100 Years of Football History

100 YEARS OF FOOTBALL HISTORY

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Table Of Contents Table of Contents Forward: Brother James Butler Great Plays - Group 1 100 Seasons Of La Salle Football College Rosters 1955 - Pioneer Champions Great Games - Group 1 Coaches And Their Records Rivalries Brothers In Battle 100 Greats Of La Salle Football 1996 - The Most Perfect Season Thanksgiving Memories Fallen Heroes Program Covers Great Pictures

1 2 3 4 18 20 24 25 26 30 38 42 44 48 49 50

Mosaic Nicknames Sam and Drew and the Hershey Express

All-Catholic Lists Rainmakers Of 1989 The Fall Of Forty-Four La Salle Songs You Can Look It Up 1998 - The Last Complete Champion 300 Great LS Football Surnames Great Plays - Group 2 1957 Explorers - The Best Ever?

Great Games - Group 2 Wisterian Headlines 1966 - We Beat Egan Overall Record Vs. Opponents

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64 65 66 74 76 80 83 84 86 94 95 96 102 103 104 110

Dear Players, Parents, Alumni, Supporters and Fans of La Salle Football, As many of you know, this season is the 100th for La Salle College High School football. That doesn’t mean the Explorers first competed on the gridiron in 1914. The First World War globally, coupled with some different institutional priorities and dynamics, created some “gap years” in the program’s history. We believe the first recorded interscholastic game for La Salle was played on 13 October 1903. Given this historic milestone, I think it only appropriate to look to history for inspiration this year.

One hundred years before that first game, Admiral Horatio Nelson was given command of the British Mediterranean fleet and the HMS Victory as his flagship. Nelson chased Napoleon’s navy around the high seas for two years before defeating them in the Battle of Trafalgar, also in October, 1805. That engagement established the British naval dominance that would remain unchallenged until President Teddy Roosevelt sent the “Great White Fleet” around the world, just four years after that first game with [Roman] Catholic High.

When you study leadership, the real desired outcome of high school athletics, you can do worse than consider the example of Admiral Nelson. By the time he stood on the deck at Trafalgar, he had lost his right eye at the Battle of Corsica and his right arm at Santa Cruz.

Besides providing inspiration for the expression “turn a blind eye” (to orders he wished to ignore), Nelson reminds our players of two other things. One is obvious: “leave it all on the field,” or as he put it “Victory or Westminster Abbey” (the site for a state funeral). The other lesson is more subtle: a part of you will always remain at La Salle and in the program you helped to build into its second century.

Most students of history know the signal given to the fleet as the Battle of Trafalgar began, “England expects every man to do his duty.” Few realize that the Admiral ordered a change from what was originally suggested, “Nelson expects....” Football at La Salle is not about the individual player or even the team. It’s about the community: pep band and parents, alumni and student fans, all those people it brings together in excitement, loyalty, and pride.

In analyzing his naval career, historians speak of “the Nelson effect,” the ability the admiral had to get his followers to perform in ways that far exceeded expectations, at a level they never knew they could achieve. Similarly, this season we take a moment to honor our coaches, an unbroken line of men who have always been glad to win but who have taken far more pride in developing leaders who are poised, skilled, interdependent, resilient and strong, leaders like those you see on the field today.

Go Explorers!

Brother James L. Butler, FSC President

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1955 ² Pioneer Champions In 1917, La Salle College High 6FKRROœV football team went undefeated at 6-0-0, and claimed the ³&DWKROLF &KDPSLRQVKLS´ even though only one game was played against a Catholic school (St. -RVHSKœV Prep). The ³RIILFLDO´ Catholic League was not formed until 1920, and though La Salle had several notable seasons, including a Championship game against Catholic High (Roman Catholic) in 1927, no football championships were won since that mythical championship of 1917, until the mid-50œV. La Salle had many ups and downs in football during the interim, and the second Bernie Bradley era gave way to Johnny Meyers in 1949. Despite a winning record in 1950, the 1951 Explorers went 0-10-0, prompting the Blue and Gold yearbook to mention that ³HYHQ Notre Dame has its bad \HDUV´. So, in 1952, the reins were handed over to Jim Gallagher ¾43, assistant coach, and history teacher.

Gallagher had returned to La Salle in 1949, having graduated in 1943. He was a punter on the football team, and he also played at Villanova. And though he brought in some new offensive schemes, his immediate focus was on defense. His 1952 team won only two games, but had only one game where they gave up 27 points or more, compared to the 1951 VTXDGÂśV ignominious 8 times.

In 1953, the Blue and Gold were winless through their first 5 games, with just two ties to show for their efforts. But they caught fire, winning their last 4 games, and finishing with a 43-2 record. Tex Flannery Âś40 returned to La Salle to serve as line coach and as an assistant to Gallagher, and this 1953 squad with just 8 seniors generated the hope of future success on the McCarthy Stadium gridiron.

In the Winter 2006 issue of The Explorer magazine, Andrew C. Monaghan œ01 noted that ³WKH junior varsity football page of the 1953 Blue and Gold says, ¾/D Salle has long awaited the honor of a football championship. The performance turned in by the Explorer jayvees suggest that the fulfillment of this hope is near at hand.œ These were not empty words from the pen of Brother Joseph Reagan, FSC œ33. This was a bold prediction, and one that would prove to be true.´ So ,œP sure that anyone closely associated with the program could see that something great was coming, and the 1954 season was looked upon with great anticipation.

Dick Bedesem Âľ49 came back to La Salle after his gridiron days at Villanova, and became the freshman coach while teaching history. La 6DOOHÂśV eagerly anticipated season started slow again, with 4 losses in their first six games, but again, the Explorers strung together 4 wins at the end of the season to complete a 6-4-0 record. But, most significantly, five of the six wins were shutouts, and the defensive focus of *DOODJKHUÂśV tenure at La Salle was reaching its apex.

Again, the next season of 1955 was eagerly anticipated.

According to The Explorer article, Bedesem became a backfield coach, along with Vince McAneney Âś47. John McAneney Âś51 contributed as the quarterback coach.

In retrospect, there has probably never been the assemblage of legendary coaches like this group in the entire area, let alone the Catholic League. With the jayvees of 1953 becoming seniors in 1955, the die was cast for a memorable season.

But there was still one missing component: a quarterback. Bill Dick œ56 mentions that Gallagher wanted him to be the quarterback, but Dick GLGQœW feel comfortable with his own QB abilities. So Gallagher went recruiting in the school, and his eyes landed on Hugh Brolly, a star on Charles ³2ELH´ 2œ%ULHQœV basketball team. Brolly was tall (6œ-2´ in the game program), and Gallagher felt that a tall TXDUWHUEDFNœV long arms would be great for the ³GLYH´ handoffs in the Split-T formation used by La Salle, and KHœG be able to see over the linemen prior to calling his own plays. Much to 2ELHœV chagrin, Brolly went to camp, and took to the quarterback position well; Hugh was a natural leader and great athlete. By all accounts, 1955 was the only season that Hugh Brolly played football.

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The Split-T formation that Gallagher used was the Oklahoma Split-T made famous by Bud Wilkinson, who had the Sooners in the middle of a 47-game winning streak at the time. The straight-ahead blocking schemes were used on dive plays, quarterback options, and the occasional trap. It was an offense designed for perfect execution, and Brolly was indeed the perfect man for the job.

So the 1955 season also started with great anticipation, and La Salle, with an entire new backfield of Hugh Brolly, Bill Dick, Ray Frankson, and Tom Hopkins, rolled over St. 0DWWKHZÂśV 38-13. La Salle had not scored as many as 38 points in a game since a 1948 game against St. -RVHSKÂśV Prep (courtesy of 4 7'ÂśV by Dick Bedesem). There were many long runs in the game out of their Split-T formation, and the defense chipped in with interceptions by Mike Boland and Chuck Murray. But no one could possibly know at the time that the La Salle defense would give up only 7 more points the rest of the season.

The second game was against the Burrs of West Catholic, and the Explorers won their third game in a row against their ³FRXVLQV´ 19-7, as Hugh Brolly opened up the scoring by passing to end Chuck Murray. Bill Dick contributed a 60 yard run, and La Salle went 2 and 0 for the first time since 1950.

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1955 ² Pioneer Champions The Bulldogs of St. James were next on the schedule, and the Explorers broke a 4-game losing streak against the Jimmies with a hard-fought, 12-0 win. The defense stymied St. James, and the offense controlled the line of scrimmage, as two long runs by Bill Dick were featured in the Blue and *ROG¶V two touchdown drives.

South Catholic had become Bishop Neumann a year before, but nothing else changed, as their bruising style of play, and distinct weight advantage allowed them to always match up well against the undersized Explorers, who had lost 8 straight tussles with the Pirates.

In what may have been the most defining moment of the 1955 season, and maybe the most important play in La Salle College High School football history, Chuck Murray intercepted a Neumann pass in the second quarter, and raced 27 yards into the end zone for the only score of the game.

The Explorers were now 4-0, and were now in sole possession of first place in the Catholic League.

Bill Dick

The Explorers beat the Golden Bears of St. Thomas More, 220, as Tom +RSNLQV¶ two rushing touchdowns led the way. Bill Dick tacked on another score, and Mike Fonte entered the scorebook by notching a safety.

The Thanksgiving holiday was celebrated in grand style, as the neighborhood matchup with the Germantown Bears went easily to La Salle, 33-0. La Salle scored four times in the first quarter, and cruised to the victory.

The final regular season game was played against the Falcons of North Catholic, and the boys from Bridesburg nearly pulled off an upset. La Salle had to reach into their bag of tricks, and a double reverse from Brolly to Frankson to Dick resulted in the JDPH¶V only score. In this ³RQH-GLYLVLRQ´ era, there was no Catholic League championship game unless there was a tie at the end of the regular season, so the Explorers now readied themselves for a City Championship game at Franklin Field on December 10, 1955, against the Vikings of Northeast High School.

Tom Hopkins

&KXFN 0XUUD\·V INT/TD vs. Neumann

Ray Frankson

La Salle entered the game as an 18-point underdog.

Northeast had two future NFL players in its backfield, Herb Adderley and Angelo Coia, and had averaged over 36 points per game in an unblemished season. With La Salle on a 7 consecutive shutout streak, this was a classic case of an irresistible force meeting an immovable object.

But Gallagher, Flannery, and Bedesem had a game plan to take Northeast off their game. And that plan was an early offensive strike the first time they got the ball. The plan was a trap play to Ray Frankson, with Northeast thinking that the ball was going to Bill Dick, and the play went for 58 yards down to the Northeast 7-yard line. This was the first volley in a sustained attack that allowed all four backfield men to score en route to a shocking 26-0 shellacking of the Vikings. Hugh Brolly was named the JDPH¶V MVP.

The fifth game was a relative frolic against St. -RVHSK¶V Prep, 31-0, as La 6DOOH¶V early lead allowed the reserves to play much of the second half, and the ³3RQ\ %DFNILHOG´ of Paul Aita, Lou Greco, and others showed a portent of things to come in future years.

The 13-0 shutout of the Cahillites of Roman Catholic, and a tie

by St. James and Bishop Neumann, actually allowed La Salle to clinch their first ever Catholic League Championship with two more league games still to go. Bill Dick scored both touchdowns, and the defense kept Roman outside of the Explorer 20-yard line for the entire game. The only other time that La Salle garnered four straight shutouts was if you overlapped the 1941-1942 seasons. But the defense ZDVQ¶W content with just 4.

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1955 ² Pioneer Champions Also, Bill Brooks, a guard (a lineman!), was named the Catholic League MVP. And WKDWœV the story of the 1955 season in a nutshell. But WKHUHœV so much more to this story.

How did this happen?

There are certainly a lot of reasons:

Gallagher and Brolly The Coaches Jim Gallagher was a special coach, with a fiery rhetoric in his game-day speeches. He certainly deserves the OLRQÂśV share of the credit for turning the Explorer football fortunes around to a level never seen before. ,ÂśP sure that it was quite a shock to his players past and present when he left La Salle after the 1955-56 school year to go to Hatboro High School (and beyond), but Dr. James Gallagher had even greater achievements in him, including becoming the founding principal of Central Bucks East High School.

Tex Flannery was a familiar presence on the 20th and Olney campus since his playing days in the late 30ÂśV. He assisted Bernie Bradley in the mid-40ÂśV and eventually landed the head coaching position at Bartram High School before coming back to La Salle in 1953. Tex was awarded the head coaching position after Gallagher left in 1956, and he remained as head coach until his retirement in 1984. He was seen at many games in the 2000ÂśV prior to his death in 2007.

Dick Bedesem was just starting his legendary coaching career while an assistant at La Salle, and he soon left La Salle to take over the fledgling program at brand new Bishop Egan High School. Bedesem built a juggernaut at Egan in the 60ÂśV and also had great success in the 70ÂśV at Archbishop Wood before becoming 9LOODQRYDÂśV head coach. The Bedesem name carries on in the Philadelphia suburbs, as his sons and grandsons continue their SDWULDUFKÂśV passion for the game.

Vince and John McAneney went on to great coaching success beyond La Salle. See Retrospect Number 12 for more details about the McAneney coaching legacy.

By all accounts, these men worked together as a real team, with a common mission in mind. All were strong personalities, but this year of 1955 had all of them working as one, and the results on the field were an indication of the preparedness that this coaching staff had in this magic year of 1955.

The Numbers At this point in their history, La Salle was still one of the smaller schools in the Catholic League, graduating 176 from the Class of 1956. Large schools such as North Catholic, at

its peak, West Catholic, and Bishop Neumann had a numbers advantage over smaller schools like La Salle and St. -RVHSKÂśV Prep. Monsignor Bonner had just started, along with Father Judge, and Cardinal Dougherty and Bishop Egan were on their way.

One may assume that sheer numbers in football offer a distinct advantage, until one realizes that the ³RQH-SODWRRQ´ rule used at the time actually benefited the smaller schools.

Though the exact details of the rule deserve to be chronicled here, the gist of the rule was that only one substitute could enter the game at a time, but that more liberal substitution could be made at the end of a quarter. This allowed a team that had, for instance, about 15 good players, to compete with those schools who may have had more.

La Salle had its 15 good players, and then some.

The Players The 1956 team was built around its seniors, with only junior Clark Hodgson as a starting underclassman, due to a lateseason injury to tackle Jim Goodyear. The linemen included Hodgson along with Jim Osborne, Mike Boland, John Lavelle, and Bill Brooks. Ends Tom Heron and Chuck Murray rounded out the line. The backfield of Brolly, Dick, Frankson, and Hopkins was stellar, but great underclassmen in the ³3RQ\ %DFNILHOG´ included Lou Greco, Paul Aita, Eddie Dever, and Johnny Herrera, the ³&XEDQ )ODVK´ also contributed. By many accounts, Herrera was the greatest running back in La Salle history.

Other senior contributors included Joe Malizia on kickoff duties, ends Bill Henry and Tom Garoppo, tackles Jim Goodyear and Carmen Rodia, and guard Rich DeLuca. Some blowout games late in the season gave some of the seniors more playing time, as well as showcasing the future of La Salle football with the stellar underclassmen.

But, in addition to their talent, there were two more factors to the SOD\HUVÂś success. Many of these players were multi-sport athletes, and their individual physical conditioning was second to none. Last but not least, this group of players was reputedly a bunch of really tough guys who obviously used their toughness on the defensive side of the ball by amassing 8 straight shutouts.

Their Legacy There were many All-Catholics from this great team of 1955, including Brooks, Jim Osborne, Murray, Heron, Dick, and Frankson. Hodgson and Greco won their honors in 1956, along with Aita and Herrera. Aita and Herrera duplicated their efforts in 1957, and other 1955 players who attained AllCatholic notoriety in 1957 included Bill Clements, Tom Yannessa, and John Osborne. All in all, the 1955 team had 13 players who would eventually achieve first or second-team All-Catholic honors, and others received honorable mention, including Harry Eustace and Tom Boyle.

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1955 ² Pioneer Champions Their Video A Youtube video is available which displays a ³OLYH´ team picture, along with highlights of the City Title game, narrated

by Chris Schenkel. High school football was still in its heyday, and watching the film of the game at Franklin Field certainly was a treat.

Look to see Ray )UDQNVRQ¶V great 58-yard run on that trap play, one that set Northeast back on its heels, and gave La Salle the confidence to know that they would win this game.

And check out the long run for a touchdown by Hugh Brolly, the MVP of the game. +HUH¶V the link to the Youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbOzyZohbY0 Final Notes ,¶YH continuously received a lot of emails from the Class of 1956; they are an intensely proud group, proud of their achievements back in the 1955 season, but probably most proud of their camaraderie with each other. They claim their memories are fading, but then they hit me with the details of the PRACTICES before the Northeast game at Franklin Field.

Certainly, their record of 8 straight shutouts and an unblemished season puts them in contention for the greatest La Salle football team of all time.

1955 Game Roster

Tom Yannessa #34 - G

Bill Brooks #35 - G

Tom Heron #38 - E

Bill Dick #39 - B

Clark Hodgson #42 - G

Ray Frankson #44 - B

Mike Boland #46 - G

Chuck Murray #47 - E

Rich DeLuca #48 - G

Carmen Rodia #49 - T

Hugh Brolly #50 - B

John Sharp #51 - T

Joe Malizia #36 - B

Vince Higgins #37 - G

Jim Osborne Brian Monaghan #41 - E #40 - T

Tom Boyle #21 - C

Al Solecki #22 - B

Bill Henry #23 - E

John Herrera #24 - B

Tom Hopkins #52 - B

John Osborne #53 - C

John Madden #54 - G

Harry Eustace #55 - T

Hugh Sheridan #25 - B

Lou Greco #26 - B

Tom Garoppo #27 - E

Mike Fonte #28 - E

Bill Clements #56 - T

Jim Goodyear #58 - T

John Lavelle #59 - C

Bill Gibbons Manager

Vince Tague #29 - C

Paul Aita #30 - B

Bob Franiak #32 - E

Ed Dever #33 - B

John Schmidt Manager

Hugh Ward Manager

Jim Marks Manager

Jim Crowley Manager

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6RPH 2I /D 6DOOH·V *UHDW 5LYDOULHV Archbishop Ryan

Father judge

La Salle started their rivalry with the fledgling Red Raiders of Archbishop Ryan in 1968 with a 34-16 victory, as ³-HUVH\ -DFN´ Wilson blocked a punt and ran in for a touchdown.

Ryan notched their first victory over the Explorers in 1970, 136, and that started a theme of low-scoring, competitive games between the two schools.

Ryan had solid teams through most of the 70's and early 80's, but couldn't bring home a PCL Championship. They lost in the 1973 championship game to Cardinal O'Hara, 11-8, and lost to O'Hara again in 1985, 12-7. Meanwhile, the rivalry with La Salle went back and forth; a 7-0 victory over the Raiders was a highlight of La Salle's 9-2-0 season in 1976.

In 1988, John Quinn's Raiders finally struck gold, defeating Archbishop Carroll on two field goals, 6-0, to capture their first PCL crown. Ryan defeated Bishop Egan, 21-14, to get to the championship game, after Egan had upset La Salle in the first round of the playoffs. La Salle had defeated the Raiders in the regular season, 13-0.

This was the start of a Ryan dynasty. Under Glen Galeone, the Raiders won four straight Catholic League Championships between 1990 and 1993. In two of those years, they defeated La Salle in the playoffs, and were the team that deprived La Salle of a lot longer dynasty at the end of the 20th Century.

One notable game was a 7-7 tie in 1991 (La Salle tied the game in the second half on an "alley-oop" touchdown pass from QB Geoff Crawford to TE Chris Smith), and La Salle and Ryan stayed undefeated until the Explorers dropped a playoff game to Father Judge.

In 1995, La Salle turned the tables on the Raiders, defeating them in the PCL Championship game, 14-7. Ryan made it to the finals in 1997 before succumbing to St. Joe's Prep, and La Salle stymied Ryan in the 1998 championship game, 17-3.

1998 was Archbishop Ryan's last visit to the PCL Championship game.

Archbishop Ryan's football fortunes turned south for most of the 2000's, though they defeated La Salle in a 2004 playoff game, 21-7. They also upset the Explorers in 2006, 14-12. Of late, La Salle has dominated Ryan; In 2011, the Explorers won, 41-7. In 2012, the Raiders ran the opening kickoff to the La Salle 15-yard line, where kicker Ryan Winslow made a touchdown-saving tackle. The defense held, and on the Blue and Gold's first play, QB Chris Kane hit WR Jimmy Herron in stride for an 80-yard touchdown, and La Salle was never headed in a 31-0 win.

In the last matchup, in 2013, La Salle burst out to a 21-0 halftime lead, but the stubborn Raiders kept within shouting distance before succumbing, 28-14. QB Kyle Shurmur and WR Jimmy Herron connected for two touchdown passes, and RBs Jordan Meachum and Nick Rinella each tallied a TD. Overall, the Explorers are 31-23-1 against Archbishop Ryan.

La Salle's rivalry with the Father Judge Crusaders is the longest continuous rivalry for the Explorers, dating back to 1956. It is a rivalry inundated with streaks.

Father Judge High School opened in 1954, a Marian year, and they adopted the light blue color in honor of Mary, and chose red to symbolize their brotherhood with North Catholic, as both schools were run by the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, a color combination eventually shared with the Houston Oilers.

The first game between La Salle and Judge occurred in 1956; Judge was still not officially in the Catholic League yet. The defending champion Explorers laid a 26-0 pasting on the upstart Crusaders. That trend continued, as a touchdown in the 1958 game resulted in the only points that Judge would score in the first 6 contests against the dominant Explorers.

The games got closer in 1962 and 1963, but the Blue and Gold started off their new rivalry with 8 straight wins.

But the Crusaders were getting stronger. In 1964, Judge and La Salle played in the final regular season game for La Salle, with Judge leading the Northern Division by one game over the Explorers. La Salle needed to win this game to force a playoff. Despite containing the great Judge running back Charlie Jarvis, a field goal by the Crusaders near the end of the first half proved to be the only score, and Judge won their first game against La Salle, 3-0.

This started a dominant period for Judge football, although the Dick Bedesem era at Bishop Egan kept them from becoming a dynasty. But the Crusaders started to turn the tables on the Explorers, winning 7 straight games between 1964 and 1970.

La Salle then won the next 3 years, but Judge ran off 7 consecutive wins before La Salle's 1981 team won a 28-21 affair.

The schools traded wins the next two years, and then a Judge 4-game streak was followed by a 5-game streak for La Salle, including the first ever playoff game against Judge in 1989.

But Father Judge became the primary reason why La Salle did not dominate more between 1989 and 1999, as they defeated the Explorers in playoff games in 1991, 1992, and 1994. After La Salle returned the favor in their PCL Championship seasons of 1995 and 1996 (winning against the Crusaders in the PCL Championship game in 1996), Judge shocked the Explorers with a 47-14 playoff upset in 1997.

From then on, La Salle has returned to dominance over the Crusaders, losing only in 2001, 2007, and 2008, but winning the PCL Championship against Judge in 2008 with an exciting 28-20 win at Northeast High School.

In the 2010, 2011, and 2013 seasons, La Salle was victorious in both a regular season game and a playoff game against the Crusaders, though the first game in 2013 required La Salle to come back from a 16-0 deficit to win, 17-16. The Explorers have an overall record of 40-29-0 against the Crusaders.

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6RPH 2I /D 6DOOH¡V *UHDW 5LYDOULHV 67 -26(3+ 6 35(3 The ancient rivalry goes way back to 1915, when, on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, La Salle and St. Joe's battled to a 0-0 tie. A year later, Prep handed La Salle their only loss of the season in their final game, 21-0, depriving La Salle of a mythical Catholic League championship among three teams (including Catholic High, which eventually was called Roman Catholic). In 1917, La Salle went undefeated, and registered their first victory over St. Joe's, 6-0.

La Salle did not play in 1918, but came back on the field in 1919, defeating St. Joe's 9-6. Who would have thought that this would be the last La Salle victory over St. Joe's till 1944!

The 1920 game, officially a Catholic League game, resulted in another scoreless tie. La Salle dropped out of the Catholic League the next two years, and was kicked out from 1928 to 1933. In between, they lost 5 straight games to St. Joe's.

In their return to the Catholic League in 1934, La Salle was pummeled by St. -RHÂśV 44-6. La Salle could only manage two ties until 1944, when they finally tripped up the Prep, 13-7, on the way to a 6-1-1 season. They won the next two years too, but were ambushed in 1947, 39-0, having lost a lot of players due to academic reasons. But the Little Explorers turned the tables in 1948 behind RB Dick Bedesem, 38-0.

The 50's saw some tight contests until 1954 and 1955, when La Salle blanked the Hawks, 24-0 and 31-0. Players from the mid-50's used to refer to Prep week as "bye week". Then, St. Joseph's Prep pulled out of the Catholic League from 1956 to 1962. They returned in 1963, and to their credit, went out and won the Southern Division (La Salle was in the Northern Division). Finally, a season opening game was scheduled for 1969 and 1970, and the Prep won both games.

An agreement was reached between the two schools to start a Thanksgiving rivalry in 1976. La Salle's 1976 edition was a strong team, and they beat the Hawks, 27-0, starting a Turkey Day tradition that lasted until 2003. The twilight years of the Flannery era at La Salle were tough seasons, but Turkey Day victories, like the 9-0 win in 1981 and the 3-0 win in 1982, made the big meal taste a lot better.

In La Salle's magical year of 1988, they managed to hold off the Prep on Thanksgiving, 22-21, on a two-point play by QB Jack Stanczak. They shut out the Hawks in the three games between 1989 and 1991, and won a tough game in their perfect season of 1996, 17-14. After 1998, the Explorers had won 18 of the 23 Thanksgiving Day contests.

But 1999 changed things, as Red/Blue division play brought the Hawks back into the Explorers' division, as the Hawks were set to make a great run of strong years. The two teams played both a regular season game and the Thanksgiving Day game, and found that a 3rd game due to a playoff matchup might occur, as it did in 2003, and the Turkey Day game that year was cancelled. Indeed, Prep was dominating La Salle at this time, winning 13 straight games, including the 2004

Thanksgiving Day game and the 2005 league game.

At McCarthy Stadium on Turkey Day in 2005, the teams were tied and headed into overtime. La Salle scored first on a pass from John Harrison to Jack Forster, and Ryan Cain kicked the extra point, and the Prep then scored. But the extra point was blocked, and La Salle came away with a miraculous 14-13 victory, and the Blue and Gold faithful went crazy.

In 2006, the Hawks bludgeoned the 7-0 Explorers, 42-14, avenging that Turkey Day game from the previous year. La Salle made its way to the PCL finals, and would be matched up with the Prep, scheduled for Thanksgiving Saturday, two days after the traditional matchup would occur. A decision came to play just one game, on Friday, for the PCL Championship. In a Disney movie script, La Salle stopped the Prep 4 times at the Explorer 1-yard line, and they upset the Prep, 14-7, as Greg Frantz returned a fumble 96 yards for a touchdown, ending the 13-game losing streak, and winning the Catholic League for the first time since 1998.

The Hawks squashed La Salle in the 2007 regular season game, and they decided to start a new Thanksgiving Day rivalry against Malvern Prep. La Salle played Bishop McDevitt in 2007, their last Thanksgiving Day game, for now.

The Hawks, meanwhile, had put together a 55-game unbeaten streak in regular season games. On Saturday, September 20, 2008 at Plymouth-Whitemarsh, La Salle put an end to that streak with a convincing 31-17 triumph over St. Joe's, and also beat the Hawks, 31-28 in the playoffs on their way back to PCL Championship glory.

The State Championship year of 2009 had only one blemish on the 15-1 record: a regular-season loss to the Prep in the rain, 24-17. But the Explorers avenged that loss with a 35-28 win over the Hawks for the PCL Championship at Northeast High School on their way to Hershey.

The 2010 Explorers slammed the Hawks, 31-7, in the regular season, and the 2011 Blue and Gold came back from a 17-0 deficit to overcome St. Joe's, 28-17. No playoff matchups occurred in those two years. The regular season game in 2012 was a virtual repeat of the 2009 affair, as St. Joseph's Prep, in a battle of unbeatens, won 24-16. In the PCL title game at P-W, the Hawks erased a 14-0 Explorer lead, and missed a field goal near the end of regulation that would have broken a 21-21 tie. St. Joseph's scored first in overtime, but Dad Poquie harassed the Hawk kicker into a missed extra point. On third down, Chris Kane found Sean Coleman on a slant-in for their 4th TD of the day, and the score was tied.

With the sideline kneeling in prayer, kicker Ryan Winslow blasted the extra point, sending Explorer fans into ecstasy.

The Hawks won both the regular season and the PCL Championship game against the Explorers in 2013 on their way to a State Championship.

La Salle's overall record against St. Joseph's Prep is 35-44-3.

27.

6RPH 2I /D 6DOOH¡V *UHDW 5LYDOULHV MAlvern prep

west cAtholic

La Salle has had a long but sparse football rivalry with Malvern Prep, starting in 1920, when, on Thanksgiving morning, they played what was known then as Villanova Prep during the first season of the Catholic League. At Cahill Field, Catholic +LJKÂśV home field, La Salle upset Villanova, 12-0, for their only win, finishing their first season in the Catholic League with a 1-2-3 record.

La Salle took a hiatus from the Catholic League for a few years, and when they took on Villanova again in 1925, much had changed. La Salle was back in the league, but Villanova was not, because it was no longer Villanova Prep, but Malvern Prep. After the first few games in the 1925 season, the La Salle offense was stagnant, and coach Billy Pownall made some changes, and they routed Trenton Cathedral, 41-0, and then manhandled Malvern, 54-0.

In 1930, the two teams matched up again; by now, La Salle was booted out of the Catholic League. La Salle lost their first game ever to Malvern, 7-0, despite a successful 5-3-0 season.

The first game of the 1932 had La Salle defeat Malvern Prep, 19-12, for their only win. In 1933, the Little Explorers' last season out of the Catholic League, Malvern Prep avenged the 1932 defeat with a 13-0 whitewash. Who would have known that these two teams would not meet again for 74 years!!

In 2007, Gamp Pellegrini's charges visited P-W, and defeated La Salle, 21-14. They rushed for 259 yards, overshadowing the matchup between two star 4%ÂśV Ryan Nassib of Malvern (and the New York Football Giants), and John Harrison of La Salle (and Franklin & Marshall). Malvern broke on top, 14-0, and though La Salle closed to 13-7 by halftime, Malvern's ground game took charge in the 2nd half to win the game.

In 2008, with an approaching hurricane, Malvern built a 21-0 lead, and the Friars overwhelmed the Explorers, 47-21. In 2009, La Salle avenge that defeat with a 28-7 win in a steady rain as junior Jamal Abdur-Rahman and soph Tim Wade each scored twice.

In 2012, La Salle visited the Friars, and dominated the game in a 38-6 win, as DB Chris Rocco scooped up a fumble forced

by DL Patrick Hoffman to score from 24 yards out for a 31-0 halftime lead.

Late in the third quarter, QB Chris Kane hit Levi Hardy with a pass from 13 yards out to make it 38-0. Hardy kept his concentration on the ball as it was deflected.

In the fourth quarter, the Friars finally got on the board with a 68 yard pass to Gallen. Many of the second-stringers got some time with the running clock in the 4th quarter, with some hard running by soph Ryan Brady.

In 2013 at rainy Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School, La Salle came back from a 17-14 deficit on a 73-yard TD pass from Kyle Shurmur to Jimmy Herron, and held off the stubborn Friars, 23-17.

La Salle holds a 6-4 record against Malvern Prep.

In 1920, La Salle and West battled to a 0-0 tie in La Salle's 1st official Catholic League game. La 6DOOHÂśV next affair with West was a grim 40-0 loss in 1923. The final game of Âľ24 was a 260 La Salle loss, & Âľ25 was a 7-0 shutout at :HVWÂśV hands, who won their first PCL Championship that year. 1926 saw La Salle with their 1st victory over the Burrs, 26-3. They won again in Âľ27, 12-0, as QB Francis Linus raced 95 yards for a TD. 1928 made it 3 straight with a 7-0 victory. But dark days ahead: after a 1929 loss to West, La Salle lost all games between Âľ32 and Âľ39, including a 46-0 trouncing in 1937. In those 9 losses, the Little Explorers scored a total of 24 points.

In 1940, La Salle won, 6-0; Charlie Schaefer raced 65 yards with an INT for a TD. West won the PCL crown 6 of 7 years from 1940 to 1946. In Âľ46, La Salle won, 19-13, on George Jacob's 3-yard run; before Âľ46, they were 4-16-2 against West.

La Salle won just once in 5 years, 32-7 in 1949; Bob Snyder ran for a 60 yard TD. La Salle won the Âľ53 game in a slugfest, 31-26, on Bill Magee's pass to Jim Ward; the streak went to 6 with wins through 1958. But, to start 1959, the Burrs dumped the defending Champs, 22-0, and the 1960 team had West as their only blemish with a 0-0 tie. In Âľ61, the 7-0 Explorers were stunned, 18-8. Losses in Âľ59 & Âľ61 to the Burrs resulted in regular-season ties with Bonner; both seasons saw playoff losses to the Friars. If not for the Burrs, La Salle would have won the PCL in 5 straight years from 1957 to 1961.

1962 was the last year that the schools shared a division, and the Burrs eked out a 14-12 win. Then, some non-league games with West, including a 34-0 loss in Âľ63, but some tough wins, like a 20-12 win in 1968 on a TD pass from Joe Zaiss to Joe Rutecki, and an 8-6 victory in 1964, as QB Joe Sheehan scored to tie the game, and his 2-point run gave La Salle the lead for good. After Âľ68, the rivalry paused till 1980.

The 1980 La Salle team won a barnburner over the Burrs, 2927. In 1981 through 1983, the West game was the season opener, with La Salle winning only the 1983 game, 16-0.

A rivalry pause again; the 1994 season opener was a 7-6 win over West, on Dan McNichol's pass to Tom Truitt, and Truitt's extra point. In La Salle's Championship season of 1995, West Catholic won a wild game, 34-33 despite Brett Gordon's 4 TD passes. La Salle won in their perfect year of 1996, pummeling the Burrs, 28-0; Ed Boron's interception return for a touchdown on the 3rd play of the game set the tone. No contest until 2006, and La Salle won a slugfest, 42-34. After a loss in 2007, La Salle won the next 3 games by a total of 13 points. The 2008 game was great, as the Burrs failed on a late 2-point play in an attempt to win the game. The Âľ11 team shut down the explosive Burrs, 24-0. In 2012, La Salle beat the feisty Burrs, 28-26; Ryan Brady's 3-yard TD run was the difference. 2013 saw La Salle easily handle West, as Jimmy Herron caught 2 7'ÂśV and ran a pick back for another.

La Salle's overall record against their brother Burrs is 27-29-4.

28.

6RPH 2I /D 6DOOH·V *UHDW 5LYDOULHV roMAn cAtholic La Salle's rivalry with (Roman) Catholic goes back to their first game ever, on Tuesday, October 13, 2013, a game won by the Cahillites by the score of 6-3. La Salle football took a hiatus until 1915, and their only loss in that 3-1-3 season was to Catholic, 14-0. In 1916, they notched their 1st win over the Cahillites, 13-0, on 7'¶V by Panzullo and the legendary Kenneth "Cy" Simendinger. The trio of La Salle, Catholic, and St. Joseph's Prep played each other in those years to crown a mythical Catholic champion. But there was trouble on the horizon between the 3 schools. Catholic High protested that both their opponents were ³FKHDWLQJ´ by utilizing some college players on their teams. So, in 1917, Catholic High did not play La Salle, fortuitous because the Blue and Gold were a dominant team, going 6-0-0 in their best season yet. La Salle did not field a team in 1918 due to the war, but returned in 1919, again without Catholic on their schedule.

Finally, 1920 saw the formation of the Catholic League, led by Father John Bonner of Catholic. The schools would agree not to use college players; 2 more teams entered the round robin, namely West, & Villanova Prep, Malvern 3UHS¶V predecessor.

In their first Catholic League season, La Salle, under coach Lou Little, went 1-2-3, including a 6-0 loss to Catholic. La Salle dropped out of the league for 2 years, but returned in 1923, receiving a rude welcome by most teams, including Catholic, who whitewashed them, 32-0, and they won with identical 13-0 scores in 1924 and 1925. But in 1926, La Salle went 5-2-0, and defeated Catholic 14-0, on 7'¶V by John Ounsworth and Harry Bausch. This set the stage for a 1927 showdown.

La Salle defeated Catholic, 6-0, as QB Francis "Dutchy" Linus raced 90 yards for the only touchdown of the game. La Salle and Catholic ended the league season with identical 5-1 records, as La Salle's only blemish was due to an 8-0 loss to St. Joseph's Prep. This necessitated a playoff game for the championship, and the Cahillites ran all over La Salle, 26-0, to win the crown. Ironically, the next two times this happened to La Salle occurred in 1959 and 1961, where a regular-season win was followed by a championship loss, both times to Monsignor Bonner High School, named after La Salle's "nemesis" of forty years before back at Catholic High.

During the time of La 6DOOH¶V exile from the League between 1928 and 1933, the teams failed to meet on the gridiron.

Back in 1934, La 6DOOH¶V 0-8-1 year had a loss to Catholic, 7-6, and Catholic won again in 1935, 19-6. La Salle earned ties in both 1936 & 1939, but couldn't defeat their original rivals, now known as Roman Catholic, till 1940. An 18-0 win at Cahill Field, saw a TD pass from John Mlodzianowski to John Ghee, and one from Charlie Schaeffer to Joe McGeary, which brought La Salle's overall record vs Roman Catholic to 4-11-2.

The rivalry would go back and forth in the 1940's, with Roman Catholic holding a slight edge. La Salle won a great game in 1948, 19-14; in the last 30 seconds on a pass from Bill Ortman

to Tom McGowan. Roman won 4 straight battles between 1949 and 1952, including a 60-6 bloodletting in 1951, but the 1953 game ended in a 25-25 tie; QB Bill Magee led a late drive, passing to Ray Frankson for the TD, & Ed Nessler added the point for the tie. La Salle's record vs the Cahillites now stood at 7-20-3. But the tide would soon change.

The 1954 & 1955 teams pitched shutouts against the Purple and Gold. The 1955 game featured 2 7'¶V by Bill Dick, and the win assured La Salle of its 1st ever PCL title (no playoffs unless tied in the regular season standings). A win in µ56, 2114, as Lou Greco scored 3 7'¶V to pace La Salle. The µ57 team demolished Roman, 53-12, on their way to the City Title.

The scores from µ58 to µ62 were 34-0, 28-6, 12-0, 50-0, and 28-6, La Salle. The split into Divisions in 1963 saved Roman from further defeats from the Blue & Gold in the "crew cut" years. The overall record improved to 16-20-3. And there it stood, for years; a title game in 1989 was the next matchup.

That game at Villanova saw the Explorer ³'´ stop Roman, 130; Jim Convey scored on a fumble recovery in the end zone, and Brian Daly's 2nd half kickoff return. 10 years passed before another meeting, but this time, history repeated itself.

The two schools were now in the Red division for 1999 based on school size. La Salle won the regular-season game, 21-6, on runs by Chris Dougherty, Ryan Parfitt, & Ben Bailey, but the ghosts of 1927 would rise up in the Championship game, as Roman stifled the La Salle offense in their win, 21-7.

La Salle won the matchups in 2000 & 2001, 44-7 and 34-0 wins, & the 2002 team eked by Roman, 17-14 in the regular season, but lost another post-season game, 9-6. Roman won the next 3, including a 2-overtime game in 2005, 29-26, & in 2overtimes in 2006, 27-21. But in 2006, La Salle would finally avenge the ghosts of µ27, µ99, and µ02 with a 28-7 beat down 2 weeks later in the semifinals, as Jack Forster starred. The Cahillites got some revenge in 2007 with a 20-3 win on their way to a PCL Title, but it was now becoming La Salle's time.

The µ08 squad beat Roman, 42-7; soph Jamal Abdur-Rahman scored 4 7'¶V. 2009 was worse, 45-7, with two more 7'¶V by Jamal & 2 from FB Tim Wade. The µ10 & µ11 seasons echoed each other. The regular season games saw La Salle win, 4317 & 23-21. in the µ11 game, Dad Poquie intercepted a pass to close out the Cahillite final drive. In both years, the schools met for the PCL title, and La Salle won both, 35-16 and 16-6.

LS came back in µ10 from a 16-7 deficit, paced by -DPDO¶V 3 7'¶V. In µ11, Matt Magarity's TD passes to Colin Buckley & Sean Coleman, & Ryan Winslow's FG kept Roman at bay.

In 2012, La Salle won in regular season, 28-14, and a semifinal playoff, 42-13. It was 14-13 late in the 3rd when Jimmy Herron threw a center screen pass to Mike Eife for a TD. In 2013, La Salle scored the last 21 points in a 35-14 win.

La Salle's overall record against Roman Catholic is 31 wins, 27 losses, and 3 ties.

29.

Brothers In Battle Our sons Steve and Dan are one grade apart, and their experiences in grade school and high school were often shared experiences, along with shared friendships. They often played together on the same team, and the conflicting emotions of a sibling rivalry and a sibling loyalty often presented itself.

They each selected their ³PDLQ´ sport prior to high school, and so they never got to play together at La Salle. I always wondered what it would have been like for them to be on the same team in high school, and I also felt that playing on the football team together would have been a most unique shared experience.

And then I realized that many of our La Salle football players went through that particular experience, and I wondered what it was like for them. So I identified many sets of La Salle brothers who happened to be on the Varsity team at the same time, and wanted to see what it was like together during the Senior year of the older brother. In most cases, I looked at brother sets who were one year apart, but also considered some that were two years apart; the senior/junior combination was more likely to have a more substantial shared experience than a senior/soph combo.

I identified brother combinations from 1948 till the present time to consider. In some cases, I chose to write something about them without any consultation, feeling that I had enough to tell a story. But in many cases, I sent out a bunch of interview questions to the brothers to get their personal take on that experience.

What I got back was so revealing. Most significant was the passion that each of them had for their time in La Salle football, as well as their fraternal love for each other. This got me really excited to put something together worthy of that shared experience that they had, and ,ÂśP hoping that my words reflect the intentions that they meant to express.

Enjoy the 12 stories that ,œP presenting to you of the ³%URWKHUV In %DWWOH´.

a feature that the coaches would notice immediately in the perennially undersized Explorer student body.

Ken was the first of the boys to make his abilities known as a three-time All-Catholic baseball player for the Royal Lancers from 1978 to 1980, and went on to play in the minor leagues.

Chris, nicknamed ³%XFNZKHDW´ was a star gridder at Bishop McDevitt, growing to 6œ-5´ 255 lbs by senior year. He went on to be a major part of Penn 6WDWHœV National Champions in the 1986 season, and played 5 years in the NFL for the Dolphins and Colts. Craig was the first of the Conlins to go to La Salle, where he starred on both the diamond and the hardwood, and became a great hoops player for La Salle University.

In their wake came along Keith, and also Kevin, the last of the brood, affectionately nicknamed ³3XS´. They were coming to La Salle.

Keith had a stellar junior season in 1989, when the Explorers regained the Catholic League Championship that they had last won in 1960. He was a tremendous force on the front line of a stingy defense that gave up only 27 points in their last 9 games, including the 13-0 whitewash of Roman Catholic in the title game. In senior year, he was also asked to play a lot on offense, and needed two numbers to play during the year, playing both offensive tackle with number 67, and tight end with number 89.

In that 1990 season, Keith, grown to 6œ-8´ 265 lbs, got to welcome younger brother Kevin as a teammate for the first time in football, though they were together on teams in other sports while growing up.

Like most older brothers, Keith looked out for Kevin, showed him some aspects of defensive line play and game preparation at La Salle, and also introduced him to his classmates, guys like Craig Fitzgerald and Kevin Schmidt, who also made the sophomore comfortable, and always offered their help.

Kevin ended up as .HLWKÂśV backup in his sophomore year, so they rarely shared the field, but the Thanksgiving Day game against St. -RVHSKÂśV Prep became a special day for them.

Due to an injury to defensive lineman Dave Gathman, Keith and Kevin Conlin finally got to play together, and that 21-0 victory over the Prep made the many turkeys cooked at the Conlin house that day all taste good.

Kevin grew to a mere 6œ-4´ 257 lbs by his senior year at La Salle, and was a mainstay on the 1991 and 1992 squads.

Keith and Kevin Conlin followed brother Chris to Penn State, but, despite of the many defensive combinations used by the Nittany Lions, never really got to play together on the field in an actual game. That Thanksgiving Day game in 1990 against the Prep is the only extended time that they got to share the field together, but that memory endures forever.

Keith and Kevin Conlin, best friends, achieved All-Catholic status in their respective senior years, joining their three older brothers with those honors, showing that they could indeed run with the big dogs.

.HLWK Âś

Conlin .HYLQ œ 1990 ² Running With The Big Dogs The Conlin family seemed to be an assembly line of AllCatholic production from the late 70œV to the early 90œV spreading their gifts across Bishop McDevitt, their local archdiocesan high school, as well as La Salle.

The Conlin parents nurtured the love of sports within each of their 8 children, pushing them to achieve lofty goals without pushing them too far. They were a big family of large athletes,

30.

Brothers In Battle was the watershed game in defining this season. That 29-19 victory obliterated any lingering apprehension..

As the season rolled on, the father of the Irish twins was in his glory. Following his boys on the sidelines during their youth football days, Mr. Coyle was now La 6DOOH¶V number one cheerleader, and President of the Touchdown Club. He would spread out all of the local papers at Sunday breakfast, and everyone would read the articles, and talk about 6DWXUGD\¶V game.

The Coyle brothers had great relationships with their opposite classes on the team, especially the Mallach brothers. Even when Brendan was still in 8th grade, Pat would invite him along with all his new high school friends. Those off-the-field bonds only helped the on-the-field bond that was needed of champions.

The Coyle brothers became a great force as the season progressed. One play in particular against Bonner in the playoffs epitomized their fraternal teamwork: the Friar quarterback rolled out, and both Coyles broke through the line, and simultaneously Brendan hit him low and Pat hit him high.

Just like back in the day in Southampton.

The PCL Championship game against Ryan was the apex of the season, and the 17-3 La Salle win was sheer happiness for the Coyle brothers. After hugging their teammates and posing with the trophy in front of cameras, Brendan and Pat broke away from their teammates to join their dad for a unique photo opportunity. Mr. Coyle had invited their old coaches from youth football to the game, and they got to pose with them and the trophy for a unique picture, the circular trophy symbolic of the Coyles going full circle back to their days when they could only dream about playing high school football together.

Pat and Brendan Coyle both were awarded All-Catholic honors. Brendan GLGQ¶W think he had a chance; the feeling of being named All-Catholic alongside his brother Pat was indescribable. He was ecstatic, but only half as excited and ecstatic as his dad.

That Championship game was 3DW¶V last time in uniform.

Brendan went on as a senior to excel on the undefeated 1996 Champs. Mr. Coyle would send Pat the game tapes at college, and Pat would get a crowd of friends together in a dorm room to watch for #47, And when #47 made a great play, Pat would announce to no one in particular, but really to everyone, ³7KDW¶V my EURWKHU ´. By the time the Championship game tape against Judge arrived, there were 25 guys in that dorm room in Vermont pulling for La Salle and Brendan.

Pat came back to La Salle to be the linebacker coach in the 1998 and 1999 seasons. Two of his favorite players were twins Kevin and Chris Dougherty, two real hitters who may have reminded him of another set of brothers. Ironic that an Irish twin ends up coaching twins who were Irish.

3DW ¶

Coyle %UHQGDQ ¶ 1995 ² Coyle and Re-Coyle If you look up the term ³,ULVK 7ZLQV´ in Wikipedia, there has to be a picture of the Coyle brothers. Pat and Brendan Coyle are only 9 months apart, though they were in different grades.

They started playing touch football together at age 5 for the Southampton Knights, and moved on to tackle/weight football in the Keystone League, being on the same team for all but one or two years until high school.

They learned to hit, and that usually meant hitting each other, going head to head in what became known as ³EURWKHUO\ ORYH´ drills. Pat claims that no one has ever hit him as hard as Brendan, and he never had any fear because he faced the best everyday while growing up.

As the 1995 season approached, both brothers were excited and apprehensive. It would be the first year since weight football that they would be on the field together. Brendan won a starting spot on the defensive line as a junior, lining up right in front of Pat at linebacker. Pat taught Brendan to never give up on a play, and also that size GRHVQ¶W matter, though Pat thought the coaches were crazy about putting Brendan on the line.

You see, the Irish twins were a wee on the small side. But getting the best players out on a field in a 5-2 defense may mean that a Brendan Coyle has to be a lineman.

The Coyle brothers were two ³OLWWOH engines that FRXOG´ on the Explorer defense. A twist to the older/younger brother storyline: when Pat was a freshman at La Salle, he got to pick his number, and picked the number that Brendan had for his Southampton team, #51. Pat kept that number in sophomore year, and Brendan had to pick another number, because Pat had stolen his! But people in the stands got to know quickly who #51 and #47 were.

The early apprehension that the Coyles had about the season seemed justified, as non-league losses against West Catholic and Cherokee NJ had them concerned. But several teammates, most notably John Mallach, exuded confidence that the season would be a success. Many juniors and seniors had worked hard in the weight room together during the summer, and that effort and that camaraderie paid off as the season unfolded. The team pasta dinners at a WHDPPDWH¶V house the night before the game GLGQ¶W hurt.

The second league game was against Archbishop Ryan, perennial powerhouse, and the Coyles both agree that this

31.

Brothers In Battle After defeating Archbishop Ryan for that championship in 1998, La Salle players were in a mob scene after the game ended, except for two players: Chris and Kevin Dougherty were in their own fraternal-twin hugfest, before joining their exuberant teammates.

Late in the 1999 season, after a game at Northeast High School, head coach Joe Colistra went up to Kevin Dougherty, and told him that he made first-team Al-Catholic. .HYLQœV immediate words were: ³:KDW about my EURWKHU"´ Joe Colistra broke into a big smile, and said: ³<HDK he made it, too´.

After the 1999 football season was over, the Doughertys went their separate ways in winter and spring sports. Chris wrestled and played baseball, and Kevin swam and played lacrosse. The spring of their senior year gave their parents one more chance to see their sons play at the same time, as they parked their lawn chairs strategically between the baseball diamond and the lacrosse field at La Salle.

After La Salle and college, the twins continued their separate ways, with Chris in the investment world and Kevin in significant administrative academic roles that eventually brought him back to La Salle. But they remain very close, and have an unbreakable bond with their former teammates, especially those on defense in those great seasons of 1998 and 1999.

They each have great memories of their days at La Salle, coming in as twin brothers knowing very few classmates, but leaving with dozens of brothers, as well as the words of wisdom and examples set by coaches like Joe Colistra, John Steinmetz, and Paul Kubach that they will use for the rest of their lives.

&KULV Âś

Dougherty .HYLQ œ 1998/99 ² What About My Brother?

Chris and Kevin Dougherty were fraternal twins who were identical in their approach to football. As part of a stellar defense in the 1998 and 1999 seasons, they loved to get physical, would finish every tackle, would be brutally honest with each other, and their brotherhood was infectious to the entire defensive squad.

Chris was a 6œ-1´ 195 lb middle linebacker, one of the hardest hitters in the Catholic League. Kevin was a 5œ-10´ 168 lb safety and kick returner, who played a lot bigger. They had each RWKHUœV back, combining on crushing gang tackles that buried opposing ballcarriers and often popping the football loose. While Chris would blitz the quarterback and make him hurry his throw, Kevin would zero in on the errant toss, and intercept the ball, garnering 8 pilfers in each of the 1998 and 1999 seasons. Chris got to his share of ballcarriers himself, leading the team in tackles in 1999.

If an opposing player had an issue with one of them, they had an issue with both of them, and that mentality cascaded across the whole defense, as these 1998 and 1999 teams were marauders, and took great pride in their closeness, aggressiveness, and competitiveness.

They knew what each other was thinking, and Chris figured that he could take some chances at his linebacker position, knowing that Kevin would be there to back him up and help to finish the tackle. The Doughertys looked up to each other and would do anything for each other, a unique bond that started in the womb and flourished on the football field.

In their junior year of 1998, they competed for and won starting positions on defense, and learned what it was like to prepare for a game from the seniors, as they all experienced a magical, hard-fought journey to the Catholic League Championship. As seniors in 1999, they were part of the team leadership, with Chris as a captain, passing on their knowledge and preparation to the underclassmen, making it to the championship game again, only to lose to Roman Catholic.

The Dougherty family relished the game days in the 1998 and 1999 seasons. Jim Dougherty, Class of Âś67, FRXOGQÂśW have been a prouder Dad on game day, having once played for Tex Flannery. On the morning of the 1998 championship game, he was a bundle of nerves while making breakfast for his family, and waking everyone up with some old La Salle chants.

&DVH\ Âś

Eidenshink $QGUHZ œ 2011 ² Two-Sport Duo Casey and Andrew Eidenshink followed older brother Ryan onto the football field, but also onto the lacrosse field, excelling in both sports. Their cross-over talents were evident on the football field, and they got to share some gridiron time together in the 2011 season.

Casey was a wide receiver and kick returner, and, though usually used in third-down passing situations, was involved in many key plays, resulting in first-down receptions as a possession-type of receiver. Younger brother Andrew played on the defensive side of the ball, first as a defensive end in his junior year, but eventually migrating to outside linebacker in his senior year due to his footspeed.

32.

Brothers In Battle They played on opposite sides of the ball, but often teamed up on special teams, where Casey excelled as a return man, using his lacrosse skills in making moves in small spaces and gaining valuable field position. Andrew had a nose for the ball, using his speed to make tackles on both sides of the field.

Though they GLGQÂśW achieve All-Catholic status like their brother Ryan, they had a habit of being involved in some of the key plays of the 2011 season. In the regular-season game against the Prep, La Salle was rebounding from a 17-0 deficit, trailing 17-15 early in the 4th quarter. The Explorers faced a 4th and 9 on the Hawk 32-yard line, and took a time out. They chose to go for it, and QB Matt Magarity hit a streaking Casey Eidenshink on a slant pattern for the touchdown the gave La Salle the lead for good. In the PCL Championship game against Roman Catholic, Andrew Eidenshink recovered a Cahillite fumble late in the 4th quarter to seal the Explorer victory, 16-6, for their 4th straight PCL Championship.

The Eidenshinks combined on the lacrosse field in the spring of 2012, and then headed their separate ways to play lacrosse in college, with Casey at Lehigh and Andrew on his way to Fairfield. But their time on the football field in 2011 will be remembered not only by them, but also by their teammates, as their contributions were invaluable on that 12-2-0 team.

While Jay enjoyed seeing his brother on the field with him, Tim felt more pressure to produce than other juniors on the team because of their brother act. But produce he did, along with his brother Jay and the strong Blue and Gold defense, as the 1964 Explorers gave up only 43 points all season.

One benefit that they shared was getting to know the opposite classes well, and that helped to foster camaraderie across the team. And, of course, when either made a good play, he was greeted loudly by his brother, and then by the rest of the team.

This made for a very special year for both of them.

The 1964 season was a special season for La Salle as well.

After an opening season loss to a great Neshaminy team, and a non-divisional win over the Burrs of West Catholic, the Explorers ran off 4 straight league wins, and were in a position to control their own destiny with just two games remaining.

The entire Foley family came to all of the games, and Mr. Foley was intensely proud of Jay and Tim, but, like many parents of that generation, reserved his emotions in the stands, and saved it for the ride home, replaying the games with his boys as the Sunday afternoons cascaded into evenings.

Cardinal Dougherty upset La Salle in the next to last game, 13-0, and the Explorers needed to beat the Father Judge Crusaders in the final game to have a shot at the playoffs. In an intensely defensive game at Northeast High School, -XGJHÂśV quarterback Bill Kelly kicked a short field goal near the end of the first half. Who would have imagined that the 30 lead would hold up, but it did, and the Explorer hopes of a post-season was dashed, not to be attained till 1988.

Jay and Tim still shake their heads at that loss; field goals just ZHUHQÂśW kicked much back then, and certainly not to win an important game. That bitter memory, along with all of the sweet ones, gets resurrected every time they get together to talk about 1964, a really special time in their lives. Jay still feels that playing football was the most fun he ever had at La Salle, and playing with his brother Tim in 1964 was a unique reward.

-D\ Âś

Foley 7LP œ 1964 ² The Foley Fraternity Jay Foley was a 2-way back for the 1963 and 1964 La Salle teams, and was a great ballhawk in the defensive backfield, intercepting 2 passes in the 1964 game against Kenrick among his thefts. Younger brother Tim was bigger than Jay, and made the Varsity as a soph in 1963, playing end. By 1964, Tim was a starter alongside his brother.

In 1964, the Foley brothers were two-way players, as Jay got some touches as halfback, but they were featured more on defense. Tim had moved to a ³URYLQJ OLQHEDFNHU´ position, and brother Jay, the defensive back, seemed to always be playing right behind him, backing him up like an older brother should.

They have great memories of that year, from coming up from the shore to begin August practice, through camp with scrimmages against ³IDUP ER\V´ and all the way to the last game against Father Judge. Jay enjoyed seeing his younger brother Tim making plays in front of him against some of the best offensive talent in the Northern Division, like running back Charlie Jarvis of Father Judge. Tim would often make the initial hit, and Jay would finish the runner off. Nothing like fraternal teamwork to get the job done.

-LP Âś

Gillies -RKQ œ 1976 ² James and John ² Apostles of Defense Jim and John Gillies followed their brother Bill œ74 into La Salle, and onto the football field. These two Gillies brothers were part of the unique 1976 season that proved to be Tex )ODQQHU\œV last great team.

Jim Gillies was a senior defensive lineman that year, having been part of the Phoenix of the 1975 team, rising from the

33.

Brothers In Battle till he was stopped at the North 4-yard line. That thievery led to one of two scores in a La Salle shutout.

They have great memories of Tex Flannery ³6WRS posing for holy SLFWXUHV ´ as well as Joe Colistra ³$ tie is like kissing your VLVWHU ´ and they think back often to their teammates, especially those who have passed on at a young age, like Vince Kostos and Mike Vesey. Their opportunity to play together on that great 1976 team has provided them with a lifetime of memories, and all the workouts, practices, scrimmages, and games that they shared, together.

ashes of a 0-9-0 team in his sophomore year. He was as tough as old rawhide, and had great strength in his sinewy frame, which topped out at 6œ-2´ and 215 lbs.

Brother John was a year behind Jim, and was a solid defensive back at 5œ-10´ and 175 lbs, often playing behind Jim, and sometimes alongside of him in blitz formations. They certainly were a major part of a rough and tough defense that registered three consecutive shutouts on the way to a 9-2-0 record, winning more games than any La Salle team since 1957.

John felt privileged to be able to hang around with the seniors, and gained their respect, not only as -LPÂśV younger brother, but as a player in his own right. The Gillies brothers did look after each other, but they knew that the job took precedence, including when they went head to head in practice, something not uncommon for these two off the field as well. But, after the whistle, a hand to get up and a pat on the back were always in order, and their teammates respected them for understanding the rules of battle.

And battle it was: the Gillies brothers always felt like warriors going into battle, relishing the thought of delivering such a punishing blow to the enemy that they would remember your number (Jim - #71; John - #38). Their closeness, both personally in life and geographically on the field, was a great source of pride for both of them.

They were able to push each other during hours and hours of training and practice, both on the field and in the gym, hitting the free weights and the universal machine for hours with no one else around but each other. And their trek back home was done together as well, often thumbing a ride or walking for miles, together.

The season started with incredible promise, as the Explorers ran off three straight wins, but -XGJHÂśV Crusaders knocked the Blue and Gold down in a 34-7 drubbing. Three more wins followed, putting La Salle in position to win the Suburban section of the Northern Division.

A 13-0 halftime lead against Archbishop Wood in the regular season finale had the faithful anticipating the playoffs. But the Vikings came back to tie the game in the fourth quarter, and then scored on a short run with 8 seconds to go to dash the hopes of the Explorers, depriving them of a playoff spot that they KDGQÂśW experienced since 1961.

John was sidelined with a head injury for that Wood game, and he still has memories of the difficult experience of seeing Wood march down that field for the winning score, and not being able to do anything about it.

Jim and John Gillies played exceptionally well on that 1976 defense, and they had their individual moments in the sun. In the Kenrick game, John ran from one sideline to the other to tackle a runner and cause a fumble, and was baptized with the nickname ³6KDUN´ by fellow defensive back John Steinmetz.

In the North Catholic game, Jim stripped star running back Lou Sigmund of the ball, and returned with the pilfered pigskin

)UDQN Âś

Jorfi 7RP œ 2003 ² Tight Ends, Tighter Brothers Frank and Tom Jorfi both played tight end at La Salle.

Contrary to what you may have expected, they were in fierce competition for playing time, continuing a rivalry from their days of one-on-one basketball games in their driveway.

That competition continued on the CYO football field for Corpus Christi, where Frank (8th grade) and Tom (7th grade) finally got to play with each other for the first time. And their battles in CYO were probably a lot more serious than their battles 4 years later at La Salle. Frank was big and strong, and grew to be 6œ-2´ and almost 200 lbs as a freshman. He was good enough as a sophomore to gain a lot of meaningful playing time. Freshman Tom had a unique set of emotions going, being intensely jealous of )UDQNœV success, and yet was passionately proud of his brother, and enjoyed watching him play Varsity ball.

Tom wanted the opportunity to prove himself, but watching Frank succeed, in 7RPœV own words, was ³OLNH standing in a shadow that just kept VWUHWFKLQJ´. Tom grew to be tall as well, was leaner of build, and was a faster receiver than Frank.

Frank was an excellent receiver and a great blocker, and at home he worked with Tom on technique as well as routes.

They GLGQœW share much time on the practice field, and GLGQœW have much of an opportunity of looking out for each other, except for when Coach Joe Colistra screamed out for ³Jorf ´ and both Jorfi brothers responded at full speed, with one knowing KHœG be walking back to the sidelines with his tail between his legs.

Frank played end/outside linebacker in addition to being a stellar receiver amidst a great crop of receivers in his senior year, and that meant that Tom would have to bide his time to get onto the field on offense. Frank made sure he attended as many of 7RPÂśV JV games as possible, supporting him and enjoying his success at that level.

34.

Brothers In Battle )UDQNÂśV and 7RPÂśV dad tried to make it to every one of their games - all the way from freshman to JV to Varsity, and every Varsity game was a major event for the whole Jorfi family; Mr. Jorfi made it a point to try to tape all of their games.

On car rides after hard practices or games, the Jorfi brothers were either too exhausted to even talk to each other, or they were talking trash to each other about something that had happened. If Frank celebrated a catch or a touchdown a little too much, Tom made sure to put him in his place on that ride home.

Frank was awarded All-Catholic honors as an end/outside linebacker in his senior year, and brother Tom would have been furious if he GLGQÂśW make it, because he knew his brother deserved it. At the same time, Frank felt that Tom GLGQÂśW get enough of a shot to play in his junior year, and hoped that KHÂśG get that long-overdue chance in his senior year.

Tom took that opportunity and made good on it, becoming an outstanding receiver with great speed and great hands.

Frank, playing at La Salle University, got back to many of 7RPÂśV games in his senior season, and he remembers the Archbishop Ryan playoff game when Tom caught about 9 passes in La 6DOOHÂśV loss to the Raiders. Many people came up to Frank, telling him how great Tom played all season.

When Tom was awarded his own All-Catholic berth, Frank was elated, and, in his words: ³)LQDOO\ someone else sees how good he is, and he's getting the credit he deserves. I seriously could not have been prouder.´ Tom had his own opportunity to play college ball at either Moravian or Lycoming, but instead chose to go to La Salle University and be with his brother. They ended up sharing an apartment for one of their years together, rekindling their closeness with each other, while at the same time, rekindling their competitiveness, arguing about which one of them was better at La Salle.

Frank was a three-year football letterman as well, and was a junior in the 1953 season; he wore number 45, was a second team All-Catholic guard in the 1954 season, went by the nickname of ³%R´ and also rowed for La Salle when he ZDVQœW playing football.

And the Lamprechts were both about the same size, listed at 5œ-10´ 170 lbs (though the pictures make John look somewhat bigger).

The 1953 season was the ³6HDVRQ of Coming $WWUDFWLRQV´ where John was one of just 8 seniors, and the team came on strong as the season progressed. Early in the year, the Explorers battled the Prep to a 0-0 tie, and the Wisterian noted the ³GHIHQVLYH line SUHVHQFH´ of John and Frank Lamprecht.

They also were a big part of the greatest La Salle win in years, anchoring the defense in an 18-0 shutout over North Catholic, and they followed that up with an equally exciting win against the Burrs of West Catholic, 31-26. On offense, they helped to open up holes for the great skill position players like QB Bill Magee, end John Duffy, and back Jim Ward.

Though the stars of renown of the 1953 team seem to be spotted in the backfield, the line play on both sides of the ball by the Lamprecht brothers were surely an important factor in turning around the fortunes of La Salle football.

John was the long-time proprietor of the Blue Bell Inn, where the Class of 1954 would hold a monthly lunch, and the footballers would get a chance to re-live that great season of 1953. Though the Blue Bell Inn is in new ownership, the Class of 54 has continued their monthly lunches, relocating to other local establishments, talking about their senior year, when the Lamprecht brothers wore the Blue and Gold together.

-RKQ Âś

Mallach

-RKQ Âś

Lamprecht

.\OH œ 1995 ² Long-Time Teammates John and Kyle Mallach were teammates for a long, long time, going back to their JV CYO days at ³/LWWOH Gwynedd´. But, as they approached their last year as teammates in 1995, that bittersweet thought of a final season was the furthest thing from their minds.

John was a year ahead of Kyle, and was always the first to play at a higher level for a year before Kyle joined him. In virtually all instances, when together, the Mallach boys were on a team that never lost. It ZDVQÂśW just them, of course, but the chemistry of those teams clicked to produce winners every time.

La 6DOOHœV 1994 season ended with another ³RQH and GRQH´ excursion into the playoffs for the fourth straight year.

)UDQN œ 1953 ² Lamprechts Light Up The Line Coming to 20th and Olney from the Glenside ³ZLOGHUQHVV´ were the Lamprecht brothers, whose La Salle resumes were more like twins, except they were a year apart. Getting to play together in the ³QHZ GDZQ´ of the 1953 season was certainly special.

John was a three-year letterman on the gridiron who was a senior in the 1953 season; he wore number 48, was an honorable mention All-Catholic in 1953 as a tackle, went by the nickname of ³+HUPDQ´ and was a mainstay on the crew team in the football ³RII-season´.

35.

Brothers In Battle They were unable to beat Archbishop Ryan and Father Judge; the Crusaders knocked the Explorers out of the playoffs in 3 of the last 4 years. And a lot of people felt that the Blue and Gold would not be able to climb that summit again.

But things were going to change in 1995. Drew Gordon had become quarterbacks coach in 1994, and would renovate the offense into a spread-type that got the ball into the hands of many different skill-position players, exploiting their athleticism. And sophomore Brett Gordon stepped into the starting quarterback position. But perhaps the biggest change occurred within the team itself, as the winter of 1994/95 saw the rising seniors of the 1995 season bring a can-do attitude with them, with a little swagger thrown in, and merged their energies and their aspirations with the rising juniors, welcoming them into the mission of the 1995 team. And all of them had great confidence in that soph signal-caller Gordon.

It GLGQÂśW hurt to have two sets of brothers (Coyles, Mallachs) to be part of that senior/junior merger. John Mallach claims that this group knew well ahead of time that they were good, and that they would win the Catholic League. It GLGQÂśW hurt to have that swagger, and other team members adopted that feeling.

John and Kyle always played on opposite sides of the ball.

John was a free-wheeling defensive back, and Kyle was a solid north-south runner in quite a stable of Blue and Gold rushers. The brothers sometimes collided in practice, and trash-talked like any other teammates. They also talked to each other after practice, eager to find out what was happening on the other side of the ball.

But there was a third Mallach involved in that magical year of 1995 as well. David Mallach would film his VRQVÂś games, and after the battle all would head back to the Mallach house to watch the game, trailed by many teammates as well. That was just another ingredient in the WHDPÂśV chemistry that year.

Despite two early season non-league losses, the team was confident going into league play, and defeated Conwell-Egan in the opener. Kyle had 13 rushes for 79 yards, including a 1yard touchdown run to give La Salle a lead they would hold for good. Anytime that Kyle scored that year, John felt like he scored as well, a family-style touchdown.

Next game was a watershed event against Archbishop Ryan, and the 1995 squad felt that there was no way the Raiders would win this game. But the Explorers had to come from a 19-7 deficit to pull it off, as a happy band of extended brothers caravanned their way to the Mallach house to see how it really happened. Judge fell next, then Wood, Dougherty, and North.

Three of those four games were shutouts, as the defense still maintained their rightful place as one of the OHDJXHÂśV best.

John Mallach is convinced that the defense got better during the year because they were facing the OHDJXHÂśV best offense in practice every day. The multiple sets and options they battled on what is now known as Flannery Field was tougher than what they would face in the weekend game.

The confidence and swagger of the 1995 team, and of the Mallach brothers, now headed into the playoffs. A shutout of

Judge and a tough win over the Friars of Bonner got La Salle back into the Championship game for the first time since 1989, against the dynastic Ryan team. But first, the Prep was dispatched on Thanksgiving, as Kyle Mallach scored twice, one on a 50 yard run. The Championship game was scoreless at half, but Kyle scored on a 2-yard run to break the ice, and La Salle won the PCL crown, 14-7.

There was a tremendous sense of accomplishment that the 1995 team still exudes today when they meet with each other.

John and Kyle Mallach won together yet again, in their last game together. John followed the 1996 team from afar up as a member of )DLUILHOGÂśV football squad, but got back in time for the run to the playoffs, getting to see his brother Kyle be a part of a second PCL Championship.

The MallachsÂś combined journey through football success that started back in JV CYO continues into the business world today, as they take some of the principles of teamwork, drive, trust, and yes, swagger, into their profession. The 1995 PCL Championship was so special to them, providing them not only with great memories with their teammates, but as a launching point to bigger and better conquests in their lives.

.HQQHWK Âś

Meehan .HYLQ œ 1966 ² Meehan My Brother While I was at La Salle, I always looked up to the football players, but especially when I was in my freshman and sophomore years. One of those football players was Kevin ³%HDU´ Meehan, a burly and energetic lineman who went both ways for Tex Flannery.

Kevin was a stalwart in his junior and senior years, earning first team All-Catholic honors in the 1967 season. He was certainly a BMOC, with a popular and dynamic personality to go with his exploits on the gridiron. Along with other great footballers like Charlie Zapiec, Bill Hartman, Steve Bukowski, John Kent, and others, Kevin Meehan was my hero.

But he was the younger of the Meehan brothers who patrolled the football field in 1966. His brother Kenneth was on that field as well, but .HQQHWKÂśV uniform was a suit and tie, not a jersey and short pants. He was the manager of the football team, and served in that role for all four years. He also seemed to be everywhere in school, involved in many activities like the Wisterian and in Student Council as a senior.

Two items for me to confess: one, I did not know that Kevin and Kenneth were brothers. My alibi is that there were so many Meehans at La Salle that I needed a scorecard. My second item: football players were my heroes, not managers in suits and ties. Even I wore a suit and tie.

36.

Brothers In Battle But heroes come in all shapes and sizes, and wardrobe. And different people have different heroes, and a SHUVRQÂśV idea of a hero changes with time. Kenneth Meehan loved the sport that he managed, and ,ÂśYH grown to appreciate what a dedicated manager brings to his football team. Kenneth was also brilliant in the classroom, scoring a 1592 on the old version of the SAT, and taking his talents to Georgetown, while brother Kevin, a year later, also headed south to play at Virginia Tech. Both brothers went on to achieve doctorate degrees.

About four years ago, Kenneth Meehan passed away after a long and courageous battle with cancer, and younger brother Kevin was asked to speak about Kenneth during a ceremony celebrating his life, in front of many of .HQQHWKÂśV peers in the academic world. And Kevin tried to explain to those bastions of academia how their fraternal relationship was forged during CYO baseball in grade school, and on La Salle College High 6FKRROÂśV football field.

And Kevin ³%HDU´ Meehan, tough and dynamic lineman, hero to a lot of us underclassmen, let everyone there know, in no uncertain terms, that Kenneth Meehan, his older brother, the football manager, was indeed his hero.

And now, Kenneth is mine as well.

But for us, the Palo brothers in the 1948 backfield were quite a rarity in La Salle circles, and ,ÂśP sure that they would have had some great stories to tell about their times together on that 1948 team.

7RP Âś

Yannessa )UDQN œ Tom and Frank Yannessa were sturdy guards in the late 50œV who each were about 6œ-3´ tall and weighed about 250 pounds, except that they ZHUHQœW ¹ it just seemed that way to enemy ballcarriers and linemen.

Tom was a senior on the 1957 team, and was listed a 5œ-9´ and 183 lbs. He was a grenade on the defensive line, rolling and exploding into unsuspecting ballcarriers with a low center of gravity that always won the leverage battle. His play in the 1957 City Title game was exceptional, helping to stifle the vaunted Roxborough running game as La Salle pitched a defensive shutout (only Indian TD came on an interception).

Frank was one of just a few sophomores to make the Varsity in 1957. Though he did not start, he gained some valuable field experience in some of the late season games when the Explorers were comfortably ahead. By the 1959 season, Frank was a mainstay on the line for La Salle, with similar dimensions as brother Tom, and with the same impact on collisions with ballcarriers.

Tom Yannessa won first-team All-Catholic honors as a guard in 1957, and Frank Yannessa replicated that achievement in 1959; Tom also was second team All-Scholastic in 1957.

To those who saw them play, the name Yannessa connoted impact, a compact car hitting you like a 1954 DeSoto, two packages of dynamite that blew up opponents every Sunday.

/HRQ Âś

Palo 6DO œ 1948 ² Palo Mine Leon and Salvatore Palo came to La Salle from St. Madeline Sophie parish, and both brothers landed in the Explorer backfield. As a junior in the 1947 season, Leon stepped up to become a reliable back, due both to his abilities as well as injuries and suspensions to other backfieldmates. In the second game of the 1947 season, Leon broke through the St. Thomas More defense for his first touchdown. but 1947 was a difficult season for La Salle, as they limped home with a 3-7-0 record.

In 1948, younger brother Sal, a junior, joined Leon in the crowded Explorer backfield, and Sal, seemingly bigger than Leon, made his presence known in a hurry as well, scoring against the Prep in the second game of the year.

There was a lot of talent in the Blue and Gold backfield, starting with the great senior Dick Bedesem, but the Palo brothers were vital parts of the La Salle offense, and the 4-4-0 season record GLGQÂśW do justice to the abilities of this team. Sal also played in the 1949 season, and went on to play at Temple, and then taught in high schools in South Jersey, also establishing athletic programs at several schools.

Other Brothers In Battle Osborne Âą Jim, Âľ56 and John Âľ58 McCarthy Âą Mike Âľ65 and David Âľ66 Kohler Âą Joe Âľ68 and Walt Âľ69 Moore Âą Jim Âľ67, Bruce Âľ68, and Bob Âľ69 Kelly Âą Brian Âľ82 and Brett Âľ82 Mellet Âą John Âľ82 and Matt Âľ84 Wolpert Âą Dave Âľ87 and Duke Âś87 Truitt Âą Tom Âľ95 and Jeff Âľ96 Donohoe Âą Brian Âľ03 and Kevin Âś04 Forster Âą Rob Âľ05 and Jack Âľ07 Migliarese Âą Joe Âľ08 and Vinny Âľ10 Hoffman Âą Shane Âľ08 and Connor Âľ10 Naji Âą Joe Âľ11 and Jon Âľ13 Buckley Âą Colin Âľ12 and Nick Âľ14

37.

100 Greats of La Salle Football

38.

100 Greats of La Salle Football

39.

100 Greats of La Salle Football

40.

100 Greats of La Salle Football

41.

1996 – The Most Perfect Season field goal. La Salle nursed the 10-0 first quarter lead to notch their 6th win of the season, and 17th straight over two years.

La Salle 14 – Bishop McDevitt 6: With Brett Gordon on the sidelines with a right shoulder injury, WR Jack Hammond stepped under center and performed efficiently, scoring a touchdown and passing effectively. The Lancers crept to within 7-6, but Mike Durso’s 34-yard touchdown run after breaking a tackle with about 3 minutes to go gave La Salle an 8-point lead, and Jim Noone’s interception cemented the victory.

La Salle 14 – Archbishop Wood 0: The defense stood tall as the Blue and Gold improved their record to 8-0-0 with a shutout over the Vikings. Wood gained no second half yards on the ground, as the defense, led by Drew Middlemiss, Paul D’Orazio, and Brendan Coyle smothered the Viking attack.

Brett Gordon was back at the helm, and he threw a touchdown pass to Mike Durso for the first score.

La Salle 24 – Archbishop Ryan 0: La Salle clinched the regular season Northern Division crown with a dominant victory over a weakened Raider eleven. RB Eric Seiferth scored twice on runs of 18 and 19 yards, and the defense overwhelmed the Raider quarterback corps, intercepting a total of six passes in registering their fifth shutout of the season.

La Salle 41 – Conwell-Egan 0: The tenth win of the season, and sixth shutout, came easy, as the Explorers whitewashed the Eagles. Brett Gordon’s touchdown pass to Mike McIntyre broke the league record for touchdown passes in a career at 42. Mike Mattia caught two of those passes from Gordon, and Matt Maloney scored three touchdowns on the ground as La Salle finished up their regular season with a flourish.

La Salle 40 – North Catholic 0 (PCL Quarterfinal): The Explorers got off to a slow start, and finally scored in the second period on a Brett Gordon field goal. Gordon hit Mike Mattia with a 4-yard TD pass late in the second quarter to make the halftime lead 10-0. Another Gordon field goal, and a touchdown pass to Kyle Mallach in the 3rd period opened it up, and another Mallach score & a fumble return for a touchdown

by Drew Middlemiss made the game a rout. The defense, led

by Brendan Coyle, completely throttled the Falcons.

La Salle 41 – Cardinal O’Hara 10 (PCL Semifinal): At Northeast High, Brett Gordon and Mike Mattia connected for two touchdown passes, and the Explorers made their way to the PCL championship game with a ringing 41-10 victory over the Lions. Cardinal O’Hara’s lone touchdown came in the last minute, as the Explorer defense again rose to the occasion in the playoffs.

La Salle 17 – St. Joseph’s Prep 14 (Thanksgiving): At McCarthy Stadium, the Hawks, recently eliminated by Father Judge in the playoffs, gave the undefeated Explorers a hard time. A Gordon to Durso pass for a touchdown erased a 6-0 St. Joseph’s lead, but the Hawks came back to take a 14-7 lead well into the fourth quarter.

After winning their final 11 games and copping the Catholic League championship the year before, the 1996 Blue and Gold had red and white bulls-eyes on their collective backs.

But the 1996 Explorers were a more experienced team than the 1995 champions, and they thrived on being king of the hill, and dared any team to knock them down. That attitude and that swagger helped this team to produce “the most perfect season”. Here’s how it happened: La Salle 28 – West Catholic 0: At Springfield, the Explorers set the tone early, as DB Ed Boron returned a Burr pass for a touchdown on the third play from scrimmage. He also returned a punt for a TD midway through the second quarter.

Junior QB Brett Gordon had an efficient day, hitting RB Mike Durso for a 25-yard touchdown. The game was ended at halftime due to a storm. La Salle avenged a 34-33 defeat a year ago, and left a calling card for the League that they were back, better than ever.

La Salle 41 – Valley Forge Military Academy 0: Brett Gordon threw for 5 touchdown passes, two to WR Jeff Pietrak, and La Salle annihilated the overmatched Trojans. The defense allowed Valley Forge inside their 30 yard line only once, and were not really tested. But a serious challenge lay ahead, as La Salle would play Kennedy-Kenrick for the first time since the schools merged a few years back.

La Salle 21 – Kennedy-Kenrick 18: The Explorers were nearly ambushed by the Wolverines, who exhibited a strong passing attack. Midway through the fourth quarter, La Salle took the lead for good on a 10 yard touchdown pass from Gordon to Mike Mattia. Kennedy-Kenrick’s last hurrah got down to the La Salle 21-yard line, where, on a fourth-and-one, the La Salle defense stopped the Wolverine fullback for a loss.

Now the Explorers would head into Northern Division play, sporting a 3-0-0 record.

La Salle 42 – Cardinal Dougherty 10: Brett Gordon passed for four touchdowns, as the Cardinals self-destructed with 5 turnovers. Jeff Pietrak and Tim McNichol each snagged one TD pass, and Mike Mattia notched two. Kyle Mallach rushed for two touchdowns, as the Explorers successfully opened up their divisional play, showcasing a tight defense to go along with their high-powered offense.

La Salle 24 – Father Judge 3: Brett Gordon threw two more touchdown passes, but La Salle’s undersized defense was the story of this game, limiting the Crusaders to just 24 yards of offense in the second half. One of Gordon’s touchdown passes was a 45-yarder to Tim McNichol. Jeff Pietrak, a star wide receiver, contributed on defense with a 47-yard interception return for a touchdown. In 5 games, the Blue and Gold defense had given up just 4 touchdowns.

La Salle 10 – North Catholic 0: The stubborn Falcon defense stymied the Explorer offense, but the Blue and Gold defense carried the day, as defensive tackle Brendan Coyle registered 13 tackles to shut down North. Kyle Mallach ran in the only TD from 3 yards, and Jeff Pietrak added a 35-yard

42.

1996 – The Most Perfect Season On a key 4th-and-1 play at the St. Joseph’s 33, Gordon rolled left and found Tim McNichol deep down the left sideline for a 33 yard touchdown to tie the game at 14-14. In the last minutes, La Salle drove down the field and attempted to punch in the winning touchdown, but, with 17 seconds left, Gordon connected on a 17-yard field goal to win the game and keep the unbeaten streak alive at 24.

La Salle 20 – Father Judge 7 (PCL Final): At Northeast High, on a muddy field, La Salle’s passing game was somewhat muffled, but the running game, behind the reliable offensive line, was the big story. Mike Durso had 22 carries for 113 yards, and scored one of the touchdowns, a 9-yard run in the second quarter after Brett Gordon got the Explorers on the board with a 24-yard field goal. La Salle held a 10-0 lead at half, as the defense was flying all over the field. In the third quarter, Mike Mattia returned a punt 49 yards, setting up another Gordon field goal, this one from 34 yards, and La Salle nursed a 13-0 lead. But Father Judge was not quitting.

Aided by a 52-yard pass play, the Crusaders punched in a 1yard touchdown to make the score 13-7. With the Judge sideline feeling a momentum shift, La Salle marched down to score a clinching touchdown, as Brett Gordon avoided the blitz to connect on a 33-yard touchdown pass to Jeff Pietrak. La Salle had won two straight PCL Championships, not done since 1957 and 1958, and had finished the year with a most perfect record of 14-0-0.

The most perfect team of 1996 was far from perfect. Their ground game was, at best, average. The offensive and defensive lines were undersized. They had really good athletes, but no “lights out” athletes. But they had experience, a drive, a swagger, and a knowledge that they could do anything that was needed to be done to pull out a game. The junior quarterback Brett Gordon was certainly the general on the field, but he was complemented by many leaders, both in the backfield and on the line. The defense was consistent all season, stingy to a point of demoralizing their opponents.

Though there were only two games won by less than a touchdown, many games were decided in the second half, where leadership and experience triumph.

In 2013, the 1996 team was inducted into the La Salle Hall of Athletics, joining the 1957 team, both perfect in their own way.

Seniors of the 1996 Team

Boron

Carmody

Coyle

43.

Durso

Gallagher

Hammond

Kotwicki

Lavin

Leva

Mallach

Malloy

Maloney

Mattia

McIntyre

McNichol

Middlemiss

Morsell

Noone

Price

Read

Zeccardi

Thanksgiving Football Memories On Thanksgiving Day of 1958, at the tender age of 6, I returned home at high noon from Nazareth Hospital, leaving my tonsils behind during a 3-day visit. My Mom greeted me with open arms, welcoming me home from my ordeal, and then I marched straight to our lone TV set, located in the dining room at the time. That was my highest priority, because the Detroit Lions were hosting the Green Bay Packers on CBS. During the 60ÂśV as first a grade-schooler and then a La Salle boy, I walked two blocks from my house to the NortheastCentral Turkey Day game with my dad and my Uncle Mike; my dad went to Central, and his brother went to Northeast.

We never paid to get in, choosing to keep our fifty cents in our pockets to watch the game from beyond the fence. A family of tightwads.

Later in life, living in Warminster, I remember going to an Upper Moreland Âą Hatboro-Horsham game, and a Central Bucks East Âą Central Bucks West game, and as an outsider, I enjoyed being out in the crisp air of a Thanksgiving morning watching football; it was a great start to a very enjoyable day.

I started going to La Salle sporting events again in 2001, and went to several Thanksgiving games against St. -RHÂśV Prep, all losses until a magical day in 2005, when the Explorers upset the heavily favored Hawks, 14-13. Little did I know at the time that this would be the last Thanksgiving game for La Salle, save for a 2007 game against Bishop McDevitt. Having been away for so long, I assumed that a Thanksgiving game for the Explorers had happened since the beginning of organized football! It finally dawned on me that there were no Explorer Thanksgiving games during my own La Salle years!!

Based on what ,ÂśYH unearthed, La 6DOOHÂśV first Thanksgiving game was not against the Hawks; on Thursday, November 27, 1919, at 10 AM at Strawbridge & Clothier Field at 63rd and Walnut Streets, La Salle played West Catholic for the first time ever, and won the game, 13-9. They followed that up the next year at Cahill Field by defeating favored Villanova Prep, 12-0, as QB Donovan Rochford (great first name for a quarterback!) rushed for both touchdowns.

It was 8 more years until La Salle played Burlington NJ in 1928, then the PA School for the Deaf in 1929 and 1930, and Simon Gratz in 1933 and 1934. Their first ³WUDGLWLRQDO´ rivalry started with nearby Germantown in 1945. The Bears were known at the time as the ³Clivedens´; somehow, rooting for a Cliveden escapes me; ,œP sure LWœV a part of local history.

1945 was quite a significant year to start a Thanksgiving football tradition; that Thanksgiving Day in the year that the war ended was, ,ÂśP sure, extremely special for so many families. There were many longstanding Turkey Day rivalries already in place between high schools, and La Salle and Germantown seemed to be a natural fit.

The Explorers and the Clivedens played a game on that Thursday for three years, and then the rivalry paused for an unknown reason. La Salle battled Bridgeton NJ in 1949, but

the Germantown game picked up again in 1953, only to cease forever after the 1957 game, won by La Salle, 39-6. The Explorers won 7 of the 8 games against Germantown.

Of note in the 1954 tussle was the presence of #46, William Cosby, a senior halfback for the Bears on his way to Temple and to greater fame, returning a punt for a TD in that game.

Writeup of the 1945 game In those Germantown years, La Salle played for the City Title twice (1955 & 1957), but well after Thanksgiving, so there was no concern that the Turkey Day game would pose a scheduling problem; at least, for now.

From the late 50ÂśV through 1970, there were no Thanksgiving games for La Salle, except for one lone game against Monsignor Bonner in 1963. The Catholic League was expanding with new high schools opening up, and, as of 1963, La 6DOOHÂśV schedule outside of the newly-created Northern Division of the Catholic League would feature early-season battles against Southern Division ancient rivals West Catholic, St. -RHÂśV Prep, as well as Monsignor Bonner on occasions.

Powerful Neshaminy was also an early-season foe, but the seasons ended without a Thanksgiving Day game.

In 1971, a Thanksgiving Day game was played for the first time since 1957, against Roxborough. This, however, was just a one-year ³WUDGLWLRQ´ and Thanksgiving Day games were put on the back burner for several more years.

Finally, in 1976, a tradition started that had traction. St. -RHÂśV Prep, the ancient enemy, was in the Southern Division, and a Thanksgiving Day game was held, and won by La Salle, 27-0.

The venue for a while was Springfield High School, as La Salle had started a transition from McCarthy Stadium for most of their home games. At some point, this newly-minted tradition between the two schools anointed a game MVP with a trophy, and a perennial team trophy was created to be kept by the winning school for the next 12 months. And it seemed as though this tradition would be one for the ages.

44.

Thanksgiving Football Memories The next 3 games were tight affairs: 1977 saw La Salle win, 19-13, but lose in 1978 on a field goal, 3-0. The Explorers eked out a 15-14 Turkey Day win in 1979, and won four more in a row before losing in 1984 to the Prep in Tex )ODQQHU\ÂśV last game, 16-0.

1982: after the upset victory over the Prep

1994 1998

Stanczak

Gibson

Colistra

1987

regular season as Red Division members. Though the unique matchup of Thanksgiving Day was compromised by a regular season battle as well, it gave the loser of the first game a chance to even things up at the end of the season.

But by 1999, the Hawks had become a powerhouse, and swept the regular-season and the Turkey Day battles between 1999 and 2002. And then, the inevitable happened.

In 2003, the Explorers lost an early-season game to the Hawks, 37-0, but they strung together a 4-game win streak to head into the playoffs on a roll. They defeated the Raiders of Archbishop Ryan in a quarterfinal game, 28-14, setting up a semifinal game against, you guessed it, St. -RHÂśV Prep. If the Thanksgiving game was to be played, it would mean that the two schools would lock horns 3 times! Though the playoff game GLGQÂśW coincide with Thanksgiving Week, it was decided to cancel the Turkey Day game for this year.

The 2004 and 2005 seasons resumed the Thanksgiving rivalry, with a most memorable overtime win for the Explorers in 2005, 14-13. Little did we know that this would be the end, at least for now, of the La Salle/St. -RHÂśV Turkey Day tussle.

In 2006, La Salle survived a late-season slump to win an overtime quarterfinal game against Cardinal 2Âś+DUD 39-38, and then they dispatched Roman, 28-7, setting up a Catholic League Red Division Championship game against their archrival, St. -RHÂśV Prep.

1990: Kevin Schmidt and Keith Conlin after Prep game

Changes In the Wind By the late 90ÂśV the Catholic League was changing. Certain schools became smaller and smaller, and these smaller schools found it difficult to compete on the gridiron with larger enrollment schools. In 1999, Northern and Southern divisions aligned by geography were now replaced by Red and Blue, aligned by enrollment. After being in opposite divisions since 1963, La Salle and St. -RHÂśV Prep were now squaring off in the

45.

Thanksgiving Football Memories And I think back to 1958, coming home from the hospital, my own Homecoming if you will, and watching the Lions play the Packers on TV in a traditional matchup, thinking that this was always the way it was. Those traditions changed, too: the Lions play, but against different teams now; they have been futile over the last several decades, and overtures have been made to drum them out of the early game. Dallas started a Turkey Day game in the late 60ÂśV and gives me an opportunity to root for any team that could beat them. And a night game has been added with a revolving host team; the Eagles were a home team on Thanksgiving night a few years ago.

So, La Salle has no Thanksgiving Day game now, as the PIAA playoffs are now front and center for the successful Explorer teams. And though those mornings at Springfield High or McCarthy Stadium are no more, no one can take away our memories, especially after a win against St. -RHÂśV Prep; the turkey somehow tasted better that day!!

One more thought:

But this time, the championship game was scheduled for Thanksgiving Saturday, meaning that the rivals would play two games in three days!! This was resolved by a compromise, with just the Championship game to be played on Friday night instead.

Many of us who were at Charlie Martin Stadium that night still FDQÂśW believe that La Salle stopped the Hawks on 4 drives within the 1-yard line to win the Catholic League Red Division Championship, 14-7. And though it ZDVQÂśW a Thanksgiving Day game, it was a portent of things to come.

St. -RHÂśV Prep ended the Thanksgiving Day rivalry by scheduling a new opponent, Malvern Prep, for 2007. La Salle countered by scheduling neighborhood rival, Bishop McDevitt.

And the Explorers beat the Royal Lancers, 34-7, to end, for now, La 6DOOHÂśV Turkey Day battles.

The Catholic League entered the PIAA in 2008, and La Salle was in the Quad A (AAAA) Division, the one with the largest enrollment. The Explorers won the Catholic League, but were upset by George Washington in the City Title game, 23-14, the week before Thanksgiving. The one-year rivalry against McDevitt dissolved, as the 2008 game was cancelled after the PIAA loss to GW. On Thanksgiving Saturday in 2009, La Salle got revenge against the Eagles of GW with a 31-20 win at Northeast High School, setting up their run to the State Championship three weeks later with wins against Easton, Ridley, and State College. A game against McDevitt on Turkey Day suddenly seemed trite.

La 6DOOHÂśV recent playoff fortunes have carried many seasons into December. The fortuitous playoff schedule gave them a bye during Thanksgiving weekend from 2010 to 2012, and they capitalized on that rest with resounding victories in State Quarterfinal games against opponents from the Lehigh Valley.

Thanksgiving Day mornings at McCarthy Stadium were now a long ago memory.

Thanksgiving: The Last Game For many years, especially for those seasons that did not bring home any hardware, the Thanksgiving Day game was assured to be the last game of the year. For the seniors, it very often was the last game of their lives. For those of you who GLGQÂśW play football, think about that for a moment: the last game of their lives.

I can only imagine what that must feel like, if a senior contemplates that before the game. <RXÂśOO do anything you possibly can to make that last game your best, because \RXÂśOO remember it forever. If \RXÂśUH a sub, your opportunity to get into that last game will be something \RXÂśOO treasure for the rest of your life.

I can only imagine what LWÂśV like in the locker room before that game, with the butterflies for just one more time, wanting the game to start, but wanting it to never end.

But it does come to an end, and the Explorer record on Turkey Day (33-15-0) indicates many happy endings to a VHQLRUÂśV career. And most special would be the seasons where the team had a losing record, or needed a win against St. -RHÂśV to get to .500. And those kinds of wins occurred in 1977, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1985, and 1987. The win against McDevitt in 2007 was another. What a way to end your career!

On several Turkey Day games in the 2000ÂśV I walked down after the game to stand in front of the band after the handshakes with the ancient enemy, and watched the team come over for the Alma Mater. And I saw seniors with tears streaming down their faces, and I cried, too, because I sensed what they were going through at that time.

You FDQÂśW play football forever. There certainly were times that you may have wanted to give it up, but you stuck it out, and now you just GRQÂśW want it to end, but it does. BUT IT

Thanksgiving and Homecoming One benefit of the Thanksgiving Day game was an opportunity to host a Homecoming, both at the game itself, and at La Salle the night before. I was at several of these in the mid-2000ÂśV and getting together with up to 15 of my 1969 classmates was a real treat. Knowing that I would also see others at McCarthy Stadium the next day was exciting as well, and that doubleheader of enjoyment kept a smile on my face throughout all of Thursday.

Traditions change, though, and the 2010 Homecoming picnic before the Bonner game, celebrating the 1960 team, was a new festive event that may have begun its own tradition. And I thoroughly enjoyed that experience as well, with the current version of the Explorers frying the Friars of Bonner, 28-0, in front of 23 members of the 1960 City Champions. 2011 saw the 1989 team feted, and 2012 celebrated the induction of the 1957 team into the new La Salle Hall Of Athletics.

46.

Thanksgiving Football Memories LA SALLE ON THANKSGIVING DAY

ONLY ENDS ON THE FIELD! IT WILL NEVER END IN YOUR HEARTS, AND IN YOUR MEMORIES! AND ALL OF THE DIFFICULT TIMES GET WASHED AWAY AFTER THAT FINAL GUN, AND YOUR MEMORIES START TO CONSTRUCT A MONUMENT TO YOUR INTERACTIONS WITH YOUR COACHES, YOUR TEAMMATES, AND YOUR FAMILIES, AND THE FRATERNITY THAT FOLLOWS WILL BE WITH YOU FOREVER! And your legacy will always be remembered at La Salle, as future generations of 9th graders show up on their 1st day of freshman practice, wondering what could possibly be in store for them at this school. Let them know what WKH\¶UH in for!!

I hope you always enjoy your Thanksgiving with your families.

For those of you who got to play on a Turkey Day for La Salle, take a moment or two to remember that feeling.

2005: Celebration after beating Prep, 14-13

2006 (Friday): Jubilation ² Prep stopped for good

YEAR

OPPONENT

W/L

SCORE

1919 1920 1928 1929 1930 1933 1934 1945 1946 1947 1949 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1963 1971 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2004 2005 2007

WEST CATHOLIC VILLANOVA PREP BURLINGTON NJ PA SCHOOL FOR DEAF PA SCHOOL FOR DEAF GRATZ GRATZ GERMANTOWN GERMANTOWN GERMANTOWN BRIDGETON NJ GERMANTOWN GERMANTOWN GERMANTOWN GERMANTOWN GERMANTOWN MONSIGNOR BONNER ROXBOROUGH ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP ST. JOE'S PREP BISHOP MCDEVITT

W W W L W L L W W L L W W W W W W W W W L W W W W W L W L W W W W W W L W W W L W L L L L L W W

13-9 12-0 19-0 0-9 14-6 0-25 0-20 24-6 32-14 0-6 13-15 20-6 13-7 33-0 32-13 39-6 20-0 20-12 27-0 19-13 0-3 15-14 27-14 9-0 3-0 20-0 0-16 20-8 13-24 22-0 22-21 16-0 21-0 42-0 17-7 0-13 28-6 35-9 17-14 16-20 13-9 20-21 14-27 6-35 3-24 6-27 14-13 34-7

OVERALL RECORD:

2007: Alma Mater after final Thanksgiving game

47.

33-15-0

Fallen Heroes La Salle Football Players Who Gave Their Lives For Our Country

Enter To Learn

Leave To Serve 48.

Great Program Covers

49.

Great La Salle Football Pictures

1986: John Casey goes for the block

1962: Jan Muller breaks free

2009: Steve Sinnott JUDEV 2路+DUD ballcarrier

1946: Dan McGeehan under long one

1954: Jim Ward around end

1995: Championship game ball

2012: Chris Kane deep vs. Ryan

1979: center snap vs. Cardinal Dougherty

50.

Great La Salle Football Pictures

1947: Jim Adams running hard vs. North Catholic

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2001: Action against the Moscow Patriots

1997: Ed Bongard moves in

1969: Curt Vassallo with INT against McDevitt

2011: Dan Wasylenko stops North Penn on 4th-and-1

51.

Great La Salle Football Pictures

1958: QB Howie Guarini led by FB Scotty Maxwell

2010: Alma Mater after the Easton game

1940 QB Ed Day with straight-arm

1955: Action in the City Title game at Franklin Field

1963: Tex Flannery at chalkboard

1976: RB Mike Johnston

52.

Great La Salle Football Pictures

2013: Ryan Coonahan blocks PAT

1964: John DiLanzo punts

1989 PCL Championship Game Ball

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1997: Brett Gordon in senior year

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2012: DB Chris Rocco with INT

53.

1927: tackle Adam Jaworowski

Great La Salle Football Pictures

2009: .HYLQ )RUVWHU路V KHOPHW DW (DVWRQ

2004: remembering Miles Miller

2012: remembering Br. James Rieck

1984: Tex )ODQQHU\路V ODVW \HDU

2009: Sam Feleccia and Drew Loughery at Hershey

2009: Drew Gordon with State Championship trophy

2009: Victory formation as La Salle wins State Championship over State College, 24-7

54.

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O G S ’ T LE E L L A S LA L L A B T FOO -LP 0F*ROGULFN 1990

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55.

Great La Salle Football Pictures

1955: Chuck Murray’s INT vs. Neumann

1966: Mike Whitaker

2011: 4th straight PCL Championship

2005: Joe Colistra after 150th win

1960: Vince Dennery and Tex

1998: Travis Manion

2012: Sideline kneeling in prayer before Ryan Winslow’s PAT wins PCL Championship over St. Joseph’s Prep, 28-27

56.

57.

Great La Salle Football Pictures

1968: QB Joe Zaiss launching a pass

1950: Jim Malloy at center

1971: RB Bob Mizia follows blocking

1992: JP Fenningham snags one

2005: Joe Colistra after last game, with Jack Forster, Ken Clarke, and James Gehringer

1960 RB Tom Crow finds a hole

1957: John Herrera

1942: QB Charlie Schaefer

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58.

Great La Salle Football Pictures

1939: action vs. St. Thomas More

1989: FB Martin Feeny

2013: Levi Hardy scores on 72 yd reception

1957: John Gallagher runs for 80 yard TD vs. Cardinal Dougherty

2008: Sinnott and Abdur-Rahman after beating Prep

1962: RB Jim Maxwell

59.

1946: QB Mario Cupo

Great La Salle Football Pictures

1995: Keith Lachawiec and Joe Colistra with Thanksgiving Day trophy

1988: DE Jim Convey celebrates

2013: John Steinmetz and Brett Gordon in conference

1963: Bernie McFadden

2006: gang tackling in PCL Championship game

1975: QB Gary Uzelac in Wood game

60.

VQDS YV &DUGLQDO 2路+DUD

1953: QB Bill Magee on the run

1950: QB John McAneney passes

Great La Salle Football Pictures

2009: Drew Loughery celebrates at Hershey

1968: HB Jim Koller

1940: Herm Oschell

/%路V -RKQ %DUUHWW DQG 0LOHV 0LOOHU

1965: blocking a kick

1957 City Title game ball

1952: Bernie Burke

1941: QB John Mlodzianowski

1950: Bob Galante

1998: all smiles on the sidelines

61.

Great La Salle Football Pictures

2009: Sam Feleccia

1967: Mike Ternosky

1958: Fred Shaughnessy

1941: Filbert Grande

2002: After Thanksgiving Day game

62.

1950: Charlie Murphy

1969: Rich Allen

Great La Salle Football Pictures

1927: John Ounsworth

1955: City champs posing with their trophies

1968: HB Jim Koller

1941: QB John Mlodzianowski

2013: Kyle Shurmur passing deep against Father Judge

1942: Gus Cifelli

1996: the undefeated 14-0-0 champs with their trophy

63.

Mosaic

64.

65.

Sam And Drew And The Hershey Express Years from now, the legend will grow, about the latter-day Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid who rode west on the Hershey Express in a snowstorm to take part in a showdown with those mean hombres from Happy Valley. But before that tale gets taller than the Rockies, I reckon that I oughta tell you the truth, cuz I was there when it happened.

And now ,œOO turn off the dime-store western novel writer lingo that young John ³7H[´ Flannery was so fond of, and try to write like a La Salle boy should.

This is the story of Sam and Drew, and the 2009 La Salle football team that won the State Championship.

Feleccia was a Jim Brown-type of runner in CYO, possessing the three 6ÂśV: size, strength, and speed. His CYO exploits were widely known, and La Salle football was very fortunate when Sam decided to wear the Blue and Gold.

Drew Loughery was, by all accounts, a pudgy kid who toiled as a tight end and linebacker in 6th grade for St. *HQÂśV. His dad, Bill Loughery Âś70, a long-time coach at La Salle, was a receiver and quarterback during his school days, and 'UHZÂśV brother Bill Âś03 played a variety of defensive positions for the Explorers. In 2004, St. *HQÂśV would need a new quarterback, as John Harrison entered his freshman year at La Salle.

Loughery decided that KHÂśG like to try out for the quarterback position, and he became a signal-caller for St. *HQÂśV for his 7th and 8th grade seasons.

His main task as an CYO Varsity quarterback was to hand the ball off to Feleccia and the fullbacks, but he learned his new position well, and came to La Salle to compete for the freshman QB position in the fall of 2006.

St. *HQÂśV won the Archdiocesan CYO football championship in 2005, Don 'RXJKHUW\ÂśV first championship after 20 years of coaching.

Freshman Year ² 2006 Loughery contended with other quarterback candidates on the freshman team, and got into the rotation during games. The freshman team had a successful season, losing only to St. -RVHSKœV Prep. Meanwhile, Feleccia was promoted to the Varsity, and saw some time as running back in the first two games in mopup duties. Later in the season, he also caught some passes, including one for four yards in the PCL Championship win against St. -RVHSKœV Prep.

Feleccia got more playing time in the Junior Varsity games, and was used a lot out of the backfield as a pass receiver. He was quite tall for a running back (6œ-2´ but that size was great for a wide receiver. He also had soft hands, and he used his running back skills to gain a lot of yardage-after-catch. He would certainly be considered as a key component in the offense as a sophomore in 2007.

La Salle went on to defeat St. -RVHSKÂśV Prep for the PCL Championship behind junior quarterback John Harrison and a bend-but-GRQÂśW-break defense, 14-7. Other freshmen who got to taste some Varsity time in 2006 included wide receiver Connor Hoffman, strong safety Shane Brady, and linebacker Matt DiGiacomo, former St. *HQÂśV product.

This group, combined with the excellent freshman team, was highly talented, and one could foresee a promising senior year for this group in 2009.

6DP )HOHFFLD œ 'UHZ /RXJKHU\ œ In their sophomore year, 2007 St. *HQ¡V Beginnings St. Genevieve is a parish on Bethlehem Pike in Flourtown that has sent many of its boys to La Salle since the high school relocated to Wyndmoor in 1960. The local CYO football program is hosted by St. *HQœV with nearby parishes like St. Philip Neri in Lafayette Hill and St. Alphonsus in Maple Glen as feeder parishes for the program. The Wildcat varsity coach is Don Dougherty, who has devoted his energies for many years in their CYO program, and many great players, like quarterback John Harrison (La Salle œ08), went on from the Wildcats to go up the hill from Paper Mill to play for the Explorers.

But Doc GLGQÂśW garner that much CYO glory, until the arrival of some very special players in the mid-2000ÂśV. One of them was running back Sam Feleccia, who became a phenom. Combined with armoire-sized fullbacks Dennis Mushrush in 7th grade (who went on to play at Cardinal 2Âś+DUD and Matt DiGiacomo in 8th grade (headed to La Salle), Feleccia dominated during his CYO seasons; legend has it that he may have scored 60 or so touchdowns as an eighth grader in 2005. He was indeed a human highlight reel, and an early Youtube clip shows some of his great abilities:

Sophomore Year ² 2007 Loughery had now advanced to the Varsity team as the primary backup to senior John Harrison. He still was

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDaKKG27Luc

66.

Sam And Drew And The Hershey Express somewhat light at 170 pounds, and KDGQÂśW become much stronger, but he did get to see a lot of playing time in mopup roles, and also when Harrison was injured. He had beaten out all of the other candidates for the backup QB position, including his main opponent who summarily transferred to Kennedy-Kenrick. Loughery completed 30 of 64 passes for 326 yards and two touchdowns, and ran the ball on occasions.

A relatively inconspicuous start to his Varsity career.

Meanwhile, Feleccia blossomed into both a running back and a receiver. In his first 5 games of 2007, he rushed 47 times for 193 yards, and also caught 22 passes for 253 yards. At this point in the season, the switch to wide receiver was made permanent, or so it seemed. Combined with Connor Hoffman (6œ-1´ this gave La Salle a tandem of sophs that would provide great targets for Harrison and his successor. And they both needed to step up immediately, as star senior wide receiver Joe Migliarese went down after the 6th game with a season-ending injury.

The season of 2007 was a disappointment, due not only to injury, but also the dominance of the opposition, as the strength and athleticism of teams like Roman Catholic, St. -RVHSKÂśV Prep, and West Catholic were too much to overcome. La Salle limped home with a 5-7-0 record in 2007; size was a problem, along with missing some skill position players.

The silver lining was that many of the sophomores got some valuable experience. Unfortunately, DB Shane %UDG\ÂśV season was ended on the opening kickoff of the first game against Plymouth-Whitemarsh with a severe leg injury. But other sophomores got some exposure, including DiGiacomo, lineman Steve Szostak, and tight end/lineman Steve Sinnott, a Marmaduke type with a high motor who just needed to fill out.

Also, a former soccer player, sophomore kicker Mike Bennett, tried out and won the job, nailing an amazing 8 field goals and 17 extra points.

From a ELUGœV eye view up on the top row of the bleachers, Feleccia looked like he was becoming too tall for a running back (6´-2´ as a sophomore), and might be best suited as a receiver; he would still get to use his running back skills out in open space.

The following season would become a proving ground for the freshmen of 2006.

Feleccia and Hoffman were now fully entrenched as the starting wide receivers. Junior Steve Jones, a 6œ-5´ former quarterback, was selected to start at tight end, and became a solid blocker and receiver. Szostak became a two-way starter on the line, and Sinnott starred on both sides of the line as well. Shane Brady was fully healed from his injury, and was an assassin in the defensive backfield, along with fellow hitman Ryan Saraceni. Other juniors who stepped up to get meaningful playing time included RB George Giovinazzo, DB Vinny Migliarese, and LB Anthony Cognetti.

Drew Loughery entered the weight room in January, and GLGQÂśW come out until August. He transformed his pudgy 170 lb body into a powerful 195 lb frame, with strong sturdy legs and a solid core. He threw a very catchable ball, and had the gift of patience, being able to wait until his receiver got open. He was fully prepared to lead the Explorers into the 2008 season.

So the juniors had filled out most of the remaining open positions, but there was one skill position that was a gaping hole: halfback.

Sophomore Jamal Abdur-Rahman burst on the scene in 2008 to fill that hole in dramatic style, and he also contributed at defensive back.

Drew Loughery & Kevin Farrington, 2008 Captains

This was a young team that had great hopes for success; other La Salle teams in this situation included the 1956, 1975, and 1988 squads. Not all of them were successful in that specific year, but the subsequent year proved to be rewarding in each case. /HWÂśV see what 2008 would bring.

The opener against P-W was a blowout, 45-0, as Mike Donohoe carried the load in the backfield, and Loughery was an efficient 11-18 for 183 yards, with touchdown passes to Feleccia and Abdur-Rahman.

Only a hurricane could stop the Explorers. The next game at Malvern Prep, scheduled for Saturday, was hurriedly moved up to Friday at 3:30 PM due to the impending arrival of Hurricane Ike. The Friars stormed all over the Explorers, 4721, as the Blue and Gold just really ZHUHQÂśW ready to play.

Loughery did complete 15 passes to Feleccia and Hoffman, with Hoffman scoring twice, but the game was out of hand early. A year and a half later was the next time a game was moved up due to weather; that time, they would be ready.

There would be no cupcake game to get back on track: West &DWKROLFÂśV high-powered offense visited P-:ÂśV field next, and gave La Salle all they could handle, losing 27-26, on a failed two-point play with about one minute to go. Abdur-Rahman

Junior Year ² 2008 The senior class for the 2008 season had some solid players, but the roster featured only a dozen seniors. Multi-purpose back Mike Donohoe was the heart and soul of the Class of 2009, and other seniors such as DB Kevin Farrington, /%œV John Kerrigan and Joe Radaszewski, and linemen Bob Siess, Sean Abbott, and Ryan Eidenshink acquitted themselves admirably. But there were a lot of holes to fill, especially at skill positions; the juniors were eager to step into the voids.

67.

Sam And Drew And The Hershey Express rushed for 98 yards, and Loughery was nearly perfect, with 15 of 16 for 193 yards and two TD passes, one to Feleccia, who caught 7 passes for 110 yards. It was now Prep week.

The St. -RVHSKÂśV Prep Hawks had won 55 straight Catholic League regular season games. That streak ended as La Salle won, 31-17, behind Loughery, who threw for 318 yards and 3 7'ÂśV two to Feleccia and one to Abdur-Rahman. Archbishop Ryan was no problem, as the 35-0 whitewash featured Abdur5DKPDQÂśV first 100 yard rushing game. Loughery threw 2 TD passes, one going to tight end Sinnott. The Explorers were back on a roll.

Feleccia catching pass in game that broke 3UHS¡V game win streak The Crusaders scored first on an interception, but Loughery overcame that to have a fine game. He hit Feleccia on a 20yard fade in the end zone to tie the game up, and %HQQHWWœV 39-yard field goal just before half gave the Explorers the lead, 10-7. Another Bennett field goal after a botched punt snap in the third quarter gave La Salle a 6-point lead, but Judge took the lead back on a fumble recovery and return for a touchdown. Loughery then hit Donohoe for a 12-yard TD, and then they switched the connection, as Donohoe hit Loughery for a 2-point conversion to make it 21-14, La Salle. Judge stormed back midway in the 4th quarter to score, but the extra point attempt sailed wide, and the Explorers maintain the slimmest of leads at 21-20. Judge was unable to stop the La Salle offense, and Loughery led the team on a 70-yard drive, culminating in another TD pass to Donohoe. A late Judge drive fell short, and the young Explorers won the PCL Championship, 28-20.

They were now in uncharted territory, advancing into the PIAA playoffs for the first time. They would be playing in the District XII Championship, which, in OD\PDQÂśV terms, was a rebirth of the City Title game between the Catholic League and Public League, dormant between 1980 and 2007. They would be taking on the Eagles of George Washington High School.

On a cold, windy day at Northeast High School, the Eagles defeated the Explorers, 23-14. Though Loughery threw for 248 yards (134 to Feleccia), he had trouble with his accuracy, and was hounded into 6 sacks. The Eagles had won the line of scrimmage against the Explorers, led by their massive junior, Sharrif Floyd. The 2008 season had ended abruptly.

The juniors got to analyze that loss throughout the winter.

They felt that they played with no emotion, no energy, and no self-preparation. They set a goal of getting back to that game, and getting vengeance on George Washington.

Loughery vs Prep in game that broke the 55-game win streak But, as what happens with young teams, inconsistency can make its presence felt. Father Judge overcame a 14-0 deficit to surprise La Salle, 28-14. Loughery and Feleccia hooked up for one score, but it was evident that this team needed to do some growing up, and quickly. Monsignor Bonner and Roman Catholic provided no opposition in the next two games, although Roman, the defending champions, was favored to win. Loughery was efficient in both games, and AbdurRahman was becoming quite a force at running back.

In the last regular season game, La Salle outscored Cardinal 2Âś+DUD at Widener, 48-21, as Abdur-Rahman rushed for 176 yards and 4 7'ÂśV and Loughery passed for 283 yards and two TD passes to Hoffman.

The first round of the playoffs would be a rematch against the Prep, who was seeking revenge. Loughery moved the team quickly down the field on their first possession, and a 37-yard pass to Abdur-Rahman down the middle gave the Explorers a 7-0 lead. The Hawks bottled up Abdur-5DKPDQÂśV ground game, but Loughery took charge, hitting Feleccia on a leaping 3-yard TD to make it 14-0. The Prep came back with a quick score, but %HQQHWWÂśV field goal just before half gave La Salle a 17-7 lead. In the 3rd quarter, Loughery again found AbdurRahman, this time for a 70 yard TD, but the Hawks scored on their next 2 possessions to crawl to within 24-21. The Prep had the ball again deep in their own territory, but a missed handoff resulted in a fumble recovered by John Kerrigan, and Loughery quickly hit Donohoe for a 10-yard TD to make it 3121.

St. -RVHSKÂśV moved the ball on two long passes, and scored with 3:20 left to pull back again to within three at 31-28. On a 3rd-and-9 with 3:07 left and the Prep out of time outs, Loughery rolled right, and threw back across to Steve Jones, who rumbled for a 27-yard gain to ice the game. Loughery had passed for 378 yards, a Philadelphia playoff record. The PCL Championship would be played against Father Judge.

Before the 2009 Season The 2008 juniors became seniors the day after the Washington loss, and they made a commitment with each other to get back to that City Title game. In the off-season, they worked together in the weight room, played together in places like the Sinnott backyard, and ate together at Wing Night and Cheesesteak Night at local establishments. The summer 7-on-7ÂśV went exceptionally well, and the team headed into camp with a quiet swagger and a confidence.

68.

Sam And Drew And The Hershey Express Several players stepped up to fill the void of the 2008 seniors.

Most notable was sophomore RB Tim Wade, who capably filled the hole left by Mike Donohoe. Other openings were filled by senior linemen Kevin Clark, Floyd Shaffer, Dylan Gavin, and juniors Ryan Geiger, Joe Naji, and Cameron Cappo, providing a deep rotation on the lines. Senior Pat Resch and juniors Kevin Forster, Connor Daly, and Mark DiFrangia helped solidify the defense behind the line. RB George Giovinazzo was expected to fill out the backfield, but suffered an early-season injury. Freshman Sean Coleman was kept on the team as a return man and receiver.

They went up to Pennsbury for a scrimmage a week before the season started. Late in the scrimmage, on a dew-laden field, Sam Feleccia skidded and went down in a heap.

The entire La Salle sideline and stands went deathly silent as their star was writhing in pain. His leg injury would keep him out for at least three weeks, if not more. But the senior-strong team would not let this setback stop them from their quest.

La Salle 9-yard line, and the Hawks scored to make it 17-12 at the break.

Feleccia was used sparingly, but still caught 5 passes. The Prep defense stiffened in the second half, and the game headed toward the last two minutes still at 17-12. But the Hawks drove into the red zone, and scored with 1 minute 30 seconds left to take an 18-17 lead. A La Salle fumble led to an insurance score, but the extra point was botched.

Incredibly, Loughery led the Explorers down to the +DZNV¶ 19yard line, but a fourth-down pass in the last seconds fell incomplete.

Also incredibly, the seniors on this team were not crushed by this defeat, knowing that, at full strength, they would win the rematch. They needed to tighten up their pass coverage, as the 3UHS¶V QB Skyler Mornhinweg made some key throws for touchdowns. It was time to get back to work.

La Salle shut out Archbishop Ryan, 38-0, as Abdur-Rahman returned. Loughery was efficient, throwing 2 touchdown passes to Steve Jones. Feleccia rested in this game. Father Judge went down, 28-10, as Feleccia was back. Loughery found Abdur-Rahman and Feleccia for touchdown passes in the 2nd quarter, and Kevin Forster scampered on a 72-yard punt return for a touchdown before half, and the Blue and Gold had a 21-3 lead. The defense was tough all game long, and La Salle now had some momentum going.

Senior Year ² 2009 La Salle entered the season ranked number 3 in the State.

They annihilated Plymouth-Whitemarsh, 56-0, as AbdurRahman and Wade combined for 249 yards on the ground.

On a misty night at P-W, they dominated Malvern Prep. The Explorers led at half, 14-0, on two long drives culminating in short TD runs by Abdur-Rahman. After a shanked punt, Malvern scored in the 3rd quarter, but the Blue and Gold marched right down the field again to score on a Wade run.

After a Pat Resch interception and a return to the Malvern 6yard line, La Salle was knocking on the door yet again, and Wade scored his second TD to make the final 28-7.

The Explorers were 2-0. Loughery was efficient in the first two games, but not required to be spectacular. And Feleccia was still in civvies on the sideline, healing.

With Abdur-Rahman also out due to injury, the Explorers limped past the Burrs of West Catholic, 16-14. After a Kevin Forster punt return, Loughery found TE Steve Jones for a touchdown, but the extra point was missed. The Burrs answered back in the 2nd quarter to tie the game, but they also missed the extra point. Bennett kicked a field goal in the 3rd quarter, and Loughery ran it in for a touchdown, but West came back to score and also convert a two-point play. West got the ball back with a couple of minutes left, but they fumbled, and La Salle limped away with the victory. They now had to take on the Prep.

It was a rainy night, and Abdur-Rahman was still out, but Sam Feleccia returned for his first action of the season. Loughery led the Explorers down the field on the opening possession, and hit Feleccia for a touchdown pass. The Explorers scored on their first three possessions, as a Bennett field goal and a Wade TD run gave them a 17-6 lead near the end of the half.

But Loughery threw an interception that was returned to the

Interior O-Line of Szostak, Geiger, and DiGiacomo formidable against Ryan Monsignor Bonner was next, and the 31-6 victory featured the running attack of Abdur-Rahman and Wade. But it ZDVQ¶W that easy, as the Explorers led at half by just a 14-6 score. The defense came through in the 3rd quarter, featuring a Matt DiGiacomo interception and a Steve Sinnott fumble recovery.

Bennett made two more field goals. Again, Feleccia rested.

La Salle bludgeoned Roman Catholic, 45-7. The Explorers scored on their first play from scrimmage, as Loughery hit Hoffman in stride for the TD. Abdur-Rahman performed double duty on the next score, intercepting a pass and returning it to the Roman 12 yard line, and then scoring on a 1-yard run. Wade scored on a 48-yard pass from Loughery, and La Salle was never headed. Feleccia was back, catching 3 passes for 65 yards.

69.

Sam And Drew And The Hershey Express The Explorers would take on the Lions of Cardinal 2¶+DUD in the final regular season game, one that would be just a prelude to a playoff rematch the following week. Loughery lit up the Lion defense in the first quarter, with touchdown strikes to Feleccia and Jones. Loughery, starting to run with the ball more, ran one in himself for good measure, and La Salle rode the 21-0 first quarter lead to a 24-14 win. Abdur-Rahman rested to heal for the playoffs.

The rematch was a little more difficult. Loughery hit Hoffman early in the 2nd quarter for a 19-yard TD, but 2¶+DUD followed with a tying touchdown. Abdur-Rahman was back, and his running & receiving set up a 1-yard Loughery TD, but 2¶+DUD¶V Corey Brown scored near the end of the half to tie the game again. The locker room at halftime was the scene of the coaches and the team coming together to take charge of this game, using language possibly saltier than the Dead Sea. La Salle scored twice in the 3rd quarter, on a short run by AbdurRahman and a 74 yard slant pattern from Loughery to Hoffman. After 2¶+DUD scored to get within 7, Bennett nailed a field goal in the 4th quarter to put the game out of reach.

Abdur-Rahman shouldered the load this game, and Loughery again was efficient. Feleccia caught one pass for 10 yards; his injury against Pennsbury seemed to still affect his play.

It seemed inevitable that La Salle would play the Prep for the PCL Championship. The game at Northeast was more than worthy of the packed house that came to watch. The Prep struck first after an interception of a Loughery pass by Mike Labor. Mornhinweg threw to Colin Rodgers on an end zone fade for a 7-0 Prep lead. La Salle was forced to punt, but Shane Brady recovered Desmon 3HRSOHV¶ muff. La Salle drove to the Prep 1-yard line, & Abdur-Rahman tied the score at 7-7. But the Hawks marched quickly, using a no-huddle offense, and Labor scored to make it 14-7. Back came La Salle, and Loughery found Abdur-Rahman in the right flat, and Jamal slipped a tackle for a 23-yard TD to tie it again.

The Prep was moving the ball again on La 6DOOH¶V beleaguered defense, but a trick halfback pass play backfired on the Hawks, as the receiver fumbled the ball, and Kevin Forster recovered. Loughery led the Blue and Gold on a 10play drive on a brilliant 16-yard corner fade to Feleccia. But the PAT was blocked, and La Salle led at the half, 20-14.

The Blue and Gold had come out of the locker room at halftime fired up all year long, but this time they were extremely sloppy, and they eventually dug themselves a hole.

The Hawks, moved the ball on their opening possession, which featured a series of penalties, but Sinnott recovered a fumble to stop the drive. Later, Vinny Migliarese picked off a Mornhinweg pass, but a fumbled snap on the next play gave the ball back. St. -RVHSK¶V scored on a 12-yard screen pass to Peoples, and now led, 21-20. The Explorers then fumbled again, and another fade pattern to Rodgers in the end zone made it 28-20. Things started to look bleak for the Explorers, but this is where the seniors took charge of this game.

Connor Hoffman had dropped a few passes earlier, but Loughery went back to him, first for a short gain, and then a long bomb where Hoffman made a juggling catch for 58 yards.

At the start of the 4th quarter, Hoffman caught a 6-yard slant for a touchdown, and Abdur-Rahman caught a swing pass in the end zone for a 2-point play to tie the game at 28. The defense stiffened, and Loughery moved the club into Prep territory, and then hit Kevin Forster on a quick slant pattern, and the sophomore took it to the house from 37 yards out.

Hoffman tumbles for TD; Jamal vs. Prep La Salle now led, 35-28, but the Prep would mount another drive, entering La Salle territory midway through the final stanza, but having consumed all of their timeouts. On a 3rd and 6 just past midfield, Mornhinweg dropped back, but was stalked by a Kodiak bear named Ryan Geiger, who suplexed the Hawk signal-caller for a 22-yard loss.

The Prep chose to punt it away, and La Salle took over with 5:57 left. They needed two first downs to run out the clock.

First, Loughery did it with his strong legs on a 13-yard, 3rd down quarterback draw, breaking through a tackle that would have left him short. Then, on another 3rd down, he patiently waited to find Feleccia cutting from right to left, and the PCL Championship was defended by the Explorers, 35-28.

Loughery was exceptional, completing 21-of-31 for 297 yards and 4 touchdowns, with several drops. He also ran the ball judiciously for 43 yards. He spread the ball around to several receivers, all of whom made key receptions, but Feleccia was his ³JR WR´ guy when he was needed the most. The ecstatic celebration on the field wound down, and the senior Explorers now had their opportunity to avenge that George Washington loss of a year ago. The seniors had waited too long for this day to come. It was Saturday, November 28, 2009.

La Salle scored on an 80-yard drive that ended in a Loughery to Feleccia 10-yard pass late in the 1st quarter. The Eagles tied the game in the 2nd quarter, but La Salle then dominated the line of scrimmage, with Szostak and others neutralizing lineman Sharrif Floyd, who overwhelmed them a year ago.

Bennett kicked a 37-yard field goal to give the Blue and Gold the lead for good, and Abdur-Rahman returned a fumble for a 36-yard TD to make it 17-7 at half. Loughery opened it up in the third quarter, finding Hoffman for a 40-yard scoring pass, and then hit Abdur-Rahman with a 44-yard strike to put the game out of reach at 31-7. The Eagles scored two late touchdowns, but the 31-20 La Salle victory gave the Explorers their first City Title since 1960.

70.

Sam And Drew And The Hershey Express The seniors had now achieved what they set out to do a year ago, but now they really were heading into uncharted waters, as they would play Easton High School in a State Quarterfinal game up at Frank Banko Stadium in Bethlehem.

Easton High School has a long and storied football history, and their Thanksgiving Day traditional game against Philipsburg (NJ) goes back over 100 years. Up in those parts, they take their high school football seriously, and the Red Rovers were expected to easily handle the visiting Explorers.

The bus trip up the Northeast Extension on the gray morning of December 5, 2009 was an exciting one for the seniors.

They talked about how their possible next opponent, North Penn, was mauled by Ridley the night before, and they had heard that they were expected to get killed by Easton. But these players had been together for a long time now, and they were confident in each other, no matter what challenges they would find in Bethlehem.

A large partisan crowd, buoyed by the impressive Easton Red Rover marching band, was intimidating enough for the Explorers, but the surprise snowstorm that started around game time added further to the surreal nature of the game.

On top of that, the game officiating seemed to heavily favor the Red Rovers. La Salle found itself in a 14-0 hole in the first quarter, and seemed to be in big trouble. But, the defense righted itself after the first quarter, slowing down the aggressive Rover offense, and then Loughery went to work.

In the 2nd quarter, with wet snow already blanketing the field, Loughery dropped back to pass, and took off on the left side, lunging into the end zone from 17 yards out to halve the deficit. After Szostak recovered an Easton fumble, Loughery hit tight end Steve Jones on the left side from 5 yards out to tie the game and take the starch out of the Easton sails. The game entered halftime tied at 14-14, as trucks with plows came onto the turf field to remove the snow from the lines.

The game was a tighter affair in the 3rd quarter due to the snow, but La Salle finally moved into field goal position late in the third quarter. In the driving snow, Mike Bennett calmly dropped a 35-yard field goal, the most important field goal in La Salle football history, over the crossbar to give the Explorers a precious 17-14 lead.

But the most intriguing news in the second half was the emergence of Sam Feleccia in the Wildcat formation. The slick conditions allowed the coaching staff to utilize a Wildcat formation that was only seen in practice to this time. Feleccia ran north-south for 40 yards on 6 carries, and Loughery also added 40 yards on the ground on his scrambles and running plays. Loughery completed only 6 passes, two each to Feleccia and Hoffman, but the running attack behind the stout offensive line was eating up valuable time and maintaining good field position for the Explorers.

The Rovers were stymied by the La Salle defense, led by DE Steve Sinnott, who registered 9 tackles. Easton had one last drive, but a Hail Mary pass was intercepted by Abdur-Rahman in the end zone, and a couple of victory formations in the snow sent the Explorers sledding home.

The Green Raiders of Ridley High School also had a dominant football program in recent years, and their unexpected manhandling of North Penn caused concern for the La Salle team. The Ridley faithful headed up I-95 and filled the North stands of Northeast High School, where the State semifinal game would take place, on Saturday, December 12, 2009.

Ridley featured a defense that had given up only 7.7 points per game, and it was anticipated that they would control the La Salle offense. Meanwhile, the La Salle defense had come together in the second half of the Easton game, and would be a dominant force in this game. The Explorers scored first on a short run by Abdur-Rahman, and clung to the 7-0 lead until, just before half, Loughery was intercepted, and the Green Raiders drove in to tie the score just before half.

The La Salle defense was tough, pressuring the Ridley QB all day. Sinnott got a sack on the 5DLGHUV¶ opening drive of the 3rd quarter, and then the offense took over. Two drives deep into Ridley territory resulted in rushing 7'¶V by Loughery, the second one in the 4th quarter. Joe Naji jarred a Ridley runner, and Anthony Cognetti fell on the fumble. Abdur-Rahman, who rushed for 116 yards, scored to make it 28-7. Cognetti recovered another fumble when Ryan Saraceni stripped the ball from a Ridley receiver, and Tim Wade scored to make it 35-7, and send the Blue and Gold to the State Championship game. Hershey bars and kisses (the chocolate kind!) were showered upon the players as they came over for the Alma Mater, and the seniors now knew for sure when their last game would be played.

%HQQHWW·V 35-yard field goal in 3rd quarter puts La Salle ahead of Easton, 17-14

After Ridley, Drew Loughery is Hersheybound

71.

Sam And Drew And The Hershey Express up. On a 3rd and five, Loughery was sacked, and Bennett came out to attempt a 37-yard field goal. The left-footer slipped after he kicked the ball, but the ball made it through the wind, and skidded across the crossbar for three points.

All Aboard The Hershey Express After a short practice at Plymouth-Whitemarsh, the team traveled by bus on Friday, December 18, staying in a hotel that night to prepare for the Saturday 7PM kickoff against the Little Lions of State College. They got to see the field at Hersheypark Stadium on Friday, and then camped out at the hotel, doing walkthroughs together, eating meals together, and going to Mass together. But a major snowstorm was descending onto the area, and heavy snow was called for by early Saturday morning A decision was made to move the game up from 7 PM to 2 PM that Saturday morning, December 19, in order to beat most of the snow. It was even suggested to cancel the game, and have La Salle and State College declared co-champs, but that was negated when it was found that State College was already en route to the stadium. Many of the La Salle faithful were unable to make the trip through the storm. This included the bus for the pep band. Hopefully, the La Salle partisans who stayed home watched the game on the Pennsylvania Cable Network.

The team changed in the Hersheypark locker room, and then the seniors asked the coaches to leave the room. After all of their time together for the last 4 years, this would be the last time. They headed out onto the field; Ryan Saraceni and Steve Sinnott, teammates since their 5th grade CYO days at Corpus Christi, stood at the 50-yard line, drinking everything in, knowing that their last game together would be a memorable one State College had a high-powered offense, with two great running backs and a big strong passer at quarterback. It would be interesting to see how the snow would affect the offensive game plans; this snow was different from the Easton snow, thicker and less slick.

By gametime, the snow was still coming down, but with a little less intensity. The wind, though, was howling from west to east across the stadium. Despite the weather, there was still quite a representative crowd on the La Salle side of the stands; State College had come down en masse with their supporters and their large marching band.

It was now 2:00 PM, but gametime was pushed back to 2:30 PM. La Salle was ready.

State College won the toss, but deferred to the second half.

La Salle got the ball, but was heading into the snow and the wind. Showing immediately that they would be passing the ball, Loughery threw on first down, but was low to Feleccia.

Then, on second down, Feleccia, the former St. *HQ¶V Wildcat, lined up in Wildcat formation, and gained 20 yards, veering to the right after crossing the line of scrimmage. On this long drive, La Salle burned two timeouts, as plows went back and forth across the field. On a 4th and two in Lion territory, Feleccia gained 4 yards and a first down. Loughery found Feleccia deep in the end zone, but the pass was broken

Feleccia takes snap in Wildcat formation State College, with the wind, was hesitant to pass, and had to punt. La Salle was stopped, and Bennett punted to midfield.

State was driving, aided by a facemask penalty and another personal foul, but, early in the 2nd quarter, the La Salle defense stiffened, and a 32-yard field goal attempt was low.

The Explorers, on a 3rd and long, took to the air. Loughery found Feleccia on a slant pattern for 24 yards and a 1st down.

He then swung a pass to Abdur-Rahman for 12 more yards.

Feleccia gained 16 yards out of the backfield, but a holding call brought it back; La Salle had been already penalized 5 times for 49 yards. On 3rd and long, Loughery gunned a pass over the middle, and Hoffman made a leaping grab for 20+ yards and a first down. After Abdur-Rahman ran off the right side for 4 yards, he then bolted up the middle and into the end zone for a 22-yard touchdown, and %HQQHWW¶V kick gave the Explorers a 10-0 lead with 4:53 left in the 2nd quarter.

On the ensuing kickoff, special teams star Kevin Wilkins put a big hit on the return man at the State College 19-yard line.

State was stopped by the Blue and Gold defense, as ends Joe Naji and Steve Sinnott made key tackles. After a punt, AbdurRahman raced to the house from 54 yards, but another penalty against La Salle brought the ball back. Drew Loughery was masterful again, finding Hoffman on a look-in pattern, and the wide receiver took it down to the State College 6 yard line. After a two-yard loss, and a third time out, soph Tim Wade cut up the middle and into the end zone with just 1:10 remaining in the first half, and La Salle led, 17-0.

But Jamal Abdur-Rahman was hurt on the play, and a torn MCL kept him out of the game.

La Salle took a 17-0 lead into the locker room. With the loss of Abdur-Rahman, Feleccia would not only line up at the Wildcat position, he would now go back to his St. *HQ¶V days as the deep back in the I-formation.

72.

Sam And Drew And The Hershey Express The snow was still coming down hard at halftime, but would slow down late in the 3rd quarter.

The Lions received the opening kickoff, and an option play by their quarterback gained 22 yards to their 47-yard line. The option plays were successful, and a face mask penalty against the Explorers brought it down to their 32. On a keeper play off right tackle, left DE Sinnott reached in and stripped the ball while being blocked, and he recovered the fumble to stop the Lion drive.

La Salle GLGQ¶W move the ball, but a great punt by Bennett stopped dead on the State 11-yard line. The Lions moved the ball, but on a key third down play on a pitchout, Shane Brady and Kevin Forster stopped the ballcarrier for no gain, and State was forced to punt.

After a one yard gain to the Explorer 45 on a Feleccia Wildcat play, Loughery dropped under center, with Feleccia as the deep back in the I-formation. Just like 4 years ago in CYO, Loughery handed the ball off to the big back. Sam Feleccia burst through the line, veered down the left sideline, and went 55 yards for a back-breaking touchdown. %HQQHWW¶V kick made it 24-0 with 4:04 left in the third quarter.

State College returned the ensuing kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown to get to within 24-7, but there was no chance that the Explorers would lose this lead.

La Salle had done what they KDGQ¶W even dreamed of doing: the team that merely sought revenge in the City Title game had defeated Easton, Ridley, and now State College, 24-7, an appropriate score for the seniors who thought about this season every hour of the day, and every day of the week.

Players were throwing snow up in the air, running around like in recess in second grade. Kevin Forster laid on the field and made a snow angel. They threw snowballs at each other, and also into the La Salle stands as they approached for the Alma Mater. The parents and the La Salle faithful led them in an acapella version of that hallowed hymn. The team then went out for the trophy presentations, and became the first Philadelphia Catholic League team to win a State title.

For Sam and Drew, this was the culmination of a great ride that they had together since those CYO days at St. *HQ¶V with coach Don Dougherty. The ebbs and flows of their individual fortunes during their 4 years at La Salle, as well as the fortunes of the Explorers, made for a lifetime of memories. As the present time moves further and further away from that day of December 19, 2009, the memories will grow richer like fine wine, and be savored by all who were there for the ride of the Hershey Express.

Though these boys scattered like the wind after graduation, their legacy at La Salle binds them together forever, and the memories of not only that Hershey blizzard, but of all the great games, like the Easton comeback in the snow, the Prep comeback for the PCL Championship, the revenge against George Washington, and the second-half blitzkrieg against Ridley, will endure in the hearts of all of the La Salle faithful.

And on certain summer days, I think I can hear them in the Sinnott backyard again, becoming that team now known as the Hershey Express.

Well, podnuhs, that there was the story of Sam and Drew and the Hershey Express, who sent them hombres from Happy Valley back up to where they belong. After it was all over, Sam and Drew just saddled up, tipped their helmets to us, and went their separate ways, both into the beautiful white sunset.

That RQH¶V for you, Mr. Flannery.

Feleccia scores on 55-yard run to make it 24-0

La Salle would become conservative on offense, mixing runs

by Feleccia, who gained 160 yards in the game, with keepers

by Loughery. State College put together a drive at the end of the third quarter that got to the Explorer 35. But Ryan Geiger and Steve Szostak stopped a sweep for a 3-yard loss, and Joe Naji batted down a screen pass, and the Lions had to punt again.

The Blue and Gold were able to run off a lot of the 4th quarter clock on a drive that started at their own 8 yard line. On consecutive plays, Feleccia swept the right side out of the Wildcat, and then took a handoff as the deep back in the Iformation for about 25 yards. La Salle turned the ball over on downs, but there was less than 2 minutes left. Just one more defensive stop required, and Vinny Migliarese made a diving interception to ice the game.

It was now just a matter of Drew Loughery taking a couple of snaps in the Victory formation, and the Hershey Express had reached its final destination. As the seconds ticked to zero, Loughery jumped up in the air; the first to greet him off the bench was Ryan Saraceni in a bear hug.

Sam Feleccia and Drew Loughery with the PIAA Quad A Championship trophy

73.

74.

75.

The Rainmakers Of 1989 La Salle ran off ten straight wins to start the season, including a regular-season ending blanking of Bishop Egan, 15-0. The Blue and Gold were entering the playoffs for the first time since the 1961 PCL Championship game against Monsignor Bonner, and the Explorers were poised to go undefeated and to make it rain.

La Salle football was certainly in a dry spell. The glory years of the late 50¶V and early 60¶V ZHUHQ¶W even a memory anymore to teachers and students in the early 80¶V. Mr. Flannery had passed his silver anniversary as head coach, but many felt that the game was passing him by. Joe Colistra started coaching in 1968 after his college days at Villanova, and completed his 17th year as an assistant when he took the reins after Tex retired following the 1984 season.

Colistra had already initiated a few things of his own into the La Salle football program. Weight-training became a staple of the La Salle football player, though it took a while to develop the program and the bodies. The waning spirit of the program was attended to: the team would be a part of the singing of the Alma Mater both before and after each game.

But the results were not evident just yet. 1985 was a struggle, with just two wins to brag about. The following two years brought only 4 more wins. Certain players stood out during those difficult seasons, most notably linemen Jim Blount ¶86 and Pat Gibson ¶88, who each made at least honorable mention All-Catholic for three straight seasons. But the offensive skill position players were scarce in the mid-80¶V: the Explorers were shut out 8 times in the four seasons between 1984 and 1987.

The vaunted La Salle defense was just adequate through these years, maybe because they were on the field so much.

In &ROLVWUD¶V first three years, they surrendered 24 or more points an amazing sixteen times. But the winds in Wyndmoor started to shift, and the easterly breeze in 1988 brought in some storm clouds. Would it rain championships soon?

The storm clouds came from several locations on the field.

First and foremost, the La Salle defense returned to the pinnacle of the Catholic League. The four shutouts in 1988 matched the whitewashes notched by the 1976 team, the last truly good Explorer team. While the defense was great, the offense had Jack Stanczak, whose come-from-behind exploits at quarterback and stellar play at defensive back reminded old-timers of a mythical Frank Merriwell type of heroic figure.

Several times during the season, Stanczak ran or threw for a game-winning touchdown, or intercepted a pass in the closing minutes of a game to preserve the victory. And he was a great baseball player, too, maybe a latter-day Chip Hilton instead of Merriwell.

And suddenly, the Explorers were running the table, rising like a Phoenix from the ashes of the Northern Division basement.

Stanczak ZDVQ¶W the only mythical figure out there. Senior Marc Borrelli used his large frame to excel at both tight end and the defensive line.

Other senior stalwarts included Joe McDonald and Austin Noonan on the line, Dave Billitto and Carl Mattia at running backs, and many others anchoring starting spots with newfound success. Not yet noticed was the fact that the sophs and juniors on this team were also major contributors, and this bode well for 1989 and beyond.

C HIP HILTO N

Jack Stanczak

As luck would have it, the semifinal game was against Egan, who they just shut out 8 days ago, coached by Chuck Knowles µ67. The dream of a PCL championship ended in a 9-0 defeat to the Eagles. Though La Salle pulled out a thrilling come from behind Turkey Day triumph against winless St. -RVHSK¶V Prep, the magical season had been tarnished a little with the unexpected playoff loss. With Stanczak leaving, 1989 would seem like a rebuilding year, & 1988 would be remembered as the best La Salle year since 1960 for quite a while.

In the Philadelphia ,QTXLUHU¶V Catholic League preview for 1989, though ³UHEXLOGLQJ´ was the theme, Coach Colistra emphasized two things: La Salle had an outstanding coaching staff, and he FRXOGQ¶W remember when La Salle had such great athletes on the team. The juniors of 1988 were now the leaders of 1989, and the sophs of 1988 had stepped up to much-required responsibilities.

But there was no Jack Stanczak this year, and the quarterbacking duties were initially shared between senior Chris Massella and junior Joe McNichol Jr, son of offensive coach Joe McNichol ¶59, who had great renown as a head coach in his own right, being the founding coach at Archbishop Carroll, and notching a Catholic League championship in their third year of existence.

An opening 14-7 victory against Upper Dublin had both quarterbacks play successfully. Keith Tornetta ran in with a 21-yard counter, but it took 0F1LFKRO¶V TD pass to Dave Demara late in the fourth quarter to win the game. Continuing their dominance from 1988, the defense was strong.

Next up was Archbishop Ryan, an emerging power in the PCL North. Brian Daly scored the first points of the game in the 3rd stanza on a 2-yard run, and the defense held Ryan off the board until midway through the 4th quarter, when the Raiders tied the game. Ryan eked out a win late in the game as they returned a McNichol interception to the 3-yard line, and punched it in with less than a minute to go. Any dream of matching the 1988 team step for step was shattered with the 14-7 loss.

76.

The Rainmakers Of 1989 A battle against the Lancers of Bishop McDevitt was a big test.

La Salle was looking to get back on track against their formidable Wyncote neighbors. At least the defense was still strong. But the Explorers were ambushed by the McDevitt offense, as their own offense sputtered. With most of the fourth quarter left, the Lancers dominated both sides of the ball with a 35-7 lead. In retrospect, this was the low point of the season. Massella replaced McNichol at quarterback, and engineered two late drives to make the score more respectable at 35-22. La Salle was now 1-2, and 0-2 in the Northern Division. No one was expecting that it would rain anytime soon. But no one knew what was going to happen.

The Explorers evened their overall record with their first Catholic League win over Archbishop Wood, 14-7, overcoming an early Viking lead. John Slowick scored to tie the game in the second quarter, and Massella found Chad Stowe in the end zone in the fourth quarter for the winning score.

And the defense was back, stopping Wood in the red zone on a late drive.

up with Demara on a 7-yard TD pass to cement the game in the fourth quarter. The Lancers of McDevitt loomed ahead for the Northern Division crown. This time, playoff vengeance was La 6DOOHÂśV. But it ZDVQÂśW easy. After several missed opportunities to get on the board, La Salle fell behind in the third quarter, as McDevitt converted a drive after an interception of a Massella pass. The fourth quarter was winding down below the 6minute mark, when Pennington took a pitchout at midfield and suddenly broke free, and the 50-yard scamper and extra point tied the game at 7-7. It was now the GHIHQVHÂśV turn to come through, and they forced a Lancer punt. Return man extraordinaire Brian Daly grabbed the punt at his own 26-yard line, and zigzagged his way through blockers, missed tackles, stumbles, and cutbacks, and Daly willed himself into the end zone with 3:20 left in the game. The defense closed the door on McDevitt, avenging that 35-22 loss, and putting the Explorers into the Catholic League Championship game against the Cahillites of Roman Catholic.

But first, St. -RVHSKÂśV Prep had a shot at softening up the Explorers for their Southern Division brethren in the Thanksgiving Day game. The Hawks had a great offense behind QB Frank Costa, but, in the Conshohocken snow, La Salle shut out St. -RVHSKÂśV 16-0, as their running attack dominated the game and made the turkey taste good that day.

It was now time for the Catholic League Championship.

It had been 27 years since these two ancient rivals met on the gridiron, a series that went back as far as 1903, when La Salle lost a 6-3 game against Catholic High. Roman had an excellent quarterback in Jim McGeehan, who had Marvin Harrison, soon to be of Syracuse and the Indianapolis Colts, as a wide receiver. The Cahillites would provide a difficult test for the La Salle defense.

Saturday afternoon, December 2, 1989 in Villanova Stadium.

A crisp, cold day, the first December game for the Explorers in eons. It was a day made for defense.

Jason Pennington

Cardinal Dougherty provided a breather, as Jason Pennington tallied two scores, and Brian Daly returned a punt for a touchdown in a 34-0 rout. Massella solidified his starting position, hooking up with Chad Stowe for two completions, and the defense, led by Keith Conlin, stifled the Cardinals.

The Eagles of Bishop Egan were no match for the vengeanceminded Explorers. The 23-0 blanking included a couple of short touchdown runs by fullback Martin Feeny, who topped off the scoring by returning a fumble for a touchdown. And the defense continued their shutout streak, led by Conlin, Jim Convey, and Ken St. Clair, who dominated the line of scrimmage. La Salle had won three in a row.

Massella continued his fine play against Father Judge, launching two scoring strikes to DeMara and Stowe. Though they lost their shutout streak, the defense was strong yet again, and the Explorers were on a roll, besting the Crusaders, 26-7. North Catholic struck first in the final regular-season game, but 3HQQLQJWRQÂśV three 7'ÂśV and 0DVVHOODÂśV 56-yard pass to Feeny helped the Explorers dash the )DOFRQVÂś playoff hopes, 34-6. La Salle finished 5-2 in league play after an 0-2 start, and began the playoffs with a PCL quarterfinal game against Father Judge.

The defense dominated the Crusaders, as the Explorers won their first playoff game in 29 years with a 14-0 blanking of Judge. Pennington and Slowick dominated the game on the ground. Slowick had one of the scores, and Massella hooked

VS.

In the first period, McGeehan dropped back to pass deep in his own territory. Feeny forced a fumble during a fierce pass rush, and Convey fell on the ball in the end zone to give the Explorers the early lead, though the extra point was missed.

Roman was able to move the ball against the Blue and Gold defense, and threatened twice in the second quarter. On two fourth down plays on different drives, 0F*HHKDQÂśV passes were intercepted, once by Jerry Rock and once by Daly. La Salle clung to a 6-0 lead at half, as their offense had trouble moving the ball.

77.

The Rainmakers Of 1989 Unbeknownst to La Salle's parents and fans, and even the offense, the defensive team had a visitor in the Springfield home locker room before the game. Martin Feeny '90, AllCatholic, fullback and linebacker for the 1989 team, addressed the defense that gave up 41 points just six days ago. I contacted Martin a few days after the game, and here are his words about that pre-game speech: ³ 'HIHQVLYH Coordinator) John (Steinmetz) had me speak to the defense immediately following the team pre-game warmups. He reminds them periodically that they are only "renting" La Salle jerseys and introduced me in a similar fashion, mentioning that our team shut out Marvin Harrison's Roman Catholic team in the Catholic League Championship game in 1989. It's funny because I had a 2-page speech prepared but was told by John that I would only have about 30 seconds, which was for the best because I was so nervous and emotional that I definitely wouldn't have been able to keep it together for much longer than that.´ ³, basically told them I would give anything to trade places with them over the next 3 months, and that so would any of my teammates who were at the game. I told them what an incredibly special time it was in their lives and that they should go out and play for one another - not for their parents (no offense!), not for their teachers - but for their teammates. I told them to play with pride and intensity, to honor those who had come before them and those who would come after them, to never surrender and to have no regrets. I said if they did all those things, they would be back in 20 years celebrating their championship season. I was pretty close to tears by the end but looking into some of their faces, it seemed like they were listening to what I was saying.´ ³, was very touched when Mike Piscopo came up to me afterwards and gave me a fist bump. I was worried they were going think I was some old loser trying to re-live my glory years.´ Feeny's words hit home, and the fired-up defense held the star Burr running back, Williams, to just 35 yards on the ground, and the 24-0 whitewash of West Catholic was a Homecoming gift from the 2011 team to the 1989 team, and, according to Feeny, a gift to each other.

A postscript: the 2011 team indeed did go on to win the Philadelphia Catholic League Championship, defeating none other than Roman Catholic, the 1989 opponents, 16-6, with an intense defensive performance.

After the West Catholic game ended, and the Alma Mater was sung, everyone went their own way. After a team huddle, the players headed through the crowd and back to the school locker room. The 1989 team headed in a different direction, many to MaGerk's to continue their reconnection.

But, for 3 hours, those two teams were ONE, sharing the same dreams, anxieties, concerns, and joys that all of them had and still have as football Explorers. Martin )HHQ\¶V #33 jersey was ³UHQWHG´ by co-captain Tim Wade, who rushed for

Roman kicked off to start the second half, and the kick was line-drived down the field. Daly tracked down the ball at the 26-yard line, and shot through a gap all the way to the end zone for a 74-yard touchdown to start the third quarter.

5RFN¶V extra point made it 13-0 La Salle.

The offense continued to struggle, and the defense was on the field for a long time in this game. McGeehan continued to pressure the Blue and Gold defense, unabashed despite a Daly interception in the end zone in the second quarter. But the ubiquitous Daly was not done; he intercepted passes in each quarter of the second half, and combined with his kickoff return, was a nightmare for the Cahillites. La 6DOOH¶V defensive backs snagged two more picks, by Rock and Jim McGoldrick, and the shutout was preserved.

It still was hard to believe until the final gun sounded, when pure jubilation broke out along the sideline and in the Villanova Stadium stands. On a cold, dry evening, the rain finally fell, and the drought was over. The 1989 team were indeed rainmakers, becoming champs for the first time since December 10, 1960, sixteen days before the Philadelphia Eagles won their last championship.

The 1990 & 1991 teams were also great, but fell short of the PCL Crown. It took the 1995 team to bring back the hubcap trophy to Wyndmoor, a mere six years since the rainmakers did it. And the rain continues, with PCL Championships in 1996, 1998, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012.

Homecoming For the Rainmakers of 1989 On Friday, September 16, 2011, the game against the Burrs of West Catholic at Springfield High School was our Homecoming game. The 1989 Philadelphia Catholic League Champions were to be celebrated at halftime, with a ceremony at midfield. The Homecoming event prior to the game was held at the base of the new fields, fields of dreams that didn't exist in 1989. Several members of the 1989 team went to the event prior to the game, and crossed Paper Mill Road to get to Springfield, just like they did 22 years ago in uniform.

The current team filed by the Homecoming crowd at the new fields two by two, with looks of determination, anxiety, nervousness, and importance. After losing big to Bergen Catholic the previous week, 41-17, they were taking on a West Catholic team with great speed, a great running back, great size, and in desperate need of a win. They headed across Paper Mill Road to warm up for the game.

78.

The Rainmakers Of 1989 130 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries. Perhaps Tim will provide his own locker-room speech a few decades from now, and perhaps a future #33 will be inspired by him.

And the rain has continued to fall steadily in Wyndmoor, keeping the grass green and the flowers bright, and championship hopes alive. Though memories of the drought will always linger, a stronger memory will forever be the rainmakers from the 1989 Catholic League Champions.

Roster

Hirschbuhl

Houck

Lynch

Markmann Massella

Butler

McNichol

Herrera

Crawford

Rodgers

Guevara

Stowe

Rock

P. Gallagher Evans

Pennington

Cook

Feeny

Byrnes

Tornetta

Spearing

Callahan

Lazorko Fitzgerald

White

Tragemann Hendrick

Novak

Duffy

Smith

C. Gallagher Campagna

Kei. Conlin Gibson

Walls

Bate

Donahue

Marsh

Brackin

Fafara

Daly

Russo

Demara

Slowick

Sava

Burke

Cairnes

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M. Brusca

St. Clair Strohecker

Schmidt Patterson Bre. Griffith Morrissey

Hasson Galzerano

Bri. Griffith Nichols

79.

Pluck

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Pensabene Convey

Romano

Craig

Vennera

Maida

Gathman McGoldrick

Collins

Van Stone

Lee

Bacica

Blatney

Citrino

Daniel

Flemming

Osborne

Sparks

The Fall Of Forty-Four September of 1944 was a most interesting time to be a La Salle College High School student. D-Day occurred three months before, and the news from Europe and the Pacific was becoming more and more encouraging. La Salle students from recent years had hurried through their senior years, some graduating in January in order to enter the service. The Class of 1945 at La Salle had an unknown future awaiting them.

Major League baseball had debated whether to suspend the sport during the war years. Several colleges did suspend intercollegiate athletics due to lack of available players. But Philadelphia Catholic League sports continued on, and at the very least it was a respite from the more serious happenings of the day.

La 6DOOHÂśV football fortunes had turned upwards in the early 40ÂśV as Coach Jim Bonder built a competitive program. But, after the 1942 season, Bonder joined the Navy, and La Salle was left with finding a coach to replace him.

The T-formation at Stanford was the ³:HVW Coast 2IIHQVH´ (Stanford or San Francisco 49ers) or ³6SUHDG 2IIHQVH´ (Oregon Ducks) of its day, and every football innovator wanted to utilize it. Bradley brought it back to 20th and Olney for the 1943 season.

In 1943, getting used to the new system, the Explorers went 5-4-0, winning 3 of their last 4 games, and notching their 4th straight winning season.

In 1944, %UDGOH\ÂśV Tformation would reap dividends.

Preparation for the 1944 Season The 1943 team was quite inexperienced, but several players on the 1944 squad got a lot of exposure in 1943.

John Garvin was a punishing runner who scored several touchdowns. Bob Noonan was a starting end, as was Bob Rainey.

Jim Smith, John Fanuka, and Bill Gaynor played on the line regularly, and all would return in 1944, and all would receive All-Catholic honors.

Joining this group were some great skill position players, like junior quarterback Bill ³/HIW\´ Whiteside, a craftsman who could run and throw.

Bill Pfaff was a burly, bruising fullback. Jim Sundstrom was a shifty halfback, known for his broken-field running. Murt Nicholas and Jim Bracken were junior running backs who also would contribute significantly on offense.

Additional line help came from seniors George McDermott, John Drach, Bill Zink, Tom Donnelly, and Ben Ventresca, in addition to juniors Bill Oschell and Tom Voigtsberger.

And junior ends John Sabia, Mart Vesey, and soph Fran Donohoe complemented the senior ends.

The Return of Bernie Bradley Bernie Bradley went to Roman Catholic High School, and then played two years of college ball at La Salle, under Marty Brill, the former Notre Dame star. After graduating college in 1935, young Bradley was handed the reins of the high school program, inheriting the remnants of Snapper 0F/DXJKOLQÂśV team that went 0-8-1 in 1934. In the three years from 1935 to 1937, %UDGOH\ÂśV La Salle teams won only 6 games, but they became much more competitive.

After the 1937 season, Bradley left La Salle High School, and in 1939, became the assistant coach at the college under Brill.

When Brill left La Salle College to become head coach at Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles, Bradley went with him to become the line coach. When Brill was inducted into the Army in early 1942, Bradley was handed the head coaching job at Loyola, and his 1942 Lions went 5-4-1.

He also coached the Loyola basketball team for two seasons, compiling a 27-16 record. But the war had an impact on the athletic program at Loyola, and they disbanded intercollegiate athletics for the 1943 season (as well as 1944 and 1945).

Bradley looked back east, and was re-hired as La Salle College High 6FKRROÂśV head coach for the 1943 season.

The Modernized T-Formation Bernie Bradley brought something back with him from California. He had become an advocate of the T-formation, modernized by 6WDQIRUGÂśV head coach Clark Shaughnessy.

Shaughnessy took over a Stanford team that went 1-7-1 in 1939, introduced the T-formation to a reluctant and disbelieving team, and went 10-0-0 in 1940, including a Rose Bowl win over Nebraska. He became an advisor to the Chicago Bears that year as well, as the Bears used a Tformation to douse the Washington Redskins in the 1940 NFL Championship game, 73-0.

Bernie Bradley

Rainey

Sundstrom

McDermott

Jim Smith and Bill Gaynor were named co-captains of the team. Jim Henry, former head coach, and the athletic director at the College, would join Bradley as an advisory coach for the season.

This was a solid, well-rounded squad that Bernie Bradley had molded into a contender in 1944.

80.

The Fall Of Forty-Four After a bye week, the Explorers headed to Manayunk to battle the Eagles of St. -RKQÂśV. The game ZDVQÂśW much of a contest, as La Salle scored a touchdown in each quarter, on runs by Jim Bracken, Jim Sundstrom, John Garvin, and another by Bracken. The Model-T was in full gear this day, as the Blue and Gold blanked St. -RKQÂśV 27-0, to run their record to 3-1-0.

The Games La Salle opened their season by hosting upstart St. James, in their second Catholic League season, on Sunday, September 24, 1944. %UDGOH\œV T-formation, affectionately referred to as the ³0RGHO-7´ was operating on all cylinders in a 34-0 trouncing of the Bulldogs. After a scoreless first period, Bill Pfaff scored on a 28-yard, broken-field run. A few minutes later, Bill Whiteside burst over from 4 yards out. In the 3rd quarter, Whiteside passed to John Garvin for a 31-yard touchdown, and Jim Sundstrom scored from 6 yards. In the 4th quarter, the final touchdown was scored by Murt Nicholas on a 5-yard run. Bill Gaynor kicked three extra points, and Whiteside got one for himself. Junior fullback Pfaff gained 140 yards rushing in a dominant performance.

The referee for this game was none other than Ken ³&\´ Simendinger, recent North Catholic football and basketball coach, and former star of the La Salle High School football and basketball teams in the 1917-1918 school year.

Pfaff

Whiteside

Garvin

Gaynor

Nicholas

Action in the Roman game

Bracken

On Sunday, October 29, 1944, La Salle manhandled the Pirates of South Catholic, 25-6. First-half scores by Pfaff, Garvin, and Bracken got the Explorers out to an 18-0 lead, and then Jim Sundstrom intercepted a pass in the 3rd quarter and took it to the house to make it 25-0. South &DWKROLFÂśV only score was on a long fumble return, as the defense had not given up a touchdown in four of the five games so far.

Like we say for our games against the ancient foe in the 21st Century, it was now Prep week. La Salle had not defeated St. -RVHSKÂśV Prep since 1919, a year before the Catholic League was started. The Hawks were a powerful team, and the defenses dominated in a scoreless first half. In the third quarter, La Salle got going on a 70-yard scoring drive, culminating in a run by Sundstrom, and took a 6-0 lead. A few minutes later, a similar drive resulted in another Sundstrom score, and the Explorers led, 13-0. The Hawks got close with a touchdown in the 4th quarter, but La Salle held on to win this game for the first time in 25 years, 13-7. They now were 5-10, tied for second place with North Catholic, both looking up at West Catholic, unbeaten at 6-0-0.

It was now time for the Blue and *ROGÂśV most significant test of the season, taking on the juggernaut Burrs of West Catholic.

In front of an overflow crowd of 18,000 at Finessey Field at St. -RVHSKÂśV College, La Salle struck first on a Whiteside to Sundstrom pass that covered 60 yards. *D\QRUÂśV kick gave La Salle a 7-0 lead. But West Catholic dominated the second half, scoring on two touchdown passes by quarterback Connor, and a McGarvey 6-yard run clinched the game for the Burrs, 19-7. La 6DOOHÂśV offense had sputtered in the second half, and they just FRXOGQÂśW keep pace with the Burrs.

The offensive doldrums continued the next week against Roman Catholic. After a scoreless first half, fullback Pfaff sent a long pass to Sundstrom, and he took it in for the first touchdown of the day. The first play of the 4th quarter was a one-yard run for a touchdown by Whiteside, which was set up by another long pass from Pfaff, this time to halfback John Garvin, and La Salle blanked the Cahillites, 14-0.

([SORUHUV WU\ WR VWRS 6W -RVHSK¡V VZHHS

81.

The Fall Of Forty-Four The 1944 Explorers ended their season with a 6-1-1 record, their best as a member of the Catholic League. In 1921, and also in 1928, La Salle was 7-1-0, but both times were on a hiatus from the Catholic League.

The Golden Bears of Tommy More were no match for the Explorers, as the 34-19 victory featured two rushing touchdowns apiece for Jim Sundstrom and Mart Vesey. In the 4th quarter, Bill Pfaff added a 5th touchdown. Bill Gaynor converted on 4 of 5 extra points, and the Bears scored a couple of late touchdowns to make the game respectable.

With one remaining game, La Salle still had some hope of ending in a tie with West Catholic in the standings to force a playoff. Two things had to happen: West would need to lose to St. -RVHSK¶V Prep, and La Salle would have to beat the Falcons of North Catholic, also at 6-1-0. The odds were certainly against them.

The North Catholic game was a very frustrating game for the Explorers. They came out of the chute and threatened to score on three different occasions in the first quarter, but came away with just one touchdown, a run by Sundstrom to make it 7-0. In the 3rd quarter, North Catholic completed a long pass for a score, and the extra point tied the game at 7-7.

La 6DOOH¶V offense sputtered in the second half, and a defensive struggle in the 4th quarter resulted in no more scoring, and both teams were disappointed in the 7-7 tie.

Post-Season Accolades First team All-Catholic honors went to seniors Bill Gaynor at tackle, and Jim Sundstrom at back, as well as junior John Fanuka at guard. Senior Jim Smith was a second team AllCatholic at tackle. Sundstrom led the team with 10 touchdowns; Garvin, Pfaff, and Bracken had three each.

Other members of the 1944 team won All-Catholic honors in 1945. Bill Whiteside was a second team selection as a back, and Tom Voigtsberger was also 2nd team as a guard. John Fanuka repeated his 1944 first-team selection as a guard.

Collegiate Players, and Beyond 1944 Sometimes the measure of a talented team is in the number of players who went on to play in college. Though WKDW¶V not always true, the 1944 team had its share of future collegiate players. Guard Tom Donnelly and tackle Jim Smith went on to play at Villanova. John Fanuka headed west and played for the Gaels of St. 0DU\¶V (CA). Bill Pfaff became an IvyLeaguer at Penn, and Lefty Whiteside became a quarterback at Notre Dame.

Bernie Bradley continued to coach at La Salle High School through the 1948 season, but he GLGQ¶W have a year as good as 1944. In 1949, he left La Salle to become the line coach at Villanova. When he was older, he lived in the Holmesburg section of Philadelphia, and, at age 76, he died on July 24, 1986 at Nazareth Hospital.

Bill Gaynor returned to La Salle College High School as a teacher and coach. He eventually moved to Florida, and passed away in 2006.

Four members of the team became medical doctors: end Henry Pletcher, tackle Bill Oschell, QB Joe Steelman, and end Cornelius Sullivan.

Junior end John Sabia started a family business that has spread its wings all over the Delaware Valley.

A defensive struggle in the North tie

Fanuka

Smith

Vesey

Meanwhile, the Hawks gave the Burrs all they could handle up at Finessey Field. Only a 4th quarter TD pass for the Burrs allowed them to escape with a 7-0 victory, and an undefeated Catholic League season. They had won 18 games in a row, and were undefeated for 35 straight games, but they lost the City Title at Franklin Field to Southern High, 13-7.

Donnelly

Oschell

Sullivan

In an amazing coincidence, the two managers of the team, Joe Moran and Bob Breen (the future Father Robert Breen),

82.

The Fall Of Forty-Four were both inducted into the La Salle Hall of Fame. Moran taught at both La Salle High School and La Salle College, and Father Breen was both a parish priest and also a long-time teacher at Cardinal Dougherty High School.

LA SALLE SONGS The Blue And The Gold

Sabia

Moran

Breen

Guard Tom Donnelly became a Maryknoll priest, and lives in California.

And Bill ³/HIW\´ Whiteside is also in the La Salle Hall of Fame, and is still active in many Alumni activities, including being a member of the selection committee for the Hall of Athletics.

Postscript The 1944 team was a unique blend of an innovative system with a large group of talented players, and a great mix of seniors and juniors. They led in every game they played, and ,ÂśP sure the players looked back on the second halves of the West and North games wishing they had a chance to play them again.

There were great expectations for the 1945 team, but they started off the season with 4 straight losses, as the Tformation could garner only 13 points in those games. But the Model-T started to hum, and the Explorers won their last 5 games, amassing 128 points in those 5 wins.

The 1944 team remained the best La Salle team in Catholic League play from their entry in 1920 until the undefeated City Champions of 1955.

Remember the fall of forty-four!!

Action in the West Catholic game

83.

Fling out the Blue and the Gold And join the jubilee, While La Salle is marching, Onward to victory, Rah! Rah! Rah! Fling out the Blue and the Gold And wave it far and free, Fight, fight, Explorers, To victory!

Alma Mater Hail La Salle, we praise thee, Honor and tribute true, Great and bright your splendor, Banner of Gold and Blue. /R\DO VRQV ZHÂśOO HYHU EH +LJK ZHÂśOO KROG \RXU PHPRU\ Hail La Salle, our Alma Mater, Hail! All! Hail!

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4 La Salle footballers have played in the NFL. They include: o Ken “Cy” Simendinger, ’18 – Hartford Blues, 1926 o Vince Zizak, ’30 – Chicago Bears, 1934; Philadelphia Eagles, 1934-37 o Gus Cifelli, ’43 – Detroit Lions, 1950-52; Green Bay Packers, 1953; Philadephia Eagles, 1954; Pittsburgh Steelers, 1954 o George Winslow, ’82 – Cleveland Browns, 1987; New Orleans Saints, 1989 3 La Salle footballers are current coaches in the NFL. They are: o John Butler, ’91 – Secondary Coach, Houston Texans o Craig Fitzgerald, ’91 – Head Strength & Conditioning Coach, Houston Texans o Sean McDermott, ’93 – Defensive Coordinator, Carolina Panthers While coaching at Malvern Prep in 1950, John “Tex” Flannery also coached “East End”, a semi-pro team in the Suburban Major Football Conference. East End was comprised mainly of former West Catholic and Bartram stars.

On October 21, 1903, La Salle was scheduled to play St. Joseph’s Prep for the first time, at Wynnewood. The game must have been switched at the last minute; La Salle lost to the Philadelphia Business College at Baker Bowl that day, 6-0, on a “run of over 100 yards by Jennings.” The first game against St. Joseph’s Prep finally occurred in 1915 (a 0-0 tie).

Jim Gallagher, ’43 was the head coach of the 1955 City Titlists, and also became the founding principal of Central Bucks East in September of 1969.

Lou Little’s real name was Luigi Piccolo, and was called “little Luigi” as a boy. Little grew to 6’-2”, 220 lbs as a player.

The melody to the Alma Mater is the same as “Hail To California”, written in 1908 by Brick Morse.

4 La Salle footballers who won Catholic League Championships as head coaches at other schools: o Vince McAneney, ’47 – West Catholic, 1962 o Dick Bedesem, ’49 – Bishop Egan, 1963, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1970 o John McAneney, ’51 – West Catholic, 1965 o Joe McNichol, ’59 – Archbishop Carroll, 1971, 1976 La Salle’s 1953 freshman team lost to Archbishop Prendergast, 19-0. No, Prendie was not a girls’ school at the time; it became a girls’ school in a few years when Monsignor Bonner was built.

The two-point play after touchdown was initiated in 1958. RB Jerry Woltemate gets credit for the first two-point play in La Salle football history.

La Salle is 29-29 in one-point games through 2013, but 17-7 since 1980.

La Salle’s most points scored in a game occurred on October 9, 2010, when they shellacked Neumann-Goretti, 63-0. The most points scored against La Salle occurred on October 14, 1951, when Roman Catholic annihilated La Salle, 60-6.

La Salle’s greatest winning streak was 32 games, between September 23, 1995 and November 1, 1997, when Archbishop Ryan beat the Explorers on a muddy field, 14-13.

La Salle’s longest losing streak was 13 games, between 1937 and 1938. The streak was broken at the opening game of the 1939 season with a 19-0 win over Roxborough.

La Salle’s most shutout wins in a season was in 1955, with 8 shutouts, all in a row. The undefeated 14-0-0 1996 team came close with 7 shutouts, along with the undefeated 9-0-1 1960 team.

La Salle scored 40 points or more 6 times in only one season: 2011. The 1996 season came close with 5 times of 40 points or more.

LaSalle’s longest streak of winning seasons is 12, between 1953 and 1964. They’ve had two streaks of 7 winning seasons, from 1940 to 1946, and from 1994 to 2000. They currently have a 6-season winning streak entering the 2014 season.

John Butler ‘91

Craig Fitzgerald ‘91

84.

Sean McDermott ‘93

You Can Look It Up 1000 YARD RUSHERS, 2000-2013

2000 YARD PASSERS, 2000-2013

RECEIVERS W/50+ CATCHES, 2000-2013

PLAYER (YEAR)

YARDS

PLAYER (YEAR)

YARDS

PLAYER (YEAR)

NO.

JAMAL ABDUR-RAHMAN (2010) TIM WADE (2011)

1767 1574

DREW LOUGHERY (2008) CHRIS KANE (2012)

2628 2524

JACK FORSTER (2006) SEAN COLEMAN (2012)

75 64

JAMAL ABDUR-RAHMAN (2009) RYAN PARFITT (2000)

1198 1132

KYLE SHURMUR (2013) DREW LOUGHERY (2009)

2472 2401

JOE MIGLIARESE (2006) SAM FELECCIA (2008)

60 51

JAMAL ABDUR-RAHMAN (2008)

1009

JOHN HARRISON (2006)

2274

15+ TOUCHDOWNS, 2000-2013

20+ TOUCHDOWN PASSES, 2000-2013

5+ INTERCEPTIONS, 2000-2013

PLAYER (YEAR)

NO.

PLAYER (YEAR)

NO.

PLAYER (YEAR)

NO.

JAMAL ABDUR-RAHMAN (2010)

29

JOHN HARRISON (2006)

30

BRIAN HOGAN (2002)

7

JAMAL ABDUR-RAHMAN (2008)

23

CHRIS KANE (2012)

29

VINNY MIGLIARESE (2009)

6

TIM WADE (2011) JAMAL ABDUR-RAHMAN (2009)

22 20

MATT MAGARITY (2011) DREW LOUGHERY (2008)

26 25

KEVIN FORSTER (2010) BRIAN HOGAN (2003)

6 5

JIMMY HERRON (2012) RYAN PARFITT (2000)

16 15

KYLE SHURMUR (2013) DREW LOUGHERY (2009)

25 23

JACK FORSTER (2004) SEAN COLEMAN (2011)

5 5

SEAN COLEMAN (2012)

15

JOHN HARRISON (2005)

21

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 7'S

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 12'S

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 21'S

BILL WHITESIDE, '46 KEVIN MERLINI, '99

JOE ZAISS, '69 JACK FLANNERY, '73

GERRY CHESNES, '53 MIKE MATTIA, '97

SEAN MILLER, '02

JOHN BUTLER, '91

MATT McGURKIN, '03

SAM FELECCIA, '10

CHAD ORMOND, '93

CHRIS ASHLEY, '07

CHRIS KANE, '13

GABE MARABELLA, '01

KEVIN FARRINGTON, '09

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 24'S

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 27'S

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 33'S

JOHN McANENEY, '51

FRANK CANNON, '40

CHARLIE WALTERS, '63

JOHN HERRERA, '58 JOHN MORRISON, '84

ED BRACKEN, '51 PAUL AITA, '58

BOB MIZIA, '72 MARTIN FEENY, '90

MIKE SAVAGE, '99

BRIAN DALY, '90

ED BONGARD, '98

BRIAN HOGAN, '04

RICH KRAUSS, '99

TIM WADE, '12

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 40'S

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 44'S

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 51'S

JIM OSBORNE, '56

RAY FRANKSON, '56

KIRK KARASZKIEWICZ, '64

JOHN McMAHON, '64

VINCE DENNERY, '61

PAT COYLE, '96

DEL MARKWARD, '77

JIM COLL, '63

PURI GARZONE, '98

JEFF PIETRAK, '98 DAN WATERS, '03

CHRIS DOUGHERTY, '00 SEAN BURKE, '12

TIM BLACK, '00 MILES MILLER, '04

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 55'S

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 73'S

FIVE GREAT NUMBER 77'S

LEE FRENCH, '50 BERNIE BURKE, '53

JIM McGLINN, '73 JIM GILLIES, '77

AL SALVITTI, '70 BOB SZOSTAK, '72

JIM WARD, '55 JIM PUTZ, '62

MOOSE O'NEILL, '95 CHRIS DiLEONARDO, '98

FRANK NATALE, '84 KEVIN CONLIN, '93

JOE NAJI, '11

JOHN McBURNIE, '07

PAUL D'ORAZIO, '98

85.

1998 ² The Last Complete Champion Foreword A high school football SOD\HUœV senior season is precious beyond words. Though contributions to the success of the team in sophomore and junior year may spawn great memories, they remain contributions. Ownership occurs in senior year, a much more life and death struggle to succeed and to leave a legacy. As time goes on, a football player vividly remembers the upperclassmen when he was a sophomore, and barely recalls the underclassmen when he was a senior. But he lives and breathes forever with his classmates who shared the gridiron with him.

Prelude The 1997 season ended in flames. After their 32-game winning streak was stopped on a muddy track against Archbishop Ryan, the Explorers inexplicably lost a first-round playoff game to Father Judge by an incredible 47-14 score.

After a Thanksgiving Day loss to the Prep, on a day when the great Brett Gordon ended his La Salle playing career, it was thought that this 3-year run of great La Salle teams was over as well.

No less than 15 starting seniors departed, as well as several assistant coaches. Rebuilding would have to take place in every facet of La Salle football for 1998. At first blush, it seemed like an impossible task.

The offensive line was virtually gone; cobbled together was a line of juniors Kyle Callahan, Tim Black, and Bob Felte, and seniors Dan Fitzgerald and Kevin Noone, which was an average of 15 pounds lighter than the 1997 full-size model.

Defensively, there were few returning starters as well. And 10 of the new starters were underclassmen. The projected defensive backfield of senior Sean Kent, and juniors Paul Colistra, Jordan Mulrain, and Kevin Dougherty averaged 5œ9´ and 160 lbs. The front seven on defense was undersized as well, epitomized by nose guard Ernie Barile, a junior at 5œ8´ 175 lbs. But what the defense lacked in size was made up for in fundamentally sound tackling, and an ³, got your EDFN´ approach to team play.

On offense, Chikwere ³2EL´ Amachi was one returning star, an all-purpose offensive threat as a returner, running back, and receiver. A senior-laden backfield that included Rich Krauss, Ed Cattie, Matt Chapman, and Travis Manion, contained the WHDPœV greatest depth.

But without Brett Gordon, the most radical change would occur at quarterback, and as the 1997 season ended, there was no conclusive heir apparent.

Chris Pennington (6œ-2´ 200) had never played quarterback in a game, but he became the senior starter for the 1998 season.

There were successful precedents to this plan: Hugh Brolly guided the 1955 team to the City Title, and Ed Stranix did so 5 years later. But they had seasoned starters around them, and La 6DOOHÂśV 1998 team was almost starting from scratch.

Senior QB Chris Pennington (#11) leads the La Salle offense into the 1998 season, following in the footsteps of Hugh Brolly (1955) & Ed Stranix (1960).

Pennington was asked to play at quarterback by the coaches, including new offensive coordinator Shawn Neely, soon after the 1997 season. He loved the defensive side of the ball, but consented to give signal-calling a try, learning his new craft at a Rutgers quarterback camp and also in a summer passing league. He emerged as the starter in camp after some strong competition, and his athleticism, leadership, and hard-nosed play would help him through the transition.

Camp was not without excitement, as a new offense and a rebuilt defense sought to establish their own identities, and, because boys will be boys, there were a few tense moments that flared into some ³SK\VLFDO GLVDJUHHPHQWV´ that had the result of bonding each side of the ball to their own mates, and the offense and defense had the philosophy of each side totally focused on its own job for the rest of the year.

This team headed into the season with a lot of self-confidence, but so does every team. There just appeared to be too many holes to fill, and too much change, for La Salle to have a shot at winning the last complete Catholic League championship; 1999 would feature large (Red) and small (Blue) divisions with separate champions for the 1st time.

The Season The Explorers would have their first matchup ever against the Patriots of Archbishop Carroll to open up the season. Carroll was a fair-to-middling team from the Southern Division, but the game at Radnor High School on Sunday, September 13 would be a good test for the unproven La Salle squad. La Salle chose to defer to the second half, and that decision paid dividends, as the defense forced a three-and-out, and a poor punt put them in good field position at the Carroll 36.

It took just three plays for 3HQQLQJWRQÂśV offense to find the end zone on a pass floated over the defense to Obi Amachi for 23 yards. The extra point was missed, but the defense, led by

86.

1998 ² The Last Complete Champion nose guard Ernie Barile, was stifling the Patriot offense early.

After another short punt, La Salle moved into position for a Mike Savage 40-yard field goal try, and he boomed the pigskin through the uprights for a 9-0 lead near the end of the quarter.

The defense stayed stout, as Chris Kerns added a fumble recovery to his tackle totals. But the offense FRXOGQ¶W get another drive into the end zone before half.

To start the 3rd quarter, sophomore Ryan Parfitt electrified the Blue and Gold faithful with an 85-yard kickoff return after muffing the kick, but a penalty brought the ball back. After another defensive stand, Pennington guided the Explorers down the field with rollouts and scrambles of his own, as well as using Travis Manion and Rich Krauss on rushes up the middle. On the Carroll 17, Pennington threw a fade to the left corner of the end zone, where junior TE Mike DeCrescio made a great adjustment to make an even greater catch, and the 160 Explorer lead would be too much for the Patriots to overcome.

Pennington was definitely a work in progress at the helm. If Brett Gordon was a Jaguar as a quarterback, then Chris Pennington was an F-150 ± rough, tough, but gets the job done. He rolled out or scrambled on most passing plays, using his athleticism, but displayed flashes of brilliance, especially on the TD pass to DeCrescio. Amachi showed off his game-breaking skills, and the rest of the rushing attack featured hard-nosed, north-south type of runners. The defense was strong, with crisp tackling, a lot of energy, led on the inside by Barile and Kerns, and with an aggressive linebacking and backfield corps that smothered the Carroll passing attack.

A good start, with more improvement anticipated.

La Salle had Plymouth-Whitemarsh on the ropes early in their second game. Tim McDonald intercepted a pass on the opening Colonial possession, but La Salle FRXOGQ¶W convert a field goal. After a Barile sack and a stuff for no gain by LB Chris Dougherty, a bad snap on a punt gave La Salle a safety and a 2-0 lead. Subsequent to the free kick, the Explorers had great field position, but were forced to punt, pinning P-W at their own 6. The Colonials punted, and Pennington, throwing more from the pocket, found Amachi on a look-in for 20 yards, and an out pattern for 11 more. His third consecutive pass found DeCrescio, who ran it in from 9 yards.

6DYDJH¶V kick made it 9-0. But La Salle ZDVQ¶W done: After some big hits by Barile, John Poley, and Chris Dougherty, a bad punt had the Blue and Gold on the march again.

Pennington, throwing on almost every down, hit FB Ed Cattie in the flat for 11 yards, and then on a rollout hit Manion for 10 more. On the P-W 13-yard line, Amachi took a pitchout, and made a great cutback to score. Sophomore QB Gabe Marabella ran the ball in from the holder position for two points, and La Salle had a 17-0 lead near the end of the first quarter.

But the offense did not score again. The 17-0 lead lasted till half. After an exchange of punts, Pennington hurried a short pass which was intercepted. The Colonials completed a pass down the middle of the field to the La Salle 7, and then punched it in to bring the score to 17-6. The defense stepped up to deny anything further from the Colonials. Matt Westley recovered a fumble after a big hit by McDonald, and the defensive backfield tightened up to keep the Colonials from having any thoughts of getting back into the game. La Salle was now 2-0 after the 17-6 win, but the Northern Division schedule now loomed.

The Falcons of North Catholic would be the first league opponent, and La Salle traveled to George Washington for this tussle. North was just a middle-of-the-pack team, and maybe in hindsight La 6DOOH¶V untested team benefited from this schedule. But no opponent could be taken for granted, and the Falcons showed why by shutting out La Salle for nearly two full quarters.

La 6DOOH¶V offense struggled with missed and dropped passes, sacks, and an ineffective ground game, but the defense kept the Falcons off the board, until a long bomb down the middle of the field was brought in by a North receiver at the La Salle 5. Two running plays later, the Falcons had a surprising 7-0 lead with 1:16 left in the 2nd quarter. With a sluggish offense, the Explorers could have just played it safe for the rest of the half. But a great play call was imminent. On the first play from scrimmage, a wingback counter to Amachi trapped the North linemen, and the fleet Amachi raced 67 yards to tie the game at 7-7.

That momentum carried into the 3rd quarter, and again, a great play call on the first play of the 2nd half gave the Explorers the lead. Pennington dropped back into a shotgun, and on a planned delay, broke up the middle and to the left sideline for a 59-yard touchdown run. Yet another surprise ensued as Marabella did it again with a fake PAT and a bootleg around the right side, and North was stunned to be down 15-7. The defense was intense now, and their gang tackling stifled the Falcon attack. Midway through the 3rd quarter, after a North punt, Amachi broke a couple of tackles and shot up the middle for a 60-yard touchdown. Though La 6DOOH¶V offense FRXOGQ¶W add to the 22-7 lead, the defense swarmed to shut out the Falcons the rest of the way. Sean Kent intercepted a bomb, and Pennington could have had another, but wisely chose to bat the ball away on a deep 4th down pass.

The 3-0 Explorers GLGQ¶W look like a juggernaut, but they were getting the job done, especially on the defensive side. The offense was a big-play offense, but just a few big plays.

Compared to the 1997 ³SRLQW-a-PLQXWH´ machine at this point in the season, the 1998 version had scored 96 less points!!

But this may be the way they needed to win games, and the defense was focused on holding onto whatever lead was given to them.

87.

1998 ² The Last Complete Champion The defense stopped a Lancer drive in the red zone in the 3rd quarter on sacks by Barile and Bailey, and the offense went back to work, and Amachi did it again. After a 12-yard run and a pass from Pennington that missed, Amachi charged through a trap and broke several tackles for a 51-yard run, and the 283 score held up, and the Explorers were 4-0, and 2-0 in the league. Amachi had gained 153 yards on 13 carries.

Amachi was terrific, and Pennington was continuously improving. The array of running backs were all contributing, and the O-line was gaining more and more experience. The defense started to rotate additional players in, creating depth.

The feisty defensive backfield was holding their own, susceptible on occasions to a deep ball to a tall receiver, but swarming to the ball on most pass plays. Archbishop Wood was next, yet another average team.

The scene was William Tennent High School on October 11.

Mike Savage boomed the kickoff into the end zone, and Wood was stopped on their first drive, as LB Chris Dougherty pursued a sweep and tackled the ballcarrier for a loss. After the punt, La Salle moved into field goal range, featuring a 15yard run by Amachi. Savage, becoming stronger in the kicking game, nailed a 37-yarder for a 3-0 lead. He then sent the kickoff into the end zone again. The Vikings gained one first down, but then Sean Kent picked off a pass to put La Salle in good position inside Wood territory. But the Explorers gave the ball back on a deep pass that was intercepted. :RRGÂśV offense was throttled again, and La Salle mounted a 9-play scoring drive, with runs by Amachi leading the way into Viking territory. Into the 2nd quarter, Pennington faked a handoff into the line, and ran up left tackle and into the end zone for a 30-yard touchdown. Two minutes later, after another Wood punt, Rich Krauss broke 3 tackles on a 51-yard jaunt for another TD, and La Salle was up comfortably, 17-0, and took that lead into halftime.

Paul Colistra & the defense celebrate vs. North The Explorers hosted Bishop McDevitt on October 3. The 3-0 Royal Lancers were improved after a tough year in 1997, and put together an opening drive resulting in a field goal and a 3-0 lead. The Explorers fumbled on their first possession, but the defensive line, led by Barile and newcomer Ben Bailey, harassed the Lancer backfield and warded off any attempt to score. La Salle then put together their most consistent drive of the season, featuring a pass from Pennington to Matt Chapman down the right sideline to the Lancer 19. After Amachi gained 10 yards up the middle, Rich Krauss broke tackles on a counter and got into the end zone on a 9-yard score. 6DYDJHÂśV PAT made it 7-3 early in the 2nd quarter.

The Explorer defense stopped the Lancers again, and on a 2nd and 10 at their own 42, Amachi broke off left tackle and streamed 58 yards to paydirt. Though the PAT was missed, La Salle now led 13-3. Again, the defense stymied McDevitt, and the offense started rolling again. Pennington used good touch to hit Amachi with a pass over the defender, and, after moving the ball on the ground with his backs, Pennington faked a handoff and kept it himself for a 40-yard touchdown, and added a two-point play for good measure. Late in the half, La Salle was not done, and drove to the McDevitt 1-yard line, but a fumble kept the halftime score at 21-3.

Soph Ryan Parfitt on a return vs. Wood After La Salle had a three-and-out, Wood sustained a drive for their only score. But midway through the 4th quarter, down 177, the Vikings were pounding on the door, when on a

D-line stymies the Royal Lancers

88.

1998 ² The Last Complete Champion 4th and goal at the 3-yard line, LB Chris Dougherty and Pennington stopped the Wood ballcarrier on a pitch at the one.

The game was put away in the last two minutes as Pennington found Chapman on a flag pattern to close the scoring at 24-7.

John Poley intercepted his second Viking pass of the game, dropping quickly from his defensive end position.

The Explorers were now 5-0, as Joe Colistra notched his 100th victory, and would now challenge the Crusaders of Father Judge at Northeast High School.

Father -XGJH¶V Crusaders embarrassed the Explorers in the 1997 playoffs, 47-14, and, next to Archbishop Ryan, were the nemesis of the nineties for the Blue and Gold, also knocking La Salle out of the playoffs in 1991, 1992, and 1994 (Archbishop Ryan did the honors in 1990 and 1993).

La Salle was forced to punt on their opening drive, and the defense made Judge do the same, as LB Kevin Merlini, stepping up more as the season progressed, had a big hit in the backfield. Pennington came out firing, showing a strong arm on a pass in the left flat to DeCrescio. But a sack stopped the drive, and Savage had to punt again. The defense was sturdy again, with McDonald and Paul Colistra stopping a pitchout for a loss. Another exchange of punts, and then the Crusaders made a mistake. A pass over the middle was picked off by Kevin Dougherty, who returned the pigskin about 30 yards to the Judge 25. It took just one play to score, as the mercurial Amachi took a pitchout through a big hole and into the end zone for a 7-0 La Salle lead.

Savage blasted the ball for a touchback, and the defense did it again, as Matt Westley notched a sack. After a Judge punt, Pennington went to work, firing another pass to DeCrescio to get to the Crusader 30, bootlegging for 6 yards, and gunning a quick out to Amachi to get to the 17 at the end of the quarter.

He kept the ball on an option for 7 yards, and on 3rd-and-1, his sneak got a first and goal at the 5. One play later, he passed a strike on the left to DeCrescio for a 3-yard touchdown, and a surprising 14-0 lead. Pennington had come into his own, making strong, accurate passes, especially to his left, and gaining timely yardage with his legs.

Judge gift-wrapped La 6DOOH¶V next touchdown for them. After another touchback by Savage, the Crusaders fumbled on an inside reverse, and Ernie Barile happily grabbed the ball and ran in from 13 yards to open up the game to 21-0. Yet another touchback, and another Judge fumble, this time recovered by DT Ben Bailey. A holding penalty stifled the drive, but Savage kicked a 36 yard field goal for a 24-0 lead.

Father Judge marched into La Salle territory for the first time, as their running game found holes in the La Salle defense, but two sacks by Barile, supported by Kerns and Bailey, forced the Crusaders to try a field goal, but they missed. The 24-0 halftime lead was surprising and encouraging, and Pennington was having an outstanding game as quarterback, throwing crisp, accurate passes.

Imagine the shock in the stands when sophomore signal caller Gabe Marabella warmed up on the sidelines before the start of the second half. Judge marched down the field, aided by a catch on an underthrown bomb, and scored to make it 24-7.

Indeed, Marabella entered the game at quarterback, and Pennington lined up as a Gabe Marabella halfback. It was found out later that Pennington hurt his finger near the end of the half which would hamper his throwing, but he could still run.

And run he did. Though La Salle did not score in the remainder of the 3rd period, Pennington shouldered the running load, with 7 carries for 28 yards, as La Salle was eating up large portions of the clock.

In the 4th quarter, the defense was adding to its sack total, and keeping Judge from ever getting back into the game. On the first play of a drive, Marabella rolled to his left and sent a long bomb down the middle of the field, where Amachi made a sensational diving catch at the Judge 15. Pennington then did the dirty work, sandwiching a couple of runs around another Marabella-to-Amachi pass, and finally scoring on a 2-yard run up right tackle to put the Crusaders away, 31-7. -XGJH¶V last drive ended in a Kevin Dougherty interception, and the undefeated Explorers continued their winning ways.

The soph played with a lot of poise, showed a good arm, and also ran the ball well. 3HQQLQJWRQ¶V injury gave Marabella the opportunity, and his success in the Judge game offered the coaching staff additional options as the season progressed.

The winless Cardinals of Dougherty were no match for the unbeaten Explorers. La Salle took a 14-0 1st quarter lead on a short run by Ed Cattie and a Pennington short pass to Amachi, and they never looked back. Krauss went in twice from short distances, and Savage added a field goal. After a long kickoff return, the Cards scored on the KDOI¶V last play to make it 31-6; that was all the feisty La Salle defense would allow.

Marabella opened the 2nd half at quarterback, and led the Blue and Gold to another scoring drive, as Amachi took a pitchout from 5 yards out and waltzed into the end zone. Three plays later, John Poley ended the scoring with an interception return for a touchdown from 38 yards out, and the 45-6 final score was a calling card to next ZHHN¶V opponent, Archbishop Ryan.

The defense was strong again, as gang tackling led to three fumbles, recovered by Pennington, Manion, and Poley. Inside linebackers Chris Dougherty and Kevin Merlini were strong up the middle, and were also making plays on the sideline. The backfield was swarming like bees all game long, and the line was holding up well.

89.

1998 ² The Last Complete Champion Offensively, the multi-headed backfield rushing attack was paying dividends. Krauss was bearing the brunt of the shortyardage load, staying low to the ground, and tougher to tackle than an armadillo. Amachi provided so many options due to his versatility. And TE DeCrescio was a secret weapon, as his 6¶-3´ frame offered an inviting target.

There also seemed to be no significant injuries, and the squad eagerly anticipated the showdown with the 5\DQ¶V Raiders.

running plays. Marabella rolled right, and dumped the ball out to Krauss, who hustled down to the Ryan 44 yard line. Then Marabella hit Amachi with a fade pattern on the left side to the Ryan 19, and the offense was alive. With less than a minute left, Pennington was stopped up the middle for no gain, but Marabella then replicated that fade to Amachi in the end zone.

The ball may have been tipped, but the reliable Amachi bobbled the ball about 3 times before it fell to the earth. After Marabella was sacked for a 9-yard loss, Savage was wide left on a long field goal attempt to end a scoreless first half.

Many scoreless games are dull affairs, but this game was quite tense, and was the first significant challenge for the Explorers all season. Every play counted, and one could sense a real playoff atmosphere in this battle of stubborn defenses.

La 6DOOH¶V first possession of the second half garnered a first down, but they had to punt to the Raiders. The Explorer defense did their job again, and the offense got the ball back on their own 20. After another exchange of punts pinned them back even deeper, they finally mounted a drive that would find the end zone. After completing a couple of short passes to Pennington to move the chains, Marabella dropped back, avoided the Ryan rush, and launched a deep pass down the left side, which caught Pennington right in stride, and he jaunted into the end zone for a 70-yard touchdown. With 1:55 left in the third quarter, the Explorers held a precious 7-0 lead.

The lead was short-lived, as a long kickoff return, combined with a roughness penalty, set the Raiders up at the La Salle 22. Another penalty, this time for holding, brought the ball to the 11. One play later, the Ryan QB Price bootlegged to the left and found the corner of the end zone to tie the game less than one minute after La Salle scored.

Though they were stopped by 5\DQ¶V defense, La Salle recovered a muffed punt at the Ryan 47 to end the third quarter. Marabella swung a pass out to Matt Chapman, who broke tackles to get to the Ryan 30. A scramble by the soph QB gained 5 yards, but La Salle was called for holding again.

On a third and long, Marabella gunned the ball on a slant to Mike DeCrescio for 12 yards to get into field goal, but 6DYDJH¶V 42 yard attempt, though plenty long, was wide.

0LNH 6DYDJH·V NLFNLQJ SDLG GLYLGHQGV DOO VHDVRQ Sunday, November 1 was a dry but windy day at Springfield High School, as the Explorers would host the Raiders.

Exactly one year ago, Archbishop Ryan stopped La 6DOOH¶V 32-game winning streak by an extra point, 14-13, on a muddy track at Northeast High. Though the La Salle faithful sought revenge, the 1998 team was focused more on their own streak, and their own prize.

Ryan had a tough team, with a large line, and would really test the Blue and Gold. La Salle forced the Raiders into a quick three and out, but a booming punt pinned the Explorers back at their own 17. Two great runs by Rich Krauss got them out toward midfield, but the drive stalled, and 6DYDJH¶V punt in turn kept Ryan in the shadow of their own goal line.

This was the theme of the 1st half, as both defenses were dominant. 5\DQ¶V big line was stifling the La Salle offense, and Pennington was having a difficult time finding his receivers while under a big rush. But La 6DOOH¶V defensive line, led by Chris Kerns, was giving Ryan fits as well. At the start of the second quarter, Ben Bailey harassed the Ryan quarterback into an interception by Jordan Mulrain to thwart a Raider drive. But an Explorer fumble gave the football right back, and Ryan drove to the La Salle 21. Two big plays by Bailey and Colistra forced a 3rd and long, and the Raiders failed to capitalize.

But La Salle had to punt again, and Ryan started another drive to the La Salle 13, but their field goal attempt was wide.

Now late in the first half, Gabe Marabella came in at quarterback, with Pennington moving to halfback. Pennington was unleashed like a wild stallion, and gained 16 yards on 3

Rich Krauss runs against the Raiders

90.

1998 ² The Last Complete Champion 5\DQœV next drive was stymied by the ankle tackles of Kerns, and the hole-filling tackles of LB Kevin Merlini. Gaining possession at their own 38, La Salle got to midfield quickly on a Marabella to Amachi pass. But Marabella was then sacked, and Ryan returned a punt out to their own 38. With two minutes to go in regulation, the dormant Ryan passing attack arose, as three consecutive complete passes brought the ball to the La Salle 21. Sean Kent almost picked off a pass deep on the right side, and Pennington broke up a short pass on the left. On third down, Kevin Dougherty intercepted a rollout pass to stop the drive on the La Salle 6-yard line, and the jubilant defense celebrated the game-saving pick. The Explorers ran a few plays, but the clock wound down, and the game headed to overtime.

The Raiders got the ball first, and Price set out for a bootleg left on first down at the 10. The Explorer defense was ready, but much too ready, for that play. Price cut back and went untouched into the end zone, and Ryan had a 14-7 lead. Two rushes by Pennington netted a 2-yard loss, and 0DUDEHOODÂśV third-down rollout misfired. On fourth down, Marabella found Pennington on the back line of the end zone, but the pass was just too high, and the Blue and Gold suffered their first loss, 14-7.

The seniors were stunned, and took the loss hard. Joe Colistra gave the team off on Monday, and many players just hung out together after school, not even talking about football.

This mini-retreat was therapeutic to this ³OLWWOH engine that FRXOG´ team, and they started preparations for their final regular season game on Senior Day against Conwell-Egan.

It would have been nice on Senior Day for the Eagles to play the role of a doormat, and La Salle did get out to a 14-0 lead on a short run by Pennington and a 12-yard Amachi run on a pitchout, but Conwell-Egan got on the board early in the 2nd quarter on a 37-yard field goal, and after a La Salle fumble, the Eagles scored on a quarterback option run to get to within 14-10 halfway through the second quarter.

The Explorers, behind the running of Pennington on three consecutive plays for 37 yards, got into Eagle territory, when Marabella perfectly arced a long pass down the left sideline to Amachi, who caught the ball in full stride in the end zone, and the La Salle lead was now 11. Now, the defense got the ball back in a hurry, as DT Ben Bailey pilfered a middle screen and returned the pigskin about 30 yards to the Eagle 14. On the next play, Pennington went off right tackle to score easily, and the Blue and Gold went into the halftime Senior Day festivities with a comfortable 28-10 lead.

Mike Savage nailed a field goal halfway through the third quarter, and then Chris Pennington came back into the game as the signal caller to guide a running attack to work the clock.

A sustained drive resulted in another score, with key runs by Pennington and Rich Krauss. Ed Cattie went up right tackle for a 6-yard score near the end of the third quarter. The 38-10 score changed in a hurry, as an Eagle gadget play, featuring a

wide receiver pass after a long lateral, caught the Explorer defense by surprise for a 69-yard touchdown. On a scramble, Pennington sprinted from 84 yards out, and La Salle ended their regular season with a 45-17 drubbing of Conwell-Egan.

Playoffs Chris Pennington and TJ Alexander set the tone for the playoff quarterfinal against Wood by plastering the Viking opening kickoff returner on the Wood 9-yard line. A few plays later, Chris Kerns recovered a fumble, and La Salle took a 3-0 lead on Mike 6DYDJHÂśV field goal. With Gabe Marabella at quarterback, the Explorers scored late in the 1st quarter on a long drive capped by an Obi Amachi 6-yard run. The defense negated the Wood passing attack, and Savage added another field goal midway through the second quarter.

Late in the half, the Vikings got as far as the La Salle 15-yard line, but Kevin Merlini intercepted a pass over the middle, and the teams went to the locker rooms with the Explorers leading, 13-0.

To start the second half, the Explorers set sail on their most sustained drive of the season, a 13-play, 89-yard drive with Pennington at the controls, and he ended it with a 1-yard sneak for a touchdown. Marabella worked his two-point trickery again with a pass to Tim McDonald to make it 21-0 halfway through the third quarter. The defense continued to deny Wood any hope; a sack shared by Dillon and Barile, a big hit by Chris Dougherty, a sack by Kerns, and a pick by Kent frustrated the Vikings. Late in the fourth quarter, Krauss ended the scoring with a bolt up the middle from 4 yards out, and La Salle advanced to the semifinals with a 28-0 whitewash of Archbishop Wood.

They would now cross over to the Southern Division, and take on the explosive Lions of Cardinal 2Âś+DUD featuring their sophomore phenom, running back Kevin Jones.

The Cardinal 2Âś+DUD Lions ran the table in the Southern Division, and mauled Bonner, 42-0, in their first playoff game.

Kevin Jones was indeed a phenom, having already gained nearly 2,000 yards, and the Explorers saw no one like him in the Northern Division.

The Explorers forced a punt on the /LRQVÂś first possession, and Pennington, aided by an interference penalty, led La Salle into position for a successful Savage field goal. But Jones broke off a long run to get inside of the La Salle 30, and the Lions soon had a first and goal. However, Jones fumbled at the 5yard line, and Chris Dougherty cradled the precious pig bladder to keep the Lions at bay.

As the rain started to fall, the teams exchanged punts, but the Blue and Gold were on the move when an interception at the Lion 7 thwarted their drive early in the 2nd quarter. The defense was gang-tackling Jones, and a short punt put the offense back in business. After a long pass from Pennington to Amachi got to the 11-yard line, Pennington hit DeCrescio on a slant-in for a touchdown and a 10-0 lead.

91.

1998 ² The Last Complete Champion The Lions did kick a field goal near the end of the half, but La Salle was threatening the 2œ+DUD unbeaten season with a 103 halftime lead.

St. -RVHSKÂśV Prep was dramatically improving their program under Gil Brooks in the late 90ÂśV and were the defending Catholic League champions, so this game would not be just a tune-up for the Title game against Ryan. The Hawks had a massive offensive line, and they marched down the field to take a 3-0 lead on the opening drive. With Pennington at quarterback, La Salle had a drive of their own, resulting in a Savage field goal to tie the game. But the defenses stiffened, despite some great plays like Mike 'H&UHVFLRÂśV one-handed catch across the middle, and the game stayed deadlocked at half, 3-3.

Gabe Marabella started the second half at quarterback, but Joe Colistra returned to Pennington late in the third quarter.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, the Hawks muffed a punt, and Jordan 0XOUDLQÂśV recovery put La Salle in great field position. Ed Cattie burst over right tackle on a big gain to the Prep 3-yard line, and three plays later, Rich Krauss went over right guard for a tie-breaking touchdown. Two plays later, on a slant-in, Chris Pennington stepped in to intercept, and his cross-field runback brought the ball to the Prep 6. The Hawks held, but Mike 6DYDJHÂśV 25-yard field goal put La Salle ahead by two scores, 13-3, with 8:52 left in the game.

The Prep was self-destructing: La Salle recovered a fumble on the kickoff, and later the Hawks threw an end-zone Hail Mary that was picked off by Sean Kent, but the Explorers just FRXOGQÂśW put them away. With less than two minutes to go, the Hawks, throwing all day long, scored a touchdown on a wheel route after a fourth down conversion. The two-point play failed, as did their onside kick, and La Salle got to enjoy the turkey with the 13-9 win.

Kevin Dougherty eludes Lions on return Jones gained a lot of yardage in the first half, but the Lions had only three points to show for it. And the La Salle defense would make adjustments that would shut off the running lanes and contain Jones.

Though the offense was forced to punt to start the second half, Jones fumbled again while being gang-tackled, and Kevin Merlini corralled the ball this time at the 2Âś+DUD 24-yard line.

Krauss, the armadillo, made a great cutback off the right side to shoot into the end zone for a 24-yard TD, and the Explorers now led, 17-3. But Jones and the Lion offense sustained a drive into the Explorer end zone, with Jones scoring from 3 yards out, and it was 17-10 late in the third quarter. La 6DOOHÂśV next drive ended in an interception, and the Lions had the ball near midfield to start the 4th quarter.

It was now the most critical time of the season. The defense, which performed so well all year, was asked to preserve this lead, and 2Âś+DUD placed their fortunes in the hands of their soph phenom. The Lions moved inside La 6DOOHÂśV 35, but a big hit by Kevin Dougherty on a pitchout lost 5 yards, and on a 4th down rollout, Pennington intercepted, stopping the drive.

Another punt, and the Lions moved again, as -RQHVÂś rushes were mixed with passes this time; again the Lions were within the La Salle 40. But Paul Colistra stopped Jones for a 2-yard loss, and another 4th down pass went awry. Another punt, but 2Âś+DUD was penalized; the 1st down gave the offense a chance to keep the ball. Another 1st down, and a face mask penalty against the Lions, allowed the clock to run out, and the sideline was ecstatic, jumping up and down on everyone, while the tired offense trudged off the field in quiet happiness.

Jones had gained 161 yards on 33 carries, but very few yards in the all-important 4th quarter. He was distraught about his fumbles, but he joined a large group of opponents who coughed up the ball due to Explorer gang-tackling.

Archbishop Ryan defeated St. -RHÂśV Prep, 14-0, to set up the Championship game, but first, La Salle would have a Turkey Day tussle against those Hawks from Girard Avenue.

The trophy comes home to Wyndmoor The Championship Game ² December 5, 1998 Northeast High School was abuzz before the game in anticipation of a real defensive war. La Salle deferred after winning the toss, and both teams tried to land haymakers with long bombs on their first possessions. The Explorer defense was winning the line of scrimmage early, putting great heat on the Raider passer Price, and the sure tackles of Poley, Manion, and Chris Dougherty stifled the Ryan running game.

92.

1998 ² The Last Complete Champion But, late in the 1st quarter, Price connected on a bomb down the sideline to the La Salle 19. On a 3rd-down play action, the Ryan receiver was wide open in the left corner of the end zone, but the pass was way overthrown. A 33-yard field goal on the last play of the 1st quarter gave the Raiders a 3-0 lead.

The Blue and Gold defense was stout, and a great diving interception by Sean Kent kept the Raiders from approaching the red zone late in the 2nd quarter. But the offense was stagnant, as Pennington had trouble finding his mark, and, despite a great run by Amachi where he kept his balance and broke tackles, La Salle was not threatening to score.

With less than 2 minutes to go in the half, Joe Colistra turned to his soph Marabella, to jump-start the offense. 0DQLRQ¶V power-running got a first down, and then Marabella found Matt Chapman down the right slot for about 17 yards. One play later, with time running out, Pennington got the ball on a trap up the middle, and gained about 30 yards to inside the Raider 30, but the half was over, and La Salle was down, 3-0.

Colistra stuck with Marabella in the 2nd half, believing that the sophomore at quarterback and Pennington at tailback offered the best chance to get points on the board. The savvy soph found Chapman again for about 17 yards, and then, on a 3rdand-16, Pennington took the ball on a delay up the middle, and made some great cuts to get all the way to the Ryan 23yard line. La Salle moved the ball inside the 20 but, facing a fourth-and-short, Colistra called on Mike Savage, and the reliable kicker tied the game with a 34-yard field goal.

The Raiders had a great kickoff return out to their own 44, but had to punt, as the defense stayed strong. After advancing the ball on a couple of first downs, Marabella ran the old schoolyard down-out-and up play with Ed Cattie, and the senior fullback caught the VRSKRPRUH¶V pass in stride down the right sideline, finally tackled at the Ryan 7-yard line. This play, among all plays, was the game-changer. On third-andgoal at the one, Pennington pounded it in, and the Explorers had a 10-3 lead with 2:03 left in the 3rd quarter.

Though the defense needed no catalyst to keep up their great play, the TD turned them rabid. Tim McDonald sacked the QB Price on their first play after the kickoff, and, on third down, Ernie Barile stopped the quarterback on a scramble to force a punt on the 1st play of the 4th quarter. The La Salle sideline was really fired up now. La Salle was forced to kick it away, but 6DYDJH¶V punt kept rolling and was downed on the Ryan 2yard line. Though Ryan was able to get a first down as the 4th quarter rolled on, La Salle looked to be in the GULYHU¶V seat.

But another bomb down the left sideline was caught, and a TD-saving tackle by Kevin Dougherty at the La Salle 25-yard line kept the game from being tied, and the game became tense again. Ryan pounded the ball to the 14 for another first down. After a slant-in was overthrown, the Raiders tried a counter play, but something was amiss with the handoff. Tim McDonald engulfed the fumble, squeezing the air out of the ball, and the Explorers could breathe a sigh of relief, for now.

Pennington was called on to carry the load to run down the clock, but it was Marabella who got a key first down on a quarterback draw. Then Marabella, on a third-and-11, found the angular Mike DeCrescio over the middle, who made a tremendous, big-time, Gronkowski-like catch for a first down.

With under two minutes to go, on a 3rd and 9, Pennington took the ball on a delay up the middle, broke several early tackles, and then streaked away from the distraught Ryan defenders for a 47-yard touchdown that put the final nail in the coffin.

With 1:45 left, the Explorers were jubilant with a 17-3 lead.

The Raiders, passing on virtually every down, did move the ball into La Salle territory, but after a deep 4th-down pass was incomplete, a big sigh of exhaustion and elation emanated from the La Salle sideline. The sophomore quarterback Marabella had the honors of the last Victory formation of the season, genuflecting to end the 1998 campaign, and bringing the PCL Championship back to La Salle, 17-3.

Pennington ran 16 times for 147 yards; Marabella completed 6 of 9 passes for 117 yards. La Salle scored all of their points in the 2nd half, and Ryan was held scoreless in the last 3 periods.

The defense had only 1 game all season when the opposition scored more than 1 touchdown in regulation (Conwell-Egan), and their mindset in this game was to keep the Raiders out of the end zone, and it was a fabulous success.

Postscript Joe Colistra deserves a lot of credit for having the chutzpah to change to a sophomore quarterback in a title game, and the play of both Marabella and Pennington allowed that decision to be a success. This was to be &ROLVWUD¶V last championship team, and reportedly, this team was one of his favorites. Few people felt that this team could win the PCL Championship, except the people who really counted: the players, especially the seniors, and the coaches.

In 1999, the Catholic League split into Red & Blue Divisions, and then into other divisions to align with the PIAA. At this writing, the 1998 La Salle Explorers are the last team to ever win a complete Catholic League Championship.

1998 PCL Champs sing the Alma Mater

93.

94.

95.

1957 Explorers ² The Best Ever?

In John ³Tex´ )ODQQHU\¶V first year as head coach in 1956, the squad garnered an exceptional 6-2-1 record. This was the best record for a season since 1944, if you GRQ¶W count 1955, but you have to count 1955, because that team went 10-0-0 and won the City Championship.

The 1956 team did not have many seniors, and the losses to larger and more experienced squads like Bishop Neumann and North Catholic kept the Explorers from defending their crown.

But the groundwork was laid for 1957. Returning stars from the 1956 team included quarterback Paul Aita, backs Walt McDonald and John Gallagher, and lineman Bill Clements, Al Backauskas, Tom Yannessa, and John Osborne. And a gaggle of feisty sophomores turned juniors were ready to make their presence known.

And then there was Johnny Herrera, the Cuban flash, arguably the greatest back in La Salle history.

Herrera received some meaningful playing time in the 1955 unbeaten season, and his star rose as a member of the Pony backfield of 1956.

He became a one-man dynamo over stretches of the 1957 season, and anyone who ever saw him play knows that they watched a very special player.

The running backs were plentiful, featuring speed, shiftiness, and power. Herrera and QB Paul Aita returned from the 1956 ³3RQ\ %DFNILHOG´. Junior Jerry Woltemate was a fellow pony, but Senior John Gallagher was a ³ZRUNKRUVH´ as a blocking back, and Junior Joe ³6FRWW\´ Maxwell was the resident stallion in a loaded backfield.

The team depth allowed for several players to be featured on defense. Senior Walt McDonald, junior Fred Shaughnessy, senior Tom Boyle, and junior Joe McNichol were superb ballhawks in the Oklahoma 5-4-2 defense.

Tex Flannery µ40 returned for his second season as head coach. Able assistant Dick Bedesem µ49 departed to the nest of baby Eaglets at newly-formed Bishop Egan, but Flannery had a solid group of coaches in John Harbison, John DiSangro, and Joe Henry ¶51, as well as John Byrnes and Richard Cosgrove.

The consensus before the start of the season was that Bishop Neumann was the team to beat, even though North Catholic was the defending City Champion. St. Tommy More was typically a weaker team, and Dougherty (still not a full-fledged PCL member), Bonner, and Judge were programs still experiencing growing pains. Roman Catholic was a fair team, and St. -RVHSK¶V Prep was in a 7-year hiatus from the Catholic League. West Catholic had slipped from their heyday a few years before, and St. James and North remained as formidable opponents along with the Pirates of Neumann.

Opening game was slated to be against the Golden Bears of St. Thomas More, a team that had to withdraw from the Catholic League near the end of the 1956 season due to a player shortage, but the Explorers were already banged up before the season started, and it was the vaunted backfield that was hit with the injury bug. Aita had a chronic back problem flare up; Herrera had a bruised heel; Maxwell had an injured leg, and Woltemate had a gash near his eye.

Pre-season scrimmages, though successful, found the team having trouble scoring, which concerned Flannery, but he had faith in his quarterback Aita, as well as his line, the largest La Salle line in many years.

Johnny Herrera

Johnny Herrera could singlehandedly take over a game, and La 6DOOH¶V large and veteran offensive line was able to provide Herrera with holes that sent him off to the opponent goal line.

But perhaps the most important thing that the 1957 team had was senior leadership. The five candidates for Student Council president were all on the football team!! Those candidates were Walt McDonald, Tom Yannessa, John Osborne, Al Backauskas, and Paul Aita. Each of these players had significant roles in the success of the 1957 team, and four of them earned All-Catholic honors.

The 1957 squad was poised to regain the championship that eluded the 1956 team. A blend of experienced seniors and talented juniors provided Coach Flannery with a lot of options to keep his personnel healthy and fresh, and several games during the season were won in the second half, which may be attributed to the Explorer depth.

The offensive line consisted of senior Bill Clements at center, senior Tom Yannessa and junior Arnie Buben at guards, seniors Al Backauskas and John Osborne at tackles, and junior ends Ray Weinmann and Bob Smith. Other linemen of note on both sides of the ball included Harry Eustace, Frank Heckler, Terry Monaghan, Joe Sharpe, and Jack Monaghan.

September 22, 1957: La Salle 24 ² St. Thomas More 6: Any concerns that the La Salle faithful had were dissipated by halftime of the opener. The Explorers led at half, 12-0, on their way to an easy victory over the Golden Bears.

Aita, Maxwell, and Woltemate shrugged off their injuries to notch touchdowns, and Junior end Bob Smith also scored to get the team off to a solid start.

96.

Tex Flannery with QB Paul Aita

1957 Explorers ² The Best Ever?

September 29, 1957: La Salle 7 ² Bishop Neumann 0: In a test of strength between two strong lines, the Explorers and Pirates played to a standstill until late in the 3rd quarter, when Walt McDonald intercepted an Ed Zoller pass, and returned it to the Neumann 15. La Salle moved the ball down to the 1yard line, and Paul Aita plunged over to break the deadlock.

McDonald also snagged another INT, and recovered a fumble; his defensive backfield-mates Fred Shaughnessy and Joe McNichol also intercepted passes.

This was certainly a watershed victory for this 1957 team, for many reasons. One, they defeated the leading contender for the title, but they also exhibited a stalwart defense, and Flannery now realized that he could almost fully platoon his backfields, since his defensive backfield was so strong. This provided great benefit late in games and late in the season.

Amazingly, La Salle was tied for first place with only one other team, the Cahillites of Roman Catholic; all other teams had at least one loss after two weeks

The Explorers would have an extra week to recuperate from any flu-like symptoms and prepare for the Crusaders of Father Judge.

October 20, 1957: La Salle 20 ² Father Judge 0: The defense garnered its second shutout of the season, as the young Crusaders put a scare into the Explorers by keeping the game at a scoreless tie at halftime. Aita and Maxwell were out with injuries, but La Salle took advantage of a short punt to score on a 5-yard run by Herrera in the third quarter. After the defense stopped a Judge drive, the Blue and Gold mounted a long drive, featuring runs by Herrera and Jerry Woltemate, and Herrera scored again from 5 yards out. Al Backauskas recovered a Judge fumble deep in Crusader territory, and John Gallagher bulled in from 4 yards to make the final 20-0.

La Salle was now the only unbeaten and untied team in the Catholic League.

:DOW 0F'RQDOG·V ,17 VHW XS $LWD·V plunge

John Herrera (left) picks up yards against Judge with the aid of a John Gallagher (#51) block

Next up for the Explorers: a home game against Cardinal Dougherty; the fledgling Cardinals were still not officially in the Catholic League.

October 6, 1957: La Salle 27 ² Cardinal Dougherty 12: The Explorers were heavily favored over an inexperienced Cardinals team, but a rainy, muddy day was in store for the two teams at McCarthy Stadium. Al Solecki started at quarterback, and scored the first touchdown after a poor punt.

Johnny +HUUHUD¶V extra point gave La Salle an early 7-0 lead.

Late in the first quarter, Herrera slammed into the end zone from 15 yards out, and his extra point made it 14-0. Jerry Woltemate scored late in the second quarter, and John Gallagher capped off the Explorer scoring with a 78-yard bolt into the end zone. The Cardinals scored two late touchdowns against the second-string defense, but the Explorers ran their record to 3-0. Meanwhile, Roman tied the Tommies to put the first blemish on their record. Next up was another watershed game against the defending champions, the Falcons of North Catholic.

But a unique problem faced the games of October 13, 1957: a nation-wide Asian flu epidemic had affected the Philadelphia area, especially the high schools, and all Catholic League games were postponed. La Salle would have to wait until November 24 to take on the Falcons, who were sitting with a 2-1-0 record.

It was now time to go on the road and take on the upstart Friars of Monsignor Bonner at their home field, Villanova Stadium, which became home to some of the 1957 La Salle gridders in the near future.

October 27, 1957: La Salle 26 ² Monsignor Bonner 7: After an opening drive was stopped at the Friar one-yard line, La Salle got the ball back and scored on a 20-yard scamper

by Herrera, who was now scoring points by the bucketful. A couple of threats by La Salle resulted in fumbles, but late in the first quarter Herrera scored from 3 yards out to give the Explorers a 13-0 lead. In the 2nd quarter, Herrera was at it again, scoring from a short distance after a blocked punt put the Explorers in another scoring position. Bonner shocked the crowd on the last play of the first half by connecting on a ³+DLO 0DU\´ pass to bring the halftime score to 19-7.

After receiving the second-half kickoff, La Salle went to work again. This time, Jerry Woltemate raced 73 yards down to the one-yard line, and John Gallagher plunged through for the 4th La Salle TD of the game.

La Salle was now 4-0-0 in league play, with the Pirates of Neumann in the hunt at 4-1-0, and the North Catholic Falcons at 3-1-1. The Burrs of West Catholic, in the basement at 0-50, would now host the unbeaten Explorers.

97.

1957 Explorers ² The Best Ever?

November 17, 1957: La Salle 40 ² St. James 18: The Explorers won their second Catholic League title in three years with another offensive explosion. Herrera started the scoring on a 40-yard pitchout from Aita, and he scored twice more in the first half. Aita was connecting on passes to his ends Bob Smith and Ray Weinmann, setting up scores by Scotty Maxwell and John Gallagher. Yet again, their opponents scored right at the end of the first half to make it 33-6. The Jimmies ran off 12 points in the second half before the Explorers got the ball, but Scotty Maxwell notched his second TD to complete the scoring.

November 3, 1957: La Salle 39 ² West Catholic 0: The Explorers treated their hapless Brother Burrs with disdain, as Herrera continued his scoring binge with three touchdowns and three extra points.

North Catholic defeated Tommy More to stay within shouting distance of the unbeaten Blue and Gold, and Bishop Neumann played a non-league game. The Cahillites of Roman Catholic, a middle-of-the-pack team would take on the Explorers next at McCarthy Stadium.

Despite the gaudy 5-0-0 record of the current team, much of the November 4, 1957 edition of the Wisterian sports section was devoted to celebrating the unbeaten 1955 Catholic League Champions, with a ³:KHUH Are They 1RZ´ section of the 1955 stars and their college adventures.

November 10, 1957: La Salle 53 ² Roman Catholic 12: The offense made it 118 points in three games with a pasting of the Cahillites. To this point, no La Salle team had ever scored 53 points in a game. The scoring started with the aid of an interception by sophomore defensive back Joe McNichol. Herrera scored the first TD of the game. After getting the ball back on downs, the Blue and Gold marched in again on a 7-yard run by John Gallagher. The next drive featured a long pass play from Paul Aita to Bob Smith, but had a familiar ending, with Herrera scoring again. Gallagher matched him with his second TD, and Walt McDonald returned an interception 55 yards for a score. Roman scored just before half to make it 33-6. The third quarter belonged to the Cahillites, as they scored the lone touchdown, but in the 4th, Harry Eustace recovered a fumble, Herrera scored again, and Al Solecki and Ed Birchler joined the scoring frenzy to bring the Explorer record to 6-0-0.

Ray Weinmann (#45) nearly blocks a St. James punt in first quarter action.

Having already clinched the Catholic League Championship, the Explorers were to play their ³$VLDQ IOX´ re-scheduled game on November 23 against North Catholic, but Old Man Winter made an early appearance, and the combination of a snowfall and the lack of importance of the game resulted in a cancellation this time. So La Salle never got to play the defending champion Falcons in 1957!

Progress Report: At this point in the season, La Salle was sitting quite pretty, with a lot of early-season injuries now healed, and even more depth than expected. The loaded backfield all contributed to the offensive surge of the second half of the season, as Herrera, Woltemate, Gallagher, and Maxwell ran with abandon. Maxwell was becoming more of a presence with each game. Aita was the field general, and was ably backed up by Solecki. Weinmann & Smith were capable ends whose blocking was rewarded by passes from Aita.

The defense had given up a handful of points in certain games, typically at the end of each half, indicating that some scoring may have been done against the second team. The defensive backfield were ravenous ballhawks, maybe because these offensive-minded players were asked to dedicate themselves on defense.

But the line became more and more dominant as the season progressed. Flannery rotated about 8 or 9 linemen to keep them fresh, and La Salle won the line of scrimmage, especially as the game wore on.

This team was primed to take on the Public League Champions, either Lincoln or Roxborough; Lincoln was the defending champion of the Public League, and lost to North Catholic in the 1956 City Championship game.

But La Salle had one more game to play: a Turkey Day tussle against their neighbors, the Germantown Bears.

Al Solecki (#22) pitches out to Ed Birchler (#41), who scores vs Roman for his first Varsity TD The Jimmies, or Bulldogs, of St. James were the next opponents to visit the friendly confines of McCarthy Stadium.

North had beaten Neumann, and La Salle could clinch the Catholic League crown with a win over St. James.

98.

1957 Explorers ² The Best Ever?

John Osborne forced another punt, and good field position was provided again for the Explorers.

Maxwell started getting the ball, and ran for a first down to the 25 yard line. However, the ever-present Pownall intercepted an Aita pass to stop the threat. The half ended in a tie, 6-6, but La Salle consistently had the better field position.

La Salle received the second half kickoff, but a motion penalty, coupled with the Roxborough defense, forced another Explorer punt. Any attempts to go deep by the Indians were broken up by the stout Explorer defense, featuring Tom Boyle, Joe McNichol, Fred Shaughnessy, and Walt McDonald.

After a punt, La Salle started a drive that featured Maxwell.

Scotty gained two first downs to get the ball across midfield.

Aita gained another first down, but an offsides penalty stymied the Explorers and resulted in another Shaughnessy punt.

But the tide was changing in the middle of the line. The Explorer defensive line kept the Indians bottled up, and a long pass was intercepted by Shaughnessy, who returned the pilfered pigskin to the ,QGLDQVÂś 49 yard line.

Again, Roxborough stiffened and forced a punt that bounded into the end zone. Field position was still La 6DOOHÂśV and the Indians had to punt again, deep in their own territory. This punt was partially blocked by Ray Weinmann, and the Explorers were threatening yet again. Maxwell gained nine yards on two plays, and Herrera ran wide for thirteen yards to the Roxborough 16.

Again, the ball went to Maxwell, and he drove down to the 8yard line, and then gained 4 yards for a first-and-goal at the ,QGLDQVÂś 4-yard line to end the third quarter.

But the unbeaten Indians mounted a goal-line stand, and stopped the Explorers on four running plays to keep the game tied at 6-6 as the fourth quarter unfolded.

The Explorer defense came up with a great play on third and short, as Tom Yannessa broke through the line to tackle Pownall for a three yard loss back at the 9-yard line, and the ensuing short punt put the Explorers in striking distance.

It was now Maxwell time. Scotty ran the ball on five consecutive plays to bring the Explorers to a first and goal at the Roxborough 7 yard line.

Herrera ran the ball down to the 4 yard line, and Maxwell crashed through the line and into the end zone to give the Blue and Gold the lead. +HUUHUDÂśV extra point made the score 13-6, La Salle.

Roxborough was forced to put the ball in the air, and Bob 0LQLVVDOHÂśV pass over the middle was intercepted by Walt McDonald, and La Salle was knocking at the door again. After a gain by Woltemate, Maxwell picked up a first down at the 9 yard line. Woltemate slanted through the line down to the three yard line. Maxwell carried to the goal line, and on the next play, knifed through into the end zone. Despite the blocked extra point, the Explorers had a commanding 19-6 lead.

November 28, 1957: La Salle 39 ² Germantown 6: La Salle coasted over the outmanned Bears; over the last 4 games, the offense had scored an incredible 171 points!

Roxborough defeated Lincoln, 20-6, for their first Public League championship, as halfback Jimmy Pownall caught two touchdown passes from quarterback Bob Minissale. The Indians gave up only 4 touchdowns for the entire season, so far.

(Maybe just a surname coincidence, but the coach of the 1925 La Salle gridders was Billy Pownall.)

The City Title game would be played on December 7, 1957, at Franklin Field, home of the Penn Quakers, but not yet home of the Philadelphia Eagles. Snow fell a few days before the game, and the game was sure to feature difficult footing.

A film of the game was produced by Blue Cross-Blue Shield, allowing this writer to give you a detailed account of the La Salle victory over Roxborough.

Back to Franklin Field ² December 7, 1957: Roxborough was the opponent in the Inter-League Football Classic, as the City Title game was termed on the Blue Cross-Blue Shield film of that game. Franklin )LHOGœV sidelines were graced with snow, and a steady light rain, a two-day sprinkle, turned the already muddy field into a quagmire by the second half.

Both teams traded punts early on, but, halfway through the first quarter, ,QGLDQVÂś lineman George Reistad intercepted a Paul Aita pass deep in Explorer territory, and rumbled 24 yards into the end zone for a 6-0 lead, by all accounts the first time La Salle trailed all season.

La Salle was utilizing fleet Johnny Herrera on early runs, but turned to bigger Scotty Maxwell as the game wore on, and the field became more treacherous.

The Explorer defense was impenetrable, containing the Roxborough star back Jimmy Pownall to just short gains.

Late in the first period, La Salle notched the first two first downs of the game, and drove across midfield as the first period ended with Roxborough leading, 6-0.

A punt and a penalty pinned the Indians back on their 6-yard line, and field position was now in La 6DOOHÂśV favor, and would remain that way for the rest of the game. John Osborne tackled Pownall back at the two-yard line, forcing a punt that Joe McNichol returned to the 36. Herrera drove off right tackle for nine yards, and Aita then picked up the first down.

Herrera, the workhorse of this series, gained nine yards on the next two plays. On a 3rd and 1 on the Roxborough 14-yard line, Aita surprised the Indians by lofting a pass to Herrera heading toward the left flag, and Herrera skittered into the end zone for a tying TD (his extra point was blocked).

Roxborough mounted a drive that brought them out near midfield, but the Explorer defense held and forced a punt. The Indian defense stifled the Blue and Gold offense, and 6KDXJKQHVV\ÂśV punt kept the Indians in their own end of the field. Consecutive tackles for losses by Tom Yannessa and

99.

1957 Explorers ² The Best Ever?

La Salle brought in some of their second line defense for 5R[ERURXJK¶V last drive, and the Explorers withstood a couple of Indian first downs to close out the game and give the Explorers their second City Title in three years, 19-6.

Postscript A notable strength of this team in this game was its unprecedented depth. Flannery utilized 20 players as part of the regular rotations on both sides of the ball. The backfields each went just one-way: Aita, Herrera, Maxwell, Woltemate, and Gallagher were on offense, and McNichol, McDonald, Boyle, and Shaughnessy patrolled the defensive backfield.

Eustace and Heckler were designated defensive linemen, and Cunningham focused on his linebacker position. Dedicated offensive linemen as part of the rotation included Backauskas and Sharpe. Weinmann and Smith were ³ERRN´ ends on offense, and doubled up with linebacking duties. Buben, Yannessa, and Osborne played both ways on the line. )ODQQHU\¶V platoons and rotations helped to wear Roxborough down, as players stayed fresh with their breaks, other than Osborne, who never seemed to be off the field, and who got stronger as the game progressed.

The change to go to their bigger back, Scotty Maxwell, more in the second half on the muddy field also helped to decide this game. Many of 0D[ZHOO¶V runs reminded this scribe of Jim Taylor, the great Packer fullback of that time. Eyes older than mine may have seen Steve Van Buren out there instead.

Aita was a great signal caller, and executed the offense to perfection, despite the interceptions. His pass to Herrera for the first touchdown was a thing of beauty, needing to arc the ball over a shallow GHIHQGHU¶V head and drop it into the arms of the speedy Herrera.

The defense was like the Maginot Line, impenetrable, and giving Roxborough no real hope at mounting a scoring drive.

The Indians became impatient with their short runs into the line, and tried to exploit the Blue and Gold secondary, but the smothering coverage, along with interceptions by Shaughnessy and McDonald, offered no opportunity for the Indians to score on offense.

In both 1955 and 1957, La 6DOOH¶V defense kept the Public League champions off the board. The 1955 offense had more explosiveness, but the 1957 team overcame a muddy track and sluggish start to pound out three touchdowns and a victory.

Is 1957 the greatest La Salle team ever?

At first thought, an audacious statement, but OHW¶V do some analysis here. A ³JUHDWHVW´ team needs to be a champion, and lose very infrequently, or not at all. Based on that criteria, seven La Salle teams are worthy of consideration: 1917 (6-0-0); 1955 (10-0-0); 1957 (10-0-0); 1960 (9-0-1); 1996 (14-0-0); 1998 (12-1-0); and 2009 (14-1-0).

1917, led by the great Cy Simendinger, won a mythical Catholic schools title, but LW¶V difficult to analyze their capabilities with the limited documentation. The 1955 and 1960 teams offer the most direct comparisons. 1955 ran off 8 straight shutouts, only giving up 20 points in the first two games; 1957 scored 294 points, giving up just 67, many against the second team. 1960 also was stingy on defense, notching 7 shutouts, and giving up only 40 points while scoring 214.

The latter day teams had a much more high-flying offense.

1996 ran the table over 14 games, racking up 376 points while the defense had 7 shutouts and relinquished only 68 points.

1998 lost one game, but scored 320 points on their own. And the 2009 State Champions deserve consideration, amassing 456 points across 15 games. ,W¶V clear that statistics ZRQ¶W solve the issue of determining the greatest team, and maybe the arguments will continue forever.

But the 1957 team may have had the most players who went on to play college ball, and that certainly may be an indication of their ³JUHDWHVW´ qualifications.

Bill Clements went on to play at Notre Dame, as did Scotty Maxwell. Ray :HLQPDQQ¶V cranky knee kept him from accepting some scholarship offers, and instead joined his two teammates by matriculating at South Bend. Jerry Woltemate headed down the yet-to-be-built Blue Route to West Chester, and soph Barry Dunleavy packed his toothbrush and headed up to Colgate. Al Backauskas trekked further north to Cornell, and Frank Heckler went west to Detroit. Bob Smith became a Golden Eagle at Boston College, and two dropped anchor to become Middies in Annapolis, namely Harry Eustace and Tom Yannessa. Terry Monaghan went up to Happy Valley to play.

Paul Aita started out at Michigan, but eventually became a Penn Quaker; Bob Stranix joined him there on 34th Street.

Arnie Buben and John Osborne took their line play to the Main Line at Villanova. And Johnny Herrera joined the Marines; LW¶V not clear whether the Cuban Flash carried the ball beyond his years at 20th and Olney.

An incredible list of 14 players who went on to play college ball, and maybe even more than that. And they were all part of what may be the greatest team in La Salle football history, the 1957 City Champions.

Surely, the arguments for other great La Salle teams will keep the memories of that 1957 team alive!

Note: the Class of 1958 at La Salle is truly one of the special classes, having an annual dinner in early December, being very active in Alumni activities, and being always near the top of the list for all fund-raising efforts. That class has a special bond with each other, and the performance of the Boys of Fall of 1957 was a great opening act for their senior year.

100.

1957 Explorers 虏 The Best Ever?

Also, in September of 2012, the 1957 team became an inaugural member of the newly-formed Hall of Athletics at La Salle. In September of 2013, the 1996 team (14-0-0) joined them in the Hall; let the arguments begin!

Roster

Weinmann J. Monaghan

Dunleavy

Maxwell

Boyle

Solecki

Woltemate

Herrera

Smith

Haaf

Lange

J. Gallagher

Guarini Guarini

Shaughnessy

Aita

M. Gallagher

Conner

Buben

Sharpe

Backauskas

Moser

Cangelosi

Madden

McCarty

Clements

Osborne

T. Monaghan

Eustace

Stranix

Cook

Heckler

Igoe

Volk

2路*DUD

McTear

Cunningham

McNichol

F. Yannessa

Birchler

Tragemann T. Yannessa

Marks

McDonald

101.

Magrisi

Crowley

102.

Wisterian Headlines

103.

November 13, 1966 ² WE BEAT EGAN!! ³Winning is not everything ¹ but making the effort to win is.´ ¹ Vince Lombardi Football, of course, is just a game, just like the first collegiate game between Rutgers and Princeton back in 1869. But something happened along the way, and the game of football became a lot more than ³MXVW a JDPH´. It became an opportunity for young men, under the guidance of their coaches, and with an opportunity to work together as a team, to learn about many of OLIHœV lessons and experiences to be used beyond the football field.

Adversity, teamwork, dedication, belief in God, perseverance, respect for authority, leadership, patience, understanding, preparation, humility, and thirst for success are traits within a man that can be both revealed and developed as part of a football team. These traits carry on through a PDQÂśV life to shape everything about him, and those traits can be passed on to others. Football is not just a game.

Almost a half-century ago, and almost a century after that first college game, a group of young men on the La Salle College High School Football Team of 1966 experienced a season that revealed their character, culminating in ³MXVW a JDPH´ on Sunday, November 13, 1966, the day that ³:( BEAT EGAN´.

1954, and was also a History teacher at the school. He was an important part of the success of the undefeated 1955 City Champions, and he stayed at La Salle for one more year.

But his passion for coaching had him thirst for a head coaching job, and when the West Catholic job opened up after the 1956 season, he put in his application.

His chief competition was none other than Vince McAneney Âś47. After a year as an assistant at La Salle in 1953, McAneney then headed across the river to become an assistant at Camden Catholic (as well as JLUOVÂś Dick %HGHVHP Âś hoops coach!), but who also thirsted for a head coaching job.

Vince McAneney got that West Catholic head coach position, propelling him into a legendary career in coaching high school football.

Several years later, McAneney learned from the West Catholic principal that he was selected over Bedesem based on a coin toss. McAneney was ³KHDGV´ and ³KHDGV´ it was.

³7KLQJV turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.´ ¹ John Wooden ³)RRWEDOO is a great deal like life in that it teaches that work, sacrifice, perseverance, competitive drive, selflessness and respect for authority is the price that each and every one of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile.´ ¹ Vince Lombardi The 1965 version of the Explorer football team was the first Tex Flannery-coached La Salle squad to have a losing record.

That season was filled with a lot of controversy and drama, and resulted in La 6DOOHÂśV first losing season since 1952.

When the 1966 squad headed up to Camp Wyomissing, there was a concerted effort by all to avoid another such season.

Flannery and the other coaches ran a very tough camp, with ³WKUHH-a-GD\V´ a lot of contact drills, minimal water breaks, and the running of the ³KLOO´ after each practice.

Camp was, indeed, hell, but was later viewed as a characterbuilding experience that impacted the upcoming VHDVRQÂśV success, as well as each of those players throughout their lives. The 1966 football team came back from Camp Wyomissing fully prepared to make their season a memorable one.

Bedesem took his ³WDLOV´ elsewhere quite quickly, as brand new Bishop Egan High School in Fairless Hills was in need of a coach for their fledgling football team. In 1957, Bedesem started at Bishop Egan and by 1958, the Egan Varsity played a full schedule against many local Bucks County schools, and also squads from across the river in New Jersey.

The 0-8-1 record in 1958 left a lot of room for improvement, and by 1961 the Eagles were 8-1-1, and were now playing some of the local public high schools like Pennsbury, Neshaminy, and Woodrow Wilson. By the 1963 season, %HGHVHPÂśV charges were ready for entry into the Catholic League.

Between 1963 and 1970, Bishop Egan, under %HGHVHPÂśV tutelage, won 5 Catholic League Championships, certainly an achievement of dynastic proportions, only losing out to Father Judge in 1964, West Catholic in 1965, and the unbeaten Cardinal Dougherty squad in 1968.

By 1966, %HGHVHPÂśV well-oiled machine looked unstoppable.

At that time, two other unstoppable dynasties were in the midst of their great success, namely Vince /RPEDUGLÂśV Green Bay Packers, and John :RRGHQÂśV UCLA Bruins.

It would take a team of great resolve to have any chance of defeating the Bishop Egan Eagles in 1966.

The Bishop Egan Dynasty ³3HUIHFWLRQ is not attainable. But if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.´ ¹ Vince Lombardi Richard Bedesem was a great running back for La Salle in the late-40œV and he went on to play at Villanova. He came back to La Salle as an assistant coach under Jim Gallagher in

104.

November 13, 1966 ² WE BEAT EGAN!!

On Sunday, September 25, Bishop Egan manhandled the Bulldogs of St. James, 31-6, while La Salle took on the Catholic League defending champions, the Brother Burrs of West Catholic.

Spotting West a 6-0 lead, the Explorers scored twice in the second period on Kevin %UHWW¶V 53-yard run, and just before half, had a long drive culminating in Mark 1DZURFNL¶V short TD jaunt. Charlie =DSLHF¶V kick made it 13-6 at half. Another long drive in the 3rd quarter ended in Steve %XNRZVNL¶V 5-yard TD run, and the Explorers, despite a 1-yard TD run by the %XUUV¶ John Small, held off the defending champs, 19-12.

The Start Of The Season ³The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, or of knowledge, but in the lack of will..´ ± Vince Lombardi On Friday, September 9, Bishop Egan took on their archenemy, the Redskins of Neshaminy. John Petercuskie, 1HVKDPLQ\¶V great head coach, had resigned, but Neshaminy was still expected to be great. They had defeated the Eagles six straight times, including a 41-0 thrashing to start the 1965 season. Imagine the shock waves in Lower Bucks County when it was heard that Bishop Egan had reversed the score in 1966. Their 41-0 blanking of the Redskins signified an end to the Neshaminy dynasty; there was a new kid on the block out of Fairless Hills.

The following Friday, Egan had some trouble with Woodrow Wilson, but a safety and a disputed touchdown gave them a 90 win, and gave Wilson their only loss of the season.

Meanwhile, La Salle traveled up to Heartbreak Ridge to take on the wounded Redskins of Neshaminy. The game was scoreless until late in the third period, when Neshaminy scored after a drive. Early in the 4th period, La Salle was marching, but on fourth down, Mike 7HUQRVN\¶V pass was intercepted and returned for a 75-yard touchdown.

The Explorers were trailing, 13-0, with less than 5 minutes to play, but 7HUQRVN\¶V 50-yard TD pass to John Bryers, a fumble recovery after the kickoff, and Kevin %UHWW¶V 3-yard TD run tied the game. The game ended in a tie, 13-13, as the PAT was blocked.

La Salle had always played Neshaminy tough, but had no wins to show in their 4 previous meetings. The comeback to a tie from a 13-0 deficit was a boost in that ride home to Wyndmoor, but more work had to be done to provide assurance that this team was something special.

Mark Nawrocki

Chuck Zapiec

Steve Bukowski

This was a great win for the Explorers, against the defending champs who would go on to win the Southern Division. Still some wrinkles to work out, especially on defense, though they were successful in bottling up running back John Small.

The seniors seemed big, strong, and talented, and many juniors had stepped up to round out a fine squad. Some of the juniors played regularly, and were not required to play in the Monday JV game. Others had limited roles on the weekend, and got a chance to play a lot in that JV game.

Those juniors who saw limited Varsity time, as well as the sophomores, made up the ³0HDWEDOO´ squad, taking the hits from the Varsity as they worked their strategy for the next week in practice. They took a pounding during the week, and spent most of Sunday waiting, waiting for a chance to get in.

Crushing Losses

Mike Ternosky

John Bryers

The following Sunday, the ambitions and hopes of the team came crashing down. At McCarthy Stadium, the Royal Lancers of Bishop McDevitt, led by 3 TD passes from junior quarterback Drew Gordon, a former freshman at La Salle, came back from a 16-12 deficit to pin the first loss on the Blue and Gold, 19-16. It was 0F'HYLWW¶V first win ever against La Salle.

Spotting the Lancers a 6-0 lead, the ([SORUHUV¶ Mark Nawrocki zipped up the middle for a 60-yard TD, and =DSLHF¶V kick gave La Salle the lead at 7-6.

Tex Flannery gambled on a 4th and 2 at his own 30 with 4 minutes to go in the first half; the gamble failed, and Gordon led the Lancers to a touchdown and a 12-7 lead right before

Kevin Brett

³« we even had a German exchange student try out for the team and instead of having him kick an American football like he already knew how to kick a soccer ball, the coaches tried to make him kick straight away just like Americans did. What would have happened if they had just teed up the football and let him kick like he naturally did? History made!!!! ± Andrew Stephenson, ¶68

105.

November 13, 1966 ² WE BEAT EGAN!! the half ended. La Salle re-took the lead on %XNRZVNLœV 1yard run after a great punt return by Nawrocki, and Jim Moore added a safety by tackling a Lancer punt returner in his own end zone for a 16-12 lead, but *RUGRQœV heroics against his old school led to the shocking defeat.

practices during the week after the Judge loss were a veritable ³EORRG EDWK´ as they wanted to see who on the team wanted to quit. Fortunately, the seniors on this team took the frustration of the ass-whooping by Judge and the intense practices and developed a grim determination that brought them together as a team. To succeed, they would have to play the rest of the season knowing that it could not matter that they FRXOGQœW win the Catholic League. They would have to earn something that went way beyond championships; they would earn each RWKHUœV respect, and the respect of the coaches, the La Salle community, and their opponents. They would reveal character unlike any they ever expected.

Transformation

Rich Kurowski

³It does not matter how many times you get knocked down, but how many times you get up.´ ¹ Vince Lombardi On Saturday, October 15, Bishop Egan took undisputed possession of first place in the Northern Division with a 40-14 shellacking of a previously unbeaten North team.

The next day, La Salle headed to Northeast High School to combat the Cardinals of Cardinal Dougherty. La Salle had made some adjustments in the defensive backfield, as Kevin Brett and Mike Ternosky stepped in to shore up the pass defense.

The Maroon and Gold lost 5 fumbles and gave up an interception; Kevin %UHWWœV one-yard run, Joe .RKOHUœV two-yard run, and Gerry 0XUSK\œV 4th down pass to Kohler for a touchdown were all the points that La Salle needed in an 18-0 whitewash of Dougherty. ³ I had my surgery on Thursday and was the designated La Sallian sideline yardstick holder on the Dougherty side of the field I think the blood was still coming out of my nose as I watched the transformation of my teammates from the opposite side of the field. Dougherty thought they were going to walk all over this wounded La Sallian team. I dared not celebrate in enemy territory, but my blood rushed with Blue and Gold pride as we beat Dougherty in the trenches with a determination that spoke of redemption.´ ¹ Mike Whitaker, ¾68 (surgery on nose after Judge game)

Kurowski tackle vs. McDevitt

Meanwhile, Bishop Egan murdered Father Judge, 35-0. The following week, Egan had their way on Friday against Bishop Kenrick, 41-6. La Salle would have to go to Lincoln High School to take on Father Judge, who were trying to rebound after their big loss against Egan.

La Salle took an early 6-0 lead on Judge on Gerry 0XUSK\ÂśV 55-yard pass to John Bryers, but 3 fumbles and an interception allowed the Crusaders to build a comfortable 26-6 lead. 1DZURFNLÂśV 1-yard run got the Explorers to within two scores, but Judge scored again late in the 4th quarter, and humbled the Explorers, 33-12.

With two losses, and with Egan running the table, the Explorer quest for a championship season was now over.

Br. Martin Simpson, Dave Diehl, and Tex Flannery Character Development ³Sports do not build character, they reveal it.´ ¹ John Wooden Tex Flannery and the coaches were not going to allow this season to careen out of control like the previous year. The

Joe Kohler scores vs Cardinal Dougherty

106.

November 13, 1966 ² WE BEAT EGAN!!

Neighborhood Rivalries At this time in the mid-60ÂśV it seemed as though most of the players on La 6DOOHÂśV team would have went to Father Judge or Cardinal Dougherty if they did not go to La Salle, though there also was a core group from Lower Bucks County that would have been wearing the Royal Blue and White of Bishop Egan if they GLGQÂśW commute all the way to Wyndmoor. <RXÂśOO read about them later.

Prior to these games, the players who would be playing their neighborhood or parish friends would be more intense in practice, and hustling a lot more, in anticipation of that friendly matchup. But it seemed as though EVERY team got up for La Salle because every team was made up of players who were from the same neighborhood or parish as their La Salle friends. Every game was a personal ³ULYDOU\´ game for some of the players, but Judge and Dougherty seemed like the biggest; no way La Salle could lose to both in one season.

Jim Moore

Bill Cubbin

Bob Field

On Saturday, November 5, Egan advanced to 9-0 with a lambasting of Wood, 41-0. La Salle continued their momentum forward with a 27-6 victory over North at Lincoln High School, eliminating the Falcons from contention. In fact, the win over North assured that the Bishop Egan Eagles would win the Northern Division.

There was one remaining divisional game to play, on Sunday, November 13, 1966, at McCarthy Stadium.

The Buildup

Emergence Of A Team

³,WœV amazing how much can be accomplished if no one cares who gets the credit.´ ¹ John Wooden The stage was set for a great matchup. A team that would vie for a championship versus a team getting ready to play a championship game that they would not get to play. The defensive preparation for the game was outstanding, as the coaches identified every Egan weapon and then systematically devised a defensive formula to counter it.

But just as important as the preparation was the attitude of the team and its coaches; they fully expected to win this game. ³(DUO\ in the week Tex told us not to worry about his comments in the newspaper about how great Egan was because we were going to beat WKHP ´ ¹ Kevin Meehan, ¾68 An article was written in the Bucks County Courier Times on the Friday before the game. The article focused on the five La Salle players from Lower Bucks County, as well as Pete Brett, (JDQœV line coach, and uncle to Kevin Brett. It also talked about the La Salle connection that Bedesem had, as well as his relationship with Tex Flannery. Most of all, the article expressed concern that La Salle was indeed ready to spring an upset. And there was some jousting between Bedesem and Flannery.

³Individual commitment to a group effort ¹ that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.´ ¹ Vince Lombardi Bishop Egan continues their mastery of the Northern Division; on Sunday, October 23, they throttled Drew Gordon and McDevitt, 34-0. La Salle responds with their second consecutive shutout, a 26-0 decision over Bishop Kenrick.

Gerry Murphy and Mike Ternosky combined for 331 yards passing. Steve Bukowski ran 20 yards for a TD. Murphy passed to Joe Kohler for a 31-yard touchdown, and ran one in himself from 6 yards out. Ternosky found Kevin Brett for a 33yard TD pass to wrap up the scoring.

The La Salle defense was getting stronger and smoother as the season progressed. Individual roles on offense and defense were evolving into a selflessness that was apparent, as this team emerged while the individual personae disappeared. The transformation was complete.

On Sunday, October 30, Bishop Egan put Dougherty away, 40-6. La Salle, meanwhile, got a scare from Archbishop Wood, but pulled away from the Vikings in the second half, 2612. After Jim Moore partially blocked a Wood punt, La 6DOOHÂśV first play from scrimmage featured a 40-yard pass from Gerry Murphy to Kevin Brett to get the ball deep in Wood territory. A few plays later, backup running back Bill Cubbin scored from one yard out. %UHWWÂśV interception set up Mark 1DZURFNLÂśV 5-yard run to give La Salle a 13-0 lead, but the Vikings scored twice before the end of the half to pull to within 13-12. Cubbin scored again from 6 yards out on a sustained Explorer drive, and then, with 5 minutes to go in the 4th quarter, Bob Field sealed the game by blocking a punt on the Wood 24 and returning it for a touchdown. The entire team was contributing, and the Explorers had won three in a row.

George Komelasky, Al Bednarik, John Kent, and Mark Aita, who, along with Rich Kurowski, OLYHG LQ ´(JDQ WHUULWRU\¾

107.

November 13, 1966 ² WE BEAT EGAN!!

From the Bucks County Courier Times, Friday, November 11, 1966: Bedesem is prepared for La Salle. Flannery has been saying fine things about Egan for weeks. He rates Egan as the ³EHVW team in Pennsylvania.´ Bedesem ZRQœW buy his line. ³+HœV trying to lull our kids to sleep then whamo! ,WœV nice to hear those fine remarks but they should be said after the season. :HœUH not putting a lot of stock in them.´ The Egan coach feels this game is as important as any KHœV played. ³:HœYH won the title but we ZRQœW play under wraps. I personally want this game as much as any ZHœYH SOD\HG ´ Bedesem said.

Flannery, now in his 11th season, is keeping the fires burning. ³7KLV Egan WHDP ´ he said, ³MXVW mows people down. You always have to step back and admire them.

They will blow you right off the field.´ Bedesem digested the comment and then said in a stern tone, ³/D Salle is a typical Tex Flannery coached team.

They are real strong defensively. It will be a giant test for our offense. It will be a true test for our kids. I expect a real good game.´

Ed Stromberg Kevin Meehan Gerry Murphy Mike Whitaker

The game entered the fourth quarter scoreless, and the crowd was on their feet. Bishop (JDQÂśV offense was frustrated by the exuberant play of the La Salle defense, fully prepared for every onslaught. Big hits by defensive back Kevin Brett on sweeps, fingertip breakups of end-zone passes by defensive back Mike Ternosky, Charlie Zapiec playing like Charlie Bednarik, and a line that bent just a little but would not break kept the game scoreless with just a few minutes remaining.

Then, Pancho 0LFLUÂśV pass was intercepted by Kevin Meehan, who lateraled to Bill Cubbin, and the ball was brought back to about midfield. La Salle would get one more opportunity to score, with two minutes and 55 seconds left on the McCarthy Stadium clock.

The PLAY Mike Whitaker was a second-string end all year long, behind All-Catholic and All-World Charlie Zapiec. Whitaker had fully recovered from his nose injury incurred on a runback in the Judge game. He was one of those players who played JV on Monday due to his limited time on Sunday.

He was a student of the game, and while riding the bench, he watched the game, watched the opposition, and waited, waited, and hoped for a chance, which sometimes comes, but sometimes GRHVQÂśW. Âł,ÂśOO never know why my name got called with two minutes (and 55 seconds) to go in the game. Zapiec played both waysÂŤ to this day Charlie Zapiec nor I know why Tex chose to give him a breatherÂŤ I was ready!

We never ran a double wide formation. This was La Salle High, Tex Flannery offense, off tackle, off tackleÂŤ, but for some reason we put in one play during the week with two or perhaps three wideouts.

It was this formation that Coach Flannery sent in with me into the game. I knew Egan was confused, and I knew I could beat the linebacker over the middle, and told that to Gerry Murphy in the huddle.

I had a hard time getting off the line of scrimmage. The ball was on the fifty-yard line. When I got past the linebacker, I turned and looked to Murphy. A perfect pocket had formed around him as he cocked his arm. It was a perfectly thrown pass. Tight spiral.

I can see it today as clear as I could on the 13th of November, 1966. I got caught from behind at the goal line, and my knees touched down over the line.´ ¹ Mike Whitaker, ¾68

The GAME On Sunday, October 13, 1966, those other Eagles journeyed to &OHYHODQGÂśV Municipal Stadium, where the Browns pummeled the Birds, 27-7. These Eagles would win their remaining 4 regular season games to end up 9-5.

The Bishop Egan Eagles would not be traveling that far. Their journey from Fairless Hills to Olney Heights was an easy one, and their well-coached highly skilled group of players wanted this game badly, on their way to a 13-0 record. It was a cold day, that November the 13th, in North Philadelphia.

The game started, and from the outset, the La Salle defense met the Egan offense head on, led by linemen Mark Aita, Ed Stromberg, George Komelasky, and Charlie Zapiec. La Salle bent but did not break, as the Eagles penetrated the La Salle 20 for as many as a reported 8 times, and came away with nothing. A second quarter field goal attempt by Chuck Wright was blocked by the Explorers.

The Blue and Gold was able to stop running back Irv Whalen, who had only 34 yards on 15 carries, and also harassed the great Egan quarterback Sylvester ³3DQFKR´ Micir into throwing two interceptions.

Egan ended up running 75 offensive plays to La 6DOOHÂśV 50, and it just seemed like a matter of time before the Eagles would crank up their offense and get a score. And Egan almost did score, but a dropped pass in the end zone kept them off the board.

But the La Salle defense just would not let them score.

108.

November 13, 1966 ² WE BEAT EGAN!!

Afterthoughts

Final Postscripts

³.I firmly believe that any PDQœV finest hours ¹ his greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear ¹ is that moment when he has worked his heart out in good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle ¹ victorious.´ ¹ Vince Lombardi Bishop Egan recovered from the La Salle loss to obliterate Notre Dame of NJ, 60-6, the following week, a tuneup for the Catholic League Championship against defending champion West Catholic, who also lost to La Salle earlier in the season.

The Eagles beat the Burrs easily, 39-6, for Dick %HGHVHPÂśV second Catholic League title. They won the City Title, too, 270, over an overmatched Ben Franklin team.

Bishop Egan ended the season with 12 wins and one loss.

The seniors on that Bishop Egan team still say that the La Salle loss ruined their senior year, and that it was the worst day of their lives.

(In hindsight), ³7H[ (Flannery and Dave (Diehl) wanted to make the team more than just football players. The support that the team received from the administration, faculty, and student body was tremendous. The only regret I have is that we could not add a trophy to La 6DOOHœV showcase but I guess in other ways we did leave sort of a legacy. A half-century later that game is still brought up as I see many of my fellow classmates at different venues. It ZDVQœW a championship but to us it still was the ¾*$0(œ.´ ¹ Steve Bukowski, ¾67 For the La Salle student body, the game and the celebration has made for warm memories, of a school, its football team, and its student body being as one. The Egan victory meant nothing to the neighborhood friends; for RQHœV La Salle friends, the Egan victory was a shared experience that has lasted till this day, and beyond.

The camera crew filming that game for La Salle was stationed up on the third floor of Wister Hall. There was one play that they did not capture on film, because the reel was being changed. It was, of course, ³7KH 3/$<´. The new reel started with a blackboard shot that said ³/D Salle 6-0´ and then they filmed the last minutes of the game. Pete Brett, the Egan line coach, and uncle of Kevin Brett, graciously allowed the La Salle team to watch the Egan film of the game.

Dick Bedesem went on to coach at Archbishop Wood, Villanova, and other schools, before becoming head coach at Delaware Valley College in 1987. Delaware 9DOOH\ÂśV team physician was none other than Dr. Mike Whitaker. When each season would begin at Del Val, Bedesem would look at Dr. Whitaker and just shake his head.

There was a part of him that just FRXOGQÂśW believe that, in the fall of 1966, on a cold day in November, that one of his best high school teams ever, got beat by La Salle High on McCarthy 6WDGLXPÂśV field.

After the completion of the season, Bishop Egan was ranked 5th in the nation.

Jack 6FKDOOHUÂśV article in the Wisterian about the Egan game was initially a disappointment to me, as my research was thirsting for details about each drive, each possession, and game stats.

But as I read -DFNœV words, written just days after the game, I realized how aware he was of the journey to that game, the immediate impact of that game, and how that game would be remembered. Here are some of -DFNœV words from his article: ³Despite the expressions of astonishment that anyone could possibly defeat such an overwhelmingly powerful team manifested in the daily papers, most ardent La Salle rooters knew that such a victory was not the least bit unrealistic.´ (after the Judge loss) ³$W this point the team found themselves with their backs to the wall. Even should they win all of their remaining games, someone besides the Explorers would have to defeat Bishop Egan to force a tie for the Northern division crown. Faced with such dismal hopes, the team could easily have mentally written off the season as a failure and could have just gone through the motions of playing football in the final five games.´ ³%XW they GLGQœW. the fact that the team played well enough to win five games in a row and allow only 18 points scored against them is certainly indicative of the tremendous ability and perseverance possessed by each individual member of the ball club.´ ³7KH (Egan) game  showed the city that the only one really capable of honestly predicting the outcome of this game were the players themselves. They went into the game convinced that they ZHUHQœW inferior, and consequently, they neutralized a great part of (JDQœV advantage. Half the game was won already. The other half was all dependent on ability Egan was unable to contain a pesky Explorer attack which kept edging its way closer and closer each time they were handed the ball by the defense. This perseverance eventually enable Mike Whitaker to snare Gerry 0XUSK\œV pass on the 36 and take it in all the way. 7KDWœV all the team asked for; with the way the defense was shaping up, one score was all that was necessary.´ ¹ Jack Schaller, œ67 At the Catholic League Championship game between Bishop Egan and West Catholic, held at Franklin Field, some La Salle seniors unfurled a banner which said: ³:H Beat Egan, We Beat West, Who The Hell Says We $UHQœW The %HVW"´ Remember Sunday, November 13, 1966, the day that WE BEAT EGAN!

109.

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KEITH ADAMS

SEAN ADAMS

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SEAN ADAMS, REALTOR® Class of ‘04, Coach Cell: 215.913.6680 Office: 215.487.3300 x467 SeanAdams@EWRhomes.com KEITH ADAMS, REALTOR® Class of ‘98 Cell: 215.605.1027 Office: 215.487.3300 x460 KAdams@EWRhomes.com