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By DANA LEIBENGOOD Kansan Sports Editor
With the last eight weeks of school starting, we will be taking over as Kansan sports editor, and we hope that you will take time to stop and chat along the Javhawker trail.
We should have enough sports the next eight weeks to satisfy even the most rabid sports fan. We will have the golf, tennis, track, and baseball seasons, and also spring football and basketball practice.
The outdoor track season opens the spring sports schedule Saturday when KU competes in the Texas Relays. Baseball gets underway April 5, golf and tennis on April 2, and spring football practice after spring vacation. No date has been announced for the start of spring basketball practice.
On April 13 the major league baseball seasons will open, and from the looks of the spring training games, the league will both be better balanced and the races closer than last year.
We have enjoyed working the last eight weeks with Ken Bronson, who is going to "retire" to the more quiet corners of the news room. We hope that we can do as good a job as Ken has done in covering the KU sports scene the past two months.
We think the next two months will see the KU track team dominate the conference in the same fashion that it did in the indoor season. The KU team may be even stronger outdoors than indoors, for with a fine javelin corp, led by Don Sneegas and Bill Brown, KU is bound to score heavily in this event.
Dispite the fact that it has lost shortstop Harold Patterson, we expect Coach Floyd Temple's baseball team to improve considerably over the KU team which won only six and lost ten last year, four victories and eight losses in conference play. If Bob Allison and Bob Conn can play regularly with the team, it could be a strong contender for the conference championship, for it has some excellent pitching.
Coach Dick Mechem's tennis team and Coach Donn Everett's golf teams should also give good accounts of themselves.
This next eight weeks will give us the opportunity to see Coach Chuck Mather in action for the first time as he begins indoctrinating the KU players with his system. This spring practice should give a definite idea as to the strength of the Jayhawkers next fall.
The job the football staff has is certainly a big one, for the conference should be extremely strong next fall based on the reports coming out of the spring training camps at the other conference schools.
Handful of Old Heroes May Quit After 1954 Season
New York—(U.P.)—The 1954 major league campaign shapes up today as hall and farewell for a mighty handful of the old heroes.
Ordinarily, spring training provides a time of the year in which the stars of tomorrow stretch their muscles. But the old guys also are testing and they have their hopes—and their fears—too.
It could be the swan song for a lot of them.
Fellows like Ted Williams, Bob Feller, Allie Reynolds, Johnny Sain, Walker Cooper, Sal Maglie, and Jackie Robinson, just to mention a few.
Williams, back late last season on the bullet-studded skies over Korea, puts one more good year at the plate. How he does will decide whether he sticks to baseball or devotes full time to his fishing enterprises.
Not that any of them will be gone come 1955. Yet with each it is a possibility, for one reason or another, voluntarily or involuntarily.
Reynolds almost called it quits this year. If the Yankees blow so will he. Sain is in the same boat and without Allie's equipment. Cooper is barely hanging in there at 39; Maglie's back trouble threatens to make every pitch his last, and Robinson's ever-aching muscles and weight problems have him looking with longing toward the end.
Feller's fabulous career is tailing off and he may be only a spot starter this season. It is doubted that he will stick around very long as just another pitcher.
There are a lot of others, possibly not as much in the headlines but still players whom you have cheered to the rafters from time to time.
The Cubs' Howie Pollet, one-time of the Cardinals, will try to better a 6-7 mark to stick while teammate Clyde McCullough finds it ever more difficult to crouch behind a major league mask. Cincinnati's Ken Raffensberger faces a combination of age and lost effectiveness while Milwaukee's
Weight and shackled effectiveness threatens the Pirates' Johnny Lindell while Murry Dickson at 38 may be winding it up. The Cards' Alpha Braze is 40, and hanging on grimly, as old Country Slaughter runs it out down to the wire.
George Metkovich battles on the hitting border.
The Red Sox have several near the end of the trail, in addition to Williams. These include Ellis Kinder, approaching the age of risk; Joe Dobson and catcher Mickey Owen.
Detroit's Steven Gromek needs a comeback from his mediocre performance of last season and outfielder Pat Mullin barely hangs on. The Athletics' Pete Suder creaks around the infield and Washington pitchers Con Marrero and Johnny Schmitz face age and ineffectiveness.
Vern Stephens came back to Baltimore only because of a good contract, wanting personally to pack it in, while Vern Bickford, one-time hero of the Braves, needs a comeback to stick.
Not all of them will go, naturally. Each one of them has a chance to catch fire as of old and blaze to new heights.
Lopez Says Champ to Retire
But in most cases the deck appears to be stacked. And the odds appear to get longer all the time.
Santee Is First In Bankers Mile
Chicago (UP) Manager Angel Lopez today said Welterweight champion Kid Gavilan will retire from the ring after three more fights.
Wes Santee, KU's hope to break the four-minute mile, ran the distance in 4:11:8 to win the Bankers mile in the Chicago Daily News relays Saturday night. Santee's time was slow compared to the Bankers mile record of 4:06.4 set by Gil Dodds in 1944, and a 4:04.9 mile Santee ran earlier this year at Michigan State.
The Harlem Globetrotters hold two easy victories over the College All-stars, 73-70 and 69-57.
KU's two-mile relay team of Ai Frame, Dick Wilson, Lloyd Koby, and Art Dalzell placed fourth behind Michigan, Michigan State, and Indiana. Michigan's time for the event was 8:350, a new meet record which broke Seton Hall's time of 7:39.2 set in 1942.
In the Bankers mile, Santee was far from his usual form. He was clocked in quarters of 59, 67, 62, and 63.8., finishing about 15 yards in front of Lawton Lamb, former Illinois miler. Indiana's Lowell Zellers was third.
New Haven, Conn. —(U.P.)—Ohio State's Buckeyes, who swept nine of 14 titles in the National Collegiate A.A. swimming championships during the weekend, will be heavily favored to take most of the honors in the National AAU championships opening here Thursday.
BuckeyesWin NCAA Title
But the Buckeyes can't add the AAU team crown to their NCAA diadem because of a Big Ten ruling, the members of Coach Mike Pepe's amazing squad must compete as individuals in the AAU meet—rather than as a team unit.
The backbone of Buckeye strength proved to be, just as everyone had expected, the Hawaiian trio of Ford Konno, Yoshi Oyakawa, and Dick Cleveland. They each won two individual titles in their specialty—Konno the 1,500 meter and 440-yard freestyle, Oyakawa the 100 yard and 200 yard backstroke, and Cleveland the 100 yard and 200 yard freestyle.
University Daily Kansan
In addition, the Buckeyes swept the diving events with Fletcher Gilders in the one-meter event and Morley Shapiro on the high board, and then polished off the show by taking the 300-yard medley relay with Oyakawa, Bob Van Heyde, and Tom Whiteleather.
Michigan won three of the other five events with Scotland's Jack Waldrop in the 220-yard freestyle, Burwell (Bumpy) Jones in the 150-yard individual medley, and the 400-yard freestyle relay of Ron Gora, Tom Benner, Don Hill, and Jones.
The other two titles went to Harvard, as Australian Dave Hawkins of the Crimson won both breast-stroke races.
Suggs Wins First In Golf Tourney
Konno and Wardrop were the record-smashers of the meet. Konno clipping 1.1 seconds off his own mark in the 1,500 meters and then erasing the college marks for the 440-yard freestyle. Wardrop, nipping Konno in a close race in the 220-yard freestyle, trimmed a half-second off the meet mark for that event.
Spartanburg, S. C. (UP) Louise Suggs, whose nine 1953 tournament victories included two "sudden death" triumphs, captured first money in an extra hole play-off in the Peach Blossom - Betsy Rawls tournament yesterday to show she's at her best again this year when the going it toughest.
Miss Suggs of Atlanta, Go., shoot a birdie four on the first extra hole yesterday to beat Marlene Bauer of Sarasota, Fla., for the $800 top prize after they tied at the end of the regulation 54 holes with 330's. Marlene took a five on the 55th hole.
Miss Suggs shot a 71 on the final 18 and Miss Bauer fired a 72 to set up their plav-off.
Babe Didrikson Zaharias of Tampa, Fla., finished third with a 221 after collecting a 73 on the final round.
The Boston Red Sox have signed a five-year contract with the city of Sarasota to train there.
Whiz Kids May Become The Forlorn Phillies
Clearwater, Fla.—(U.P.)—In the days before the spectacular Whiz Kids of 1950, they often were called the "Forlorn Phillies." It may be that old nickname will be an apt description for the 1954 Philadelphia Phillies.
It has some of the star players in the game today in pitchers Robin Roberts and Curt Simmons, outfielders Del Ennis and Richie Ashburn, and shortstop-second baseman Granny Hamner. Any club with a nucleus like that figures to be a contender.
But it doesn't appear as if there will be enough help for that solid foundation. For the Phillies lack reserve infield strength, a right fielder, catchers and pitching depth.
No one knows that more than owner Bob Carpenter and Manager Steve O'Neill and they are doing everything possible to swing a few deals before the season opens. Both know that as the club shapes up today there are too many question marks to be talking pennant.
But the outlook isn't too dismal when you have players like Roberts, Simmons, Ennis, Ashburn and Hamer around. If Earl Torgerson at first base and Willie Jones at third could get back in the hitting groove, it wuld improve the Phil's chances tremendously.
Should Kazanski go into the service, it would mean moving Hammer back to his old shortstop post and the Phillies then would be weak at second. They have two promising rookies, Mickey Micelotta and Ben Tompkins, but both may be a year away. Besides, Tompkins sprained his right ankle and may not be ready to start the season.
It would help the club too, if their brilliant young rookie shortstop, Ted Kazanski, isn't called into military service. Now it looks as if he may be summoned around May 15 and if he is, it could wreck the club because of that lack of infield reserve strength.
A first line infield of Torgeson at first, Hammer at second, Kazanski at short and Jones at third could be good enough—if Torgeson and Jones hammer the ball. This is the make-or-break year for Jones, who had a dismal season last year and is on the spot. O'Neill has told him he will have to hit to hold his job.
Ennis in left and Ashburn in center are set in the outfield, but unless Mel Clark recovers from his injured knee, there will be only the veteran Johnny Wyrostek for right. Clark is still a question mark.
In case Jones should falter, rookie Stan Jok, who hit .279 at Baltimore last season, might get the job. Jok, a long ball hitter, can play either third or the outfield.
Stan Lopata and Smokey Burgess will share the catching job. Lopata is the better workman behind
the plate but Burgess is the better hitter. However, neither is a grade A catcher.
Behind Roberts and Simmons for pitching there will be Bob Miller, who hurled so well at the end of last season; Jim Konastany, Murry Dickson, Thornton Kipper, Steve Ridzik and Karl Drewns. John Lindell is a question mark because of a sore arm and the two most promising rookie pitchers, Bob Greenwood and John Sanford, may need another year of minor league seasoning. But O'Neill will have to keep at least one of them if Lindell does not recover, although he feels that it would hurt the chances of either of them if they didn't pitch regularly. Drews is another question mark for he has been pounded hard this spring.
Wrestling Title ToOklahomaA&M
Norman, Okla. — (U.P.)—Oklahoma A&M held the National Collegiate wrestling championship yesterday for the 16th time, replacing Penn State, last year's champion.
The Oklahoma Aggies scored a smashing team victory in the finals last night, with three Aggies capturing individual titles. The winners scored 32 points against 17 for Pittsburgh and 13 for Penn State.
Finishing behind the top three were Iowa and Navy, tied with 12 points each. Michigan State with 11, and Michigan and Oklahoma, each with 10.
Aggies winning titles were Gene Nicks, who decisioned Robert Konovsky of Wisconsin to gain the heavyweight crown; Ned Blass, 177-pounder who edged Royal Smith of Colorado in a referee's decision to retain his national title, and Myron Roderick, who whipped Lehigh's Ed Eichelberger for the 137-pound title.
Tommy Evans, 1952 champion from the University of Oklahoma who was out with an injury last season, pinned Don Thompson of A&M to take the 147-pound crown and was also chosen the year's outstanding NCAA wrestler.