The varsity track team will open its season against Boston University tonight in a meet that bids fair to produce several outstanding early-season performances. Weight-throwing action will begin in Briggs Cage at 6:45 and the mile run, first track event, will start an hour later.

In about three years out of four, the B.U. meet is an easy one for the varsity. This, however, appears to be the odd year, and coach Bill McCurdy has been priming his charges for some stiff competition from the Terriers.

The Crimson team is as yet something of an unknown quantity. Graduation made heavy inroads on last year's fine squad and tonight's contest will provide the first varsity competition for a number of the Crimson entrants.

To Watch Sophomores

Promising sophomores like Ed Martin and Pat Liles will be watched especially closely, in view of their excellent records last year. Martin will probably start in both the mile and the one thousand yard races, while Liles will compete in the broad jump, an event he won in last summer's Oxford-Cambridge meet. Middle-distance man Art Cahn and jumper Bob Downes will also be making their first starts at the varsity level.

These more callow members of the Crimson squad will presumably be steadied by a small nucleus of battle-tested veterans from previous track campaigns. Among the latter group are seniors Pete Reider, French Anderson, and John DuMoulin and junior dashmen Joel Landau and Sandy Dodge.

Lineup Doubtful

McCurdy is very uncertain as to the final Crimson lineup tonight. He is prepared to go all out with his best men if the occasion warrants; on the other hand, "if things start to break our way," he plans to do "some experimenting."

B.U. will bring a small squad of excellent performers to this evening's meet. The visitors have only eight or ten potential scorers, but most of these are capable of first-place finishes. In addition, they will almost certainly "double up," with one of their number, Dave Settile, a possible starter in as many as five events. McCurdy has not forgotten the B.U. meet of three years ago "when they beat us with about seven men."

Strong Middle Distance Team

Crystal-ball gazers predict that B.U. will dominate the weights and the Crimson the middle distance races. The final outcome will probably depend on certain "toss-up" events, like the broad jump, hurdles, dash, and pole vault.

Concurrently with the varsity meet, the Yardlings will take on the B.U. freshmen. Of particular interest here will be the performance of the Crimson's Jed Fitzgerald, one of the most promising distance runners to come to Harvard in many years.