DECEMBER 30, 1946
ODDS FAVOUR COYOTES IN EAST-WEST CLASH WITH DETROIT CITY COLLEGE
A surge of late money coming in on CC Los Angeles has the Coyotes as half-point favourites to defeat Detroit City College in the East-West Classic on New Year's Day. The Knights have been the early choice of the bookmakers but the tide turned in recent days.
The game will mark a contrast in style as the midwesterners rely on a punishing line to clear the way for their backfield duo of junior Johnny Matthews and army veteran/powerful senior fullback Bill Erdinger. Erdinger's young brother Paul -a sophomore- is the quarterback of the Knights team. CCLA has a strong dual threat in runner/passer Kevin Gosse and one of the top ends in the game in Ray Fitzgerald to greatly enhance the Coyotes aerial attack.
Neither eleven has ever won at Santa Ana on New Year's Day as the Great Lakes Alliance champions are making the first January appearance in California while CCLA has only played on the biggest Classic game stage once before - in 1942 when they fell to National Champion Noble Jones College 20-3. A national title will not be in the cards for either side this time around as CCLA enters the game ranked 7th in the nation with a 9-0-1 record while 8-1 Detroit City College, with its lone defeat at the hands of Rome State, is ranked 9th.
As for the number one ranking, it will not belong to Rome State for the first time in three years unless there is a rash of upsets on New Years Day. The 4th ranked Centurions are 8-1-1 and have no chance at a third consecutive title unless St Blane, Cumberland and Bayou State all lose on Wednesday.
The top ranked Fighting Saints are 8-0-1 with their only blemish being a 20-20 tie with Rome State and they will face 10-0 Payne State in the Oilman Classic in Houston. Deep South Conference co-leaders Cumberland and Bayou State are ranked two and three and each possess a 9-0-1 mark on the year. The Explorers will be in Miami to meet South Atlantic Conference champion Richmond State (9-1) in the Sunshine Classic while the Cougars take on 9-1 Travis College, ranked 5th, in the Cajun Clasic.
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TWIFB AIAA FOOTBALL TOP TEN RANKINGS
# SCHOOL REC LW
1 St Blane 8-0-1 1
2 Cumberland 9-0-1 2
3 Bayou State 9-0-1 3
4 Rome State 8-1-1 4
5 Travis College 9-1 5
6 Noble Jones College 8-1 7
7 CC Los Angeles 9-0-1 8
8 Red River State 9-0-1 9
9 Detroit City College 8-1 6
10 Pierpont 7-0-1 10
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JANUARY 1, 1947 CLASSIC GAME SCHEDULE
EAST WEST CLASSIC Santa Ana, Ca #7 CC Los Angeles (9-0-1) vs #9 Detroit City College (8-1)
OILMAN CLASSIC Houston, Tx. #1 St Blane (8-0-1) vs Payne State (10-0)
SUNSHINE CLASSIC Miami, Fl #2 Cumberland (9-0-1) vs Richmond State (9-1)
CAJUN CLASSIC New Orleans #3 Bayou State (9-0-1) vs #5 Travis College (9-1)
DESERT CLASSIC El Paso, Tx. #8 Red River State (9-0-1) vs Cache Valley (8-0)
LONE STAR CLASSIC Austin, Tx. Oklahoma City State (8-2) vs Kit Carson University (7-1)
BAYSIDE CLASSIC Tampa, Fl. #6 Noble Jones College (8-1) vs Charleston Tech (8-1-1)
PACIFIC COAST CL. San Diego, Ca. Flagstaff State (6-2-1) vs North Carolina Tech (8-2)
SOUTHWESTERN CL. San Antonio, Tx Abilene Baptist (8-2) vs Mile High State (8-2)
SAN JOAQUIN CL. Fresno, Ca. Coastal California (6-2-2) vs Commonwealth Catholic (8-1)
IS LEDBETTER THE NEXT DOMINANT PITCHER?
FABL Scouting Directors are hastily putting the final touches on their draft lists as the 16 big league ballclubs prepare for the annual selection of high school seniors and college juniors. Many are of the consensus that this, the 1947 draft class, is a deep one with plenty of talent at the top of the pool. Who will go number one remains to be seen and that hinges greatly on which team is lucky enough to receive a late Christmas gift and win the draft lottery and claim the first overall selection. All we know is it will be a Continental Association club -as that loop gets the odd number picks in an odd year- and that it will not be the World Champion New York Stars who, as the CA flag hoister, will pick 15th.
Dominant pitchers always seem to go high in the draft and there are a few with the potential to turn into an ace in this crop. That is the word from the league scouting service, OSA, which suggests four pitchers could one day be number one starters in the big leagues. Those four, all high schoolers so they come with risk, are Chuck Trillman, Hank Aldrich, Steve Talley and Les Ledbetter.
It is Ledbetter, the 6'0" southpaw from Fowlerville, Mi., that likely draws the most interest among the hurlers when talk turns to the top pick in the draft. TWIFB has had Ledbetter at the top of his class since he was 11-0 as a freshman in 1944 and all he has done in 3 years of high school ball was post a 34-0 record with a 0.62 era. A groundball specialist, Ledbetter is a two-time high school All-American and the winner of the Adwell Award as the top high school ballplayer in the country last season as a junior.
While Ledbetter may be the odds-on choice as the top pitcher to be selected in the draft, that is no guarantee he will go number one. The OSA has identified a number of players as those likely to appear in many all-star games down the road. They include a quintet of collegiate players in catchers Jess Garman of Arkansas A&T and Garden State's Dan Smith, along with shortstop in Irv Clifford from Charleston Tech, third baseman Dick Webb from Eastern Oklahoma and the Rockford Rocket centerfielder Ernie Campbell out of Talmadge State. There are some talented high school position players in contention for the number one selection as well including outfielders Herm Kocher, Frenchy Sontag and Charlie Rogers, third baseman Ken Newman, second sacker Marshall Thomas and catcher Elmer Saunders.
COWBOYS BACKFIELD HEADS CFC AWARDS
Look no further than the list of players named to the inaugural Continental Football Conference all-star team to determine just how dominant the Kansas City Cowboys offense was this season. All six skill positions on the all-league team were filled by Cowboys, after the club dominated regular season play with a 13-1 record before finally facing a challenge in the title game, which they overcame with a 20-14 victory over the New York Gothams last week.
Cowboys quarterback Pat Chappell -the former All-American basketball player, baseball and football star at St Magnus- was named the top player in the league after establishing new professional football marks for passing yardage and touchdowns. He spread his throws amongst his collection of quality receivers and as result both Kansas City ends, Bill Tammaro and Ernie Orr, also made the all-star team. Halfback Mason Matthews, who rushed for 734 yards and 8 touchdowns also made the all-star squad along with his backfield mates Jim Marble and Tommy Cohan.
The team was not entirely filled with Cowboys as the Los Angeles Lobos placed two men on the squad while Brooklyn, New York and San Francisco each claimed one spot.
(November 18, 1946 - as online league continues to move to catch up with other sports)
MOTORS RUNNING ON ALL CYLINDERS
The Detroit Motors are off to a surprisingly quick start through two weeks of North American Hockey Confederation play. The Motors missed the playoffs by a single point each of the past two seasons but lead the way in the early going this time around with a 4-1-0 record good for a league best 8 points. Goaltender Henri Chasse, with a league best 2.40 goals against average and solid group of rearguards in front of him, is a big reason for the hot start in the Motor City.
The high-flying Chicago Packers sit in second place thanks as usual to their big line of the Burns brothers and Marty Mahoney. Tommy Burns is threatening to rewrite the loop's record book with 6 goals and 14 points through just 5 games while his brother Wes sits third in league scoring with 9 points -one more than the final member of the trioka Mahoney, who has 8 points.
One player on the hot seat early is Montreal goaltender Millard Touhey. The 30 year old four-year veteran came into camp out of shape and has drawn the ire of Valiants coach Danny McLachlan for his subpar play. Touhey has a terrible 5.54 goals against average for the defending champs this season and gave up 15 goals in back to back losses in Chicago and Toronto.
Speaking of Toronto, the Dukes have struggled on the road with 3 straight losses away from Dominion Gardens and they find themselves sitting at the bottom of the league with 4 losses already after losing just 9 games all of last season.
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NAHC STANINGS
TEAM GP W L T PTS
Detroit Motors 5 4 1 0 8
Chicago Packers 5 3 2 0 6
Boston Bees 3 2 1 0 4
Montreal Valiants 5 2 3 0 4
Brooklyn Eagles 4 2 2 0 4
New York Shamrocks 3 1 2 0 2
Toronto Dukes 5 1 4 0 2
SCORING LEADERS
NAME TEAM GP G A PTS
Tommy Burns CHI 5 6 8 14
Bobbie Sauer TOR 5 5 5 10
Wes Burns CHI 5 4 5 9
Graham Comeau DET 5 4 4 8
Marty Mahoney CHI 5 2 6 8
Kent Drayton CHI 4 2 5 7
Bill Woodley DET 5 3 3 6
Mahlon Klein TOR 4 1 5 6
Miles Norman BKN 4 1 5 6
GOALIE LEADERS
NAME TEAM W L T ShO GAA
Henri Chasse DET 4-1-0 1 2.40
Norm Hanson CHI 3-2-0 1 2.60
Terry Russell TOR 1-0-0 0 2.61
Pierre Melancon BOS 2-1-0 0 2.68
Tom Brockers BKN 2-2-0 0 3.31
NUMBER ONE UPSET FOR SECOND WEEK IN A ROW
A week ago it was top ranked Liberty College being knocked off by small school NW Pennsylvania and this week the same script was followed as Carolina Poly lost for the first time this season when the Cardinals were beaten by Central Maryland 48-43 on Monday. It was nearly an 0-2 Christmas week for the South Atlantic Conference powerhouse but the Cardinals barely survived a game in Hartford against St Martin's College Friday evening - needing a Paul Cowans basket with 11 seconds remain to escape with a narrow 40-39 victory.
Rainier College, which won its only game this week 36-33 over Gates University on Saturday, takes over the #1 ranking in the polls. The Majestics are 8-0 with Liberty College, which rebounded with a pair of holiday week wins over Brooklyn State (57-27) and El Paso Methodist (49-33) moves up a spot to second in the rankings. Ward Messer, the big junior forward for the Bells, had himself a week -scoring 17 points and adding 10 rebounds against Brooklyn State and adding 12 points and 11 rebounds in the Saturday afternoon win over the Bandits.
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[b] AIAA COLLEGIATE BASKETBALL TOP TWENTY-FIVE
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
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1. Rainier College (70) 8-0 1798 2 West Coast Athletic Association
2. Liberty College (2) 13-2 1722 3 Indy
3. Carolina Poly 11-1 1658 1 South Atlantic Conference
4. Indiana A&M 8-0 1542 7 Great Lakes Alliance
5. Lexington State 9-0 1501 4 South Atlantic Conference
6. Northern California 9-0 1393 8 West Coast Athletic Association
7. North Carolina Tech 9-2 1318 12 South Atlantic Conference
8. Central Ohio 7-2 1201 10 Great Lakes Alliance
9. Western Iowa 7-1 1064 14 Great Lakes Alliance
10. Lane State 7-2 1029 6 West Coast Athletic Association
11. Great Plains State 9-2 1024 16 Indy
12. CC Los Angeles 8-2 987 18 West Coast Athletic Association
13. Noble Jones College 9-2 965 5 Deep South Conference
14. Redwood 7-1 963 13 West Coast Athletic Association
15. Detroit City College 7-2 911 17 Great Lakes Alliance
16. Maryland State 7-1 752 20 South Atlantic Conference
17. Bronx Tech 8-1 590 NR Liberty Conference
18. Piedmont University 9-1 564 21 Indy
19. St. Ignatius 7-1 499 23 Great Lakes Alliance
20. Bayou State 6-2 397 25 Deep South Conference
21. Columbia Military Academy 5-1 315 11 South Atlantic Conference
22. Chesapeake State 7-2 256 15 South Atlantic Conference
23. St. Blane 10-3 255 NR Indy
24. Mobile Maritime 6-2 235 9 South Atlantic Conference
25. Coastal California 6-2 192 NR West Coast Athletic Association
RESULTS INVOLVING TOP 25 SCHOOLS LAST WEEK
MONDAY DECEMBER 23
#11 Great Plains State 41, at Mississippi A&M 40
at Northern Mississippi 48, #24 Mobile Maritime 39
#7 North Carolina Tech 57, at Brunswick 48
at #18 Piedmont University 46, NW New York State 39
#6 Northern California 68, at Pierpont 33
at Central Maryland 48, #3 Carolina Poly 43
TUESDAY DECEMBER 24
at #2 Liberty College 57, Brooklyn State 27
at #23 St. Blane 47, Armstrong 35
at #10 Lane State 54, Michigan Lutheran 48
at #4 Indiana A&M 47, Chicago Poly 28
at #9 Western Iowa 59, Lawrence State 52
WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 25
at #17 Bronx Tech 46, Canton State 39
at #6 Northern California 55, Sunnyvale 28
at #22 Chesapeake State 46, #13 Noble Jones College 40
THURSDAY DECEMBER 26
at #15 Detroit City College 51, Bluegrass State 49
#16 Maryland State 43, at Harrisburg State 39
FRIDAY DECEMBER 27
at #5 Lexington State 44, Eastern State 33
at #22 Chesapeake State 50, Granville 44
at #10 Lane State 39, Utah A&M 28
#3 Carolina Poly 40, at St. Martin's College 39
at #21 Columbia Military Academy 45, Topeka State 37
at #13 Noble Jones College 55, George Fox 41
SATURDAY DECEMBER 28
at #2 Liberty College 49, El Paso Methodist 33
at #18 Piedmont University 58, Mahoning Valley State 50
at #12 CC Los Angeles 42, Minnesota Tech 29
at #7 North Carolina Tech 62, Valley State 30
at #17 Bronx Tech 48, Meade 33
at #20 Bayou State 41, Dudley 30
#1 Rainier College 36, at Gates University 33
#8 Central Ohio 48, at North Central (NE) 36
SUNDAY DECEMBER 29
#19 St. Ignatius 64, at Granville 36
at #23 St. Blane 37, Texas Gulf Coast 32
at Ellery 45, #22 Chesapeake State 40
at #4 Indiana A&M 43, College of Omaha 40
at #24 Mobile Maritime 51, Alabama Gulf Coast 31
Golden Gate 41, at #10 Lane State 31
CRAWFORD SHINES LATE TO WIN HEAVY BOUT, MAY RECORDS TWO WINS IN FOUR DAYS
Roy Crawford continues to improve as a heavyweight with an impressive showing in Jacksonville the day after Christmas. The 28 year old Crawford, known as 'the Boston Bomber', ran his record to 23-2 with a strong finish to his 10-round unanimous decision over Robby King.
The victory keeps Crawford on track for a potential title shot against the winner of the Hector Sawyer-Mark Fountain championship fight set for January 18 at Thompson Palladium in Detroit. Crawford, fresh off a late September victory over Scott Baker, had a sluggish start against King, a 29 year old Alabama native with a 15-11 career mark, but a big sixth round turned the tide and the New Englander was in total contol the rest of the way.
In what has to be a first in boxing, Chris May recorded two wins in a span of just 4 days. May fought Scott Baker in Connecticut on December 18 but 14 seconds into the bout Baker broke his hand, making a May a winner by TKO. He got a call a day later asking him to fill in on a Scranton, Pa., card against John Cochran after Cochran's opponent had to withdraw and the result was a unanimous decision in the 10 rounder for May, improving his record to 26-5 and perhaps setting a new mark for the least amount of time between victories for a professional fighter.
In other fight action last week, veteran welterweight Wayne Dunn ran his record to 28-7 with a 4th round knockout of Pietrek 'Soda' Popinski in a bout in Brooklyn.
UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS
- Jan 18- Detroit, Mi: World Heavyweight Champ Hector Sawyer (54-3-1) faces top contender Mark Fountain (21-2-1)
- Feb 22- St Louis, Mo: World Welterweight Champ Mark Westlake (20-2-1) vs Harold Stephens (18-3-2)
- March TBA - Middlweight champion Frank Melanson (31-0-2) vs Nick Harris (19-2-1)
The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 12/29/1946
- Pope Pius XII's annual Christmas message was that the threaat of a new war hangs over a deluded and unhappy world in which the Atlantic Charter has become merely a forgery of its original principles because of "compromises and solutions based on strength and on the presitge of political power."
- Big Five representatives have begun private meetings in an effort to patch up differences threatening to wreck plans for international control of atomic power.
- A U.S. Navy ship pulled out of a Manchurian port after receiving a verbal ultimatum from Russian military officials to the effect that "unless you leave within 20 minutes we will not be responsible for the consequences."
- Senator Robert A. Taft, a power among Republicans for almost a decade, will be Ohio's choice for the G.O.P. Presidential nomination in 1948 the United Press has learned.