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Show GROWTH OF FOOTBALL AT THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAHTT is interesting to notice the growth and development of the game of foot-ball during the past few years at th~ University of Utah. In looking at statistics one can nothelp noticing how in early years the foot-ball season closed with but two games played. The result of the season usually stood one game won and one lost. Of course, even this was a fair record, because every team can not win all its games; but perhaps because the University is looked upon as the educational center of the state, or because of the desire for the proper recognition that a state university should have in ath: letics, as well as other lines of study, the U. of U. gradually began to reach for supremacy. Toward this end the University of Utah is now considered not only the greatest educational center of the State of Utah, but is looked upon as one of the largest of the universities of the great West.Utah had a hard struggle to get past its infancy. It had to cope with so many adverse circumstances that its growth was long and slow. First the attendance was small, since there was not the requisite number of high schools in the state from which to draw students, nor the desire for higher education to boom the University at an early date. The few students who cared for higher education usually went East to college, which did not help to build up the University. Second, the men who did come had no way of learning much about athletics, especially foot-ball, before entering. Third, the competition was so far,-it being necessary to go to Colorado, Nevada or Montana to play games or to bring those teams here at an enormous expense. Those are some of the difficulties underwhich the University labored until the population of the state grew, more students were enrolled, and there was a larger attendance at the foot-ball games,-which meant larger gate receipts to help pay the traveling expenses of the team; and now Utah successfully carries as large a schedule as any team should, and her athletics, and especially her foot-ball games, are self-supporting.The class of students who enter the University have not, as a rule, had sufficient training in athletics to let this institution glid.e along with other schools of the East. They must first be taught the minor duties of the good athlete which underlies success, but this hindrance is rapidly passing away; almost every high school, and even grade school, is now represented by a foot-ball team, and the result is, Utah can now put a strong team in the field, and must be recognized by every western institution as a strong opponent.The University of Utah is beginning to develop some men whose work on the gridiron is not only locally recognized as being first class, but who are considered everywhere in the Rocky Mountain states as men who understand the game and who would make a very creditable showing on any team in the country.] consider that the last year or two has brought to the front quite a number of first class foot-ball players for Utah. These men understand the game and are beginning to get into the spirit of what it means to be of 'varsity caliber. Such men as Fred Bennion are not very plentiful. Bennion is a man who136 |