The Akron Beacon Journal from Akron, Ohio • Page 89

Wednesday, November 20, 1968 Akron Beacon Tournal 3 '1 ED lysical Fitness 0 rogra May Have Saved Me Phillips Discusses His Fight For Life: id A Kl I i I ft! By PHIL DIETRICH Tom Phillips remembers his 44th birthday more vividly than all the others. It was celebrated in St. Francis Hospital, Wichita, where, 17 days before, Phillips heart had stopped beating. That Kent State University's freshman football coach lived to observe his firth date, Nov. 11, and subsequently to return to his Kent home last Saturday has triggered dozens of rumors.

None are more amazing than the true facts which reveal that Phillips, by his own admission "a bug on physical fitness" who never took a day of sick leave, was stricken Oct. 25 with a total cardiac arrest; that he was hauled, literally speaking, from death's doorstep and now hopes to resume full coaching duties in three months. But the most baffling part of Phillips' Kansas story is why he was singled out in the first place. organizer for the group the last four, he lives the doctrines he preaches. Except for an ulcer for which he underwent surgery in 1965 "I figure I'd had it for 18 years" Phillips' health has been of the best.

He gave up golf, he insists blithely, "because to me it wasn't exercise." Did Phillips the physical fitness bit? Dr. Thomas J. Coleman, the Wichita car-See RETURN, Page G-7 Less than two months before the attack, he took a Step Test with his freshmen football candidates and finished in the middle 50 pet. in the rate at which heart and pulse returned to normal after exercise. Prior to joining the Kent staff, he ran daily and had increased his distance to eight miles per session.

"I could do a 7:19 mile," Phillips recalls. A member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes for more than 10 years and an Black Power For Irish? Negroes Critical Of ND Lineup AAA Jack Patterson Dierdorf: Michigan Monster Man Parseghian said. "The combined qualifications for scholarship and athletic ability are high. We do have five Negro boys on our freshman team. We had to go to five different states to get them." Parseghian, who discussed the demonstration in answer to an unsigned question from the audience, said Simpson was the most outstanding running back he had seen in 19 years of coaching.

Notre Dame has no starting Negro backs. INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -A Negro demonstration at the University of Notre Dame against "all-white backfields" was called "dissent without having all the facts" by football coach Ara Parseghian Tuesday. The unpublicized display of signs last week said, "All-white backfields are a thing of the past," and "How about O.J. Simpson and Leroy Keyes?" Notre Dame lost, 37-22, to Keyes' Purdue team this sea- son.

The lOth-ranked Irish will face Simpson Nov. 30 at top-ranked Southern California. Both grid stars are Negroes. PARSEGIIIAN told the Indianapolis Downtown Quarter back Club that he not oply would be delighted to have both Simpson and Keyes but he would welcome all capable Negro football players. "Notre Dame has many more applications for admittance than it can accept," PHILLIPS begins long road back Put Rap On Team ANN ARBOR, MICH.

Michigan coach Bump Elliott has said it throughout the season the Wolverine team which meets Ohio State Saturday in Columbus for a trip to the Rose Bowl is not an overpowering one. Michigan just isn't that big. The Wolves thrive on execution and finesse. At a press luncheon here, Elliott fretted over this fact. "Ohio State is an outstanding team.

We've searched and searched for a weakness, some chink in its armor. We haven't found any I think we can score on them and I'm sure they'll score on us. But I am worried about, their size, mobility and aggressiveness. "They are an overpowering ream we aren't. And that has to worry you in a game like this where so much is at stake," Elliott concluded.

Later, however, chatting with Bump at his leisure, the true facts came out. While Michigan perhaps does not have as many individual "animals" as the Buckeyes, they are far from being kittens. A case in point is Danny Dierdorf, a massive 6-3, 255-pound Eagle Ends Placed On Waiver List p' 1 flfJlL -fc'N sophomore from Canton Glenwood High. "Danny without a doubt is my most active and talented offensive lineman," said Elliott. Being a man of few1 words, Bump left it for Tony Mason, the former Niles McKinley High coaching whiz, to spell DITKA WAS quoted as saying at a luncheon in New York Monday: "There is a need for a change somewhere.

We're not that bad a ball club, not bad enough for an 0-10 record. "The whole problem is discipline. We had it in Chicago and won a championship with what actually wasn't the best team in football that season." Ditka said he plans to appeal the suspension if Kuhar ich tries to make it slick. He said he already was in touch with the Players Association for advice. Ballman apparently was suspended because he was openly critical of the Eagles' offense and quarterback Sam Snead.

Ballman, a split end, said Snead seldom threw deep passes to him. The Eagles play in Cleveland Sunday. ,1 it out. -1 Mason, now offensive backfield coach and coordinator and oft-rumored successor to Elliot, put it this way: "Danny is certainly All-Big Ten material this season and he has every qualification of a future All-American." Dierdorf 's development has been one of the keys to success for Michigan TUvit Or llonvst Hi ot Dan Dierdorf this year. At season's start, Elliott said Michigan wouldn't be as bad as some forecast if a few underclassmen came Too Many Records For Bronco OB he has blos- through.

Dierdorf has more than come through somed into a full-blown star. PHILADELPHIA (fll -Ends Mike Ditka and Gary Ballman of the winless Philadelphia Eagles have been sus- pended and placed on waivers for granting interviews critical of coach Joe Kuhar-ich. Ballman and Ditka, over the past seven years two of the top pass catchers in the National Football League, both confirmed they were set down indefinitely by Kuhar-ich, also general manager of the Eagles. "He called me in and told me in his little way that I was a troublemaker and was suspended indefinitely," Ditka said. "I'm on suspension and I believe he asked waviers on me," Ballman asserted.

The Eagles made no announcement. Kuharich said. "When we have something to announce we will. These rumors you get from people you have to take with a grain of salt." DITKA SAID the article Kuharich complained about was in Tuesday's New York Post. In the story, the 230-pound-er was quoted as saying he didn't want to leave the Eagles, but would not play again for Kuharich.

Ditka has been sidelined with various injuries and hasn't played much this season as the Eagles lost their first 10 games. He said he was asked in New York if he would play again for Kuharich. "What I replied was: "No I don't think he wants me to play for him. And I don't want to play for anyone who doesn't want me," Ditka said. GOLD, Col.

Iff) A Jefferson County department store and officials of the Denver Broncos of the American Football League Tuesday night recommended to the Jefferson County district: attorney that charges of shoplifting against quarterback Marlin Briscoe be dropped. DOUBLING In brass is Robin Cox of the Westville (Ind.) High basketball team. He also plays the trombone in the school band during halftime shows. AP Briscoe, 23, was arrested Monday afternoon. Sheriff Harold Bray said Briscoe is accused of purchasing 0 record albums, then slipping a third into the package.

Cost of the record in question was $3.98. Briscoe was held in Jeff-son County jail for three hours before being released 0 personal recognizance bond. Unless the charges are dropped, he is to appear in County Court Nov. 27. Bronco coach Lou Saban said, "Apparently there is some difference of opinion with regard to the incident involving Marlin Briscoe.

SABAN SAID there was no change i Briscoe's status with the Broncos. Briscoe was eletvated to starting quarterback this week after regular starter Steve Tensi reinjured his left shoulder. Says Talent Misused Fire Otto-J. Brown IN MICHIGAN'S last game for instance, the Wolverines trailed Wisconsin 9-7, at halftime and a scribe in the press box appraised: 1 "This Michigan team doesn't belong on the same field with Ohio State. Wisconsin would do the Big Ten a favor by winning and stopping all that talk of a championship game next week." Dierdorf, of course, didn't hear the crack.

But down in the locker room, Danny did hear the slam of the door when offensive line coach Frank Maloney ripped off a salvo of invective and stalked out of the room. "You might say it did the job," Dierdorf says "It woke us up to what a miserable job we were doing." In the second half, of course, Michigan's great halfback Ron Johnson rolled for four touchdowns, giving him a record five for the day as Michigan won 34-9 to set up that meeting the pundit said never should happen. Dierdorf personally was credited with opening up gaping holes in the left side of the Badger line which allowed Johnson to sprint for three of his scores. "He just blew people out of Johnson's way like they weren't even there," says Mason. Dierdorf credits guard Stan Broadnax with lending a big hand in the demolition job but admits it may have been his best game of the season.

"I think" he says, "I've improved every game. I was pretty shaky at the beginning, being a sophomore and all. "But now I think I'm ready and I'll find out for sure this week against Ohio State." Strange how the football bounces! Here is Dierdorf, ah unknown quantity at season's start, now a star, and over there, seated on the bench most of the time, is Warren Sipp, the former Akron North standout. Last year, Sipp, a 209-pounder, moved from tight end to starting fullback. He played 138 minutes, ripped off 104 yards in 24 carries and at season's end, received honorable mention All-Big Ten acclaim.

Yet it was almost an after-thought. For at mid-season, Sipp was elbowed out of the starting job by a 211-pound running back was not a team player because he did not block. Brown's recommendation for the Redskins' coaching job? George Allen of the Los Angeles Rams, Mitchell, incidentally, has not been used much this year by the opening of a Black Economic Union office, "but he has not properly utilized the talent on the Redskins' squadr It is time for a change." Brown, a close friend' of Bobby Mitchell of the Redskins, once was criticized by Graham, who said the great MAKLIN BRISCOE WASHINGTON Jim Brown, movie actor and former fullback of the Cleveland Browns, said here that the way to improve the Washington Redskins is to get a new head coach. "I had respect for Otto Graham as a player," Brown told WTOP-TV in an interview at Red Blaik New Chief For PGA? DENVER (ill The Rocky Mountain News said Tuesday night the Professional Golfers i'm an-Tb-Man 1 si Bourbon 1 wudman named uarvie Craw. This year, Sipp has played second team to Craw all the way.

In nine games, Sipp has carried only 10 times for 24 yards. Craw has carried 73 times for 282 yards. The difference is in blocking only. In the Michigan offense, much like in the days of Tom Harmon when Forrest Evashevski threw the blocks that made Harmon a star, the fullback is the destroyer leading the way this time for Johnson. Michigan coaches say Sipp is a better runner, particularly to the outside, than Craw and is a good blocker.

But Craw is what they term a "punishing" llthfitastfi Association is considering offer i Ben Martinr the Air Force football coach, or "Red" Blaik the job of corn-miss i 0 of golf. The News said Noble Chalfant, a -it Warren Sipp men talk over' UkVJ Ml Blaik mrnmm blocker. "He just annihilates people," says sports information director Will Perry. For instance, in the Wisconsin game, Perry carried the ball only twice for two yards gained yet is credited with booming whatever opposition remained out of the holes after Dierdorf's salvos which sprung Johnson loose. The coaches, however, to a man are loud in their praise of Sipp's.

'spirit In the face of the situation. And Warren, himself, takes it in stride. "The best man gets the job," he says," and that's the only way it can be if we're going to win." 1 4 PGA vice president and a former pro at the Denver Country Club, -had proposed Martin's name for the post the PGA is expected to create in. the near future. I I Straight Bourbon Whiskey 86 Proof Frankfort Oistilling Lawrenceburg, Ind..