1908: Massillon 0 Canton Central 17

MASSILLON HIGH DIED GAME
Put Up a First Class Contest Against Canton
CANTON,  17;       MASSILLON, 0.

McGregor, Disabled,
Went Into the Game and Turned the Tide of Battle
Massillon Carried the Ball to Canton’s Ten-Yard Line
but Couldn’t Put it Over.

Although defeated in the end by the score of 17 to 0, the Massillon high school football team managed to give Canton’s aggregation the worst scare it has received in many a long day when the two teams met for the first time this season on the high school grounds, Saturday afternoon.  Expecting a one-sided score which could be reckoned by tens, it ran into a snag in the very first scrimmage, which promised to be its undoing.  The day was only saved by rushing the disabled McGregor, Canton’s massive and invincible fullback, into a suit, and trotting him out to hunt for the weak spots in Massillon’s stone wall defense.  With few exceptions he was the only man who could make a dent in Massillon’s light but scrappy line.  When he did not carry the ball he made the hole for the other fellow.  The advent of the heavy full back was not noticed at once but in the long run he proved the deciding weight in the scales of victory.

Massillon was more than an even match for the original team with which Canton started the game.  Receiving on the first kickoff it made its yards repeatedly against the dazed Canton team, which had not anticipated such things.  Massillon’s greatest playing was done in the first ten minutes of the second half.  The same can be said of Canton, for in this time the two teams held against each other like two walls of adamant, the ball changing hands several times without moving more than a yard or two either way.  Massillon received the ball on the kickoff in the second half and carried it without losing it, to Canton’s ten yard line.  One touchdown and a goal meant victory for Massillon.  With victory ten short yards off, Massillon played like a demon, but Canton, goaded by fear of defeat, held in desperation.  Every hole in the red and black line was plugged by Canton backs.  Massillon’s every trick was tried but Canton’s ends were wise and refused to be drawn in.  Erb dropped back for a try at goal but the kick was blocked.  Massillon recovered the ball and the battle royal began again.  Twice the ball was lost and gained by Massillon on fumbles, but with twelve downs in succession the ball was not advanced an inch.  Twice Massillon had but one man between the runner and the goal, but twice this man nailed the play.  Atwater and Snavely carried the ball in these cases and carried it back for thirty yards, being downed by the last man between himself and the goal.

Canton soon came to its own.  Receiving the ball on a punt it took a mighty brace and bore slowly through Massillon’s line, carrying the ball down the field on plunging line bucks.  After losing the ball several times it at last forced it over for the second touchdown.  The third touchdown was secured by the same tactics, although Massillon’s line never said die, and fought for all that was in it until the whistle blew.  In the latter part of the second half Massillon punted every time it received the ball.  It had not given up the hope of scoring but considered this the only manner in which it could again get within striking distance of the goal.  Massillon’s good work in downing the runner where the ball dropped made this possible.

Massillon’s playing exceeded the hopes of the most sanguine.  The line played low, the backs ran low, and the tackling was not only low but hard.  There was no dragging.  When a man was hit he knew it, and he faded without delay.  Behind the playing on both sides was a Carlisle desperation, which brooked no trifling.  Canton had thought Massillon would be easy and was desperate with the fear of defeat.  Massillon knew that if ever under the sun, now was a chance to defeat Canton, and it was determined to do it.  Every player was in the game to do or to die.  Canton turned the trick, and Massillon died game.  The score may after all be a fair estimate of the strength of the two teams for Canton easily outweighed Massillon ten or fifteen pounds to the man.  This counted for little until the final test in the second half, when it won the game.  A practical demonstration of Massillon’s ginger was Dave Reese, its 120 pound center who played the game against three different opponents of massive proportions and who stuck them all out.

An unprecedented crowd of over a thousand people boxed the field on all sides, and with the exception of a few Canton adherents, gave Massillon its undivided loyalty.  If anything under the sun aided Massillon in the accomplishment of such great things it was the heroic loyalty of two hundred high school students, principally girls who took their stand at the north side of the field and yelled and shouted and sang themselves hoarse for the yellow and black in defeat and victory.

Following is the line-up:
Canton – 17                    Pos.                  Massillon – 0
Blythe (c)                          le                            Richards
L. Wise                             lt                                    Erb
Howells                             lg                                  Carr
C. Wise                             c                                Reese
Karper                              rg                         Blackburn
Lathamer                           rt                                  Clay
Cover                               re                                Wells
Brooks                             qb                            Atwater
Harris                               rh                             Snavely
Steiner                              lh               Hammersmith (c)
Lawson, McGregor           fb                                Davis

Time of halves:  20 minutes.

Touchdowns:  Canton – McGregor  2; Blythe.

Goals from touchdown:  Canton – Brooks  2.

Referee – Bast.
Timekeeper – Hall.
Linesman – Bloomberg.

1907: Massillon 0 Canton Central 0

CANTON KEPT
FROM SCORING
Two High School Teams Play
a 0 to 0 Game

WAS A GREAT GRIDIRON BATTLE.
Supporters of the Massillon Team
Were Delighted With its Work –
Grounds Were in Excellent Shape
and a Big Crowd Witnessed the Game.

For the first time in many years the Massillon High School football team kept the Canton High School team from scoring Saturday afternoon.  While Massillon High has won an occasional victory from Canton High on the baseball diamond, the fates have for the past three or four years been dead against them on the grid.  This year’s team delighted its supporters Saturday afternoon by playing a 0 to 0 game with its usually victorious opponents. It was one of thE neatest gridiron battles seen in this football city for many a day.

The grounds were in excellent shape.  Wire had been strung entirely around the field, obviating the annoyance caused by spectators getting in the way, goal posts had been erected and when the two teams dashed onto the field to hold a short limbering up practice before the game, they were cheered by a throng of hundreds of people.  The field was dotted with pennants, the orange and black of Massillon and the red and black of Canton High, and about every third rooter was attacked to a large red megaphone.  Rome’s reputation in the howling line was entirely cast in the shade.

The game commenced on the second at 3 o’clock.  Cheered on by cries of “Rifferty-rafferty, riff-raff, chifferty-chafferty, chiff-chaff,” etc., which is the first chapter of Canton High’s sensible, intelligent yell, the Canton players lined up at the west end of the field and received the kickoff from Massillon.  Brooks caught the kick, but advanced it only a short distance.  On a fumble Massillon soon gained the ball, but in its own territory.  After several ineffectual attempts to circle the ends, Grinnell tried a forward pass to Wells, which failed, and Canton got the ball.  Unheeding Massillon’s failure in the same line, the Canton High immediately tried a forward which also failed, Grinnell capturing the ball.  Dow was then hurled and thrust against the line for eight yards, Grinnell and Wagner also steadily pounded the line and Massillon gained its yards for several downs.  Canton got the ball far down in its own territory and immediately attempted to punt, but Snavely crashed through the line and blocked it on Canton’s ten-yard line.

Massillon High now went wild with delight.  Nothing seemed surer than that Canton High should be scored upon.  As a last resort Canton again tried the forward pass.  This time it succeeded and about twenty yards were gained.  A delayed quarter back run netted about fifteen yards more for Canton, and they were out of danger for the time being.   The forward pass was by far the most popular play.  Canton tried it again and Snavely downed the runner in his tracks, and when the same play was tried again Wagner got the ball but was knocked out.  In about five minutes he insisted on re-entering the game.  Punting was now resorted to.  Captain Grinnell out punted his opponent by many yards on every punt. The ball going out of bounds, both teams hurdled the wire, crashed through the crowd and in an instant a mass of humanity was rolling over and over in the road.  When the mass was resolved into its elements, Keeley Miller was found snugly wrapped around the ball.  The first ended with the ball in Massillon’s possession near the middle of the field.  Neither side had scored.

Although Wagner was badly injured, he insisted on entering the game when the teams lined up after a ten minute respite.  In the second half he played the game of his life.  Many a time he was the first man down the field on a punt, would down his man, and then lay stretched out on his back thoroughly done up.  The injury which he received in the first half only seemed to make him play the harder.  Canton High kicked off to Massillon when the second half began, Grinnell getting the ball.  Punting soon became more the custom than ever.  Grinnell’s trusty leg always sending the ball forty yards or more.  Canton now made a good end run which looked good for a touchdown, but the runner was downed by the indomitable Wagner far down in Massillon’s territory.  Things looked…

REST OF COPY NOT AVAILABLE

Oct. 10, 1907
PRACTICE GAME

High School Team Defeated
by Adversaries’ Superior Weight

Although the Massillon High School football beam enjoyed a good practice game against the Business College eleven on the high school grounds Wednesday afternoon, the enjoyment ended there, for the final score was not at all to its liking.  Much to the High School team’s surprise and indignation, the Business College team trimmed it by the score of 6 to 0.  The victory was due to the terrific line hitting of the Business College and Thompson’s end runs.  Although the business College had not played before this season, excellent signal work was done and the runner was always given excellent interference.  The High school was greatly out-weighed, and this was the reason for their defeat, as they could not withstand the onslaught of the Business College’s much heavier back field.

Both captains seemed desirous of kicking field goals.  Whenever either team got within striking distance, and sometimes when they were not, a try would be made by Grinnell or Schnierle for goal from the field.  Every attempt failed.  Massillon High played a much better game on the ends than was the case of New Philadelphia last Saturday.  Thompson was the only Business College back that made any gains on the end.  Punting honors were about even between Grinnell and Thompson, each kicking well.

The High School team has no reason to chide the girls for non-support.  A large crowd of high school maidens were in evidence and in spite of the fact that theirs was the losing side, sent cheer after cheer echoing across the field.