Oakland Tribune from Oakland, California • 27

Oakland Tribune Sept. 11, 1977 5C 27 sports Lave Manhase Sports Scanner A retired Berkeley school teacher has documentation that her father one of the first blacks to play college football participated in a 1905 game where the first forward pass was thrown. Mrs. Elnora Lee is the daughter of the late Dr. Walter W.

Caldwell, known as the "Human Battering Ram" when he was a star halfback-kicker for Washburn University of Topeka, at the turn of the century. Washburn played Fairmount College (now Wichita State University) in a historic football game on Christmas Day, 1905. Bliss Isely, a Fairmount tackle in that contest, wrote several articles about that day for Kansas journals in the 1950s, which Mrs. Lee has in her possession. Isely recalled public opinion was so against college footDAVE NEWHOUSE ball in the early 1900s, that several schools gave up the sport for rugby.

Isely recalled the only offense of the time was "a mass play where a ball carrier bucked the line while his teammates got behind him and pushed with all their might. The entire defensive team pushed the other way. Sometimes all 22 players were in a heap and the spectators could not see the ball carrier. It looked brutal, whether it was or not." President Theodore Roosevelt, a man who appreciated rugged individualism and sport, called a number of football coaches to the White House on Oct. 8, 1905 and "demanded they write some new rules to break up the massed plays," Isely remembered.

Navy Coach Paul Dashiell wrote the forward pass rule, which the other coaches accepted reluctantly. Walter Camp of Yale helped change another rule: Teams now had to travel 10 yards for a first down instead of five, but still within three downs, not four. President Teddy wanted the rules experimented with immediately which meant a post-season game. When no big-time powers could arrange a meeting, Washburn and Fairmount became the guinea pigs. Isely isn't exactly sure which of the two schools threw the first forward pass, but he is positive both of them did.

His recollection is that Washburn Quarterback Hugh Hope was the first to try it. "Hope told me later he took the ball by the nose and threw it one-handed, end-overend," said Isely. The pass completion was good for 10 yards. Later in the game Bill Davis of Fairmount gripped the ball with his "right fingers on the lace and threw underhanded, spiraling the ball." Continued Pg. 34, Col.

3 for Eng Ron Bergman has chased off the flu he acquired during his vacation and will be back writing his column Tuesday. Stanford By ALAN McALLASTER BOULDER, Colo. While two turnovers inside the 20 yard line cost Stanford an opening game football victory yesterday, all is not gloom. En route to a 27-21 loss to 12thranked Colorado, the Cardinals unveiled a commodity they have been lacking for many years a fast, exciting running back. Darrin Nelson, a 5-9, 170-pound freshman out of Pius High School in Los Angeles, promises to give Big Red Rooters something to cheer about besides the passing attack.

Picking up where he left off as a prep he rushed. for 1,667 yards and scored 19 touchdowns last year Nelson gained 99 Cardinal yards on the ground and 77 as a receiver including a scintilating 56- yard dash on a screen pass. He darts through holes quick as a blink and, after being blasted to the ground by much bigger defenders, bounces to his feet and is ready for more. He's got moves, too. On his TD scamper, a big Coloradan was left grasping air at the line of scrimmage as Nelson found daylight down the left sideline.

The footrace with a safety was no contest for the Cal Gives Vols a Going Over Cal Gives By ED SCHOENFELD KNOXVILLE, Tenn. A record Neyland Stadium crowd of 84,421 roared out to see Johnny Majors come marching home with a Tennessee victory in the season opener. But, it was a handful of people who had come all this way from California who got the reward. They saw the Golden Bears come up with a solid all-around 27-17 upset victory over the Vols, Cal's first winning opener since 1968. "I was particularly pleased with the offense," Mike White, the Bears' coach, said afterwards.

The defense did a bang-up job, too, forcing the Vols into frequent turnovers. Fullback Paul Jones, playing his first game after knee surgery, rushed for 128 yards on 31 carries. "Paul proved as durable as we have been WSU Stuns Nebraska. Page 30 Irish Topple Pittsburgh. Page 30 Oklahoma Barely Wins.

Page 30 saying," White said. "He was especially valuable in the late Charlie Young, making his debut as the Bears' quarterback, fired a 58-yard touchdown pass to freshman flanker Flody Eddings and ran in two other touchdowns. "I thought Young did a good job considering it was his first game," White said. "I was pleased with his running of the offense. However, I think 159 1 Tribune photo by RON RIESTERER Three 49ers combine to throw Otis Armstrong for a loss, but Denver still ends pre-season with win Third Straight Title Evert's Own Open FOREST HILLS, N.Y.: (AP) "I wanted to win this tournament Chris Evert, hitting her ground- badly, very badly," she said.

"I want strokes from the baseline with ma- to stay on top, to be No. 1, and to be chine-like precision, wore down No. 1 I think you have to win a major scrappy Wendy Turnbull of Australia title. This was my chance." 7-6, 6-2 yesterday to win her third Earlier fourth-seeyed Guillermo consecutive U.S. Open women's sin- Vilas of Argentina advanced to the gles crown.

men's final with a 6-2, 7-6, 6-2 victory over 12th seeded Harold Solomon Evert thus becomes the first of Silver Spring, Md. It was Vilas' woman to win three straight Open titles since Maureen Connolly did it Connors beat unseeded 45th straight victory on clay. Corrado in 1951-53. Barazzutti, an Italian clay court speThe victory was worth $33,000 cialist, 7-5, 6-3, 7-5, and Vilas scored from the total purse of $462,420 to a 6-2, 7-6, 6-2 decision over Harold Evert, but more importantly it ce- Solomon of Silver Spring, before mented her standing as the premier a sellout crowd of 12,587. layer in women's tennis.

Ever since It was the 45th straight victory on losing to Virginia Wade in the semifi- clay for Vilas, who said he looked nals at Wimbledon, Evert has been forward to a long match today. pointing towards Forest Hills. Continued Pg. 35, Col. 2 Finds a Plus AP Laserphoto A losing debut for Bill Walsh his passing could have been sharper." Young completed 11 of 25 passes for 154 yards.

He had one interception. White was very satisfied with the way the Bears performed under the conditions of the partisan crowd. "This was a very intimidating place for our team," White said. The Bears scored 17 points in the third quarter to overtake the Vols. The Bears defense really rose up late in the game when the Vols had a first down on the California 14.

After Pat Ryan, the Vols' backup quarterback passed incomplete on the first down, he was sacked for a 11-yard loss on the second down and a 14-yard loss on the third down. Continued on Page 29. Col. 1 SAN FRANCISCO The San Francisco 49ers are ready to enter the 1977 National Football League season with all the momentum of the U.S. mail.

One wonders if either will ever deliver. Playing as if a touchdown were something reserved exclusively for airplanes and opponents, the Niners backed out of the exhibition schedule with a 20-0 loss to the Denver Broncos last night at Candlestick Park. Was it bad? Just ask the fans, sometimes known as 49er Faithful, who waited until the final gun. Typically, Denver intercepted on the last play. "We want Clark! We want Clark!" was the booming chant from the few thousand left in the stands.

They even cheered Denver's final touchdown late in the fourth quarter. "I don't know where he's living," said 49er owner Ed DeBartolo Jr. of Clark, the head coach he fired earlier this year, "but the fans can go get him if they want. Maybe he wants to play for us. For all I care he can sit on the bench." Ken Meyer, who replaced Clark, heard the 49er Unfaithful, too.

"All my life, the things I have control over I take to heart," said the coach, who had control over the Niners on their way to a 1-5 exhibition record. "Our fans want to win: I know they're frustrated." Talking about frustration, one only need mention the 49er offense. It hasn't produced a TD in three straight exhibitions, and the Niners have been outscored, 70-3. The 49ers did hold out two of their better offensive weapons, wide receiver Gene Washington and running back Delvin Williams because of minor injuContinued on Page 29, Col. 1 Zapped 49ers Zipped Again By JOHN PORTER in Loss 9.6 sprinter.

Nelson's score came after the Buffaloes, buoyed by an end zone interception from Brian Cabral on Stanford's drive for the go-ahead touchdown, put the game out of reach on James Mayberry's second TD of the day. The Cardinals, led by Bill Kellar's three receptions, had driven 61 yards to the Buffalo 10 before Benjamin threw over the middle for Kellar and another white jerseyed teammate. Unfortunately, two Buffs were there also. Linebacker Tom Perry, who had recovered Tom Lynn's fumble at the 17 in the second period, tipped Benjamin's pass and Cabral gathered it in near the end zone line. "We played good; we should have won," said Benjamin.

"It was just one or two key mistakes and one of them was mine. I saw the halfback was single covered and went for him in the end zone, but I got hit when I threw." That killed Stanford's second half comeback after spotting the home team a 13-0 advantage. Four mistakes hurt the Cardinals in the first half. Continued Pg. 35, Col.

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