Bob Commings is concerned about the inability of his team to be consistent offensively and concerned about the Tigers and their fans having a letdown.
“We must keep the faith above all,” the Washington high head football coach said after his team had shut out a tough Youngstown Ursuline team 21-0 before 11,708 fans Friday night at Tiger stadium. “We’re going into a big game next week at Upper Arlington.”
COMMINGS WAS concerned because it was the second straight week in which his charges failed to move the ball in crucial situations. They also have yet to show the big scoring play.
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“Three quarters of the way our offense looks so good,” he said. “The thing that is killing us is that we’re not getting the short yardage plays. When you only punt once, you’re doing something right. If we get our short yardage, we’ll be a fine team. Our defense was intact and our specialty teams came through, giving us the ball in good field position.”
Urusline rookie Coach Jim Maughan agreed, saying, “Massillon is well coached. Quarterback Kevin Westover and tailback Tom Hannon are two of the better players we’ve seen. When the Tigers get their timing better, they have the material and will go all the way. I wish Bob all the best. He’s a fine gentleman.”
Commings knew that the Ursuline defense had given his Massillonians fits.
“We’ve had to extend ourselves twice now (meeting tough teams on successive Fridays),” he said of his charges second victory in as many starts.
URSULINE’S SECOND defeat with no wins was equally as tough for Maughan to take. The Fighting Irish were dealt two severe blows in losing senior quarterback Mike Banks with a concussion at the beginning of the second stanza and senior 208-pound guard Dan Miklos a few minutes earlier.
“When you lose a quarterback it’s tough to put a man like Greg Cerimele, a junior who has never played before, into a game at Massillon. He did a tremendous job. It hurt to lose Miklos too. We were out-physicaled in the end.”
Ursuline’s furthest penetration was to the 25 in the final frame.
The Tigers rolled up 299 yards while holding the Irish to 123. The Orange and Black rolled from 20-yard line to 20-yard line but failed at the 26, 13 and 10-yard lines in the first half and 16 and 18 in the second half.
“You have to give our kids all the credit in the world,” Maughan said. “When you hold a team to two touchdowns in four quarters, that’s pretty good. One touchdown was a gift.” * * * HE MEANT the second of Hannon’s jaunts – a five-yarder off right tackle with 7:19 left in the game. The Irish gambled on fourth and five from their 29, but strong safety Don Muhlback plowed into junior tailback Wes Hodge who had run well all night and brought him down at the line of scrimmage.
Hannon scored six plays later on first down and Muhlback booted the conversion.
The bespectacled senior was there when it counted all night with a nine-yard punt run back to set up a TD, another for 20 yards, a 31-yard interception return and a conversion pass to fullback Alex Wood, Muhlback had intended to kick but the snap was bad, holder Darrell Bickford flipped the ball to Muhlbach, he ran to his left and then passed.
Another bad snap spoiled his field goal attempt from the 17.
The groovy-hipped Hannon, for the second consecutive week, picked up over 100 yards – this time 109 net in 22 carries. He also threw in punt runbacks of 6, 37, 13, 9 and 23 yards to go with his twin TDs. The last return almost resulted in a touchdown except Ursuline’s Tim Tinker got a hand in the way at the right time at the Irish 33. * * * AFTER MUHLBACH’S punt runback in the second quarter, the Tiger’s marched from the Ursuline 35 in seven plays. Hannon raced over right tackle from 14 yards out with 4:55 left. Muhlbach’s conversion saver followed.
Senior wingback Terry Edwards scored the final TD after Hannon had almost gone the route on his fourth quarter punt runback. Four plays later from the Urusline 21 on second down, Edwards caught a Kevin Westover aerial on the two and fought two defenders to get into the end zone with 1:29 left.
Westover’s conversion run was inches short.
Two Tiger fourth period efforts were brought in an abrupt halt when Cerimele intercepted a pass on his five and John Herman one on his 20. Cermeile’s pilfer nullified a 53-yard Westover pass to senior tight end Dave Bodiford in which Bodiford ran 20 yards to put the ball on the Ursuline 20.
Tiger senior middle guard Tom Balizet broke through to nail Banks at the beginning of the second stanza when the Irish were rolling at the Massillon 45. Balizet grabbed the rolling pigskin at the Irish 35 and raced to the 20, but the Obiemen ran out of gas there.
It was on this play, unfortunately, that Banks was put out of commission.
It’s a whole new ball game for Augie Bossu this season, but it’s the same old story for the Massillon Tigers. They’re still a prime target for the skipper of the Cleveland Benedictine Bengals.
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Cleveland’s defending city champions will help the Tigers open the season at Tiger stadium Friday at 8 p.m. The former East Senate league high school team has gone 9-1 in the past four seasons with the only defeat each time being here at the hands of the Orange and Black. * * * “WE’RE APPROACHING this season differently,” Bossu said today. “It’s something new for us. In the past we have played two or three top teams and let the rest of the schedule take care of itself. Now we believe we have a representative schedule and a tremendous challenge. There are teams aiming for us who have never played us before.”
Among these aggregations are Dover, Willoughby South, Erie, Pa., East, Collinwood and Parma Padua to name some in the 1971 Senate champs taste of independent competition.
“It puts a lot of pressure on us to play Massillon first,” Bossu said. ‘Our coaching staff is small and there’s an awful lot to be done. We make early mistakes which we must correct later. We can’t afford those mistakes against a good one like Massillon and stay in the game.”
Bossu did not comment on whether he figured meeting the Tigers would be a different kind of experience this time because of a varied Massillon attack.
“The Tigers will be strong in whatever phase of the game they should be,” the 18-year veteran coach said. “They always have the best in material.” * * * THE BENGALS have won three scrimmages and Bossu was interested to hear that the Tigers won one and had another rained out, but did not comment on whether or not he thought this would be of benefit to his team.
It will be the same type of hard-charging, hard-hitting Benedictine team as in other years facing WHS Friday. Bossu will use variations of the “I” offensively and six-man front defense.
When asked if he agreed with Massillon Coach Bob Commings that the Bennies would be bringing the best team here since Commings came to town in 1969, Bossu replied, “We don’t have the speed we had then, but we’re a little heavier.”
In that year, the Bengals lost 22-20, but threw a scare into the Tigers when will-o-the-wisp halfback Jim Kacivinsky scored twice in the second half. “We have about half a dozen boys back who played regularly last year,” Bossu said. * * * SENIORS ARE quarterback Duane Petrovich (5-10, 175) and right halfback Jim Teresczuk (5-11, 191), two-way halfback Pat Moriarty (6-1, 160), offensive tackle Rick Switalski (6-5, 235), offensive halfback-middle linebacker Mike Woods (6-2, 217) and punter Paul Friery, also an offensive end and cornerback (6-2, 162).
Juniors are center-defensive guard John Glowik (6-1, 188), junior cornerback Al Keller (5-11, 160) and fullback-defensive end Gerald Modzelewski (6-0, 200), a distant relative of former Cleveland Browns star Dick Modzelewski.
Woods could be a key to the Bengals’ chances Friday night. He’s a powerful runner and roams well from his linebacking spot.
“He hasn’t done it yet,” Bossu said, “He’s a possible threat if we can get him to the line and find room for him to get through.”
Tiger Coaches say Woods reminds them of Willie Spencer, the Orange and Blacks’ all-everything tailback last year. But Woods was not listed as an offensive started for Friday.
Besides Switalski on the hefty side on the offensive line, there’s junior Frank Malec (6-2, 245). Defensively, junior John Nemeth (6-1, 250) and Jeff Mazer (6-1, 200) will man the tackle slots. * * * COMMINGS IS toying with the idea of experimenting with the tie-breaker rule. The decision will be made week by week, after conferring with opposing coaches. The All-American has not approved the modified new rule.
Tigers Sputter but win opener 15-6
By CHUCK HESS, JR. Independent Sports Editor
New Massillon Washington High Trainer, Bill Meier may unknowingly have made the best assessment of Friday night’s opening Tiger football game when he passed on to this reporter a small orange-and-black badge in the dressing room following the game.
“Together there’s so much we can do” was written on the badge. It was by sticking together to play great defense during a spotty offensive performance that the Tigers edged a tough Cleveland Benedictine team 15-6 before 12,181 fans and it should be by sticking together to work hard in practice next week that the Orange and Black will show their faithful that the Tigers the fans saw Friday night were not the true Obiemen of 1972.
THE LONE offensive bright spot was the running of tailback Tom Hannon. The groovy-hipped senior carried 27 times for a net 145 yards after having only lugged the pigskin four times in one pre-season scrimmage and five in another. He was fighting a couple of painfully cramped legs Friday night.
The real Tigers just don’t lose four of six fumbles, get penalized 87 yards and get to the four, the two, the one and the half-yard line and not score. All four times the huge Benedictine defense held admirably.
But the Tigers put it to the Bennies just too often and as veteran Benedictine boss, Augie Bossu said, “You can only be on defense so often and then something’s going to happen.”
Benedictine did not feel his team wore down but Tiger Coach Bob Commings said, “We appeared to have more steam left than they did,” when asked why his charges seemed to catch fire in the fourth quarter when they switched to the fullhouse T. “I thought we played a real gutty game.”
“We didn’t play any differently in the last quarter,” Bossu declared.
COMMINGS reminded he had been telling the Tigers all week that they would be playing a fine team Friday.
“If we had been sharper, we could have blown them into oblivion,” Commings said. “For the first game of the year, I thought our passing game was excellent, but we’ve got to concentrate on making the sure catch.”
The fourth quarter was when the Tigers put the clincher on the contest which saw both teams capitalize and fail to capitalize on the others miscues. Linebacker Charlie Swann picked off a Duane Petrovich pass on the Benedictine 35-yard line and returned to the 20.
Quarterback Kevin Westover found tight end Dari Edwards on the two on the next play. Don Muhlbach kicked the conversion with 5:11 left.
The Tigers had one more chance in the goodbye canto when tackle Tim Graber scooped up Pat Moriarty’s bobble on the Benedictine 28, but five plays later Westover bobbled the snap on the four and guard Manuel Martinez covered on the four. * * * NEITHER TEAM scored in the first half when Massillon had 38 plays to Benedictine’s 25. The Tigers took the opening kickoff and moved from their 35 to the two only to have Westover’s pitchout go awry on fourth down.
Ten and 14-yard passes to Edwards and split end Greg Sullivan respectively helped open up the Benedictine defense and may be the answer to ensuing games because the short power game wasn’t there Friday night. With the help of two 15-yard and one five-yard award the Tigers moved to the one after a punt. There halfback Gerald Modzelewski and guard John Glowick brought down Hannon.
Benedictine’s Paul Friery quick kicked from the end zone on first down. The Tigers used one series, punted and Hannon recovered when the ball hit the safetyman and bounded to the 14. That series came to an abrupt halt on the 24.
Sophomore Tim Gutshall intercepted a Petrovich pass on the 25 and ran to the 20, but the Tigers got stalled again – on the 33.
From there, Benedictine mounted a drive to the Massillon 28 but lost the ball on downs, thanks to tackle Bill Csonka. The Bennies also moved from their 46, after another Tiger effort had failed to the Massillon 21 – largely on 11-yard and 22-yard passes from Petrovich to Friery and end Dick Schutte, respectively.
Tom Seres’ field goal attempt was wide left. * * * HALFBACK JIM TERESCZUK fumbled the second half kickoff, Jim Jackson covered on the Cleveland 40, Hannon took a Westover pitch and raced 30 yards around the left side to the 10, two plays later from there through the center to the one and almost swept left end for the score on the next play but middle backer Mike Woods stuck a hand out at the last minute and tripped him on fourth down.
Friery punted badly out of bounds on the Benedictine 30 on third down and Hannon – with a good second effort – squeezed through left tackle on the first play for the touchdown with 8:32 left.
Benedictine’s lone TD came when Woods recovered Jackson’s third period fumble on the Massillon 13 and the Bennies rammed the ball in in three plays with Moriarty carrying 10 yards through right tackle to the four and Petrovich sneaking over from the one-half yard line two plays thereafter with 1:09 remaining.
Muhlback missed the kick but a procedure penalty against Benedictine netted a second chance and a Hannon run between right guard and right tackle.
Linebacker Brian Bash broke through to snare Petrovich as he was about to pass for the conversion.
With the Tigers moving back up field after the kickoff, Jay McGuire fumbled with Martinez covering on the Massillon 47. However, Csonka picked up a fourth quarter bobble at the Tigers’ 37 to halt that attempt.
“I think failing to get in that scrimmage at Warren Western Reserve last week hurt us in two ways,” Coming said after the game. “We didn’t get a chance to get into our pre-arranged goal line defense or into punt returns.”
TIGERS BLAST BULLDOGS 29-6 Nifty Line Play Is Victory Key In 76th Game
By BOB STEWART Repository Sports Editor
The Massillon Tigers came to town Saturday and in two hours at Fawcett Stadium showed the more than 21,000 fans a football aggregation that belies its 8-2 season record.
In a scholastic grid contest unquestionably decided in that 11-inch space known as the line-of-scrimmage the Tigers turned in a 29-6 triumph over the upset-minded but undermanned McKinley Bulldogs.
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Massillon finished the season in third place in the All-American Conference with a 3-2 mark. However, the Tigers were but two slender points away from an undefeated season and possibly state recognition.
The pair of one-point losses, to Warren and Niles, made the difference between the Tigers being in contention for the state title, or also-rans in the state and conference.
McKinley concluded its season with a 7-2-1 mark, losing to Warren and tying Niles. The Bulldogs finished fourth in the six-team conference with a 2-2-1 effort. Tigers Dominate Series 41 to 30 The victory by Massillon ups its lead in the 76-game rivalry to 41-30, with five games ending in ties. The Tigers have won 12 of the last 15 contests.
Massillon’s Willie Spencer ran for two Tiger TDs and defensive end Derry Edwards had a day he’ll not soon forget as he intercepted two McKinley passes and ran both back for touchdowns, one 76 yards and the other 58.
Willie Spencer Sr. leaps for a score vs. Canton McKinley
But in spite of the fact Spencer’s 12 points gave him the Stark County scoring title for 1971 and he gained 142 yards in 33 carries Saturday to reign as the star runner, the glory for the Tigers belonged to the offensive and defensive linemen.
It was center Steve Studer, guards Scott Graber, Randy Heck and Bruce Christoff, tackles Glenn Weirich and Andre Heath and ends Bob Stephan and Mike McGuire who made the Massillon offense go with their devastating blocking.
In the defensive line, some of the names were the same. Stephan, a great one at 6-3 and 207 pounds, Weirich, the alert Edwards, Studer, end Todd Cocklin and middle guard Larry McLenndon, who doubles as the “other” runner in the Tiger backfield and added 64 yards in 12 rushes to the Massillon cause.
The defensive line put tremendous pressure on McKinley quarterback Jimmy Vance, causing a total of four interceptions. On Edwards’ first TD theft, the pass was deflected by the on-rushing Tiger defensive line.
And the Tigers blocked McKinley’s extra-point kick attempt.
The offensive line, anchored by center Studer in the middle and Stephan on the right side, ripped the Bulldogs defense to allow the backs to pile up 288 yards rushing.
So overwhelming was the Tiger line in the first quarter that Massillon controlled the ball for 23 plays to McKinley’s three. The Pups gained a yard on each of three running plays in that stanza.
Pups’ Big Pain Is Tigers’ Offensive Line Commings Calls It ‘Sweet’
By ART SCHROCK
The sunshine on the leaves of the trees around Fawcett Stadium made the normal yellow color appear a Massillon orange.
Yes, it was a Saturday afternoon for the Massillon Tigers – a game which Massillon Coach Bob Commings termed “a sweet one.”
“Anytime you beat McKinley, it is a great win,” said Commings, dripping wet after being tossed in the shower. *** THE TIGERS gave McKinley’s Bulldogs a steady diet of backs Willie Spencer and Larry “Pookie” McLenndon, with emphasis on the former and the result was a 29-6 triumph.
Spencer, the 6-foot-2, 215-pound senior tailback, ran with reckless abandon as he led the Tigers. In the big fourth quarter, he couldn’t be stopped on short-yardage situations.
After the Bulldogs closed the deficit to 13-6 with 33 seconds left in the third stanza, Commings called on Spencer to get the first downs when two and three yards were needed. Spencer never failed once on the drive which led to a big touchdown with 5:34 left. *** “WE TOOK IT, to them,” said Commings. “We ran basic football. There was nothing nifty about it, McLenndon and Spencer ran hard. It was just great they way they ran.”
Commings said the shift of Spencer from end on offense to running back this season, “was the move of the year.”
“McKinley hung in there,” said the Massillon mentor.
“The realization of those two one-point losses (to Niles 7-6 and Warren 8-7) sets in. But people now know this is one of the best teams they’ve seen around here.”
“We received an excellent job from the defensive secondary. Hannon (Tom), Thompson (Art); Nussbaumer (Hank) and Jackson (James) all were great. Bill Wonsick came in and did a helluva job.”
Wonsick was a replacement for Jackson, who limped off the field at the start of the fourth quarter. *** COMMINGS also lauded the right guard, Scott Graber, who was the only Tiger on the injured list before the game.
“Scott played the whole game on offense and he hadn’t played one minute in practice all week.” *** “IT’S EVEN bigger than last year because this is my last year. I messed up my knee a little,” said McLenndon, who gained the game’s initial first down with second effort.
Asked if he saved anything for the game with McKinley, Spencer smiled and said: “Everything I had, I saved. I hit my head on a piece of steel out of bounds, but I’m okay now.”
After being injured slightly in the third quarter, Willie jumped up and immediately went back into the game.
Dave Gable, the Tigers’ offensive tackle coach, called the team’s line play the best of the year.
“We deserved a good game. Two penalties cost us. One cost us a touchdown,” said Gable.
QUARTERBACK Scott Dingler, a senior who will go to college but one who hadn’t had a college offer when he was interviewed, added: “We buried them once we started moving.”
“I didn’t call the plays. Most of them come from the bench. Some come from up in the press box. Our defense did the great job they have done all year. It is the biggest thrill of my life,” said the signal caller.
“We knew it,” remarked Commings when asked if he was aware of the pass-catching ability of McKinley’s Artis Zachary, “but we couldn’t do anything about it.”
NICK VROTSOS, the Massillon assistant coach, was on the field end of the phone to the Tiger aides in the press box. He thought for a moment prior to the start of the game that there was a bad connection and of course, he was concerned about some “bugging”.
One fan yelled at Commings, “Why did you take the penalty?” after the Bulldogs scored their lone touchdown on a third-and-seven situation.
The Bulldogs would have had possession with fourth-and-one on the Tigers’ two if the Tigers had not taken the penalty for illegal procedure.
STATISTICS MASS. McK. Total First Downs 22 12 First Downs Rushing 20 4 First Downs Passing 2 8 First Downs Penalty 0 0 Total Offensive Plays 71 45 Net Yards Rushing 288 93 Net Yards Passing 21 162 Mis. Yardage (net) (1-23) 15 Total Offensive Yardage 286 270 Ave. Yds. Per Play (net) 4.0 6.0 Passes Comp.-Att. 4-7 10-20 Passes Had Intercepted 1 4 Net Gain Per Pass 3.0 8.1 Punts 1-29 2-71 Punts Return –Yds. 1-11 0-0 Kickoff Returns-Yds. 2-52 5-79 Interception Returns-Yds. 4-149 1-0 Fumbles-Fumbles Lost 3-1 1-0 Penalties-Yards 5-50 2-10
Passing aids 36-6 victory 105 second-quarter air yards best season effort
By CHUCK HESS, JR. Independent Sports Editor
Quarterback Scotty Dingler rang the bell and his receivers caught fire to make the effort unanimous.
Getting their passing game going after several disappointed attempts this season, was important to the Massillon Tigers for it made rushing a lot easier and could arm their arsenal a lot more effectively for next Saturday’s season finale against arch-rival Canton McKinley. * * * WASHINGTON HIGH’S charges downed their second oldest protagonist, the Alliance Aviators, 36-6 before 11,076 in the curtain closer Friday night at Tiger stadium.
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The Tigers upped their slate to 7-2 while dropping Alliance to 4-5. The WHSers evened their All-American conference record for four tilts to stay in fourth and saddled the Aviators with their fourth loss against no wins.
Dingler completed five passes in six tries in the second quarter, connecting with wingback Art Thompson for a touchdown, fullback Tom Hannon and split end Mike McGuire for 105 yards – the best effort of the season. The Tiger aerial show didn’t connect on a couple of second half efforts, but its prior-to-the intermission performance must have been enough to give McKinley Coach John Brideweser’s scouts cause for consideration.
Dingler hit McGuire on a 14-yard combination to offset a five-yard delay penalty. Scotty found Thompson for 15 to sidetrack a five-yard procedure call, hit Hannon in the flat and Tom ran 25 yards for a first down at the Alliance 30, but the Tigers ran out of gas at the four, four plays later; after a 14-yarder through the middle by Larry McLenndon.
However, the Orange and Black came back after the next punt and moved 45 yards in two plays to score with four seconds left. Dingler hit the Thompson target both times, one for 24 yards to the Alliance 31 and another into Art’s nifty embrace in the center of the end zone.
Dingler’s kick was off to the right. * * * “SCOTTY COULDN’T have laid the ball in there much better,” Coach Bob Commings said. “I’m pleased with the poise with which we threw the ball. The protection was good. I thought the offensive line settled the issue, blocking well, particularly in the first half.” Former Tiger assistant Gene Nara, now the head man at Alliance, had another version: “We gave Dingler too much time to throw.”
His TD pass may have been the key to the Aviators’ loss.
“If we had been down only 14-6 at the end of the first half, it would have been easier to come back,” Nara said.
Alliance continued to have the passing troubles it has experienced all year, failing to complete 11, with a lot of credit going to the Massillon secondary for alert coverage. * * * THE AVIAITORS had their chances in the second half, getting 44 plays to the Tigers’ 19, but couldn’t move the ball past the WHS 21.
“Bob went to a stack defense with a stunt and I think he used a safety blitz one time,” Nara said. “We weren’t picking it up.”
The Tigers were in what Commings calls a goal-line go, putting Hank Nussbaumer, the strong safety, in the go position.
The Orange and Black opened the scoring with a 49-yard run off left tackle by tailback Willie Spencer on the game’s fourth play from first down.
Dingler kicked the conversion with 10:05 on the clock.
Alliance’s score came late in the first quarter after Rick got off only a 15-yard punt and the Aviators drove 42 yards in five plays with a 14-yard pass-run from quarterback Bill Anderson to halfback Joe Tucker setting up a first down on the Massillon 27. * * * TWO PLAYS later junior halfback Dan Contrucci charged through the middle from the 25, giving nice second and third efforts. However, with 1:20 showing, Anderson fumbled the pigskin as the Aviators tried for two and was stopped short.
The Tigers marched 80 yards in seven plays after the kickoff with Spencer scoring off right tackle and cutting back on second down from the Alliance 35 with 5:46 left in the second stanza. Dingler’s 16-yard right end keeper and Spencer’s 17-yarder over left guard helped.
Dingler kicked the conversion.
Alliance punted after its first third quarter series and Hannon flashed his groovy hips for 51 yards to put the ball on the Alliance four. Two plays later Dingler smashed through the center from the one on a third down with 9:06 on the lights.
He passed to McLenndon playing fullback in the absence of injured Don Perry, to put two more points on the total.
The final tally came when a fourth-down snap went over Contrucci’s head and twins Dari and Terry Edwards and Todd Cocklin hauled Contrucci down on the Alliance six. McLenndon raced around left end on the ensuing play with 6:08 left in the goodbye frame. * * * JUNIOR TAILBACK Jim Jackson slashed off right tackle for the final two points.
The Tigers might have had another TD, but junior wingback Terry Edwards fumbled on the Alliance 23 after brother Dari had recovered an Aviator fumble on the 21. Ron Kuceyeski recovered for the Carnation City team.
SCORING SUMMARY M – Spencer, 49 run (Dingler kick); A – Contrucci, 25 run (run failed); M – Spencer, 35 run (Dingler kick); M – Thompson, 31 pass from Dingler (kick failed); M – Dingler, 1 run (McLenndon, pass from Dingler); M – McLenndon, 9 run (Jackson run).
GRID STICK M A First downs, rushing 11 4 First downs, passing 4 5 First downs, penalties 1 3 Total first downs 16 12 Yards gained rushing 234 105 Yards lost rushing 5 72 Net yards gained rushing 229 33 Net yards gained passing 105 52 Total yards gained 334 85 Passes completed 5-8 11-24 Passes intercepted by 0 0 Kickoff average (yards) 6-44.9 2-45.0 Rest is missing
OFFICIALS Referee – Ted Humphrey. Umpire – Ted Deutsch. Head Linesman – Stan Evans. Field Judge – Hugh Davis. Back Judge – Beauford Hatfield.
Tiger Coach Bob Commings had the right idea when he said, “This isn’t the quitting point. You’ve got to gut it out and come back.” * * * HE MADE the rounds of all his players to make sure they knew there were a couple of tough All-American conference games left against Alliance and Canton McKinley and that Tigertowners will be solidly rooting for a rebound in the knowledge they still have an outstanding football team representing them.
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The word rebound could likewise be applied to the Warren Harding Black Panthers’ effort before 20,648 – the season’s largest crowd at Tiger stadium – Friday night. After dropping behind 7-0 in the first period, they came back for an 8-7 victory, probably the AAC title and state Class AAA championship and their first win here since 1944.
The Washington high team, defending champions in both, dropped 6-2 overall; 1-2 in the league and fourth place Harding is 8-0 and 4-0.
“They had the courage to come back and you must respect them for that,” Commings said.
Harding Coach Tom Batta was thrilled with the “great job” done by his defense. “When 175 and 180-pounders give you that type of performance, it’s some effort!”
He was also happy with the way his team moved the ball. * * * HE ADMITTED that the Tigers, who won the battle of statistics as they had in a 7-6 AAC loss to Niles, were tough to control, even forcing the Panthers out of their normal 5-4 defense at times and into a 6-1 because, “We couldn’t stay with them man to man.”
It was after the intermission when the Tigers took the upper hand, gaining 186 yards to Warren’s 68.
“When you go out and dominate the second half, you usually win,” Commings said sadly. “I thought we played good enough to win.”
The Tigers were in Panther territory four times with the AAC’s leading rusher and scorer tailback Willie Spencer – whom Batta said he did not have his charges key on – stopped on fourth down at the 27 and 32. Fullback Tom Hannon fumbled with 2:28 left and halfback Joe Kirksey recovered at the 38 as the old bugaboo cropped up again. He had run well in the second half and Batta admitted “Tombo” had scared him.
On the last sustained drive, with three seconds left, quarterback Scott Dingler was short on a 50-yard field goal try – an impossibility for even the strongest high school booster – after the Tigers had gotten to the 34. * * * ON TWO of the fourth-quarter marches, Dingler, who threw well, came within a gnat’s eyelash of hitting split end Mike McGuire. Halfback Doug Stubbs batted one pass away in the end zone and Stubbs and Kirksey knocked another deep one awry.
The Tigers also lost the ball on downs at the Warren 44 in the second quarter when Stubbs got a hand in front of fullback Don Perry, forced to leave in the second half with a painful arm bruise. Spencer got stopped at the 39 on fourth down in the first period.
It was then that the Orange and Black got its only score as Rick Weise punted to the 14. Warren was socked half the distance to the six for holding and junior quarterback Dan Ross retreated to the two, fumbled and senior end Todd Cocklin recovered and went in with 22 seconds left.
Dingler kicked the conversion.
Harding mounted its comeback on eight plays, going 61 yards after a 26-yard kickoff runback by the elusive Stubbs. Fullback Len Sernulka, who also played a whale of a game as a linebacker, carried three times for 14 yards while junior halfback Wilbur Boggs scored the touchdown on fourth down, one from the 30 on a pitch and run around right end, cutting back to the center nicely at the five. * * * WITH 9:25 left in the second stanza, Stubbs whirled by the left side on a fooler end-around. “This time it worked,” Batta said. “When Bob was at Struthers and I was at Akron Hoban, I gambled and ran a conversion, didn’t get it and we lost the game.”
Batta called Boggs’ run a “great effort” and said the play was run to the outside because the Tigers were jamming up the middle.
“I guess I made the right call at the right time,” he added.
Commings said the Tigers were in a goal-line defense which had been good to the Orange and Black all year.
“They were a good team, well prepared,” Commings said, “the best we’ve played.”
The only other Harding tries into Tiger territory saw the Panthers lose the ball on downs at the 45 in the third period and punt from the 44 and 47 in the fourth.
Individual statistics showered Spencer carried 21 times – losing nine yards – for a net 94, while Sernulka attempted 15 runs for 57 yards – not losing ground – and Boggs handled the ball 17 times for 87 yards – losing only one yard.
Fumbles, pass problems marr 46-0 rout over Magics in homecoming
By CHUCK HESS, JR. Independent Sports Editor
It was a lot easier than a lot of folks thought it would be Friday night, but there were sounded also a pair of sour notes.
The Massillon Tigers rolled over Barberton 46-0 before 12,524 at the rain-sprinkled Tiger stadium non-league homecoming, hanging up a 6-1 slate while handing Barberton its first loss in seven games. The Magics had tied once.
THEY HAD been touted as a dangerous ball club, but the Tiger defense dug in again when it needed to for its fifth shutout in seven tilts. The offense continued to gobble up yardage by the bags full.
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The discords were sounded when Tiger backs lost the pigskin on four of five fumbles. It cost them because two of the bobbles occurred deep in Magics territory – probably preventing touchdowns – and the other brace came about the only times Washington high had the ball in the goodbye canto.
The Orange and Black passing game saw only one completion in seven tries as Tiger Coach Bob Commings got a 28-0 lead in the second quarter and got a chance for an extra sky route workout. Receivers couldn’t find the handle for quarterback Scotty Dingler.
Both the ball handling and passing headaches have caused consternation before and could be disastrous when the state’s top ranked Warren Harding Black Panther invade next Friday for an All-American conference affair.
“We’ll just have to concentrate on holding the ball,” Commings declared. “First things must come first. You have to get the ball and then go through the hole. I think our guys were trying to get down field without the ball.”
About the passing, he explained, “It was off, but it was not the quarterback. When he puts the ball in there and they can’t catch it, it’s not his fault.” * * * COMMINGS SAID the Tigers’ offensive line did a fine job and liked the way in which the Orange and Black got a lot out of the “I” formation with senior Willie Spencer in the tailback slot. The WHSers had shown a couple of plays from that set last week at Steubenville and used it almost the whole first quarter Friday night.
Commings didn’t use the “I” in the second half with Spencer sitting on the bench, suffering from the effects of the muggy weather. He had gained 124 yards – losing none in 12 first half carries and scored two touchdowns.
Tailback Larry McLenndon, also played at right half, which Don Perry in the lead running slot and tallied once. Defensive halfback Tom Hannon put six points on the scoreboard as did wingbacks Art Thompson and Terry Edwards.
The other two points came in the third stanza when defensive end Todd Cocklin tackled junior quarterback Doug Huffman in the end zone for a safety as Huffman faded from the nine.
The Tigers took the opening kickoff, after a 19-yard runback by Hannon and scored in 10 plays, covering 67 yards, with Spencer and Perry carrying the pigskin. Spencer tallied on third down from the one over right tackle with 7:23 on the clock.
Dingler kicked conversion. * * * THE GROOVY HIPPED Hannon ran a punt back 44 yards for a TD with the help of end Mike McGuire’s two man block as the time lights stopped at 2:20.
Dingled added a point.
Tom Jackson, like Hannon, Cocklin and Edwards a promising junior, knocked down Doug Huffman’s second quarter fourth down pass to end Jim Bauschlinger in the end zone, to give Massillon the ball on its five. Spencer flew through left tackle on the next play and picked up 15 more yards on a face mask call to give the Tigers first down on their 26.
An eight-play 95-yard drive had started and Spencer also ended it with a four-yarder through the center after Thompson had charged 51 yards over left guard on third down from the WHS 49 after a motion penalty.
With the clock reading 5:25, Dingler put the ball through the uprights.
Thompson got off another scintillating run on fourth down, after a holding penalty and raced 56 yards for the last counter of the first half, reversing field nicely and breaking a couple of tackles. Halfback Larry Young tried to stop “Gritz” with a desperation tackle, but only succeeded in giving him an extra push into pay dirt at 2:54. * * * DINGLER’S PAT boot was good.
Hannon ran back a punt 22 yards and added 14 more yards through the center to get the Tigers off and winging for a 38-yard, five-play scoring offensive. McLenndon went in off right tackle on first down from the four with 5:24 remaining in the third period.
Hannon ran the conversion off a pitch over right tackle.
The final excursion to the Promised Land started after junior middle guard Alex Wood had recovered a fumble on the Magics’ 22. The tally came after four plays with Edwards clearing left tackle on first down from the six at the 2:33 mark.
Junior quarterback Kevin Westover found Edwards in the right corner of the end zone for a two-pointer.
The Tigers had the ball for only two minutes and 50 seconds in the fourth quarter as junior tailback Jim McKinnie picked up quite a bit of yardage and the Magics got to the Massillon 25 before losing the ball on downs as tackle Glenn Weirich and safety Hank Nussbaumer threw Huffman back 14 yards – with the aid of a fumble. * * * BARBERTON WAS also stymied on fourth down at the five as McLenndon and McGuire hauled down McKinnie.
“They did a good job on what they were trying to do against us,” Commings said. “Some might have thought it was easy, but it wasn’t. They’re young like Akron East.”
“They beat us real good,” Barberton Coach Ron Fenik said. “They ran through us, over us and around us. There’s not much you can say.”
While McKinnie was a bright light the Magics’ first half running, senior tailback Bob Glenchert looked good before the intermission and seemed most effective when running from counter plays as the Tiger defense was angling the opposite way.
Commings called it running to daylight.
Junior wingback Rick Lay, both an outstanding runner and pass receiver, left with 7:35 remaining in the third quarter and was to have an ankle X-rayed. His absence hindered the Magics’ offense.
THE GRIDSTICK M B First downs, rushing 21 9 First downs, passing 0 1 First downs, penalties 1 1 Total first downs 22 11 Yards gained rushing 351 176 Yards lost rushing 8 53 Net yards gained rushing 343 123 Net yards gained passing 8 26 Total yards gained 351 149 Passes completed 1-7 4-12 Kickoff average (yards) 7-43.0 1-46.0 Kickoff returns (yards) 42 69 Punt average (yds.) 1-41.0 6-32.5 Punt returns (yds.) 65 2 Had punts blocked 0 0 Fumbles (lost) 5(4) 5(3) Yards penalized 4-50 3-25 Touchdowns rushing 0 0 Miscellaneous 1 0 Total number of plays 56 59
It was a nice try, fellows – sliding the Tiger down a wire just prior to the kickoff, to be cremated by flames from the scoreboard horse’s mouth – but it wasn’t about to turn out that way.
The Orange and Black had a terrific Friday night! In fact you might say it was devastating! * * * AN ESTIMATED crowd of 10,000 saw the Tigers boot the “House of Horrors” myth right out of Harding stadium and into the Ohio River which surges by Steubenville.
Of the 26-0 victory over the Big Red, Washington High Assistant Coach Nick Vrotsos said, ‘This was the most gratifying of any here since I joined the staff.” The native of Martins Ferry – just down the stream a bit – has seen seven since he came to Massillon in 1958.
When going over the latest list of Tiger assets, you could mark them off as follows: Item 1 – Tailbacks Willie Spencer and Larry McLenndon gaining 352 of the Orange and Black’s 378 net rushing yardage. Spencer, the All-American conference’s leading rusher and scorer, gaining 193 yards in 20 carries – including 114 in 10 lugs in the first half – and tallying two touchdowns; McLenndon picking up 159 yards in nine tries and two TDs; both boys doing this while playing a lot of defense along the way.
Item 2 – An offensive line, led by guards Bruce Christoff, Randy Heck, Dan Guiffre and Scott Graber and center Steve Studer, snaring the opposition slicker than a mousetrap pinions an unsuspecting rodent – a tribute to the coaching of Vrotsos.
Item 3 – An all-around defense tighter than the purse strings on Jack Benny’s pocketbook, resulting in the Tigers’ fourth shutout in six tries and only 126 total yards for the Big Red. * * * “USING TWO TAILBACKS certainly helped us, our line blocked well, we defensed them real well and I thought quarterbacks Scott Dingler and Kevin Westover looked good,” head Coach Bob Commings said. “We had more depth and that hurt Steubenville.”
By winning the Tigers moved to a 5-1 season record and took over third place in the All-American conference at 1-1. The defending league and Ohio Class AAA state champions should have picked up valuable ground in both the Associated Press poll and the Ohio High School Athletic association’s computer ratings.
While handing out praise for top performances, a great deal should go to 139-ound Steubenville senior quarterback-defensive back Mike Mavromatis. He perhaps more than any other epitomized the courage and guts of a team which took an unmerciful pounding, but time and again came back for more.
“He’s a great kid! A real competitor!” said Commings. Mavromatis was about the hardest guy to bring down the Tigers have run up against this year, but men like end Bob Stephan and linebacker Mike McGuire were equal to the task.
There were no scores in the first quarter even though both teams got close with the Tigers’ effort dying on the Steubenville 18 after Spencer had landed on a first play Big Red fumble on the Steubenville 32. An offside penalty and a fumble on a pitchout set the Tigers back to the 33.
A 25-yard pass-run from Mavromatis to halfback Herm Davis on the ensuing series didn’t help the Big Red as Mavromatis was thrown from the Tigers four to the 19 on fourth down by Spencer who then took off over right tackle for 43 yards to the Steubenville 46 to start an 81-yard, five-play drive. After offside and motion penalties – the last of which nullified his TD – Spencer went over left tackle from the 21 on second and 14 with 8:54 left in the second canto. * * * DINGLER’S KICK was wide right.
Davis intercepted a pass on the Steubenville six and Hannon picked off a Big Red aerial on the Massillon 28 to thwart further first-half scoring.
Hannon ran back the second half kickoff 24 yards and McLenndon set sail over right tackle on the next play for 57 yards and a TD with the help of a downfield block by McGuire. The score came with 11:26 left and Spencer followed around with a right end for two more counters.
Willie got the next score with 6:54 left in the fourth quarter, capping a five play, 70-yard drive with a 38-yard jaunt over right tackle, breaking a tackle in the process. A 17-yard, pass-run from Dingler to Thompson down the center after a motion penalty set the stage.
Spencer missed the conversion over left tackle.
The Tigers took over on the Big Red 46 after a short punt. Westover unloaded a 30 yarder to McGuire who jumped up between two men on the 15 along the left side, grabbed the ball and continued to the four. McLenndon traversed right tackle with 4:22 remaining for six points. * * * HANNON DIDN’T make the end zone for the conversion but two minutes later hauled in a pass from his 22 to his end zone to kayo Steubenville’s final threat.
Commings had yanked the first team but put them back in again, drawing the ire of Steubenville fans. However, he instructed his team not to call time with the clock running out and the Tigers on the Big Red 10 after McLenndon had raced 64 yards around left end to the Steubenville 17. With state championships decided on polls, the shutout is a necessity.
“It went pretty much as we expected as far as Massillon’s aggressiveness and power was concerned,” Steubenville Coach Abe Bryan said. “They just handled us out there. We made some mental mistakes, but hit well. We went away from our game plan in the first quarter and really blew it badly. Then we had to play catch-up football. They have a fine team. We are not physical enough and must eliminate mistakes with our size if we are to beat the good teams.”
He concluded, “Spencer played a great game and broke an awful lot of tackles when we had clean sweeps.”
SCORING SUMMARY M – Spencer, 21 run (run failed); M – McLenndon, 57 run (run) M – Sepncer, 38 run (run failed) M – McLenndon, 4 run (run failed).
OFFICIALS Referee – Milo Lukity. Umpire – Dr. Henley Freeman. Head Linesman – Sam DiBlasi. Field Judge – Jim Murray.
ATTENDANCE – 10,500
THE GRIDSTICK M S First downs, rushing 16 7 First downs, passing 2 1 First downs, penalties 2 1 Total first downs 20 9 Yards gained rushing 408 151 Yards lost rushing 30 54 Net yards gained rushing 378 97 Net yards gained passing 70 29 Total yards gained 448 126 Passes completed 4-7 2-13 Passes intercepted by 2 1 Yardage on passes intercepted 0 0 Kickoff average (yards) 5-49.0 1-42.0 Kickoff returns (yards) 25 97 Punt average (yds.) 2-36.5 6-35.3 Punt returns (yds.) 10 4 Fumbles (lost) 3(1) 1(1) Yards penalized 7-55 3-25 Total number of plays 54 55
Scotty Dingler added something new to the Tigers’ offensive arsenal Friday night – the conversion kick.
The Washington high quarterback booted six of them, two short of the all-time mark of eight set by guard Bob Pflug in 1923, reached twice by center Jerry Krisher in 1950 and once by halfback Tom Boon in 1952.
THE LAST to kick six was tackle Bob Williams in 1954.
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The WHSers put together a well-run offense with another stingy defensive job for a 42-6 victory over Akron East before 9,230, the smallest in the first five games – all played at Tiger stadium. The win gave the Orange and Black a 4-1 record and dropped the Orientals to 2-2.
“Dingler has worked hard on kicking conversions,” Tiger head Coach Bob Commings said, “and it paid off. I was also pleased with his kickoffs. He’ll do it some more, although it’s kind of tough on a quarterback. He’s a good short tackler and it gives us that extra man in there.”
Tailback Willie (The Wrecker) Spender scored two touchdowns, picked up 117 net yards, losing none, in 13 carried; ends Mike McGuire and Joe Matie each scored once as did fullback Don Perry and tailback Larry McLenndon.
The Tigers picked up 518 total net yards while giving up 155, allowing the Orientals no further than the Massillon 42 and completed four of eight passes for 128 yards. It was the Orange and Black’s best showing of the season, but they lost three of four fumbles, reverting to an early-season malady and it cost them.
“THEY WERE by far the quickest team we’ve played,” Commings states. “Their offense was well conceived, they knew what they wanted to do against our angle defense, hurt us with the quick fullback hitter and were a good team, but just didn’t have enough personnel. They were the best we’ve played against all year and might have given some others ideas.”
The Tigers got their first score on a 68-yard, eight-play drive, aided by a 15-yard face mask call. Hannon started it with a 23-yard kickoff runback and Perry bulled over from the five on first down with 2:13 remaining in the first quarter.
Todd Cocklin started the next drive with a recovery of sub quarterback Eric Parson’s fumble at the Massillon 47. Seven plays and a five-yard procedure penalty later, Spencer rolled around left end on third and five from the Orientals’ 35 for the touchdown with 10:31 left in the second quarter.
The Tigers almost had a TD on a first-down pass from Dingler to split end Mike McGuire from the Massillon 47, but a cornerback came rushing in, couldn’t be blocked and the pass didn’t get to McGuire. They missed another in the second period when Hannon ran back a punt 65 yards, but the kicker had been roughed.
A six-play, 73-yard drive netted the WHS high team its third score with 1:45 left in the second canto. Dingler, getting excellent protection, hit McGuire on the 26 from second and 10 on the East 41 and McGuire carried in. The pass was perfectly thrown on the hook pattern down the middle.
The groovy-hipped Hannon ran the second-half kickoff back 25 yards and the Tigers scored in eight plays after McGuire had picked up McLenndon’s fumble at the East 20. McLenndon went into Promised Land over right guard on second down from the six with 8:57 showing. * * * A FIVE-PLAY, 61-yard drive, with Spencer on the scoring end and Perry providing a 41-yard romp over right tackle to the East five, caused the scoreboard lights to flash again. Spencer went over the same tackle on first down from the five with 10:24 left in the goodbye episode.
The last touchdown was thwarted temporarily by a series of misadventures. Hannon took a Westover screen left on the Tigers’ 30 and ran 31 yards to he East 39, but the Orientals intercepted a pass.
Don Muhlbach re-intercepted on the next play and ran back 44 yards to the East 35, but then came a clip. Hannon scooted through the center for 14 yards to the Massillon 43 and second and one.
Westover hit split end Joe Matie on the Orientals’ 25 and Joe scored with 4:05 to go.
Dom Patella, East coach, thought his team did very well considering he started only three seniors.
“Line play made the difference,” is the way he explained his third loss to Massillon. “They blew us out of there and got stronger as the game went along.” * * * “SPENCER WAS outstanding offensively. Jim Bolden and Merle Burdette (a junior and sophomore respectively) are not in Spencer’s class, but will be outstanding as they get older.”
After a month’s sojourn at home, the Tigers will travel to Harding field in Steubenville next Friday for their second All-American conference game.
SCORING SUMMARY E – Thomas, 1 run (run failed); M – Perry, 5 run (Dingler kick); M – Spencer, 35 run (Dingler kick); M – McGuire, 41-yd., pass-run from Dingler (Dingler kick); M – McLenndon, 6 run (Dingler kick); M – Spencer, 5 run (Dingler kick); M – Matie, 57-yard pass-run from Westover (Dingler kick).
THE GRIDSTICK M E First downs, rushing 20 7 First downs, passing 3 0 First downs, penalties 2 2 Total first downs 25 11 Yards gained rushing 392 144 Yards lost rushing 2 18 Net yards gained rushing 390 126 Net yards gained passing 128 29 Total yards gained 518 155 Passes completed 4-8 2-13 Passes intercepted by 1 1 Yardage on passes intercepted 22 18 Kickoff average (yards) 7-45.3 2-37.5 Kickoff returns (yards) 46 82 Punt average (yds.) 0 6-32.9 Punt returns (yds.) 14 0 Fumbles (lost) 4(3) 4(1) Yards penalized 5-65 6-61 Touchdowns rushing 4 1 Touchdowns passing 2 0 Total number of plays 51 62
OFFICIALS Referee – Howard Eckert. Umpire – Joe Yanity. Head Linesman – Henry Mastrianni. Field Judge – Charles Hinkle. Back Judge – Robert Walker.
Both coaches called it pretty good when looking ahead earlier this week, but Bob Commings must wish he hadn’t been so correct.
He hadn’t predicted his Massillon Tigers would be edged 7-6 by the Niles McKinley Red Dragons before 17,458 – the season’s largest crowd – Friday night at Tiger stadium, but he figured their strategy well.
NILES’ BOB Shaw loves to burn you when you least expect it.
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And Shaw must have seen something in his tea leaves for he had said 1971 was his turn. This was his second victory in three seasons over Commings – two here – and his third in four tries against the Orange and Black, the first coming in 1966.
On both occasions he stopped Tiger streaks – 32 games without a loss the first time and 13 this trip. His latest effort put Niles in second place behind Warren Harding in the All-American conference. The Black Panthers are 2-0 in the league and 4-0 overall while the Dragons are 1-0 and 4-0.
Massillon, the 1970 league winner, dropped to 3-1 and an 0-1 AAC record. The loss will also undoubtedly drop the defending Ohio Class AAA champion Tigers out of first place in both wire service polls.
“We never gain when we beat Massillon,” Shaw, the boss of the state’s 11-ranked team, said, “but other teams do.”
Friday’s game was a great tribute to both defenses although Massillon outdistanced Niles 14-7 in first downs and 224-158 in total yards gained, posting most of those figures in the second half. Both lines hit hard and the secondarys covered the passing lanes adequately.
The Tigers completed only one of 11 passes and Niles only two of 13 for six and 19 yards respectively. This is not conducive to adequately complementing your ground game.
“They just played good defense,” Commings said. “They made the good plays – we didn’t.” When you give up only one, TD, you’re not playing bad football. Once we settled down, we played good football. They did what they do well – spring one once in awhile. * * * HE ADDED, “Their linebackers and defensive backs coming up were the toughest part of their defense.”
“Both defenses were good,” Shaw agreed. “When you get a 7-6 game, it will always be this way. This was the good football we used to play at Niles. For three years back we hadn’t stopped them. I think we forced them to pass when they couldn’t run. This helped our secondary play good defense. They cut us off with their angle defense. Their backside tackle hurt us.”
This would be Glen Weirich or Steve Studer, depending upon which way the defenders were headed.
Niles quarterback Tom Andres, Jr., burned the Tigers with his ball-handling and speed at times, although linebacker Mike McGuire bombed him several times.
“He’s the fastest man on the team so we wanted him to run the football,” Shaw said. “His good action faking to a back going one way with another coming back, helped. Andres has deceptive speed at 6-3.”
The Dragons got off more long runs, although Tigers Willie Spencer, Larry McLenndon, Don Perry and Art Thompson gave it their best. The Orange and Black offense did it in short chops and forced the Niles’ defense out of its Notre Dame 4-4 and into an Oklahoma 5-4 early in the contest.
After seeing a team score on them for the first time this season, the Tigers took the kickoff and marched 29 yards in 10 plays in the first quarter but were forced to punt from the Niles’ 38.
They moved 68 yards in nine plays in the second stanza to get their touchdown with tailback Spencer starting the drive with a 24-yarder around right end to the Niles 43. He scored for the ninth time in four games – over right tackle on fourth and four form 26 yards away with 4:52 left. A good stiff farm helped. * * * QUARTERBACK SCOTT Dingler tried to run the go-ahead conversion, but halfback Pat Burke and ends Mike Weida and Ted Williams hauled him down just short of the mark.
The Tigers had one more good drive – in the fourth quarter. It was a 10-play affair starting after a 30-yard pun t to the Massillon 39. The drive ended on the Niles 25 with four minutes, 10 seconds remaining.
Fullback Don Perry was short of the first down, but the Tigers were called for illegal procedure and offside and the Dragons were detected on a personal foul, nullifying the run and giving Spencer a chance around left end. However, Williams nailed him.
Niles got all of the margin it needed when halfback Bob Sygar intercepted Dingler’s toss on the game’s first play and raced 26 yards to the Tigers’ 29. In six plays, the Dragons had scored as Andres helped with a 13-yard, third-and-eight jaunt for a first down on the 13.
Fullback Tim Monos scored on third-and-four from the seven when Andres threw to the right and Monos grabbed the pigskin on the two. With 8:34 left, Tom Masciangelo kicked the winning point.
Sygar was a thorn in the side for the Tigers. He bolted 71 yards around the left side on a pitchout just after Massillon’s first quarter kickoff and was brought down by halfback Tom Jackson on the nine. Hannon threw fullback Bob Manella to the 20 and McGuire intercepted an Andres’ aerial on the 15 to halt the drive.
Sygar ran 43 yards to the Massillon 25 on the second quarter, but a clipping penalty called this one off. In the same period, he ran a punt back 28 yards to his 48, but another clip interfered.
He ran 68 yards to the Tigers’ 11 in the third canto, but a clip cancelled this scamper too. Sygar also hopped on Hannon’s fumble in the third episode to give the Dragons the ball on the 50.
NILES – 7 Ends – Kaszonyi, Rose, Weida, Harris, Ted Williams, Tom Williams, Allen, Mackey, C. West. Tackles – Biddlestone, Shehy, Thou, Schweitzer, Tackett, Law. Guards – Baker, Skocik, Pekarovic, Masciangelo, Peterson. Center – Wilson. Quarterbacks – Andres, Joseph. Halfbacks – Sygar, Miranda, Wolfe, Kuhn, L. West, P. Burke, M. Burke. Fullbacks – Monos, Manella.
SCORING SUMMARY N – Monos 7 pass from Andres (Masciangelo kick); M – Spencer 26 run (run failed).
THE GRIDSTICK M N First downs, rushing 14 4 First downs, passing 0 2 First downs, penalties 0 1 Total first downs 14 7 Yards gained rushing 226 170 Yards lost rushing 8 31 Net yards gained rushing 218 139 Net yards gained passing 6 19 Total yards gained 224 158 Passes completed 1-11 2-10 Passes intercepted by 1 1 Yardage on passes intercepted 3 13 Kickoff average (yards) 2-47.0 2-35.0 Kickoff returns (yards) 29 40 Punt average (yds.) 5-33.8 7-27.4 Punt returns (yds.) 0 7 Fumbles (lost) 4(1) 2(0) Yards penalized 2-20 5-55 Touchdowns rushing 1 0 Touchdowns passing 0 1 Total number of plays 64 48
OFFICIALS Referee – Milo Lukity. Umpire – Jack Werkowitz. Head Linesman – Frank Wahl. Field Judge – Del Groezinger. Back Judge – Ron Giacomo.
There were several reasons why Massillon’s undefeated Tigers got their third victory Friday night, but two showed brighter than a lighthouse beacon on the rocky shore of Maine.
Foremost was the determination of the Orange and Black not to be defeated by a strong Cleveland Benedictine team. * * * SECOND WAS a master stroke by Bob Commings in making up a key play on the sidelines.
The result was a 20-0 victory – the third whitewash and the first time a Tiger team had turned the trick since Chuck Mather’s charges did it in 1950. One of the victims was Cleveland Cathedral Latin. Since Mather’s charges went onto a state championship, this may be a good omen.
It was the 13th straight victory for the Tigers, dating to 1970 and the eighth shutout in the last nine games.
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Tiger determination could be broken down into three sub-categories. There was a defense which dug in after a devastating third period blocked punt, a fired up offense which powered its way to the fourth quarter touchdown which helped everybody breath easier and a tremendous tailback, Willie Spencer, who scored two touchdowns to up his season’s total to eight and picked up 111 net yards – losing only one in 22 tries – and got a standing cheer with 1:28 left in the game.
Tony Petruziello blocked Rick Weise’s punt and then recovered it on the Tigers’ 28. Duane Petrovich’s fourth-and-six pass from the 24 to end Bob Szabo made it first down on the 12.
Tackles Glen Weirich and Steve Studer and middle guard Larry McLenndon threw halfback Mike Woods to the 13, end Bob Stephan drove Petrovich to the 31 and halfback Tom Hannon and end Mike McGuire knocked down a fourth-and-24 pass from the 26 to end Dave Kniola to end the threat. * * * THE TIGERS TOOK over and worked their way 74 yards in 16 plays with Spencer, fullback Don Perry and wingback Art Thompson doing the bulk of the running. Spencer scored on fourth-and-three from the six with 11:37 left in the contest.
This was where the always-cool Commings sent in tailback Hank Nussbaumer as a split end set to the same side the formation was pointed towards instead of the normal opposite end.
“We wanted to go outside so we put Nussbaumer out there for extra blocking from a wide set,” Commings explained. “We hadn’t run from this formation before.”
Spencer scored the conversion, but the Tigers were guilty of holding and quarterback Scott Dingler tried a kick from the 24 which fell inches short.
Thompson started the Orange and Black on the way to their final score with an interception on his 46 and a runback to the Benedictine 49. Thompson, Hannon, McLenndon and Spencer ran the pigskin with Spencer picking up key yardage in the 13-play drive.
McLenndon skirted the end on fourth down from the three – losing his shirt in the process – but getting the score with 33 seconds left. * * * THE TIGERS’ other score came after Stephan had recovered a fumble on the first play of the game to give Massillon possession on the Benedictine 30. Spencer went off tackle on the sixth play on second down from the three with 9:20 left.
Dingler’s favorite “cute boot” netted the conversion.
The Tigers had three first half drives stopped as Petruziello intercepted passes at the Benedictine 45 and 10 – the former also featuring a runback to the Massillon 30 which was nullified by a clip – and an offside call mired the Orange and Black at the Bennies’ 30.
“Dingler’s two passes which were intercepted were classic examples of what could have been two great plays,” Commings explained. “He did everything right. We’re going to keep running them and get them open.”
Then Commings praised Spencer for keeping the Tigers in the game offensively and Perry, Thompson, Weirich, Studer and Stephan for playing all the way both ways. Six Bennies did the same.
“The two biggest things which happened were the offense charging down field on that 74-yard drive and the magnificent defense after the blocked punt,” Commings stated, “and we dispelled one rumor – that we couldn’t handle Benedictine in the second half. The Tigers had it when they needed it. Another word for that is character.” * * * AUGIE BOSSU, veteran Benedictine boss, was highly pleased with his teams’ gang-tackling, kick coverage and pursuit and felt good that the Bennies worked the Tigers back to basics.
“They couldn’t blow us out of there,” he said. “They had to finesse us. They got some movement on us – enough for the backs to come driving through. Spencer is a heckuva back with good size to go along with speed and balance.”
“There were two things which hurt us,” Bossu said. “There was that first quarter fumble which gave them good field position and that long second half kickoff which we lost on an offside penalty. Both of these things were unfortunate. They set the tempo for both halves.”
SCORING SUMMARY M – Spencer, 3 run (Dingler run); M – Spencer 6 run (penalty on successful run, Dingler kick failed); M – McLenndon 3 run (run failed).
GRID STICK M B First downs, rushing 18 4 First downs, passing 0 2 First down penalties 0 0 Total first downs 18 6 Yards gained rushing 259 100 Yards lost rushing 16 28 Net yards gained, rushing 243 72 Net yards gained, passing 16 40 Total yards gained 259 112 Passes completed 2-7 3-11 Passes intercepted by 2 2 Yardage on passes intercepted 20 12 Kickoff average (yards) 4-43.3 1-30.0 Kickoff returns (yards) 0 77 Punt average (yds.) 4-28.8 5-37.4 Punt returns (yds.) 5 0 Had punts blocked 1 0 Fumbles(lost) 1(0) 1(1) Yards penalized 5-47 3-35 Touchdowns rushing 3 0 Total number of plays 73 42
OFFICIALS Referee – Hugh Davis. Umpire – Joe Yanity. Head Linesman – Don Miller. Field Judge – Ed Steinkerchner. Back Judge – Dr. Henley Freeman.
