E.A. THOMAS COMMISSIONER OFFICE PHONE 2-0370 RESIDENCE PHONE 2-O175 | asas ‘srate Hicn ieHo0l i oS BTATE [GH wl » had Vv Aga ag q=qs B 4eB ACTIVITICS ASSOCIATION MEMBER OF NATIONAL FEDERATION OF ATHLETIC ASSOCIATIONS ROOM 409 - NATIONAL RESERVE BUILDING TOPGRA November 3, 1941 Dr. Forrest C. Allen Director of Physical Education University of Kansas Lawrence, Kansas Dear Doctor Allen: I received your letter in regard to sports participation of our member high schools last year. We had a total membership of 674 senior high schools last year with the following participation in the various sports: Sport No. Schools No. Pupils Football BS 4 ne 10,548. Six-Men Football 89 1,401 Basketball 666 ———_ . 14,112. Track 482 8,465: Tennis 178 999 Baseball 300 .- 4,476 | Wrestling 20 380 Golf 54 333 Softball 19 306 ' Swimming 7 =o 88 E. R. STEVENS, PRESIDENT INDEPENDENCE Very cordially yours, E., « Tomas Commissioner EAT :DLC J. R. JONES, VICE-PRESIDENT GARDEN CITY E. A. FUNK, TREASURER ARKANSAS CITY D,. E. WOLGAST MARYSVILLE J. E. BOWERS SENECA HUGH W. SPEER HAYS OFFICE PHONE 2-0370 RESIDENCE PHONE 2-O175 eases SrTare Hien Seno. ACTIVITIES ASSOCIATION E.A. THOMAS MEMBER OF NATIONAL FEDERATION OF ATHLETIC ASSOCIATIONS COMMISSIONER \ ~ ROOM 409 - NATIONAL RESERVE BUILDING TOPGHA November 3, 1941 Dr. Forrest C. Allen University of Kansas Lawrence, Kansas Dear Doctor Allen: When I was compiling the statistics you wanted on sports participation today I was not certain whether you also wanted the individual names of schools for the major sports. I have checked off on our membership list the sports played in the various schools, basketball being omitted because all schools play basketball with the exception of the seven listed. The total number of individual pupils participating in all sports last year was 21,289. I am also enclosing a summary of former years in case you wish to compare this year's results. Erie Vanek is certainly making a big hit here in the short time he has been on the job. Everyone speaks most highly of him and I'm sure he's off to a good start. He and Mary can hardly hold themselves until your first game and from what Ernie says the boys appear to be capable of developing into one of your better clubs in that long line of championship teams. Hope to get down for some of the games! Very cordially yours, p Delmar Curry E. R. STEVENS, PRESIDENT INDEPENDENCE J. R. JONES, VICE-PRESIDENT GARDEN CITY E. A. FUNK, TREASURER ARKANSAS CITY D. E. WOLGAST MARYSVILLE J. E. BOWERS SENECA HUGH W. SPEER HAYS NINE SPORTS PARTICIPATION RECORDS BROKEN A continuation of the upward trend in sports partici- pation among the member schools of the Association is shown in a summary of athletic participation for the 1939-1940 school year. More than 21,000 boys took part in the ten approved sports during the year, re- presenting an increase of approximately 4oo over the previous high established in 1938-1939. Altogether nine new records were established as old marks were broken in football, basketball, track, tennis, wrestling, golf, and softball in addition to the total number. With 73 schools reporting six-man football teams, the number of schools playing football jumped to 391, an increase of 24 over the preceding year and the highest number participating in the gridiron sport since 1931-32. There were 318 eleven-man football schools with 10,631 boys competing, while the 73 six-man schools had 1,127 boys reporting. The combined total of 11,758 was the largest number of individual football participants since records have been kept and was a hike of more than 700 over last year. Although four less schools played basketball, the number of pupils continued to climb and reached 13,937, another record, and an increase of approximately 350 over the former mark. Track turned in a double record as eight new schools took up the spring sport for a total of 490, and a record-smashing total of 8,815 boys turned out for the cinder competition. The number of tennis schools dropped off slightly, but more boys than ever before participated. Wrestling increased both in the number of schools and in the number of grapplers as 346 boys took part as re- presentatives of 19 schools. The total of 50 schools having golf teams tied the number in 1935-36 and also in 1937-38, but the individual total of 278 was an all- time high. Twenty schools playing softball had 358 players, another record. Year Football 6-man Football Basketball Track Tennis Baseball Wrestling Golf Softball Swimming Totals mae = a = a a a a 3 4 2 ° ° °o ° ° ° ° ° ° ° °o SOs 4 8 ee Se es § oe a OE SES WY -Q Y OQ YN [oa Y Q Yn < wAnthony << Bucklin <== Columbus ~\ «= Esbon a Antrim (St. John) Bucyrus ~=Concordia —— =Eskridge Appanoose » Buffalo » «Conway Spring® «Eudora (Pomona) » Buhler Coolidge “~Eureka ~ —Arcadia - Bunker Hill Copeland ~ Everest ~ —Argentine (K.C* Burden X s=Corning —>y Fairview ~ Argonia — Burdett x ««Cottonwood Falls Fall River « Arkansas City Burdick X«=Council Grove~: Falun - = Arlington A=Burlingame ~~ A= Courtland Fellsburg - ~ “Arma > Burlington Covert X am Florence —_ Arnold <=-Burns Coyville —* Flush (St: George) _ ~Asherville x Burr Oak — ~ Cuba —* Fontana’ — 7% -Ashland -. 2 ™=Burrton *—Cullison — ¥ —¥Ford — XX Assaria Bushong — Culver * Formoso ~ Atchison »*=Bushton —* Cunningham *«=Fort Scott — © Athens (Glen Elde®Byers SHS Damar Fostoria Athol >»=—Caldwell — §< Deerfield ~~” —¥Fowler — ~Atlanta Cambridge ~~ Delavan » «Frankfort 7. Attica ~*~ «Caney m= Delia Fredonia /~> Atwood *~— Douglass ~ Gem X «Beattie »~ Chanute — Dover ~ -=-Geneseo ~ Beeler < «Chapman * Downs — * Geuda Springs “Belle Plaine < «Chase nets Dresden ¥ ==Girard » Belleville - Chautauqua — Dunlap — ¥ «Glasco — »* ‘Belmont ~™== Cheney — X Durham —_ Glendale < “Beloit ~e=Cherokee “ “ Dwight (Brookville) — ——»>9¥& Belpre == Cherryvale Easton ~== Potwin Immaculate Concep-Lone Elm * =Narka ~“"=Powhattan tion (St. Marys)=Longford = Nashville — * Prairie View * «Independence —* ="Long Island =Natoma ‘Pratt Ae Ingalls ~ Longton — Neal “Prescott / -=Tnman — .~ -Lorraine * «=ITeodesha ~~ Preston * Iola == Lost Springs = Neosho Falls _ *="Pretty Prairie * Tonia “—"TLouisburg —~* Neosho Rapids Princeton _— —_—. ee ~ Irving “~="Lovewell Isabel < ——TLucas y= Jamestown « —Luray —“ Ness City —-— Protection — Netawaka — -=Quenemo : ~ ==Newton * Quincy = OF K. S. H. S. A. A—1941 — VicToR/A 5 X —Quinter St. Paul Stockdale “Ward (K.C.) — Radium *“Sabetha — <—Stockton —“*“Washburn * Ramona Sacred Heart *“ Strawn (Topeka) » Randall {(Saima)> =.” smong City * Washington = Randolph “ ««Saffordville *=. Whiting ~ Ruleton <~Smith Center “e™Ulysses ™/*> Wichita East » «Russell sen Smolan =— *“ Uniontown ~*~ Wichita North — ©“ Russell Springs’ “Soldier ie eOUCA Wilburton «= St. Francis “~ «Solomon “Valley Center®. «Williamsburg ". St Francis « «South Haven “Valley Falls =* Willis (St. Paul) . Sparks “Vermillion — Wilmore ~ St. George — “™Spearville Vernon — ~ Wilsey -— St. John “ Speed = Vesper —* we Wilson — St. John’s College’ Spivey fre 2s ValasS / ~e Winchester (Winfield) “eSpring Hill =" Vinland Windom « to 1 by hundreds of college and high school. coaches throughout the country. Our Kansas coaches are almost unanimous for them, as they are for the molded basket- ball and we doubt if there will be any going back. In fact, we fear for the safety of anyone who would suggest such a thing. We are not so much concerned just now with the merits of the molded ball or the new backboard, but we are con- cerned with the advisability of our high school associations being submitted to the domination of a rules making body that does not know “where it has been, where it is now, or where it is going.” April 15, 1942 I em sending you a copy of e letter I wrote to George Exdahl of Highland Park, Tllinois, and you can see that I have recomended the fan-shaped backboard, and will continue to do so to all high school and college . @@ministrators regardless of what other people may say. Sincerely yours, Director of Physical Education end Recreation, PCA:AI Varsity Basketball and Baseball Coach. Enc. OFFICE PHONE 2-0370 RESIDENCE PHONE 2-0O175 la ens rate Hin enol. ACTIVITIES ASSOCIATION E.A. THOMAS MEMBER OF NATIONAL FEDERATION OF ATHLETIC ASSOCIATIONS COMMISSIONER ROOM 409 - NATIONAL RESERVE BUILDING TOPGEA April 13, 1942 Dr. Forrest C. Allen, Director of Physical Education, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas Dear "Doc"; I was in Chicago over the week end and had enother talk with Mr. Porter in regard to the action of the basketball rules committee. I also sent a copy of my editorial to George Edwards and have a fine letter from him this morning. George Edwards does not think the situation is so serious as Mr. Porter seems to think it is. George believes that if we will just be patient and not try to force the issue so fast the transition to the new type of backboard will come in time, Of course, you and I understand that Mr. Porter is quite persistent in advancing his ideas and I was a little bit afraid that perhaps he was endeavoring to force the issue a little too fast at first. While George is very loyal to the streamlined board I think he is cognizant of the true situation and it is quite a relief to me to receive his reassuring letter. He seems to think that with both boards and both types of basketballs approved we shall have to be content until after the war is over. He is also very anxious that nothing be done to dis» turb the relationship between the high schools and the colleges. Unlike Mr. Porter he does not believe the college and university men are anxious to break away. This is good news to us, of course, and it will be of assistance to us in planning our affairs for the future. The first opportunity I have I shall drop in and talk to you about it. In the meantime I think our best procedure is to say very little about it. Perhaps I have said too much in my artiele and I shall not comment on it further unless something comes up in the meantime. With best wishes, I am E. R. STEVENS, PRESIDENT : Very cordially yours, INDEPENDENCE J. R. JONES, VICE-PRESIDENT GARDEN CITY E. A. FUNK, TREASURER ARKANSAS CITY D. E. WoLGAST Ee £ Thomas, MARYSVILLE : : . J. E. Bowers BATs:el Commissioner. SENECA HUGH W. SPEER HAYS