GAME RECAP (MILWAUKEE SENTINEL)
(MILWAUKEE) - The high powered Los Angeles Rams
had too many guns, too much striking power - especially
air power - for the Green Bay Packers at the Stadium
Sunday. As a result, the West Coast club chalked up a
38-20 victory before an appreciative audience of 23,352.
The Bays showed continued improvement and put up a
good fight. But improvement and fight weren't enough to
ward off their third straight league defeat. They had the
satisfaction of leading briefly on the first of two field goals
by Fred Cone. They outgained the enemy on the ground
and wound up with a big margin on kick returns thanks to
some brilliant running by Al Carmichael. They even
unleashed their most effective pass attack of the season.
RAMS' PASSING SHARP
Defense against the aerial bombs fired by Norm Van
Brocklin and Rudy Bukich was something else again. In
fact, it was the Rams' sharp overhead maneuvers, featuring
the incomparable Elroy (Crazy Legs) Hirsch on the
receiving end, that spelled ruin for the Ronzanimen.
Although only one of L.A.'s five touchdowns was scored
directly on a pass, the sharpshooting ate up most of the
vital yards along the way. Hirsch was the big wheel with
eight catches for 168 yards, but he wasn't alone on the
receiving end. In fact, five teammates got in the act.
Volney Quinlan came closest to sharing honors with Crazy
Legs by fielding a long one for 59 yards to boost the
Rams' lead to 21-10 shortly before the end of the half.
MYERS SCORES TWICE
Brady Myers scored twice in the first half for the visitors on
a 13-yard run and three-yard plunge. Tank Younger
plunged two yards in the third quarter and Bukich sneaked
for one in the fourth. Golden-toed Ben Agajanian
connected on five straight conversions and added a 47-
yard field goal to account for the winners' other points.
Most of the Packer scoring was done by Cone - 14 points
to be exact - on field goals of 33 and 38 yards, a three-
yard smash and two conversions. Johnny Papit closed the
Packer books with a fourth period TD on a seven-yard
sweep.
FIRST DOWN EDGE
he Packers actually had the edge in first downs, 18 to 16, and wound up with total gains of 327 to 426 for the Rams. But they just couldn't connect in the pinches - like those vital third down plays that kept rallies going. Nor were they a match for the visitors on pass defense. Witness L.A.'s four interceptions to none for the home club. The big-bog down came in the second quarter when the Bays had fourth down, only two yards from a score and couldn't make it. A pass fell incomplete in the end zone for a touchback in that key spot when they were trailing 14-3. As thought that wasn't enough, Stretch Elliott, who otherwise played a fine all-around game on both offense and defense, dropped a pass with a clear field ahead. Another pass was underthrown, with Clive Rush free in the end zone. To make matters worse, the day's big Packer gainer, a 55-yard pass from Tobin Rote to Bobby Dillon, was nullified by an offside penalty a couple minutes before the halftime gun. That would have meant position on the Rams' 10 and a chance to make it 21-17 at the intermission. Carmichael's kick returns were something to behold. He ran back four kickoffs, a punt and a short field try a total of 260 yards. His longest gallop was 56 yards after fielding Agajanian's three-point bid from 56 yards out. Carmichael caught the ball on his two and twisted and squirmed to the Ram 42 to set up his team's first touchdown. Another bit of consolation was the breaking of the long second half scoring drought. The Packers hadn't scored in the third or fourth period since the opening exhibition game with the Giants until Cone drilled a 33-yard field goal not long after the second half got underway.
PAPIT TALLIES
Papit's fourth period touchdown gave further proof that it is possible to score after the rest period. Rote, working off the spread formation which was used so effectively in the past, completed 12 of 25 pass attempts for 162 yards and was the chief ground gainer with 53 yards on 11 carries. Van Brocklin connected 12 times in 23 tries for 250 big yards. Bukich chipped in with five for eight to roll up 84 more. Van Brocklin and Hirsch collaborated on the day's most thrilling play, good for 70 yards, to the Packers' two yard line, from where Younger crashed over for TD No. 4.
CAUGHT BY WALKER
Crazy Legs took the ball in full stride breaking to his right, regained his feet after being knocked down by Dillon and finally was hauled down from behind by Val Joe Walker. It took two good breaks, in the form of fumble recoveries, to give the Packers the lead to give the Packers the lead via Cone's 38-yard kick after seven minutes of play. Marvin Johnson recovered Myers' bobble on the first scrimmage play on the Rams' 23. But all that happened was a field goal try that was blocked and rolled all the way to the Bays' 43. Younger promptly fumbled the ball right back and the successful field goal grew out of that. The Rams moved 57 yards on five plays following Parilli's short kick to take the lead. Myers doing the honors from 13 yards out. Woodley Lewis' interception on his 45 led to Myers' next counter on the first play of the second period. The Bays drew up to 14-10 on Cone's dive into the end zone from the three to climax a counterattack started by Carmichael's 56-yard kickoff return. It took only three plays after the next kickoff to make it 21-10 for the Rams on the aforementioned 59-yard nifty, Van Brocklin to Quinlan, who was completely alone when he caught the ball. Cone and Agajanian swapped field goals in the third period before the Van Brocklin to Hirsch dazzler gave Younger his scoring opportunity. The Packers swept 53 yards, with Papit going over, early in the fourth session. But all hopes of a miraculous comeback were snuffed out when Bukich threw strikes to Hirsch, Younger and Bob Boyd to set up his own TD on a sneak - the final marker.
LOS ANGELES - 7 14 10 7 - 38
GREEN BAY - 3 7 3 7 - 20
1st - GB - Cone, 38-yard field goal GREEN BAY 3-0
1st - LA - Brady Myers, 13-yard run (Ben Agajanian kick) LOS ANGELES 7-3
2nd - LA - Myers, 3-yard run (Agajanian kick) LOS ANGELES 14-3
2nd - GB - Cone, 3-yard run (Cone kick) LOS ANGELES 14-10
2nd - LA - Skeets Quinlan, 59-yard pass from Van Brocklin (Agajanian kick) LA 21-10
3rd - GB - Cone, 33-yard field goal LOS ANGELES 21-13
3rd - LA - Agajanian, 47-yard field goal LOS ANGELES 24-13
3rd - LA - Tank Younger, 2-yard run (Agajanian kick) LOS ANGELES 31-13
4th - GB - Papit, 7-yard run (Cone kick) LOS ANGELES 31-20
4th - LA - Rudy Bukich, 1-yard run (Agajanian kick) LOS ANGELES 38-20