 servicemen.
There will be a lot of the same participants, but in a different setting from last year's Arab Classic game in north Africa, reflecting the progress of the war. The hope is unanimous that this will be the first and last Spaghetti Classic game, too, but the GIs are out to make it a big occasion just the same. Although this undesignated site is a stadium which holds more than 45,000 and there are enough service men to pack it, there won't be a capacity house- the war is too close for that.
CAROLINA POLY FINALLY LOSES
The Carolina Poly Cardinals have looked unbeatable at times this season but two days before Christmas they finally ended up on the losing end of a score. The Cardinals made a holiday trek into the Lone Star state and were upended in a surprising upset 36-35 by Texas Gulf Coast. The Hurricanes entered the game with a 3-5 record but the hot hand of junior guard John Toombs paved the way for the surprise victory. Toombs scored a game high 14 points but it was a little used senior backup by the name of Ernest Shuman who was the hero. Shuman has never started a game in his 4 years at Texas Gulf Coast and averages just 2.2 points per game this season. His only shot attempt in his 7 minutes against Carolina Poly was the biggest bucket of his career, sinking an 11 foot set shot with just 12 seconds remaining in the game to prove the margin of victory.
The Cardinals had no after effects of the shocking loss, as they completed their western holiday swing with a dominant 50-36 victory in Phoenix over the Valley State Gunslingers and then tacked on two more wins on their home court this week. The result is the Cardinals remain at the top of the collegiate rankings with a 9-1 record and continue to look towards the start of section play, which for the Cardinals begins with a tough one when they travel to Raleigh for a showdown with 5th ranked North Carolina Tech in just over 2 weeks time.
COLLEGE ATHLETES IN 4-F FACE DRAFT BOARD REVIEWS
Military 4-F's currently performing in 1-A fashion for college athletic teams may expect to hear from their local draft boards one of these days. The Office of War Mobilization has stated that Director James F. Byrnes' recent order to review 4-F classifications of professional athletes applies also to college sports figures.
Although the Byrnes directive does not call for any revolutionary change in established Selective Service practice, officials said it might have the effect of speeding review of 'borderline' cases. Selective Service officials pointed out that no athlete, college or professional, is deferrable because he is an athlete.
"A man with a punctured eardrum might be a 4-F and still able to spring 90 yards to a touchdown in the last 30 seconds of play," one official said. However, there frequently are instances in which a registrant has a slight defect which may correct itself subsequently. He would be classified 4-F but six months later might be place in 1-A.
Code:
COLLEGIATE BASKETBALL RANKINGS
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
1. Carolina Poly (71) 9-1 1799 2 South Atlantic Conference
2. Great Plains State (1) 14-2 1715 3 Indy Midwest
3. Mobile Maritime 9-1 1612 1 South Atlantic Conference
4. CC Los Angeles 8-1 1538 4 West Coast Athletic Association
5. North Carolina Tech 11-2 1493 8 South Atlantic Conference
6. St. Patrick's 12-2 1483 5 Indy Northeast
7. Liberty College 13-2 1432 9 Indy East
8. Rainier College 7-1 1281 7 West Coast Athletic Association
9. Annapolis Maritime 11-2 1254 11 Indy South
10. Western Florida 7-2 1126 6 Deep South Conference
11. Chesapeake State 7-2 1099 13 South Atlantic Conference
12. Mississippi A&M 10-3 960 21 Deep South Conference
13. Garden State 9-3 951 25 Liberty Conference
14. Lincoln 7-3 536 24 Great Lakes Alliance
15. Plover College 11-3 534 NR Indy Midwest
16. Western Iowa 5-3 511 14 Great Lakes Alliance
17. St. Blane 11-4 496 16 Indy East
18. Bardney 11-3 493 NR Indy Northeast
19. Piedmont University 13-3 481 15 Indy South
20. Central Ohio 8-3 466 NR Great Lakes Alliance
21. Empire State 7-2 397 NR Liberty Conference
22. Miami State 11-3 384 10 Indy South
23. Middlesex 11-3 360 NR Indy Northeast
24. Travis College 7-3 293 NR Southwestern Alliance
25. St. Pancras 11-3 274 NR Indy East
Others Receiving Votes:
Ohio Poly 11-4 120 Indy Midwest
Conwell College 9-3 102 Indy East
Oklahoma City State 9-3 57 Plains Athletic Association
Elyria 9-3 57 Indy East
St. Martin's College 12-4 52 Indy Northeast
Noble Jones College 8-3 19 Deep South Conference
Coastal California 7-4 7 West Coast Athletic Association
Alabama Baptist 7-3 5 Deep South Conference
Custer College 8-3 5 West Coast Athletic Association
Wisconsin State 6-3 4 Great Lakes Alliance
Redwood 8-3 4 West Coast Athletic Association
RESULTS INVOLVING RANKED TEAMS
MONDAY DECEMBER 25
#7 Liberty College 61 Pierpont 35
#10 Western Florida 50 Coastal State 37
#14 Lincoln 52 Maldin 46
Topeka State 35 #16 Western Iowa 33
TUESDAY DECEMBER 26
#1 Carolina Poly 50 Valley State 35
#5 North Carolina Tech 48 Berwick 45
#9 Annapolis Maritime 37 Lane State 32
#23 Middlesex 60 Bronx Tech 51
#25 St Pancras 40 Manhattan Tech 34
WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 27
#2 Great Plains State 54 Daniel Boone College 43
#3 Mobile Maritime 43 Glover(GA) 36
#12 Mississippi A&M 41 Capital(MS) University 18
#15 Plover College 45 Cumberland 37
#17 St Blane 64 Minnesota Tech 35
#18 Bardney 50 George Fox 44
#20 Central Ohio 48 Jersey City Tech 40
#24 Travis College 44 Spokane State 42
THURSDAY DECEMBER 28
#4 CC Los Angeles 48 Topeka State 40
#6 St Patrick's 55 Ellery 45
#7 Liberty College 54 Brunswick 41
Campion 42 #10 Western Florida 39
#16 Western Iowa 54 Poweshiek 34
FRIDAY DECEMBER 29
#1 Carolina Poly 55 St Matthew's College 38
#2 Great Plains State 53 Lubbock State 46
#24 Travis College 51 #3 Mobile Maritime 49
#5 North Carolina Tech 42 Daniel Boone College 19
#9 Annapolis Maritime 55 NW New York State 41
#12 Mississippi A&M 43 #22 Miami State 35
#15 Plover College 43 Wisconsin State 41
SATURDAY DECEMBER 30
#13 Garden State 62 #17 St Blane 61
Cowpens State 38 #19 Piedmont University 36
#21 Empire State 54 Brandywine 51
#23 Middlesex 44 Hampden 29
SUNDAY DECEMBER 31
#1 Carolina Poly 51 El Paso Methodist 43
#15 Plover College 53 Laclede 46
#22 Miami State 48 Northern California 45
#25 St Pancras 62 Bigsby College 59
Code:
AIAA SCORING LEADERS
# PLAYER POS MIN PTS REB AST TEAM
1 Jimmy Martens SF 35.4 18.6 4.8 1.3 Tempe College
2 Morgan Melcher SG 33.8 17.4 4.1 1.5 Coastal California
3 Max Lucia PF 34.8 16.2 6.0 0.8 Chesapeake State
4 Darron Gaynor PG 35.1 15.9 2.8 1.9 Miners College
5 Preston Fannin SF 32.6 15.2 4.7 1.0 Columbia Military Academy
6 Trent Lockett SF 32.1 14.7 3.4 1.7 Brookland
7 William Gulley C 31.8 14.6 6.8 1.2 Conwell College
8 Lesley Fry PG 34.9 14.3 1.5 2.2 Richmond State
9 Buddy Gore PG 34.6 14.2 2.6 1.4 American Atlantic
10 Ned Nolan SG 33.3 13.9 5.3 2.3 Liberty College
11 Romeo Hales SF 31.1 13.8 4.1 2.5 Wisconsin Catholic
12 Kevin Kennard SF 31.7 13.8 5.2 1.8 St. Magnus
13 Kenny Irizarry SF 30.9 13.4 5.3 1.5 Perry State College
14 Carl Phipps SF 29.9 13.3 4.1 1.5 St. Blane
15 Dan Newlin SF 35.0 13.0 4.5 2.3 Wyoming A&I
16 Charles Robb PF 32.7 12.9 3.7 1.7 Lexington State
17 Dean Sollars PG 31.8 12.8 2.7 1.1 Alexandria
18 Steve Pesce C 33.1 12.8 4.6 2.5 Charleston Tech
19 Ruth Kahler SG 33.1 12.7 2.9 2.9 St. Pancras
20 Sal Gresham SF 29.2 12.7 4.2 1.8 Coastal State
Code:
AIAA ASSIST LEADERS
# PLAYER POS MIN PTS REB AST TEAM
1 Oswald Sansom PG 33.3 5.8 1.3 5.9 Charleston Tech
2 Jonathan Suazo PG 34.0 7.5 3.8 5.5 Plover College
3 Bernard Tharp PG 31.6 5.1 2.9 5.4 Lincoln
4 Hunter Enright PG 35.6 9.7 3.4 5.2 Frankford State
5 Stephen Rubalcava PG 31.2 9.3 1.2 4.9 Detroit City College
6 Leland Francisco PG 33.8 3.9 2.7 4.7 Perry State College
7 Wilford Eakins SG 33.7 6.3 1.9 4.5 Arkansas A&T
8 Eusebio Constant PG 33.0 9.1 3.8 4.5 Coastal State
9 Joe *Hampton PG 31.5 8.0 2.9 4.5 Western Iowa
10 Arthur Pugh PG 30.5 7.0 2.6 4.4 Central Ohio
The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 12/31/1944
- An assassantion attempt on Prime Minister Winston Churchill by left-wing ELAS forces was foiled when nearly a ton of dynamite hidden in a sewer just outside British headquarters in Athens only a few hours before Churchill was to open a peace conference in the Greek capital.
- The German army drove three fast-rolling Panzar columns into the France-Belgium border area in a new surge of power that ripped away a deep American bulge in it's right flank and linked up the northern and central prongs of the Nazi offensive in a solid 35-mile front. The news turned positive by the end of the week as American reinforcements halted the German push. However, the week ended with a critical battle underway around Bastogne, where German forces have launched a 2-way attack against the US 3rd Army's corridor through the city.
- Following the capture of Leyte, which General Douglas MacArthur says cost Japan 113,221 men in their worst military defeat in history, American forces are setting their sights for other Philippine islands.
- Tokyo continues to be the target of multiple B-29 bombing runs this week and the latest tally from the Navy states the total number of enemy vessels sunk or seriously damaged in the Pacific now numbers 1,090.