Lloyd Jordan College's New Football Coach, Plans to Open Spring Practice in Three Weeks

Lloyd P. Jordan, the College's new football coach, said last night that he plans to move to Cambridge as soon as possible, adding that he hopes to have spring practice under way by March 20, with the approved of the administration. "I would rather be talking with the Harvard squad than with newspapermen," he commented from his home at Amherst.

Jordan may be in Boston briefly tomorrow at the Harvard Club, where former College players from the classes of 1912, 1913, and 1934 are holding a panel on Harvard football tomorrow night.

As far as his staff of assistants goes, Jordan has nothing definite. He did some surveying and made some calls while he was in the area and has some tentative plans. Jordan's aides at Amherst last fall included Paul Eckley, end coach and head baseball coach; Joe Maras, line coach and wrestling mentor; freshman coach Joe Rogers; and Rick Wilson, backfield assistant and basketball coach.

Jordan brought Eckley to Amherst in 1936 from Cornell, where he worked under Gil Doby as freshman football coach and also coached the varsity baseball team. It is unlikely that Eckley will eave Amherst, since he is full professor there. (All Amherst coaches are members of the college faculty and are on tenure.) Maras played at Duquesne, Rogers at Michigan.

There are also three members of Art Valpey's staff whom Jordan can consider--end coach Elmor Madar, junior varsity coach Ben McCabe, and freshman coach Henry Lamar.

Asked why he left a comfortable position at Amherst, Jordan said, "I believe in football and I realize the Harvard job presents a real challenge. One of the greatest things, for me, was when Provost Buck came out and said Harvard wasn't going to give up football."

Jordan is reported to have told Stuffy McInnis, when the latter was coaching Amherst baseball in 1948, that he would like one chance in "big time" football. Jordan headed the list of older coaches two years ago when Harvard was seeking a successor to Dick Harlow, but at that time the administration decided on a young man. The final decision reputedly lay between Jordan and Valpey.

After Valpey's resignation, the College wanted an older, more experienced man and Jordan was chosen from a group of approximately 80 applicants.

Of the 117 football games Amherst played since Jordan took over in 1932, the Lord Jeff's won 74 and tied five. The material Jordan got was comparable with the league in which his teams played, but he more than held his own with Williams and Wesleyan (the other members of the Little Three) when Charley Caldwell and Wes Fesler were the respective coaches. Caldwell has since moved to Princeton, and Fesler to Ohio State.

Jordan ran most of his plays last year from the T formation, although he was schooled in the single and double-wing tradition of Pop Warner. However, Jordan can adapt his style and cannot say definitely what style offense he will use until he speaks with his squad. Jordan placed great emphasis on conditioning and fundamentals at Amherst.

Neither the length nor the terms of Jordan's Harvard contract were revealed. It is general assumed that he would not consider anything except a long term contract. Estimates place his Amherst salary at approximately $12,500.

Jordan is vice-president of the first district of the National Collegiate Athletic Association and first vice-president of the American Football Coaches Association. He will automatically become president of the latter organization in 1951