Tuckey, Former Redskin Player, To Be Assistant Football Coach

"Sammy Baugh is the greatest football player in the world." This assertion comes from Cup(A) Richard Tuckey, director of the afternoon calisthenics classes at Soldiers Field and assistant football coach for the coming season, If experience is an indicator, Chief Tuckey ought to know, for he played beside the great Baugh in the seasons of 1938 and '39 on the Washington Redskins, and against him the next year on the Cleveland Rams.

"He doesn't takes as much punishment as Luckman because Sid works from the "T" formation," says the former blocking back in giving him the edge over the Chicago star. Tuckey also has words of praise for Wayne Milner and Turk Edwards, other of his famous teammates on the great Redskin teams, which met the Bears for the championship twice in a row, winning in '38 but taking a 75-0 licking the following season. "That sometimes happens in football," says the Chief; "everything we did backfired and everything they did worked. Besides, when the score got up to 30 to 0 the Bears began to take chances and all these plays went for touchdowns."

According to the 240 lb. Chief, "football is scientific--every game is a constant building up plays," Tuckey had to attend meetings almost every night to plan strategy for the coming games, as the team was shown movies and discussed the fine-points of strategy. Teamwork and the spirit to win are the C.P.O's two requirements to make a really great team.

Tuckey starred in three sports at Manhattan College, playing fullback on the Japsers eleven, center and left field on the basketball and baseball teams. The Chief finds that "Pro ball is harder, rougher and tougher than college ball." He also recalled that he got very nervous before each game, but that "it went away after the first contact." The biggest thrill in his Pro career came in a game in '39 with the college All-Stars, when he completed seven of nine passes and ripped off a 40-yard run.

As well as playing on some fine the ball clubs he has opposed some of the greatest players of all time, and the Chief has superlatives for every one. He calls Bronko Nagurski "the greatest plunger of all time"; Tuffy Leemans, "a real gentleman"; Mel Hein, "in a class by himself"; Ace Parker, "the greatest player in all-around ability."

But for Don Hutson he reserves the highest praise. "Hutson is terrific: deceptive, fast--you have to put at least two men on him And, marvels the Chief, "he and Baugh would make an impossible combination."

The 29-year-old C.P.O is married and has three children. He plans to get back to football "if the war is over soon." but otherwise looks forward to a career of coaching at some high school. "Real improvement" is seen by "Tuck" in the physical condition of the V-12 and civilian students under the program of calisthenics. "My idea of conditioning is to make it fun and make them like it--as long as they get a good workout."