Football game left Sandpoint players 'fit to be tied'

(In today's story, Robert Kellogg tells us about early football in Sandpoint. He calls his story, "Fit to be Tied." I became acquainted with Robert when I was asked to critique a book he was writing called, "50 True Tales of Northern Idaho." Robert has had a colorful career in Sandpoint: Ad sales and announcing for Norm Bauer at KSPT radio, writing for the Sandpoint News Bulletin, manager of the Panida Theater for Floyd Grey, just to name a few. He began researching old newspapers when he was with Lauren Pietsch at the News Bulletin and today's story comes from that research. It reflects a Sandpoint of yesteryear that is no more. Here is Robert's story — in his own words.)

"Travel distance always has been a problem for the athletic teams of North Idaho schools, but Sandpoint and Bonners Ferry high schools partly eased that difficulty for their football teams by playing each other twice each season for 19 years.

"The proximity of the two North Idaho communities created a natural rivalry that meant a good box office take for both schools almost every season, and at the same time the short travel distance helped lower both expenses and missed classroom time by the players. However, it was the travel problems of a football official that caused one game in the series between the two schools to end in controversy.

"The second game in the 1925 series — the first year of the home-and-home arrangement — was played Friday afternoon, Oct. 30, at Sandpoint's Humbird Field. A Mr. Neal of Spokane was the lone official. Nowadays, five officials oversee high school football games, which has led some critics, mostly coaches, to conclude that the only changes this has brought about are that both the cost of hiring officials and the potential for misjudgments have multiplied by a factor of five.

"Bonners Ferry had won the first of the two 1925 paired contests 7-6 earlier on its home field. Now, late in the second game, the Badgers led 6-0, but Sandpoint had possession of the ball.

"The contest had dragged on slowly because the intense rivalry created so many penalties and injuries. Neal, who had traveled to Sandpoint by train from Spokane and expected to go home by the same means immediately after the game, was about to have the second half of his round-trip train ticket invalidated.

"With time for only one more play before the game ended, Sandpoint running back Ted Farmin ran around the end but fumbled when he was tackled. His teammate, Dillard Salyers, picked up the ball and raced across the goal line for an apparent touchdown. Jubilant Sandpoint players and fans thought the score had been tied, and the home team would have a chance at the extra point for a dramatic victory. However, Neal had blown his whistle upon seeing the tackle, thereby nullifying the fumble recovery and, fearful of missing his train, sprinted to the depot to catch his ride home.

"By rule, then as now, Neal's "inadvertent" whistle ended the play and the game. Sandpoint's players, coaches, student body and fans objected loudly and lengthily, both on the scene and subsequently in irate letters to the editor, but Bonners Ferry's 6-0 victory remains in the record books.

"It was Neal's good fortune, in more ways than one, that he made it to the station in time to get out of town."