Eliot Eleven Stops Bunnies 19-0 to Cop '52 Grid Title

Capitalizing on its "stonewall" defense, Eliot's football team blanked a second-place Leverett eleven, 19 to 0, to cop the House football championship for '52.

Holding the much lighter Bunny team to only four first downs, Eliot made 13 of its own, mostly on the ground. The Elephants totaled 229 yards in scrimmage to Leverett's meager 52, while the vaunted Bunny serial attack also failed to materialize. Eliot passed for 82 yards to 46 for Leverett.

Repeated goal-line stands held the Eliot machine until late in the third quarter, when the Elephants drove from their own 20-yard line. Steve Kurzman carried over from the two on a quarterback sneak.

Gets Second Score

Fred Rhinelander, Eliot halfback, made one of the few long runs of the afternoon to score again early in the last quarter, legging the ball over on a reverse from the 34-yard line.

Leverett sank its chances for a comeback when they fumbled the ensuing kickoff. Eliot recovered on the Bunnies' 40, moving the ball up to the 21 yard line. Forrest Bramble, the other Elephant halfback, ran over for the final score.

Eliot missed its first two conversions, but sent quarterback Buddy Rogers through center after the last touchdown.

Neither John Bagdasarian, Leverett fullback, nor halfback Sandy Batchelder could crack the Eliot line, which featured four Crimson Bowl veterans, Bill Gray, Summer White, Whitey Black, and Luke Lockwood.

The Leverett team beat Winthrop's eleven to take the House title last year.