Sports
Daily hansan
57th Year, No.1
Sports
SECTION B
LAWRENCE, KANSAS
Thursday, Sept. 17, 1959
Jays Open Season Saturday
By Doug Yocom
The University of Kansas will move into Fort Worth, Tex.. Friday night to open the season against Southwest Conference champion Texas Christian University.
Othol (Abe) Martin's Horned Frogs boast 28 returning lettermen to carry TCU's hopes of repeating as conference champs, a feat only four SWC teams have managed in 44 years. This compares to Coach Jack Mitchell's nucleus of 17 lettermen.
TCU has seven of last year's starting 11 returning this year; left end Jimmy Gilmore. All America left tackle Donald Floyd, right guard Ramon Armstrong, right end Bubba Meyer, left half-back Martin Lasater, right half-back Marshall Harris and full-back Jack Spikes.
Martin points to the three regulars who are missing and six other lettermen from 1958 who have graduated as being key losses. Foremost of these three is quarterback Hunter Enis who Martin called "...the key to our fine season'.
All-Conference left guard Sherrill Headrick, who would have been a senior, was scheduled to start but met scholastic difficulty this spring and is ineligible.
One of Martin's key problems will be to replace Enis at quarterback. One of the three—Larry Dawson, No. 2 last year; Donald George or Jack Sledge, a 1957 letterman, should be calling the signals.
The Horned Frogs will be toughest on the ground. Passing should be only fair because of a lack of experience at quarterback.
But depth at the fullback and halfback positions, which has been called the best in many seasons, should provide a hard-driving offense.
TCU's 1958 team was the top rushing eleven in the Conference with an average of 207.7 yards per game. Fullback Jack Spikes, an all-Conference choice, was No. 2 in SWC rushing figures with 589 vards on 124 carries.
Defensively, the team could rank along with the 1958 unit. Then the Horned Frogs had one of the finest defensive teams in the nation, allowing only 110.4 yards rushing and 106 yards passing a game.
The 1959 team will use basically the split-T with some Winged-T in their attack.
A look at the positions:
Left end—Jimmy Gilmore returns from 1958 and is the club's top punter and a good pass receiver. Competition could come from Milton Ham, a defensive stalwart, and big Aubrey Linne (6-7, 225)
A look at the positions;
Left tackle—Donald Floyd, the 1958 All America, is one of TCU's finest tackles of all time.
Left guard—One of the biggest problems for this year. Roy Kambo. No. 2 last year, should be starting against KU.
Center—Arvie Martin should replace all-SWC Dale Walker. Bobby Biehnuko, an all-SWC freshman selection, could see a lot of action.
Right guard—Ramon Armstrong returns. David McSpeeden follows to make the spot one of the strongest on the team.
Right tackle—Robert Lilly will
start at the position vacated by Joe Robb.
Right end — Co-captain Bubba Meyer leads Paul Peebles and Justin Rowland, two returning lettermen.
Quarterback — Larry Dawson, who is stronger defensively and on the ground, is leading Donald George, the best passer, and Jackie Sledge.
Halfback - Marvin Lasater, a cocaptain and 1958 all-SWC choice, is at left half. Marshall Harris is back on the right side. Harry Moreland, Billy Gault, Bert Coan, Randall Wylie, Jack Reding, and Larry Terrrell provide added power.
Fullback-Jack Spikes is starting. Merlin Priddy, Max Pierce and R.E.Dodson should also see duty.
Experts Again Pick Sooners
Once again Oklahoma will be the team to beat in the Big Eight conference according to 81 sportscasters and writers who follow league action. Five of these experts think Missouri will turn the trick this season.
For the 11th straight time in the history of the annual pre-season football poll, the Oklahoma Sooners have been rated as the No.1 team in the conference by massing a total of 85 points.
Missouri, the only other team to draw a first place vote, had $ 41_{2} $ votes for the championship to Oklahoma's $ 79_{2} $ ,but finished a strong second in the poll with a total of 190 points.
KANSAS FOLLOWED MISSOURI closely with 234 points, far ahead of the rest of the contenders. Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri drew most of the ballots for the first three places, leaving only 16 other spots for the remaining four teams.
1959 Forecast
| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | TP |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| Oklahoma | $79^{1/2}$ | $4^{1/2}$ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | $88^{1/2}$ |
| Missouri | $4^{1/2}$ | 53 | $16^{1/2}$ | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 190 |
| Kansas | 0 | $20^{1/2}$ | $51^{1/2}$ | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | $234^{1/2}$ |
| Nebraska | 0 | 2 | 6 | 32 | $24^{1/2}$ | 12 | 4 | $375^{1/2}$ |
| Colorado | 0 | 1 | 5 | 26 | 30 | 17 | 2 | 387 |
| Kansas State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | $21^{1/2}$ | $32^{1/2}$ | 22 | $475^{1/2}$ |
| Iowa State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 18 | 53 | 520 |
(To determine totals multiply the votes under each position times the number of that position)
Nebraska was fourth with 375 points, followed by Colorado, Kansas State and Iowa State. Oklahoma State will not compete for the conference crown until next year.
THE GAP BETWEEN THE SECOND and third places will be an important one this season with Oklahoma not eligible to compete in the post-season Orange Bowl game this December. Missouri was touted by the experts polled as the likely Big 8 representative but a large number thought the Jayhawkers had a better than fair chance of winning the trip to Miami.
Tulsa Tribune sports editor Jack Charvat summed up why he voted for the Sooners in a manner that was voiced by several of the participants.
Oklahoma and Missouri backers went on record with high praise for both of their clubs as a record high of 81 persons participated in the poll.
"COACH BUD WILKINSON HAS more good backs this season than he's had since the days of Tommy McDonald and company. OU can score, and will, from any place on the field," he predicted.
Budd Pitchford, sports editor of the Longmont, Colo. Times-Call favored Missouri when asked to name his first place selection.
"The year 1959 is proving exceedingly tough for the champs (Yanks, Braves, and Floyd Patterson). That hex could drift across to Oklahoma. Missouri to end the reign of champs in '59," he said.
Three other observers from Kansas newspapers picked the Sooners for the title but predicted that they would lose a conference game this season, something, that hasn't happened since Kansas scored a 16-13 victory here in 1946.
DO IT THIS WAY—Assistant Coach Bill Pace shows the No. 2 Jayhawker quarterback, Lee Flachsbarth, how to pivot on a handoff play.
Flachsbarth, a sophomore, is expected to see much service playing behind letterman Duane Morris.
Kansas Coaches Very Optimistic
That team had speed in both line and backfield. The current crop of freshman gridders boasts size as well as speed.
KU football coaches are optimistic about this year's freshman squad, which they believe may outshine the "best ever" squad of 1958.
Last year's freshman team handily whipped Kansas State and Missouri in its only two games.
FULLBACK is a strong position on the squad. Up to now, 43 freshman grid prospects have told Jack Mitchell, varsity coach, they plan to enroll at KU.
Three Lawrence men on the squad are Henry Asher, 195, tackle; Tom Pritchard, 205, guard; and Jerry Schofer, 210, guard.
The fullbacks are Jack Bowen,
205, Hays; Willis Brooks, 195, Uchinson;
Bill Brungardt, 200, Victoria;
Bill Buck, 185, Mission; Mar-
(Continued on Page 11)
By Jim Trotter
A touch of autumn in the air and the football season is underway.
Things look brighter this season for Kansas football fans despite a rugged pair of opening games against Southwest Conference champion Texas Christian and powerful Syracuse.
Last year the Jayhawkers finished fourth in the Big Eight conference with a 3-2-1 record and had an overall season mark of 4-5-1. This fall the Jayhawkers are being touted for a third place finish behind Oklahoma and Missouri and have been given a strong outside chance by many experts for second place and a berth in the post-season Orange Bowl.
Oklahoma is ineligible to compete in the Orange Bowl this season so the conference runner-up will get the nod. Most of the area sportswriters and broadcasters feel the second place finish will be decided by the Kansas-Missouri game here Nov. 21. Nebraska's Corn-
(Continued on Page 9)