Slants on Sports

Have you ever thought of dying for dear old Rutgers? Personally, it never bothered us but we know of two chaps who tried every conceivable means, short of suicide, of doing so.

Irv Resnick and Jack Grossman are the young men we have in mind. They went at it from their freshman year and didn’t let up until they were handed their diplomas. In fact Resnick pitched his last varsity game on his commencement day.

Jack Grossman was one of the very few nine letter men turned out by the school on the Raritan. The only other Jewish athlete who earned as many varsity letters as Jack was “Tex” Rosen. The former was on the baseball, football and basketball teams.

Resnick, however, seemed to favor those sports where there was some semblance of a scrap. He played on the water polo, football and lacrosse teams. Yet whenever he felt the urge for some quiet relaxation he would go out and win a game or two for Rutgers by pitching the team to victory. He left with this reputation, “rough, tumble, quick as a cat, but clever like a fox.”

AN OLD COMBINATION

Football fans, not knowing that these athletes had played together while at Madison high school, wondered at the remarkable success of a forward pass from Grossman to Resnick. More ground was gained by this combination through the air than any other aerial attacks in eastern football history.

Baseball rooters, amazed at Grossman’s flash performances at shortstop, were made to sit up and take notice when Resnick hurled his famous “Raritan special.” This pitch is his own invention and is a fast curve that breaks just before it cuts the inside corner of the plate. In the seven games that he pitched he won six. Four of these contests were shutouts due to his peculiar curve.

Last year they played against each other on the professional football field. Jack starred for the Orange Dragons and Irv played for the Passaic Red Devils. The two met in the final and championship game of the Interstate league on Christmas day. The Red Devils won 7-0. In fact the only man to stop successfully Grossman’s spectacular running attack was his old friend and teammate.

BOTH IN MINOR LEAGUES

Now these two are together again. Grossman, who played with the Jersey City club last year, has just signed with the Syracuse outfit. Resnick has gone along with him to complete the picture and to try his luck as a pitcher.

If we recall correctly, it was Paul Robeson, former star halfback at Rutgers who said, “For a Negro and a Jew to make a name for himself at an American University, he has to be exceptionally good.” Well, Paul Robeson, Jack Grossman and Irv Resnick are three of the very few young men who were good enough to be chosen on All-American football teams while-attending “dear old Rutgers.”

THE HEAVE AND GRUNT MEN

Years ago, we recall, “East Lynne” and “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” used to play the hinterlands for one night stands. But the old order changeth and Jack Curley and Tim Mara and Humberto Fugazy have moved in with their wrestling shows and wrasslers. Every store, every barn, and every town hall in the nation has been converted into an arena where these matmen cavort.

We dropped in at several places during the last few weeks–the Ridgewood Grove, the Broadway Arena and the Seventy-first Regiment armory–to watch these torso tossers. Maybe it’s all for the best that “East Lynne” passed from the boards. We’re convinced, after watching their leap-frog antics, that some of these so-called wrasslers couldn’t land a minor part in the show. However, far be it from us to deride their honest Thespian endeavors. Such criticism belongs on another page.

EVERYBODY’S DOING IT

The way these heave and grunt men growl and grumble when their opponents even so much as look at them is alone worth the price of admission–just once. The squeals and gurgles that these windbags emit, should a wrassler forget himself or miss his cues and grab a rival by the toes, are inimitable.

Yet there’s money in it and every furniture mover and ice man, and almost all of Greece and Russia, have jumped into the canvas arena. Despite the jeers of the crowds, who pay and pay, the wrasslers work away day in and day out, playing all towns in the country with a population of 200 and over.

We know the ropes of the game because we used to be one of the “horses” in Rickey’s stable. We used to make one night stands in Camden, Lawrence, Albany, Atlantic City, Washington and most of the hick towns in the east. We’d receive a flat weekly salary no matter if we won all five of our matches during the week. Even with the big timers in the ring, the cash is dished out on a piecework basis. There really ought to be a union.

OUR OWN SAMMY

But the show must go on, Making the old circuit tour we saw Jim Londos pin Sammy Stein recently in about half an hour. The Greek turned the trick with an airplane spin and a body hold.

The crowds at that fight worked more for Sammy than Sammy did himself. When Joe Humphries got up to announce the winner and his time the crowds booed and jeered. At least the fans never change.

Well, one week later we drifted over to Newark and once again we saw our own Sammy Stein thrown again for a loss. He should worry. Next week he wrassles in Philly and the week after in Washington, We’re not including the smaller towns he’ll be pinned in.

From Fargo to Fresno and from Denver to Dallas, we have watched reports on these Jewish lads who seem to be coming into the big time money. They are Irving Halpern, Eli Fischer, Abie Kaplan, Al Sparks and Benny Ginsburg. Yet in the last three weeks only Al Sparks has won a match.