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| Western conference official-.

| Nebraska.

two had begun battling in 1892.

 

 

 

 

 

the Jough Ones
Over the Fence Was Out to
Jim Masker _ in 1910

 

[This is the first of | a series of articles by
officials in various sports on the difficult
decisions they have had to’ make _—
their baoeescts ;

BY JAMES C. C: MASKER,.

- [As told to Charles Bartlett.]
[James C. Masker is the dean of
He com-
pleted his thirty-fifth year of football
officiating last season.
Salina, Kas., he is a graduate of North-
western university, where he played
end and half back. He has worked
scores of important games all over
the country, and in one stretch of
four games in 1981 traveled 11, 000
miles.]

HE hardest decision I ever had to
a. make—and one of the quickest

of them all—was not called in a

Western conference game, but
in a battle which decided the Mis-
souri Valley championship.

The officials in a present day game
have no such difficulty as I encoun:
tered that afternoon. At the time
of this instance there was no such
huge structures as we find enclosing
gridirons of today. There was. on
that day—Nov. 5, 1910—just old -M
Cook field, the home grounds of ‘the
University of Kansas eleven at ae
rence, Kas.

The Jayhawkers were meeting the
Cornhuskers of the University of
Today the feud is one of
the oldest in the game, but it wasn’t
exactly in its infancy then, for the
And
that was the way the game went
throughout the first half, which saw

 

| Nebraska take a 6 to 0 lead on Owen
Frank’s touchdown. |

One Bound and Over
the Fence Into Open Country.

Kansas kicked off at the start of
the second half, the ball heading to-
ward Frank. There was nothing re-
markable about that, unless you knew
the topography of McCook -:field and
the manner in which the ball hit.
Close behind the goal posts was a
fence running the width of the field.
More important, however, was the fact
that a creek ran along back of the
fence, a stream bordered. by jagged
rock formation.

There was no provision for ground
rules in the football code at that
time, and the ball was a free ball
until recovered by one side or «he
other. The kickoff in question struck
in front of Frank and then bounced
high as he touched it'and continued
on over the fence. Realizing he had
to recover it, the Nebraska back
acted quickly and ran straight for
the fence.

A native of.

 

 

«

 

JAMES MASKER.

 

 

being played within the limits of Mc-
Cook field, not within those of Doug-
las county. The game eventually
ended with Nebraska winning, 6 to 0,
by its first half touchdown, but in
the minds of Kansas fans who had
wagered on the game, it was a 6 to
6 tie. My decision later was upheld
by such authorities as Walter Camp
and A. A. Stagg, and the following |
year officials were empowered to
make ground rules ” fit such situa-
tions.