Samborski Report Of Last Year On House Athletics

From the beginning to the present time House Athletics have been conducted in accordance with the recommendations made in the Student Council report on House Athletics issued in the Spring of 1931. Any changes in and additions to the Council's suggestions were effected by the Student Inter-House Athletic Committee. This report provided for a spontaneous development of House Athletics through decentralization.

In the Spring of 1937 the Student Council issued another report in which it asks that "central administration be effected as soon as possible" and that there be paid managers in each House. These two features in particular are expected to keep defaults at a minimum and to interest a greater number of students in House sports. This new plan is described under II. The organization which was in force during the past year is described under I.

1. Organization

The "Inter-House Athletic Committee" consists of the athletic representatives of the seven Houses and the non-resident center in Dudley Hall. These representatives are either appointed by the respective House Committees or elected by House vote.

During the past year the members of this body were: Perry J. Culver '37, Lowell, chairman; Charles D. Ruch '38, Adams; Irving Banner '37, Dudley; Gardner C. Brooks '38, Dunster; F. Gorham Brigham '37, Eliot; Wiley E. Mayne '38, Kirkland; William J. Moore '38, Leverett; and Daniel E. Burbank '37, Winthrop.

This committee ruled on various details pertaining to policy. In addition this body:

(1) Appointed managers for all sports.

(2) Developed further the "Rules and Regulations of the Inter-House Athletic Committee."

(3) Referred the problem of the "Ramblers" to the Committee on the Regulation of Athletic Sports for final decision. ("Ramblers" are dropped Freshmen and upperclassmen who neither reside in the Houses nor belong to the non-resident center in Dudley Hall.) The Committee on Regulation of Athletic Sports voted to refuse the request of the "Ramblers" to compete for House trophies or to be eligible for House championships although they will be allowed to play against House teams.

(4) In accordance with instructions from the Director of Athletics elected three members of next year's Inter-House Athletic Council (see under II) to the Undergraduate Athletic Committee designating one of the three as the representative on the Committee on the Regulation of Athletic Sports. The three elected were: Mayne (Kirkland House); Moore (Leverett House); and Ruch (Adams House). Mr. Mayne was elected as the representative on the Athletic Committee.

(5) Recommended to the Harvard Athletic Council that a paid student manager be appointed: (a) to collect scores and game sheets daily and report the results to the Harvard Crimson; (b) to act as the Inter-House football manager; (c) to arrange appointments for physical examinations; (d) to deliver schedules, notices, etc. to the Houses; and (e) to take care of many details which arise mainly after office hours. The recommendation was approved. E. H. Riddle '37 (Adams House) was appointed and discharged his duties in a highly efficient manner.

The "Inter-House Sport Committees" are composed of the House managers of different sports and deal with the various details of the respective sports. This year the Inter-House Squash and Crew Committees had the greatest number of problems to discuss.

Adolph W. Samborski, Director of Intramural Athletics, continued to serve as "Secretary for House Athletics," a position created in order to assure close cooperation between the House teams and the Harvard Athletic Association in such matters as equipment playing areas, coaches and officials. As secretary of the individual sport committees and also of the Inter-House Athletic Committee, Samborski is able to give the latter body full information about all of the organized sports.

The "coaches" and "officials" were in practically all cases members of the Athletic Department or graduate students. Two Harvard graduates who were not members of the University last year and three outside officials also assisted in the program.

II. Changes in House Athletics

Under this plan, which has been approved by the Masters of the seven Houses and other University authorities, there will be an "Inter-House Athletic Council" consisting of one Master chosen by the House Masters, the Director of Athletics, the Director of Intramural Athletics, and eight House Athletic Secretaries. This Council will act as a general co-ordinating and advisory body and will make recommendations on matters of policy.

The House athletic secretaries will be Seniors and will have the immediate responsibility of carrying out the details of the program in their respective Houses. In each House two Juniors will be appointed assistant secretaries--one of those to be the secretary in his Senior year. The secretaries and the assistants will receive compensation for their services.

(Ed Note: The CRIMSON has extracted the names of the new secretaries from Mr. Samborski's report and printed them instead in the adjoining column on this page.)

The eight secretaries, William J. Bingham '16, Director of Athletics, and Adolph W. Samborski, Director of Intramural Athletics, and a House master to be appointed, will comprise the Inter-House Athletic Council.

III. Eligibility Rules

Unless the Inter-House Athletic Committee approved special rulings for different sports, the eligibility rules for inter-House participation were:

1. House residents, graduates or undergraduates, may represent their respective Houses in those sports in which they are not Varsity lettermen.

2. House residents, while members of Varsity, Second and Third Varsity and 150 Pound sport squads may not represent their respective Houses in these same sports.

3. Members of the upper three classes only (and not graduates), who do not reside in the Houses but who are granted a House privilege such as library, dining hall, etc. by a House Master, may represent that same House.

4. Only upper class members of Dudley Hall non-Residents' Center may compete for Dudley in league contests.

5. Men on probation for scholastic reasons may take part in the final games between the Harvard Houses and the Yale Colleges, and may enter informal contests with preparatory schools.

IV. Program of Sports and Results

1. Major Sports

Football--Won by Kirkland, 2 (tie) Eliot and Winthrop, 4 Lowell, 5 Adams, 6 Leverett, 7 Dunster, 8 Dudley.

Squash--League A--won by Lowell, 2 Dunster, 3 Kirkland, 3 (tie) Eliot and Leverett, 6 Adams, 7 Winthrop.

League B--Won by Lowell, 2 Eliot, 3 Kirkland, 4 Dunster, 5 Adams, 6 Leverett, 7 Winthrop, 8 Dudley.

League C--won by Adams, 2 Lowell, 3 Dunster, 4 Eliot, 5 Leverett, 6 Kirkland, 7 Winthrop.

League D--won by Eliot, 2 Lowell, 3 Leverett, 4 Adams, 5 Dunster, 6 Kirkland, 7 Winthrop.

Inter-House Championship -- (highest total of victories in Leagues A, B, C and D)--won by Lowell 168, Eliot 149, Dunster 134, Adams 128, Kirkland 124, Leverett 118, Winthrop 59, Dudley 11.

House Tournament Winners--Dudley--M. Mazel; Dunster--A. Joseph; Eliot--S. Cunningham; Kirkland--J. R. English; Lowell--F. P. Pond; Winthrop--L. Ross.

Baseball--won by Kirkland, 2 Winthrop, 3 Leverett, 4 (tie) Dunster, Eliot and Lowell, 7 (tie) Adams and Dudley.

Rowing--First heat--won by Lowell, 2 Adams, 3 Dunster, 4 Leverett. Second heat--won by Kirkland, 2 Eliot, 3 Winthrop. Final race--won by Kirkland, 2 Eliot, 3 Lowell, 4 Adams.

2--Minor Sports

Touch Football--won by Lowell, 2 Dudley, 3 Eliot, 4 Kirkland, 5 (tie) Adams, Leverett and Winthrop, 8 Dunster.

Basketball--won by Adams, 2 Lowell, 3 Kirkland, 4 Winthrop, 5 Eliot, 6 Leverett, 7 Dunster, 8 Dudley.

Swimming--won by Eliot, 2 Winthrop, 3 (tie) Adams, Kirkland and Lowell, 6 (tie) Dudley, Dunster and Leverett.

Indoor Baseball--won by Kirkland 2 (tie) Adams and Dudley, 4 Eliot, 5 (tie) Lowell and Winthrop, 7 Leverett, 8 Dunster.

Tennis--won by Kirkland, 2 Lowell, 3 Eliot, 4 Adams, 5 (tie) Dudley and Leverett, 7 Winthrop, 8 Dunster.

Golf--won by Dunster, 2 Leverett, 3 (tie) Adams, Eliot and Kirkland, 6 Lowell, 7 Dudley.

3. Special Sports

Cross Country--won by Kirkland, 2 Adams, 3 Eliot, 4 Lowell, 5 Dunster.

Winter-Track--won by Kirkland, 2 Adams, 3 Lowell, 4 Eliot, 5 Leverett, 6 Winthrop.

Spring Track--won by Winthrop, 2 Kirkland, 3 Eliot, 4 Leverett, 5 Adams, 6 Lowell, 7 Dunster.

4. All-round Championship

Won by Kirkland 1155 points, 2 Lowell 1038 1-2, 3 Eliot 1004 1-2, 4 Adams 912, 5 Winthrop 760 2-3, 6 Leverett 712 1-6, 7 Dunster 536 2-3, 8 Dudley 502.

V. Awards

During the past year, Harvard House Champions medals were purchased for members of the winning teams by the members themselves or by the respective House Committees.

The Inter-House cups and trophies which are competed for annually were presented as follows:

House Football Perpetual Trophy by J. Dudley Clark '03.

House Baseball Perpetual Trophy by John C. McCall '99.

Inter-House Squash Cup by Bernard S. Prentice '05.

Inter-House Swimming Cup by Herbert C. Poll '06.

Inter-House Tennis Cup by Herbert C. Poll '06.

Inter-House Crew Cup by G. R. Agasiz '84.

House All-Round Championship Trophy by Percy S. Straus '97.

VI. Yale Contests

During the past year championship Harvard House teams and championship Yale College teams competed in nine different sports. The results of these contests follow:

AT YALE

Touch Football--Lowell House, 18, Pierson College, 48.

Basketball--Adams House, 16, Davenport College, 24.

Squash--Lowell House 0, Pierson College, 5.

Baseball--Kirkland House, 6, J. Edwards College, 5.

Golf--Dunster House, 3, Pierson College, 6.

AT HARVARD

Football--Kirkland House, 6, T. Dwight College, 7.

Crew--Kirkland House defeated Saybrook College by two lengths over a mile course.

Swimming--Eliot House, 35, Trumbull College, 27.

Tennis--Kirkland House, 3, Branford College, 4.

On the morning of the Yale-Harvard varsity football game day, Lowell House played the Person College football team at New Haven and lost 6 to 0.

By virtue of winning the majority of the championship contests (6 to 3) Yale is entitled to keep the Edward S. Harkness Trophy for another year.

VII. Records

Scrapbooks and reports of previous years are available at the office of the Department of Physical Education. In the scrapbooks may be found clippings of stories about the House athletic program from the Harvard Crimson, the Harvard A. A. Nowa and from Boston newspapers.

VIII. Participation

Although the number of participants in House sports this year is ninety less than last year, the number of teams rose to 120--thirteen more than in 1935-1936 and twenty-six more than in 1934-1935. Lowell House had 18 teams; Adams, Eliot and Kirkland 17 each: Dunster, Levevertt and Winthrop 14 each; and Dudley Hall 9. There were 29 teams in squash; 13 crews; 8 teams in football, touch football, swimming, basketball, indoor baseball, baseball and tennis; 7 in gold, 5 in spring track, cross country, and winter track.

Fifty-one per cent of those eligible for House competition took part in House sports. By Houses the percentages are as follows: Kirkland, 58 per cent; Adams, 56 per cent; Lowell, 52 per cent; Dunster, Eliot and Winthrop each 20 per cent; Dudley Hall 47 per cent; and Leverett 46 per cent.

The combination of a smaller number of participants and a greater number of teams indicates more regular competition by those who took part in House sports. In order to provide adequate opportunities for competition for a greater number of individuals, it will be necessary to have more teams and more sports.

Mr. Samborski concludes with a table illustrating figures of intramural participation sport, individual, and House during the past six years