Behind the Line: A Story of College Life and Football

  BEHIND THE LINE

  A Story of College Life and Football

  byRALPH HENRY BARBOURAuthor of _The Half-Back_, _Captain of the Crew_, and _For the Honorof the School_

  Illustrated by C.M. Relyea

  1902

  A critical moment]

  TOMY MOTHER

  PREFATORY NOTE

  The Author takes pleasure in acknowledging his indebtedness to Mr. LorinF. Deland, of Boston, for the football play described in Chapter XV.

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER I.--HEROES IN MOLESKIN II.--PAUL CHANGES HIS MIND III.--IN NEW QUARTERS IV.--NEIL MAKES ACQUAINTANCES V.--AND SHOWS HIS METTLE VI.--MILLS, HEAD COACH VII.--THE GENTLE ART OF HANDLING PUNTS VIII.--THE KIDNAPING IX.--THE BROKEN TRICYCLE X.--NEIL MAKES THE VARSITY XI.--THE RESULT OF A FUMBLE XII.--ON THE HOSPITAL LIST XIII.--SYDNEY STUDIES STRATEGY XIV.--MAKES A CALL XV.--AND TELLS OF A DREAM XVI.--ROBINSON SENDS A PROTEST XVII.--A PLAN AND A CONFESSIONXVIII.--NEIL is TAKEN OUT XIX.--ON THE EVE OF BATTLE XX.--COWAN BECOMES INDIGNANT XXI.--THE "ANTIDOTE" IS ADMINISTERED XXII.--BETWEEN THE HALVESXXIII.--NEIL GOES IN XXIV.--AFTER THE BATTLE

  LIST OF ILLUSTKATIONS

  A critical moment (frontispiece)

  Getting settled

  The vine swayed at every strain

  Hiding his face, he cried for help

  "I guess you've broken down," said Neil

  Mills studied the diagram in silence

  CHAPTER I

  HEROES IN MOLESKIN

  "Third down, four yards to gain!"

  The referee trotted out of the scrimmage line and blew his whistle; theHillton quarter-back crouched again behind the big center; the otherbacks scurried to their places as though for a kick.

  "_9--6--12!_" called quarter huskily.

  "Get through!" shrieked the St. Eustace captain. "Block this kick!"

  "_4--8!_"

  The ball swept back to the full, the halves formed their interference,and the trio sped toward the right end of the line. For an instant theopposing ranks heaved and struggled; for an instant Hillton repelled theattack; then, like a shot, the St. Eustace left tackle hurtled throughand, avoiding the interference, nailed the Hillton runner six yards backof the line. A square of the grand stand blossomed suddenly with blue,and St. Eustace's supporters, already hoarse with cheering and singing,once more broke into triumphant applause. The score-board announcedfifteen minutes to play, and the ball went to the blue-clad warriors onHillton's forty-yard line.

  Hillton and St. Eustace were once more battling for supremacy on thegridiron in their annual Thanksgiving Day contest. And, in spite of thefact that Hillton was on her own grounds, St. Eustace's star was in theascendant, and defeat hovered dark and ominous over the Crimson. Withthe score 5 to in favor of the visitors, with her players battered andwearied, with the second half of the game already half over, Hillton,outweighted and outplayed, fought on with the doggedness born of despairin an almost hopeless struggle to avert impending defeat.

  In the first few minutes of the first half St. Eustace had battered herway down the field, throwing her heavy backs through the crimson lineagain and again, until she had placed the pigskin on Hillton'sthree-yard line. There the Hillton players had held stubbornly againsttwo attempts to advance, but on the third down had fallen victims to adelayed pass, and St. Eustace had scored her only touch-down. Thepunt-out had failed, however, and the cheering flaunters of blue bannershad perforce to be content with five points.

  Then it was that Hillton had surprised her opponents, for when theBlue's warriors had again sought to hammer and beat their way throughthe opposing line they found that Hillton had awakened from her daze,and their gains were small and infrequent. Four times ere the half wasat an end St. Eustace was forced to kick, and thrice, having by thehardest work and almost inch by inch fought her way to within scoringdistance of her opponent's goal, she met a defense that was impregnableto her most desperate assaults. Then it was that the Crimson had wavedmadly over the heads of Hillton's shrieking supporters and hope hadagain returned to their hearts.

  In the second half Hillton had secured the ball on the kick-off, and,never losing possession of it, had struggled foot by foot to withinfifteen yards of the Blue's goal. From there a kick from placement hadbeen tried, but Gale, Hillton's captain and right half-back, had beenthrown before his foot had touched the leather, and the St. Eustaceright-guard had fallen on the ball. A few minutes later a fumblereturned the pigskin to Hillton on the Blue's thirty-three yards, andonce more the advance was taken up. Thrice the distance had been gainedby plunges into the line and short runs about the ends, and onceFletcher, Hillton's left half, had got away safely for twenty yards. Buton her eight-yard line, under the shadow of her goal, St. Eustace hadheld bravely, and, securing the ball on downs, punted it far down thefield into her opponent's territory. Fletcher had run it back ten yardsere he was downed, and from there it had gone six yards further by onesuperb hurdle by the full-back. But St. Eustace had then held finely,and on the third down, as has been told, Hillton's fake-kick play hadbeen demolished by the Blue's tackle, and the ball was once more in thehands of St. Eustace's big center rush.

  On the side-line, his hands in his pockets and his short brier pipeclenched firmly between his teeth, Gardiner, Hillton's head coach,watched grimly the tide of battle. Things had gone worse than he hadanticipated. He had not hoped for too much--a tie would have satisfiedhim; a victory for Hillton had been beyond his expectations. St. Eustacefar outweighed his team; her center was almost invulnerable and her backfield was fast and heavy. But, despite the modesty of his expectations,Gardiner was disappointed. The plays that he had believed would prove tobe ground-gainers had failed almost invariably. Neil Fletcher, the lefthalf, on whom the head coach had placed the greatest reliance, had, witha single exception, failed to circle the ends for any distance. To besure, the St. Eustace end rushes had proved more knowing than he hadgiven them credit for being, and so the fault was, after all, not withFletcher; but it was disappointing nevertheless.

  And, as is invariably the case, he saw where he had made mistakes in thehandling of his team; realized, now that it was too late, that he hadgiven too much attention to that thing, too little to this; that, asthings had turned out, certain plays discarded a week before would haveproved of more value than those substituted. He sighed, and moved downthe line to keep abreast of the teams, now five yards nearer theHillton goal.

  "Crozier must come out in a moment," said a voice beside him. He turnedto find Professor Beck, the trainer and physical director. "What a gamehe has put up, eh?"

  Gardiner nodded.

  "Best quarter in years," he answered. "It'll weaken us considerably, butI suppose it's necessary." There was a note of interrogation in thelast, and the professor heard it.

  "Yes, yes, quite," he replied. "The boy's on his last legs." Gardinerturned to the line of substitutes behind them.

  "Decker!"

  The call was taken up by those nearest at hand, and the next instant ashort, stockily-built youth was peeling off his crimson sweater. Thereferee's whistle blew, and while the mound of squirming players foundtheir feet again, Gardiner walked toward them, his hand onDecker's shoulder.

  "Play slow and steady your team, Decker," he counseled. "Use Young andFletcher for runs; try them outside of tackle, especially on the right.Give Gale a chance to hit the line now and then and diversify your playswell. And, my boy, if you get that ball again, and of course you will,_don't let it go_! Give up your twenty yards if necessary, only hang onto the leather!"

  Then he thumped him encouragingly on the back and sped him forw
ard.Crozier, the deposed quarter-back, was being led off by Professor Beck.The boy was pale of face and trembling with weariness, and one footdragged itself after the other limply. But he was protesting with tearsin his eyes against being laid off, and even the hearty cheers for himthat thundered from the stand did not comfort him. Then the game wenton, the tide of battle flowing slowly, steadily, toward theCrimson's goal.

  "If only they don't score again!" said Gardiner.

  "That's the best we can hope for," said Professor Beck.

  "Yes; it's turned out worse than I expected."

  "Well, you can comfort yourself with the knowledge that they've playedas plucky a game against odds as I ever expect to see," answered theother. "And we won't say die yet; there's still"--he looked at hiswatch--there's still eight minutes."

  "That's good; I hope Decker will remember what I told him about runsoutside right tackle," muttered Gardiner anxiously. Then he relightedhis pipe and, with stolid face, watched events.

  St. Eustace was still hammering Hillton's line at the wings. Time andagain the Blue's big full-back plunged through between guard andtackle, now on this side, now on that, and Hillton's line ever gave backand back, slowly, stubbornly, but surely.

  "First down," cried the referee. "Five yards to gain."

  The pigskin now lay just midway between Hillton's ten-and fifteen-yardlines. Decker, the substitute quarter-back, danced about under thegoal-posts.

  "Now get through and break it up, fellows!" he shouted. "Get through!Get through!"

  But the crimson-clad line men were powerless to withstand the terrificplunges of the foe, and back once more they went, and yet again, and theball was on the six-yard line, placed there by two plunges atright tackle.

  "First down!" cried the referee again.

  Then Hillton's cup of sorrow seemed overflowing. For on the next playthe umpire's whistle shrilled, and half the distance to the goal-linewas paced off. Hillton was penalized for holding, and the ball was onher three yards!

  From the section of the grand stand where the crimson flags waved camesteady, entreating, the wailing slogan:

  "_Hold, Hillton! Hold, Hillton! Hold, Hillton!_"

  Near at hand, on the side-line, Gardiner ground his teeth on the stem ofhis pipe and watched with expressionless face. Professor Beck, at hisside, frowned anxiously.

  "Put it over, now!" cried the St. Eustace captain. "Tear them up,fellows!"

  The quarter gave the signal, the two lines smashed together, and thewhistle sounded. The ball had advanced less than a yard. The Hilltonstand cheered hoarsely, madly.

  "Line up! Line up!" cried the Blue's quarter. "Signal!"

  Then it was that St. Eustace made her fatal mistake. With the memory ofthe delayed pass which had won St. Eustace her previous touch-down inmind, the Hillton quarter-back was on the watch.

  The ball went back, was lost to view, the lines heaved and strained.Decker shot to the left, and as he reached the end of the line the St.Eustace left half-back came plunging out of the throng, the ballsnuggled against his stomach. Decker, just how he never knew, squirmedpast the single interferer, and tackled the runner firmly about thehips. The two went down together on the seven yards, the blue-stockingedyouth vainly striving to squirm nearer to the line, Decker holding forall he was worth. Then the Hillton left end sat down suddenly on therunner's head and the whistle blew.

  The grand stand was in an uproar, and cheers for Hillton filled the air.Gardiner turned away calmly and knocked the ashes from his pipe.Professor Beck beamed through his gold-rimmed glasses. Decker pickedhimself up and sped back to his position.

  "_Signal_!" he cried. But a St. Eustace player called for time and thewhistle piped again.

  "If Decker tries a kick from there it'll be blocked, and they'll scoreagain," said Gardiner. "Our line can't hold. There's just one thing todo, but I fear Decker won't think of it." He caught Gale's eye andsignaled the captain to the side-line.

  "What is it?" panted that youth, taking the nose-guard from his mouthand tenderly nursing a swollen lip. Gardiner hesitated. Then--

  "Nothing. Only fight it out, Gale. You've got your chance now!" Galenodded and trotted back. Gardiner smiled ruefully. "The rule againstcoaching from the side-lines may be a good one," he muttered, "but Iguess it's lost this game for us."

  The whistle sounded and the lines formed again.

  "First down," cried the referee, jumping nimbly out of the way. Deckerhad been in conference with the full-back, and now he sprang back tohis place.

  "Signal!" he cried. "_14--7--31_!"

  The Hillton full stood just inside the goal-line and stretched his handsout.

  "_16--8_!"

  The center passed the pigskin straight and true to the full-back, butthe latter, instead of kicking it, stood as though bewildered while theSt. Eustace forwards plunged through the Hillton line as though it hadbeen of paper. The next moment he was thrown behind his goal-line withthe ball safe in his arms, and Gardiner, on the side-line, was smilingcontentedly.

  "Touch-back," cried Decker. "Line up on the twenty yards, fellows!"

  Hillton's ruse had won her a free kick, and in another moment the ballwas arching toward the St. Eustace goal. The Blue's left half securedit, but was downed on his forty yards. The first attack netted fouryards through Hillton's left-guard, and the crimson flags drooped ontheir staffs. On the next play St. Eustace's full-back hurdled the linefor two yards, but lost the pigskin, and amid frantic cries of "Ball!Ball!" Fletcher, Hillton's left half, dropped upon it. The crimsonbanners waved again, and Hillton voices once more took up the refrain ofHilltonians, while hope surged back into loyal hearts.

  "Five minutes to play," said Professor Beck. Gardiner nodded.

  "Time enough to win in," he answered.

  Decker crouched again, chanted his signal, and the Hillton full plungedat the blue-clad line. But only a yard resulted.

  "_Signal_!" cried the quarter. "_8--51--16--5_!"

  The ball came back into his waiting hands, was thrown at a short passto the left half, and, with right half showing the way and full-backcharging along beside, Fletcher cleared the line through a wide gapoutside of St. Eustace's right tackle and sped down the field while theHillton supporters leaped to their feet and shrieked wildly. Thefull-back met the St. Eustace right half, and the two were left behindon the turf. Beside Fletcher, a little in advance, ran the Hilltoncaptain and right half-back, Paul Gale. Between them and the goal, nowforty yards away, only the St. Eustace quarter remained, but behind themcame pounding footsteps that sounded dangerous.

  Gardiner, followed by the professor and a little army of privilegedspectators, raced along the line.

  "He'll make it," muttered the head coach. "They can't stop him!"

  One line after another went under the feet of the two players. Thepursuit was falling behind. Twenty yards remained to be covered. Thenthe waiting quarter-back, white-faced and desperate, was upon them. ButGale was equal to the emergency.

  "To the left!" he panted.

  Fletcher obeyed with weary limbs and leaden feet, and without lookingknew that he was safe. Gale and the St. Eustace player went downtogether, and in another moment Fletcher was lying, faint but happy,over the line and back of the goal!

  The stands emptied themselves on the instant of their triumphant burdenof shouting, cheering, singing Hilltonians, and the crimson bannerswaved and fluttered on to the field. Hillton had escaped defeat!

  But Fortune, now that she had turned her face toward the wearers of theCrimson, had further gifts to bestow. And presently, when the weariedand crestfallen opponents had lined themselves along the goal-line,Decker held the ball amid a breathless silence, and Hillton's right endsent it fair and true between the uprights: Hillton, 6; Opponents, 5.

  The game, so far as scoring went, ended there. Four minutes later thewhistle shrilled for the last time, and the horde of frantic Hilltoniansflooded the field and, led by the band, bore their heroes in triumphback to the school. And, side by side,
at the head of the procession,perched on the shoulders of cheering friends, swayed the two half-backs,Neil Fletcher and Paul Gale.