The Team of the Decade: The 1924 Panthers
Elder
Football - The 1920's Mr. J. Ben Grause,
Jr., was Athletic Director and Coach from 1922 until June,
1927. Mr. Walter J. Bartlett, who came to Elder as a teacher
in 1925, became head coach in September, 1927, and continued
in that capacity until 1952. The first roster of players
consisted of 23 athletes, captained by Ed Whitehead. In its
first season, 1923, the team played six games, achieving a
4-1-1 record. The team's first game, on October 19 against
Batavia, saw junior fullback Ray "Sheik" Aug score five
touchdowns, an individual record which was not matched until
1977. Aug was chosen as team captain the following
season. In subsequent
years, the team grew in size and distinction. Under Coach
Grause's leadership over 4 years, the team won 13 games,
lost 11, and tied 4. Other players of note during this
period are Ray Aug's brothers George (who followed his
brother as team captain in 1929) and Vincent "Whitey" Aug
(who played varsity all four years at Elder, beginning in
his Freshman year of 1928-29). Coach Bartlett's record
during this decade (from 1927-29) was 10-8-3. In 1924, a
traditional alumni game on Thanksgiving Day was begun. This
game was played until 1929, when the Western Hills High
School was built and the Elder-West Hi Thanksgiving
tradition started. The Greater Cincinnati League (GCL) was
formed in 1928, comprised of the parochial schools in the
Cincinnati area. Charter members were Elder, St. Xavier,
Purcell, and Roger Bacon. Elder has played St. Xavier every
year since 1923, except in 1929, when the game was canceled
due to bad weather. Thus the rivalry with Western Hills High
School is the longest continuous rivalry in the school's
history.