NOVEMBER 17, 1947
WESTERN LOOP TO ROCK BASEBALL ESTABLISHMENT
Stone Signing May Ignite Powder Keg
It is looking more and more like Woody Stone, cast aside by the Philadelphia Sailors just a month ago, is set to become the highest paid player in baseball. Given a rare opportunity to sign a five-time all-star while still in his prime, a number of teams from the Great Western League pulled out all of the stops in attempts to lure Stone to the coast. They had internal competition with at least 3 GWL clubs in Dallas, Oakland and Portland sending lucrative offers to Stone as well as external competition believed to be from the Brooklyn Kings, Chicago Cougars, New York Gothams and Pittsburgh Miners of FABL.
One by one the challengers dropped out as the Gothams landed Cleaves, the Miners felt the price was simply too costly and Oakland -after attempting to sign Stone to a 1-year deal worth $100,000- backed out when informed by the 31-year-old catcher he would only sign a multi-year contract.
It now appears it will be the Dallas Centurions who win the sweepstakes and certainly make the GWL's presence felt in the baseball world. The final numbers are not yet determined but expect the contract to approach or quite possibly surpass the $75,000 that Bobby Barrell of the Philadelphia Keystones and Washington's Mel Carrol are commanding as the highest paid players in FABL.
*** Long Term Impact on the Game ***
It may be surprising to know but many FABL club owners and perhaps even league President Sam Belton are breathing a sigh of relief at the news Stone is likely heading to the Lone Star state. The last thing they want to do is see Thomas Bigsby's loop -one many FABL executives still refer to as "The Rebel League"- gain the notoriety that such a signing would surely bring but truth be told they are more worried about what such a contract paid to Stone by one of their peers would do to the league's salary structure.
If any player is worth $75,000 a year it would certainly be Bobby Barrell. But Woody Stone? He was benched by the Sailors in the second half of last season and they cut him loose when he demanded $34,000 for the 1948 campaign. What would have happened to the salary structure of the league going forward when word got out Stone was making the same as Barrell? Do you think Bobby would want a pay hike? What about Solly Skidmore who was deemed more valuable by the Sailors than Stone and is set to make $23,100 next season. How many other catchers are better ballplayers than Stone? What would Adam Mullins, Heinie Zimmer, Pete Casstevens, George Cleaves and even young Roger Cleaves be worth and how can any FABL magnate be successful a year from now trying to convince each of them they deserve far less than Woody Stone?
At least with Stone in the coast league the FABL magnates can justify it to their players by claiming it is merely a promotional ploy, a desperate attempt by the fledgling western loop to gain publicity and stay afloat while reminding them Woody Stone will make absolutely nothing if Bigsby and his bandits were forced to close up shop. Of course there is also the worry the coast league continues to prosper. Will the GWL at some point decide to stop honouring FABL contracts and target big name talent still under contract to a Federal or Continental Association team?
Unwittingly, the Philadelphia Sailors have lit the fuse on a potential powder keg with the decision to cut Woody Stone. It will be interesting to see just what gets set on fire from the resulting explosion and the Stone signing with Dallas -if it actually happens- opens up some very interesting possibilities for the future of the sport.
TRADES CONTINUE WITH FABL BOSSES WORKING OVERTIME
It is hard to imagine anything this off-season upstaging the huge deal that sent Lefty Allen and George Cleaves from Pittsburgh to the New York Gothams but that did not stop several FABL General Managers from continuing to make moves this week. The Gothams and Miners were both back in the news, albeit on a much smaller scale, as each made another deal with both choosing to partner up with the Chicago Cougars.
The Miners, having abandoned any thoughts of getting in to a bidding war with the coast league over Woody Stone, added a catcher to help Dino Robinson try to fill the sizeable shoes of Cleaves by sending a 5th round pick to the Cougars in exchange for 26-year-old Homer Guthrie. The 1942 7th round pick has had a couple of stints in the Windy City, hitting .252 in 53 games with the Cougars and will likely be given an opportunity to push Robinson out of the starting job. Guthrie is a player OSA has said some nice things about, calling him "an average FABL starter" recently but he has never had the opportunity with the Cougars to prove his worth.
The Cougars stuck to their usual modus operandi of moving veteran players just a shade before they have perhaps outlived their usefulness by dealing 33-year-old righthander Joe Brown to the Gothams in exchange for New York's 3rd, 4th and 5th round selections in the 1948 draft. Chicago's rotation is so deep it will not miss the absence of Brown, who went 13-13 last season -the 9th he has spent with the big club. Brown's best season was 1943 -the year before he left for the Army- when he went 18-11 with a terrific 2.51 era and finished third in Allen Award balloting.
Is the acquisition of Brown another signal in a complete change of philosophy for the Gothams? An organization that has often labelled players as washed up and deals them off once the reach age 30 has in the course of just over a week added three such veterans to its core. Cleaves and Lefty Allen are one thing as any team would be thrilled to have them even the age averse Gothams. Brown is likely still a very solid starter but by no means a player anywhere near the same category as the Pittsburgh duo so it is a slight surprise to see him don the Gotham grey and blue next spring. New York is clearly looking for another pennant next season and perhaps any pitcher in their target age range was simply not available, or deemed to expensive if he was.
There was a third deal as well last week. This one saw the Brooklyn Kings acquire veteran Ron Rattigan from the Chicago Chiefs for a minor league shortstop named Jim Johnson. Rattigan, a 7-time all-star, simply had no where to play on a Chiefs roster that added Tiny Hopkins from those same Kings a season and a half ago. Johnson, the shortstop the Chiefs received in return, is a 21-year-old who had a great introduction to AA ball by hitting .348 while spending nearly the entire season with Knoxville. He is likely a depth piece if he makes it to FABL but that showing at the plate with the AA Knights certainly caught the Chiefs attention.
TOUGH WEEK FOR CHAMPS. BEES ON 3 GAME SLIDE
The two-time defending champion Boston Bees had their worst week of the season and quite possibly worst in several years after the Bees went 0-3 for the week. The problems started with a dismal showing at Bigsby Garden on Wednesday evening when the New York Shamrocks beat Tom Brockers 4 times in the first period and cruised to a 5-0 shutout victory. The weekend did not go much better for Danny McLachlan's club as Montral notched three third-period markers to pull out a 4-2 victory and even the comfortable surroundings of the Denny Arena on Sunday did nothing to turn the Bees fortunes around. Rookie Ben Witt scored 3 times to lead the Detroit Motors, a team that started the season with 8 losses in their first 10 games, to a 5-3 win over Boston.
The Bees slump leaves the two Canadian clubs -Montreal and Toronto- in first and second place a year after each failed to make the playoffs. The loop still remains tight with only four points separating the top four clubs and fifth place Chicago -which has had a slow start- may finally be showing signs of life as Tommy Burns brothers, with a goal in each of his two weekend games, looking like he is starting to heat up.
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NAHC Standings
TEAM GP W L T PTS GF GA
Montreal 12 8 4 0 16 38 33
Toronto 13 7 6 0 14 36 38
Boston 11 6 5 0 12 31 31
New York 12 6 6 0 12 40 31
Chicago 12 5 7 0 10 36 36
Detroit 12 4 8 0 8 29 41
SCORING LEADERS
NAME GP G A PTS
Albers, NY 12 2 13 15
Mahoney, Chi 11 4 9 13
Cabbell, NY 11 9 3 12
T Burns, Chi 12 7 5 12
W Burns, Chi 12 5 7 12
Carlson, Tor 13 4 8 12
Seguin, Chi 12 3 9 12
Lanceleve, Mon 12 8 3 11
Sauer, Tor 13 5 6 11
Lynch, Mon 10 3 8 11
Gregg,, NY 7 6 4 10
Skinner, Mon 12 5 5 10
Doyle, Mon 12 4 6 10
Pollack, Tor 13 4 6 10
Chandler, Bos 11 2 8 10
GOALIE LEADERS
NAME GP W L T ShO GAA
Tremblay, NY 9 5 3 0 1 2.05
Brockers, Bos 11 6 5 0 0 2.73
Touhey, Mon 11 7 4 0 0 2.92
Hanson, Chi 10 3 7 0 0 3.13
Broadway, Tor 11 5 6 0 0 3.22
Chasse, Det 9 3 6 0 0 3.46
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS
WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 12
Boston 0 at 5 New York: Possibly the most unexpected result of the week as the Shamrocks scored 4 times in the first period on Tom Brockers and rout the Bees 5-0. Laruel Albers, who is currently the leading scorer in the entire NAHC, had 3 assists as did Sam Coates while Greenshirt defenseman Paul Tetreault had a goal and two helpers. Etienne Tremblay became the second Shamrock netminder to record a shut out this season. The win snapped a 3-game Shamrocks losing skid.
Chicago 3 at 4 Toronto: The visiting Packers outshot the Dukes but came up on the short end of a 4-3 result. Wes Burns scored twice early in the first period to stake Chicago to the lead, but Quinton Pollack and Frank Featherstone evened the count before the opening stanza ended. Les Carlson's second period marker and Al Coates early in the third gave the Dukes a 4-2 lead. Derek Gubb, with the first of his career, allowed the Packers to get within one with 7 minutes to play but they could not notch the equalizer.
THURSDAY NOVEMBER 13
Chicago 2 at 1 Montreal: A second straight game with two early goals paid off this time for Packers as Jesse Santuro and Jarrett McGlynn scored just over 2 minutes apart in the first period and it held up as only Isaac Finnson could beat Chicago netminder Norm Hanson, who backstopped his club to a 2-1 victory.
SATURDAY NOVEMBER 15
Boston 2 at 4 Montreal: Rey Sclisizzi scored once and added two assists as a busy NAHC weekend began with a 4-2 Montreal win over Boston. It was the second loss in a row for the Bees.
Chicago 2 at 4 New York: The Shamrocks win for the second time this week as Chris Broeke scored twice in a 30 second span early in the third period to snap a tie and lift the New Yorkers to a 4-2 victory.
Detroit 5 at 1 Toronto : After losing their first 3 meetings with former coach Jack Barrell, the Detroit Motors finally had a solid game -winning for just third time this season and first against Toronto by beating the Dukes soundly 5-1. Rookie Nick Tardif led the Detroit attack with a goal and two assists while fellow newcomer Ben Witt -the Maroons first round draft pick- scored his first NAHC goal.
SUNDAY NOVEMBER 16
Detroit 5 at 3 Boston : Forget the New York 5-0 win over Boston early in the week, this was the biggest surprise as the Motors -after averaging less than 2 goals a game in their first 10 outings, exploded for 5 for the second night in a row and handed the slumping Bees their third straight loss. Detroit rookie Ben Witt had a memorable night as a day after getting his first NAHC goal he scored a hat trick.
Toronto 1 at 6 Chicago: Injuries have contributed to a slow start for last year's Cup finalists, but the Chicago Packers offense was firing on this night in a 6-1 pasting of Toronto, which made for a rough weekend for the Dukes -outscored 11-2 by the bottom two clubs in the standings. Moose Vezina had 4 assists in the game but also received some bad news when he left late in the contest with a shoulder sprain that will sideline him for a week and a half. Marty Mahoney had a 3 point night and Tommy Burns and his brother Wes each scored for the victors.
Montreal 2 at 1 New York: Glen Whitley's first of the season just over 6 minutes into the third period snapped a 1-1 tie and lifted the Valiants to victory in New York. The win gives Montreal sole possession of first place, two points up on Toronto. Nick Haines had staked the Vals to a first period lead but Orval Cabbell -with his league leading 9th goal of the season- evened things in the second stanza.
UPCOMING REGULAR SEASON GAMES
WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 19
Toronto at Boston
Montreal at Chicago
New York at Detroit
SATURDAY NOVEMBER 22
Chicago at Detroit
New York at Montreal
Boston at Toronto
SUNDAY NOVEMBER 23
Montreal at Boston
Detroit at Chicago
AROUND THE LEAGUE
- Surprisingly the league has not yet seen a game end in a tie and we are already 20% through the new expanded 60 game slate.
- Is there a more impressive start than that of Montreal forward Brett Lanceleve? He scored just 8 goals all of last season but has already equaled that total this year and is big reason why the Vals are in first place.
- Jack Barrell has done a nice job restoring the Toronto Dukes to their rightful place near the top of the league. The Dukes had a very uncharacteristic season a year ago but seem to have righted the ship. Although given the job ex-Dukes boss Norb Hickey is doing in Montreal now it is hard to blame the coach.
- Speaking of coach there were rumours out of Detroit that Mark Moore was on his way out after the Motors stalled out of the gate and started 2-10. There were a lot of problems in the dressing room and a lot of big names underachieving, with none more so than veteran defenseman Bryant Williams. The 28-year-old may have turned it around over the weekend with 4 points and a +5 rating in the two wins as the Motors beat both Toronto and Boston.
- Injuries shoulder much of the blame for the slow start in Chicago but the offense was also struggling although perhaps a 6-1 win over Toronto yesterday will get the Packers going. Only the Flying Frenchmen in Montreal can boast of 4 players with double-digit point totals this side of Chicago. Marty Mahoney leads the club with 13 while the Burns brothers each have 12 points as does 25-year-old rookie Leon Seguin, who seems to be fitting right in with the Packers high octane offense.
- When he is healthy second year Shamrock winger Jocko Gregg has been very productive, with 6 goals and 10 points in 7 games. The problem is Gregg has already missed 5 games after a couple of nagging injuries. The Shamrocks have also been forced to deal with injuries that have kept defensemen Ryan Kennedy and Robert Sharpley out for 6 games each.
GOTHAMS SALVAGE TIE IN WILD GAME WITH LOBOS
A week ago, football writer Tank Tippett wrote a column about just how exciting the Continental Football Conference was to watch. Clearly the New York Gothams and Los Angeles Lobos took that article to heart as they staged a wild game that had 49,000 screaming fans at Gothams Stadium on the edge of their seat until the final gun sounded. The fact that there was no winner -the game ended in a 33-33 draw- mattered not as it was perhaps the most exiting final few minutes of a contest any of them had witnessed.
Los Angeles appeared to have the game well in hand as the game entered the final period with the Lobos enjoying a 30-10 lead, but the Gothams moved a little closer when Jerry Wade booted a 42 yards field goal just 4 seconds into the fourth quarter. Six minutes later Wade would connect again from 46 yards but that still left the Lobos with a 30-16 lead and just 8:18 on the clock.
The game appeared all but over several times, including when Gothams back Ken Hale was picked off by Jackie Wendt with just over 4 minutes to play and the New York deficit still at 14. A pass interference penalty nulified the turnover and gave Hale another chance. Four players later the Oklahoma native ran for a 6-yard touchdown and Wade made good on the extra point to cut the Lobos lead to 30-23.
The Lobos then had a long drive, forcing the Gothams to exhaust their supply of timeouts. New York's defense eventually held but the Lobos Don Penna -the leading scorer in the league- was successful on a 44 yard field goal attempt that once more seemed to end the Gothams hopes by putting the Lobos up by 10 points with just 1:20 remaining. That changed in an instant as Steve Robinson returned the ensuing kick-off 84 yards for a touchdown and the Lobos lead was just 33-30 with 1:01 on the clock.
The Gothams then successfully executed a play that rarely works with the recovery of their own onside kick. With 55 seconds on the clock and no timeouts the Gothams had the ball at the Lobos 48 yard line. After an incompletion on first down, Ken Hale hit Robinson for a 7 yard gain before the Gothams end managed to slither out of bounds. Third down also resulted in an incomplete pass setting up a dramatic 48 yard field goal attempt for Wade with just 24 seconds remaining. It was good, making Wade 4-for-4 on 3 pointers on the afternoon and the game was tied.
The dramatics were not quite done as Henry Bishop returned Wade's kickoff 40 yard to close to midfield setting up one last play - a desperation Hail Mary heave by John Fuchs that bounced around a bit in a mass of players near the Gothams goal line before falling incomplete - a moment followed by a deep exhale by the packed crowd.
*** Cowboys Clinch West ***
There was no such drama in the other two Sunday CFC clashes. The Kansas City Cowboys clinched their second straight West Division title with an exclamation point, pounding the San Francisco Wings 38-3 behind a 4-touchdown, 215 yard passing day from Pat Chappell. In the other game John Mecham ran for 154 yards and three touchdowns to lift Brooklyn to an easy 49-14 victory at Kings County Stadium over the New Orleans Crescents.
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CONTINTENTAL CONFERENCE STANDINGS
EAST W L T PCT[/b]
NY Gothams 8 2 1 .800
Buffalo 6 5 0 .545
Brooklyn 4 7 0 .364
New Orleans 2 9 0 .182
WEST W L T PCT
Kansas City 9 2 0 .818
Los Angeles 5 5 1 .500
San Francisco 5 6 0 .455
Chicago 4 7 0 .364
WEEKEND RESULTS
Brooklyn 49 New Orleans 14
Kansas City 38 San Francisco 3
Los Angeles 33 New York 33
UPCOMING GAMES
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 21
San Francisco at Chicago
SUNDAY NOVEMER 23
Buffalo at New Orleans
Kansas City at New York
Los Angeles at Brooklyn
Code:
CFC LEADERS
SCORING PTS
Penna, LA 97
Wade, NY 96
Hale, NYG 84
Karaszewski, Buf 78
Watson, KC 70
Higman, Buf 59
PASSING COMP-ATT YDS TD INT
Chappell, KC 139-253 2366 26 13
Fuchs, LA 129-252 2182 9 22
Boettcher, NO 155-313 1938 10 23
Monday, Buf 130-270 1821 16 18
Walker, Chi 99-203 1421 8 14
RUSHING YDS TD
Hale, NYG 1223 12
Garner, SF 732 3
Rose, NYG 715 6
Matthews, KC 710 3
Stone, SF 645 2
Karaszewski, Buf 632 11
RECEIVING CAT YDS TD
Pruitt, NO 48 544 3
Mula, SF 47 534 7
Breig,Chi 42 658 4
Orr, KC 41 741 8
Tammaro, KC 38 674 6
Mandish, NO 37 541 4
INERCEPTIONS #
Dutton, Chi 8
Yardley, Bkn 6
J Smith, Chi 5
Carroll, SF 5
WEST DIVISION LEAD A 3-WAY BATTLE
The American Football Association West Division could not get much closer as three times are tied for top spot as the season reaches the two-third completed mark. The Detroit Maroons beat the Cleveland Finches 31-10 yesterday while in St Louis the visiting Chicago Wildcats dumped the Ramblers 27-0. Those results leave the Maroons, Finches and Wildcats with identical 6-2 records.
In Cleveland the Maroons scored 21 unanswered points in the second half including a pair from Steve Wynkoop to pull away to an easy victory over the host Finches. The Wildcats benefited from Tom Gipson's 6 catches for 183 yards and a score to blank the St Louis eleven 27-0 and join Detroit in closing the gap on Cleveland.
The East Division is barely a race at all as the Philadelphia Frigates are a win away from clinching the division crown for just the second time in franchise history after holding off the Washington Wasps 27-26 yesterday. AFA rushing leader Greg LePage had another strong day for the Frigates, gaining 119 yards on the ground to help Philadelphia improve to a league best 7-1 on the season.
The CFC does not have an exclusive on dramatic finishes as Cincinnati's Bob Chick booted a 9 yard field goal as time expired to lift the Tigers to a 19-16 victory over the visiting Boston Americans. A fumble by the Yanks Bob Zelmer, recovered by Chick in the closing minutes, set up his game winning field goal. The final AFA game saw Bob Holt - who made a spectacular debut as a St Louis rookie in 1942 with a 254 yard rushing performance in his first pro game- made some noise this week as well. Now playing for Pittsburgh, the former Eastern State collegiate star scored 4 touchdowns, including two on punt returns, to lead the Paladins to a 35-7 win over the New York Stars.
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AMERICAN FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION STANDINGS
East Division W L T PCT
Philadelphia 7 1 0 .875
Washington 4 4 0 .500
Pittsburgh 3 6 0 .333
Boston 2 6 0 .250
NY Stars 1 7 0 .125
West Division W L T PCT
Cleveland 6 2 0 .750
Detroit 6 2 0 .750
Chicago 6 2 0 .750
Cincinnati 4 5 0 .444
St Louis 2 6 0 .250
WEEKEND RESULTS
Philadelphia 27 Washington 26
Chicago 27 St Louis 0
Pittsburgh 35 New York 7
Detroit 31 Cleveland 10
Cincinnati 19 Boston 16
UPCOMING GAMES
SUNDAY NOVEMBER 23
Cleveland at Boston
Detroit at New York
Philadelphia at Washington
Pittsburgh at Chicago
Cincinnati at St Louis
Code:
AFA LEADERS
SCORING PTS
Chick, Cin 56
Balfour, Bos 56
LePage, Phi 54
Gipson, Chi 48
Krohn, Was 42
Watson, Was 42
PASSING COMP-ATT YDS TD INT
D Thomas, Bos 145-253 2189 20 10
Marston, Pit 143-263 2027 10 31
Brown, Chi 127-216 1829 15 26
Colvin, Cle 77-187 1108 8 14
Krohn, Was 79-187 1031 9 14
RUSHING YDS TD
LePage, Phi 871 8
Mellette, StL 562 4
Belles, Det 404 1
Ponder, Was 386 3
Orlosky, Det 381 2
RECEIVING CAT YDS TD
Gipson, Chi 42 706 8
Ericksen, Bos 36 513 6
Holt, Pit 34 528 0
Tisdale, Pit 30 518 3
Gilbert, Cin 30 493 2
Bowens, Det 29 409 5
INERCEPTIONS #
Neilsen, Cle 9
Coleman, Det 7
Chick, Cin 6
Thompson, Cin 6
Watson, Was 6
Wynkoop, Det 6
Detroit's dynamic City College Knights clinched their second straight East-West Classic bid and the Great Lakes Alliance title with a crushing 41-7 victory over stunned Wisconsin State eleven in a sleet-swept battle before a capacity crowd in Milwaukee. The Knights, who tossed all of their intricate attack against the Wisconsin State despite a soggy field and a miniature blizzard, scored two touchdowns against the outclassed Brewers in the opening period and then coasted to victory.
Halfback Bill Howlin, DCC's outstanding candidate for all-American laurels, was the kingpin in the Knights crushing triumph by rushing for three touchdowns. The triumph almost assured the Knights of a perfect season with only down-trodden Central Ohio remaining to face in the regular schedule. It also sends them to Santa Ana for another New Year's Day appearance against the champion of the West Coast Athletic Association, which will be the winner of next weekend's CCLA-Coastal California tilt after the Coyotes blanked Rainier College 14-0 Saturday.
DCC continues to look up at only St. Blane in the polls, as the Fighting Saints improved to 7-0 and retained their number one ranking with a 38-7 win over St. Magnus in another gain impacted by soggy weather, which was a factor in the Vikings seven turnovers on the day. The wet field curtailed much of Ricky McCallister's opportunities to pass the ball, so the Fighting Saints went primarily to the ground and netted 284 yards rushing while holding St. Magnus to just 49.
Liberty College's dreams of an undefeated season were crushed by a 23-7 loss to an Annapolis Maritime eleven that suddenly played the best football of its season. It has been a rough year for the Navigators, who have endured an awful season, but on this day at least they played a bang-up ball game and shut down a Bells offense that had not been limited to less than 20 points prior to the weekend. Liberty College should still claim a Classic invite, assuming they do not crack against Pittsburgh State next weekend.
Academia Alliance kingpin Pierpont was more than up to the challenge of a military invasion of their Bridgeport home, with the Purple turning back Rome State 20-7, marking a second straight loss for the Centurions who fell to St. Blane a week ago.
Travis College secured its place in the Cajun Classic after the Bucks wrapped up the Southwestern Alliance section title with a 31-0 win over Amarillo Methodist. Travis College had bemoaned its crippled line, turned in a brilliant defensive game while quarterback Dusty Sinclair did more than enough to put points on the board and improve the Bucks record to 9-0 on the season.
*** Deep South Title a 3-way Race ***
Noble Jones College, Alabama Baptist and Mississippi A&M remain in the running for top spot in the Deep South. all three have 4 victories the the Panthers and Generals each owning a tie and just one section game remaining: for Alabama Baptist it will be next weekend against Bayou State while Mississippi A&M has its annual year end tussle with Northern Mississippi in two weeks time. The 4-1 Colonels final section game is also set for November 29 with Georgia Baptist providing the opposition.
All three won last week with the Panthers claiming this years installment of the 'Battle of the Baptists' with a hard-fought 7-0 victory over the Gators, an showing impressive enough to vault Alabama Baptist into the top ten rankings. Noble Jones College had an easy time with Opelika State, rolling to a 33-0 win while Mississippi A&M won a non-conference meeting with Western Tennessee 43-3.
Code:
AIAA COLLEGIATE FOOTBALL TOP TEN
RK SCHOOL LW WEEKEND RESULT
1 St Blane (7-0) 1 W 38-7 over St Magnus (2-5-1)
2 Detroit City College (8-0) 2 W 41-7 over Wisconsin State (5-3)
3 Travis College (9-0) 3 W 31-0 over Amarillo Methodist (4-4)
4 CCLA (8-0) 4 W 14-0 over Rainier College (4-4)
5 Pierpont (6-0) 7 W 20-7 over Rome State (6-2)
6 Alabama Baptist (6-1-1) NR W 7-0 over Georgia Baptist (5-1-2)
7 Lawrence State (8-0) 9 W 21-9 over Eastern Oklahoma (4-3-1)
8 Coastal California (6-1) 8 idle
9 Richmond State (7-1) NR W 28-9 over Lexington State (3-5-1)
10 Rome State (6-2) 5 L 20-7 to Pierpont (7-0)
DROPPING OUT
Liberty College (7-1) 6 L 23-10 to Annapolis Maritime (2-4-2)
North Carolina Tech (6-1-1) 10 Tied 10-10 with Maryland State (5-2-1)
WEEKEND SCOREBOARD
MAJOR GAMES
St. Blane 38 St. Magnus 7
Detroit City College 41 Wisconsin State 17
Pierpont 20 Rome State 7
Annapolis Maritime 23 Liberty College 10
Travis College 31 Amarillo Methodist 0
CC Los Angeles 14 Rainier College 0
Lawrence State 21 Eastern Oklahoma 9
Henry Hudson 29 St. Patrick's 0
Grafton 30 Brunswick 0
Ellery 21 Dickson 17
Sadler 13 George Fox 10
Cumberland 31 Commonwealth Catholic 7
Whitney College 34 Pittsburgh State 0
Lincoln 21 Central Ohio 7
Wisconsin Catholic 17 Indiana A&M 9
Minnesota Tech 31 Western Iowa 20
Bluegrass State 31 Miami State 0
Alabama Baptist 7 Georgia Baptist 0
Baton Rouge State 28 Western Florida 17
Noble Jones College 33 Opelika State 0
Northern Mississippi 20 Bayou State 14
Mississippi A&M 43 Western Tennessee 3
Maryland State 10 North Carolina Tech 10
Carolina Poly 27 Columbia Military Academy 0
Richmond State 28 Lexington State 9
Cowpens State 7 Charleston Tech 3
Chesapeake State 27 Petersburg 14
Mobile Maritime 6 Alexandria 6
Spokane State 20 Lane State 7
Northern California 27 Custer College 14
Portland Tech 26 Redwood 10
Texas Gulf Coast 13 Arkansas A&T 0
Lubbock State 13 Payne State 7
Red River State 20 Darnell State 14
Daniel Boone College 16 Oklahoma City State 14
OTHER RESULTS
San Francisco Tech 58 California Catholic 10
Tempe College 30 Valley State 30
Boston State 48 New York Maritime 20
Coastal State 41 Strub College 13
Boulder State 27 Wyoming A&I 14
Colorado Poly 28 Utah A&M 27
Northern Minnesota 34 Laclede 17
Abilene Baptist 13 Texas Panhandle 0
Provo Tech 22 Idaho A&M 7
Iowa A&M 29 Eastern Kansas 6
Central Kentucky 23 Vanderburgh 3
Eastern Virginia 21 Brooklyn State 13
Topeka State 41 Ohio Poly 14
Conwell College 7 St. Ignatius 7
Kit Carson University 33 Western Montana 3
South Valley State 38 Lambert College 3
Willamette Valley State 31 Stratton 22
Garden State 48 Bigsby College 7
Sunnyvale 36 Golden Gate University 23
Empire State 21 St. Pancras 20
Cache Valley 20 Mile High State 14
Penn Catholic 10 St. Matthew's College 0
Huntington State 21 Eastern State 19
Potomac College 35 Dearborn State 7
Canyon A&M 27 Mountainview State 10
STATESMAN GET BACK ON TRACK
The defending ABC champion Washington Statesman had a rough start with a pair of road losses to open the season but back home in the friendly confines of the National Auditorium it was a different story. A crowd of 7,025 -far and away the largest gathering so far this season- was on hand last Tuesday to witness the Statesman raise their 1946-47 championship banner and then see their hometown club pull out a 93-89 overtime victory over the New York Knights. Back in action last night the Statesman had another solid crowd to see a rematch of last year's title series when the Brooklyn Red Caps came to town. Charles Hooper had 22 points for politicians with Ray Emerson and Don Brito each chipping in with 10 off the bench in a 86-75 Washington victory.
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AMERICAN BASKETBALL CONFERENCE STANDINGS
EAST W L PCT GB
Boston 3 2 .600 -
Brooklyn 3 2 .600 -
Hartford 2 3 .400 1.0
New York 1 3 .250 1.5
WEST W L PCT GB
Richmond 4 1 .800 -
Pittsburgh 2 2 .500 1.5
Washington 2 2 .500 1.5
Rochester 1 3 .250 2.5
SCORING LEADERS PPG
Max Lucia, PIT 21.5
Morgan Melcher, BOS 20.6
James Phillips, HAR 20.6
Terry Flowers, ROC 20.3
Norm Yates, RIC 20.2
Ivory Mitchell, BKN 20.0
BARONS, MUSTANGS REMAIN PERFECT IN FBL PLAY
The Baltimore Barons and Detroit Mustangs each kept their perfect record intact as the Federal Basketball League completed its second week of play. The Barons, who finished second in the East Division in the loop's inaugural season last year, swept both ends of a two game set at home against winless Toronto last week. On Thursday Jack Hirst had 38 points to lead the Bombers to a 102-74 rout over the Titans and a day later the score was closer but the final result the same in 93-81 Barons victory.
The Mustangs are a surprise 3-0 after finishing with the worst record in the league last season. Detroit only saw action once last week, improving to 3-0 on home court with a 112-80 thumping of visiting Cleveland in a game in which six different Mustangs reached double figures led by David Reed's 18 points.
Code:
FEDERAL BASKETBALL LEAGUE STANDINGS
EAST W L PCT GB
Baltimore 4 0 1.000 -
Philadelphia 2 1 .667 1.5
Buffalo 2 2 .500 2.0
Toronto 0 5 .000 4.5
WEST W L PCT GB
Detroit 3 0 1.000 -
Chicago 3 1 .750 0.5
Cleveland 1 2 .500 2.0
Cincinnati 0 4 .000 3.5
SCORING LEADERS PPG
Richard Campbell, CHI 23.0
Jack Hirst, BAL 22.0
David Reed, DET 21.0
Danny Hendon, PHI 19.3
Lary Yim, BUF 19.3
John Banks, CLE 18.0
CANARIES FLY TO TOP OF FIRST CAGE RANKINGS
Flying high after a victory in the Preseason AIAA showcase that saw them top both North Carolina Tech and St Blane, the Western Iowa Canaries are named the top ranked collegiate cage team as the regular slate of games is set to tip-off this week. Carolina Poly, winners of the Tournament of Champions in New York City, are ranked second while Rainier College, winners of a lightly regarded field in the King of South event, slot in at #3 and were the only team besides the Canaries and Cardinals to earn a first place vote.
PRESEASON TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONS
Bigsby Festival - Frankford State Owls
Heart of Texas - Lubbock State Hawks
Jack Easton Tip-Off - Commonwealth Catholic Knights
King of the South - Rainier College Majestics
Preseason AIAA Showcase - Western Iowa Canaries
Tournament of Champions - Carolina Poly Cardinals
West Coast Classic - Lane State Emeralds
Windy City Festival - Alabama Baptist Panthers
GREAT START TO RECRUITING FOR BELLS
Liberty College may have had a rough time of things in their preseason tournament, dropping their opening round match in the West Coast Classic to host team and eventual champion Lane State, but the Bells won big in the early stages of recruiting. The prize addition is Luther Gordon, a center out of Brooklyn who is attending junior college in New York but will join the Bells next season and likely be counted on to fill the shoes vacated by Ward Messer when the All-American graduates next spring.
In addition to Gordon, the Philadelphia school also invaded New York for two more highly touted recruits with Billy Lesniak, a smooth shooting forward from Brooklyn, and Bill 'Captain' Hook, a strong forward with good size from Long Island, both announcing their intentions to attend Liberty College next season. Lesniak is ranked as a top twenty-five recruit and had his mind made up on Liberty College right from the start. Hook, listed #46 on the recruiting chart, had considered Brooklyn State and St Blane before deciding to join the Bells.
With Solly Morris committing to Whitney College and Gus Barnett deciding to stay home in Los Angeles and attend CCLA, that leaves three players from the south as the top recruits yet to decide on a destination for next season. The three -all forwards- are Ole Avery, Myrl Brackett and Guy Cowles. Avery, from Macon, Ga., is said to be favouring Carolina Poly although Rainer College is trying to convince the 17-year-old to go to the Pacific Northwest. Mississippi native Brackett is very close to finalizing plans to join Bayou State while Cowles, a Crowley, La. native, seems a lock to head to Houston and play for the Texas Gulf Coast Hurricanes.
Scanning a little further down the list of top recruits yields the name Charlie Barrell. The Los Angeles-born son of a former football star and movie actor is expected to be a high selection in the FABL draft but, in addition to his prowess on the diamond, Barrell is also an exceptional grid and cage player and has committed to play three sports at Noble Jones College -where his famous uncles Tom and Fred played collegiate sports- if a FABL club cannot convince him to turn pro.
DESMARAIS WINS EURO MIDDLEWEIGHT DEFENSE
Edouard Desmarais, the former French resistance fighter during the war and current European Middleweight champion, successfully defended his title n Paris Saturday evening with a unanimous decision over fellow Frenchman Yohan Revel. The victory improved Desmarais career record to 39-1 with his lone loss coming in a world title fight shot against Frank Melanson in Boston in 1946. It was also the first defeat for Revel, a promising 22-year-old who had won his first 14 bouts.
Desmarais was once thought to be on the path towards becoming one of the best fighters of all time, before his career was interrupted in it's prime by WWII where he eventually ended up being involved in the French Resistance. His whereabouts were unknown for a long stretch and he was feared dead but resurfaced in March of 1945 when discovered by an Allied soldier who was former opponent.
Closer to home, young heavyweight Joey Tierney -promoter Chester Conley's latest big thing in the heavyweight division- improved to 10-0 after the 20-year-old Detroit native knocked out Tony Herring in a mid-week bout in Lewiston, Me. Conley, who handles world champion Hector Sawyer, is predicting big things for Tierney -noting he may even be better than Sawyer was at that age.
UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS- Dec 12 - Lakeside Auditorium, Chicago: World Middleweight Champ John Edmonds (23-2) rematch with Frank Melanson (32-1-2)
- Jan 10 - Santa Ana Stadium, Los Angeles: World Heavyweight Champ Hector Sawyer vs Dan Miller
- Jan 24 - Lake Erie Arena, Cleveland, OH: World Welterweight champion Harold Stephens (20-3-2) defends his title against Ira Mitchell (19-1)
The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 11/16/1947
- Testimony has resumed in the Senate War Investigating Subcommittee with Howard Hughes disclosing that an Air Forces deputy procurement chief, now retired, tried to borrow $200,000 from him while a photo reconnaissance plane contract was under negotiation with the Hughes company.
- Secretary of State Marshall urged Congress, when it resumes today, to rush through an emergency relief fund of $597 million to carry France, Italy and Austria through the winter without waiting to work out a long-range recovery program for Europe.
- In total, Marshall says Congress will be asked for $2.65 billion before June 30 for aid in all parts of the world.
- Gen. Charles de Gaulle urged France to take the lead in forming alliances with the United States, Great Britain and other countries "who feel themselves similarly menaced by communism."
- French troops and mobile guards were called upon to patrol the streets of Marseille as Communist labor leaders issued a general strike call after a day of rioting. Socialist Premier Ramadier told the Communist Party his government would "defend the republic against you."
- A general strike also threatens Rome after violence flared in scores of Italian towns and cities this week.