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When game time comes round and No. 22—Quarterback Layne—moves into the huddle, he is able to choose from a wide variety of plays as he tries to outguess the opposition—and he speaks a lingo that is pro football's own creation. "Take passes," explains Bobby. "We have all kinds of pass patterns. You throw passes off your running fakes. You have a 'Divide,' a 'Swing Pass' [in which, a back swings out to receive instead of going Up and Out], a 'Crossover' [in which an end or wingback cuts diagonally across the line of scrimmage to take a short, hard pass]. If I want to pass to an end, I might call for a '9 Bend Out' [the numeral designating the player who will receive the pass]. For a back. I might call a '4 Up and Out.' "
Play numbers are not the only figures that interest Coach Parker. He takes continual precautions never to be caught with a hotel room, a hat check or a ticket of any sort whose digits add up to 13. As far as Buddy is concerned, even a number like 103 is forbidden.
On the Offensive. The Lions are always on the prowl for new material, and they spend at least $70,000 a year to keep assistant college coaches in each of the N.C.A.A. districts on their payroll as scouts. Even though some schools—notably the Big Ten—have declared war on the pros, reports roll in regularly to the Lion office. "We've got no quarrel with the colleges," insists Commissioner Bell. "Our Saturday night and Sunday games don't hurt their gate as much as they claim. We have their best interests at heart. They're our farm system."
Scouts are also busy keeping watch on the rest of the league—to learn the opposition's tactics. Coach Parker never quite gets over the suspicion that enemy agents are everywhere. Once, when a railroad switch engine idled back and forth on a track that passed the Lions' practice field, Parker looked up to see the engineer and fireman watching the workout. He promptly halted practice. "For all I know, George Halas could be sitting in the cab of that locomotive," he explained.
Chances are that a scouting report on the Lions would not give the opposition much peace of mind. It would only remind them that when Bobby Layne drops back to pass, he is perfectly capable of changing his mind and running with the drive of a fullback. When he does fire the ball, he can pick his target from such amiable giants as Notre Dame's Leon Hart (6 ft. 5 in., 250 Ibs.) and Michigan State's Dome Dibble (6 ft. 2 in., 195 Ibs.). Going downfield along with the two ends will be such tough backs as Indiana's Bob Hoernschemeyer (6 ft., 195 Ibs.), Wisconsin's Jug Girard (5 ft. n in., 175 Ibs.) or Bobby's old pal Doak Walker (5 ft. 10 in., 172 Ibs.). Any one of them is capable of snagging the ball despite defensive backs draped all over his anatomy.
Up forward, holding off the enemy, giving Bobby all the time in the world to call his shots, will be some of the heftiest linemen in professional football. Any of the seven monsters is as awesome as William and Mary's Lou Creekmur (6 ft. 4 in., 250 Ibs.), a smiling assassin who drew more holding penalties than any other player during his first few years, but is now amazingly adept at that proscribed practice.