Category: <span>History</span>

Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

1956: Massillon 27, Cleveland Benedictine 18

Tigers Fight Back For 27-18 Victory
Whitfield Out With Injury As Orange Racks Up Its 5th

By CHARLIE POWELL

It was five down and five to go for the Washington high school gridders after a Friday night donnybrook in which our Tigers proved they have all the ingredients of a true champion.

Rallying behind a determined defense and their quick-hitting offense, featuring speed afoot, nimbleness, headiness and just plain high-octane power, the Orange and Black outlasted a Cleveland Benedictine club which lived up to expectations, and then some, by a 27-18 tune.

Some 13,000 fans, including 12,556 paid, were in Tiger stadium for the big battle and few Tiger followers, if any, held high hope for a fifth straight victory after the first two minutes and 18 seconds of play. It took the Bengals from the lakefront just that little bit of time to wheel out a 12-0 lead.

But this inexperienced Massillon club, outweighed, out-passed and minus tackle and
co-captain Dick Whitfield, was only momentarily stunned by the order of events – an
85-yard kickoff return, an intercepted pass and then a 40-yard aerial for a second touchdown.

Showing their mettle and living up to their reputation as an outfit content to parlay short gainers into gold-dust, Lee Tressel’s hustlers came roaring back. With 4:26 left in the opening chapter they hit pay dirt for the first time and with 4:22 remaining in the second period and they barged ahead.

The first drive involved 11 plays and 68 yards, the second 20 plays, 79 yards, two vital gambles and a 15-yard penalty. So it was Massillon by the margin of Mike Hershberger’s conversion at intermission.
* * *
THE TIGERS received the second half kickoff and went on the prowl again. The drive fizzled out at the enemy 15 but the next thing Benedictine knew was that Fancy-Dan, Ivory Benjamin hit them. His 50-yard TD jaunt on a punt return widened the gap and Massillon pulses returned to normal after a 72-yard march paid off early in the final quarter.

Benedictine battled back for another score but it meant nothing. In fact, it came as Coach Tressel was dotting his lineup with reserves.

When the Tiger celebration in their dressing room died down, Tressel and Co. started thinking about their next foe, the Tygers of Mansfield.

This may sound like a broken record but the Orangemen are facing a fourth straight toughie. If you don’t believe us, ask the local scouts who have put a “tougher than Benedictine” tag on the Tygers.

Before Tressel’s mind turned to next Friday’s road opponent, the Tiger tutor directed a verbal bouquet toward his charges.

“I guess I can’t say much about the first couple of minutes. Everybody knows what happened. But our boys were tremendous after that. It shows you what desire can do,” he said.

The Massillon mentor, whose personal win streak now stands at 39, declared it a team victory – “there were no real standouts” – and said the three boys who fitted into things as replacements for the rugged Whitfield; Bruce Bixler, Al Slicker and John Halter, indicated by their performances that the coaching staff may have little to worry about as long as Whitfield is out.
* * *
WHITFIELD, WITH HIS injured foot encased in a special shoe, was suited up in case of an emergency and Tressel was happy because he didn’t have to call on the spunky senior co-captain.

Dick received the foot injury Wednesday but said nothing about it. He couldn’t walk Thursday morning and X-rays taken yesterday morning showed a chip in the large bone of his right foot.

When Whitfield will be able to return to action is a real question. Tressel is hopeful he’ll be available in a couple of weeks.

The Tigers, with the “5-man” backfield of Bob Rinehart, Benjamin, Hershberger, Chet Brown and “Chuck” Beiter shining all the way, held the upper hand in most phases of the statistical department. They made 17 first downs to Benedictine’s nine and ground out 257 yards rushing to a total of 123 for the Bengals.

The Clevelanders enjoyed an edge in the passing game as Quarterback Paul Hriske, who doubled as a fine defensive performer, lived up to his press notices. The Bengals hit on seven of 13 for 102 yards while the locals connected on two of five for 61 yards. And both of Rinehart’s pitches helped no end – the first completion of 17 yards setting up Massillon’s second touchdown and a strike good for 20 aiding the drive that led to the fourth.

Another bright spot for the Tigers was in the ball-handling department. They fumbled only once, and recovered same. They had one pass intercepted with that interception paving the way for Benedictine’s second quickie.

Benedictine won the toss and elected to receive. The decision was just right for the Bengals as Halfback George Sefcik, sturdy and swift, hauled it back for a touchdown that rocked the locals on their heels. Sefcik eyed an alley up the middle, cut to his right and away from a couple of would-be tacklers and after getting free at the Tiger 22, zipped into the end zone, past the final stripe to wind up an 85-yard return. His placement sailed to the left but the Orangemen were trailing 6-0 with only 11 seconds gone.

Benjamin returned the ensuing kickoff from his 15 to the 24 and after Brown picked up a guard, Dame Fortune turned a cold shoulder on the Tigers. Rinehart’s pass intended for childers at the enemy 40 was the target for Childers, Benjamin and Sefcik. Ivory got a hand on the ball but it came to rest in Sefcik’s and the Bendictine scooter got to the Tiger 43.
* * *
AFTER GARY HANSLEY, right half, made three yards at right tackle, Hrisko and Hansley clicked for a second Bengal TD. Hansley was all by his lonesome at the 25 and when he grabbed the pass at the 25 and raced into the end zone, Massillon was really in trouble.

Sefcik’s placement was again wide. Then the Tigers got plenty mean.

Hershberger returned the kickoff seven yards to the 32 and then teamed with Benjamin, Brown and Beiter for two first downs to the Bengal 41. Brown put the ball in scoring position via a 36-yard blast featuring some sharp blocking and Chester’s fancy footwork. Benjamin made three and Hershberger one before Mike banged the middle to make it a
12-6 ball game. It was still that way after his placement was blocked.

Benedictine had to punt two minutes later and on the last three plays of the quarter the Tigers moved from their own 21 to the 35. Controlling the ball as Rinehart, the two halfbacks and the two fullbacks carried the load, the locals used up 17 plays and over seven minutes for the tying touchdown. Benjamin’s 10-yard sweep and Beiter’s 13-yard buck up the middle helped place the pigskin on the one from where Benjamin tallied at right tackle. This time Hershberger’s kick was good and it was Massillon 13, Benedictine 12.

Twice during this drive the locals gambled, and won. On a fourth and four situation Benjamin got off his 10-yarder and with fourth and one at the four, Hershberger slammed off tackle for three.

Besides all this action, the Tigers were halted momentarily by a 15-yard clipping penalty.

During the remaining time neither team mustered a threat.

The Tigers marched 48 yards after receiving the second half kickoff. Hershberger’s 14-yard scamper was the chief gainer as they moved to the 15 before an offside violation put a crimp in their hopes for a third touchdown.
* * *
HOWEVER, MASSILLON chalked it up just a few seconds later. Benedictine had to punt but actually Benjamin didn’t get the chance to get on the go until Guard Joe Chapon punted three times.

The first time Benedictine was offside and the Tigers elected to have the Bengals punt again and the second time the visitors were offside and Massillon was called for clipping on Hershberger’s return. Finally there was nothing to wipe out the play – for which Tiger fans were happy.

Benjamin fielded Chapon’s boot at midfield, faked a handoff, and shifted into high gear. He was in “daylight” at the Bengal 35 and the rest of the chore was easy for the
swivel-hipped halfback. Hershberger again converted to make it 20-12 at 4:41.

Benedictine got to the Massillon 28 before Benjamin broke up a fourth down pitch by Hrisko and from that point the Tigers moved goal ward again. After Brown made 11 (he would have been long gone had not the last defender tripped him), Hershberger slipped and fell for a one-yard loss but sub halfback Jimmy Bivings sneaked behind the secondary, grabbed Rinehart’s toss and the 20-yard gainer put the oval on the Bengal 18 as the final period got under way.

Beiter gained two, Brown nine, Ivory four and Hershberger lost one before Beiter, moving to left half, cracked tackle for the score from the four. Once again Hershberger booted the point-after.

After Benedictine’s drive was stopped at the Tiger 31 the Orange had to punt and from their own 29 the Clevelanders went all the way as Hansley (once for 21 yards) and Sefcik (once for 16) ran for the needed yardage and Hrisko hit on three straight passes, the last one a 3-yarder to End Tom Pacl for the six-pointer.

Massillon made one first down and then lost 10 on a fumble before the contest came to an end.

The Tigers came out of the clean-played encounter with some bumps and bruises while Benedictine’s chief injury was Center Frank Kozlevchar’s twisted ankle.

The summary:
MASSILLON – 27
ENDS – Brenner, Elavsky, Wells, Childres, Mays, Hagan.
TACKLES – Mercer, Bixler, Halter, A. Slicker, Brownlee, Slabuagh.
GUARDS – B. Brown, Meldrum, Heine, Heimann.
CENTERS – Krier, Kiplinger.
QUARTERBACKS – Rinehart.
HALFBACKS – Benjamin, Hershberger, Washington, Bivings, Pledgure, Stewart.
FULLBACKS – C. Brown, Beiter, Reese.

BENEDICTINE – 18
ENDS – Pacl, Mayher, Marek.
TACKLES – Skufca, Jakubowski, Zmarsly.
GUARDS – Sczurek, Chapon, Pusateri, Misencik.
CENTERS – Halasz, Kozlevchar, Naymik.
QUARTERBACK – Hrisko.
HALFBACKS – Hansley, Sefcik, Davis.
FULLBACKS – Kuretz, Kucera.

Scoring by quarters:
Benedictine 12 0 0 6 18
Massillon 6 7 7 7 27

Massillon scoring:
Touchdowns – Beiter (4-run); Hershberger (1-run); Benjamin 2 (1-run, 50-yard punt return).
Extra points – Hershberger 3 (placements).

Benedictine scoring:
Touchdowns – Sefcik (85-kickoff return); Hansley (40-pass from Hrisko); Pacl (3-pass from Hrisko).

STATISTICS
Mass. Opp.
First downs rushing 16 5
First downs passing 1 4
First downs by penalties 0 0
Total first downs 17 9
Yards gained rushing 257 123
Yards lost rushing 24 6
Passes attempted 5 13
Passes completed 2 7
Yards gained passing 61 102
Net yards gained 294 219
Times kicked off 5 4
Average kickoff return 8.8 30.6
Yards kickoffs returned by 35 153
Times punted 2 3
Average punts (yards) 33 32
Yards punts returned by 50 -5
Had punts blocked 0 0
Total fumbles 1 1
Times lost ball on fumbles 0 0
Penalties 3 4
Yards penalized 25 30

Mike Hershberger
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

1956: Massillon 27, Cincinnati Elder 12

Tigers Beat Cincinnati Elder 27-12
Massillon Gridders Win Fourth Straight In Spite Of Mistakes

By CHARLIE POWELL

It was a good thing our Tigers weren’t playing Canton Lincoln or Alliance – and we’ll throw in power-laden McKinley – last night.

They simply had too many weapons for a big and stubborn Cincinnati Elder team, which put up a ding-dong scrap for almost three-quarters. They dominated the statistics and impressed with three long touchdown drives but there were too many mistakes in that
27-12 victory.

It was Massillon’s fourth straight triumph of the season and marked the second year in a row that Elder became a cropper to the locals, who won’t get the chance to play the Panthers the next couple of years.

With the clock reaching zero for the last time of the chilly evening, the two-year contract with Elder had elapsed. It is a fact that Massillon wants to continue playing the club from the Queen City but they are having trouble getting together on dates.
* * *
ALTHOUGH ELDER fared badly in the second and third periods and didn’t score its second touchdown until after the Tigers had four, it was anybody’s ball game until the last 12 minutes.

This might be hard for some people to believe but the Tiger coaches and the players themselves realize probably more than anybody that the performance wasn’t as sharp as it might have been. Too many times the ball carrier was afforded little in the way of blocking, too many times the defense appeared sluggish and all in all there were just too many of those little mistakes that could ruin you against tougher opposition.

Looking at the situation from another angle, it was the opposition, which slowed up the Tigers at times. The Panthers, backed vocally by their band and about 200 fans, were a pretty tough nut to crack.

Pre-game dope had it that Elder was big, rough and ‘higher than a kite” for Massillon, and the scouts were right again.

Virgil Scardina thought his charges might have played better ball but wasn’t taking anything away from the boys. He had a big line, which the locals had a rugged time moving on occasions, and his backs, especially fullback Ronnie Reisz, weren’t spectacular but they could get the job done.

In the Tiger dressing room after the game there wasn’t too much celebrating, Apparently the Tigers were in opinion that their play wasn’t up to par.
* * *
COACH LEE TRESSEL was relaxed after experiencing some pre-game nervousness. Lee doesn’t get jittery, usually, but last night was an exception.

“It was an easier one (meaning Lincoln and Alliance were more formidable) but we never had much of a chance to let up” he said after it was all over.

The Tiger coach opined that Elder’s defense was a rugged one and this fact, along with the two fumbles which Elder recovered, and some missed assignments, slowed his team up. Defensively the Tigers were “a little better,” according to Tressel.

The Tiger relied on their running game and again Ivory Benjamin, Mike Hershberger, Chet Brown and “Chuck” Beiter gave the enemy fits.

Brown, the big boy with the odd gait who really roars once he gets warmed up, and Hershberger, who does everything well, scored two touchdowns apiece and the latter, after little Davie Richardson got banged on the head following the initial Tiger tally, took over the place-kicking duties and toed three straight conversions between the uprights.
* * *
BROWN LUGGED the leather seven times and averaged over 15 yards a trip with his touchdowns being chalked up on neat 27 and 38 yards runs. Benjamin, who averaged eight yards for 15 carries, set up Chet’s 38-yarder with a scoot of 22 and Brown’s other
six-pointer climaxed a 94-yard march.

Hershberger capped drives of 58 and 78 yards with one-yard blasts. Mike carried 15 times and averaged over four yards a crack (he hit the middle more than anybody) and his punting was again nothing short of terrific. He kicked twice, once for 51 yards and another time for 50 but the latter punt actually went 29 yards officially because it rolled into the end zone.

All this running accounted for a net of 314 yards on the ground and Massillon gained 31 more yards on three completions in six attempts while Elder came out of it with a net of 75 yards rushing and 60 on three-for-12 in the air game. The Orange line, anchored by Tom Heine, Tom Meldrum, Dick Whitfield and Jim Mercer with some good end play from Chet Brown, tossed Elder backs for losses totaling 51 yards. The Tigers also had 16 first downs to the losers’ 10.

Hershberger’s first punt, which barely rolled into the end zone, came on the 10th play of the encounter (played to 9,758 paid fans) and after the two clubs exchanged fumbles. The ball was brought out to the 20 and Elder took on the appearance of an array to be reckoned with. The Panthers went all the way but they had to get a “break” on a fumbled hand-off.

After they made one first down to the 35, an errant pitch-out, with the ball striking the shoulder of halfback Jim Vogt, set the visitors back on the 23. A pass was incomplete and quarterback Paul Umberg booted. Benjamin grabbed the ball on the Massillon 40 but it was dropped as he attempted to give it to Dick Brenner. And Elder had possession on the Massillon 39 as tackle Ray Herzog covered the pigskin.
* * *
ELDER MOVED for a first and 10 on a pair of six-yard runs by Ron Wainscott and Dave Wittrock and Vogt and Reisz carried to the 18. With a fourth and one situation, Reisz drove behind a wedge at the right side, slipped past the line of scrimmage, twisted out of the grasp of one defender and much to the surprise of just about everybody (it looked like he was a dead duck at the 15) zipped past the final stripe. Guard Frank Koehne’s placement was wide but Massillon was behind.

Reisz scored with 2:25 remaining in the period and it didn’t take the locals long to tie it up. Benjamin, Brown and Hershberger accounted for 18 yards before the initial quarter came to a close and Benjamin’s 10-yarder featuring a nice stop-and-go overture by the trick junior halfback, came on the opening play of the second panel. Hershberger gained seven in two tries at left tackle before Rinehart hit Benjamin with a pretty running pass. Ivory was downed after a 12-yard pick-up to the one and on the next play Hershberger banged through right tackle to make it 6-6 at 10:36. Richardson was hit hard after his boot went low of the posts.

There wasn’t much to write home about until the first half was almost over. An Umberg punt was grounded at the Tiger 40 from which point Benjamin, on a double reverse,
high-tailed it 22 yards to the Elder 38. Then Brown, racing into the clear at the 20, lumbered the rest of the way untouched. Hershberger’s kick put the Tigers in front 13-6 with 2:30 remaining in the half.

After Hershberger got off his 51-yard punt early in the third quarter, Umberg retaliated with a 42-yarder and Massillon started clicking from its own 23.

Before the end of the quarter the Orangemen had tacked up five more first downs. It was Hershberger, then Benjamin, Hershberger then Benjamin for a total of nine plays, which netted 60 yards. The Tigers decided to go to the air on the first down at the 17 but a Rinehart pitch was dropped in the end zone and on the last play of the period Brown fought his way for 15 yards.
* * *
WITH THE OVAL on the two, Hershberger’s off-tackle slant put it a yard away on the first play of the final canto and on the second the same hustler hit the same spot for Massillon’s third touchdown of the night. He converted to make it 20-6 at 11:26.

Two penalties helped stymie Elder after the kickoff but Larry Washington, the alert defensive halfback, hurt the Panthers more. He intercepted Umberg’s toss at the Tiger 35 and dashed to the Panther 46.

However, the Tigers were penalized for illegal use of the hands and on the next play were assessed 15 additional yards, this time for holding. The ball was back on the six but the Tresslemen had another touchdown in them.

Brown bolted off tackle for 19 and Beiter, who had broken into the starting lineup for the first time, returned to gain 11 yards on a sweep. Attempting to pass, Rinehart was nailed for an eight-yard deficit but still the locals moved. Beiter got seven and then Hershberger 12 before Mike hauled in a Rinehart aerial for 12 yards to the 35. Washington ran once for four, ditto for Benjamin and from the 27 Brown saw to it that the drive wasn’t going to be in vain. He found a hole at the middle, veered to his left and chugged to pay dirt unmolested. Hershberger again split the uprights. Thus the score was 27-6 with four minutes and 10 seconds of play remaining.

Elder took the kickoff at its 32 and went on to score a second time. Passes to Wittrock and sub Jerry Drew were the chief gainers to the Tiger 36. From that point Umberg threw again. Drew again was the receiver, taking the oval on the 15 and going in standing up. Dan Bushman tried to run across the extra point but was stopped short.

Elder tried an onside kick but the ball was covered only five yards away and on the second kick-off Beiter returned eight yards to the Orange 38. Rinehart lost four attempting to pass after a delay-of-game penalty and then end Jim Mullin intercepted a Rinehart pitch at the Tiger 39 and raced to the five before he was flopped by Rinehart. Wittrock ran for four and that was it.

The Tigers came out of the fray in good shape, except for a few cuts and bruises. Elder lost sub center Bob Maegley in the second half and six stitches were required to close a wound over an eyebrown.

Fourth Straight

MASSILLON – 27
ENDS – Brenner, Elavsky, Walls, Mays, Childers, Hagan.
TACKLES – Whitfield, Mercer, Slaybaugh, Halter, Ortiz, Brownlee.
GUARDS – Meldrum, B. Brown, Heine, Heimann.
CENTERS – Krier, Kiplinger, Swartz.
QUARTERBACKS – Rinehart, Stewart.
HALFBACKS – Benjamin, Hershberger, Richardson, Washington, Pledgure, Bivings, Lawson.
FULLBACK – Beiter, C. Brown, Reese.

ELDER – 12
ENDS – Roth, Mullin, Reinstartler, Ludwig, Wegman, Flanigan.
TACKLES – Herzog, Farrell, Worss, Marx, Halloran.
GUARDS – Lebring, Brown, O’Neill, Nethaus, Keehne.
CENTERS – Maegley, Jertvorth, Westendorf.
QUARTERBACKS – Umberg, Bushman.
HALFBACKS – Luenberger, Wittrock, Wainscott, Carmisino, Vogt, Drew.
FULLBACK – Reisz.

Scoring by quarters:
Massillon 0 13 0 14 27
Elder 6 0 0 6 12

Massillon scoring:
Touchdowns – C. Brown 2 (runs of 38 and 27 yards); Hershberger 2 (two 1-yard plunges).
Extra points – Hershberger 3 (placements).

Elder scoring:
Touchdowns – Reisz (run of 18 yards); Drew (pass play covering 36 yards).

OFFICIALS
Referee – Paul Robin Tobin.
Umpire – Earl Schreiber.
Head Linesman – Walter Grysks.
Field Judge – Harvey Hodgson.

STATISTICS
Mass. Opp.
First downs rushing 15 8
First downs passing 2 2
First downs by penalties 0 0
Total first downs 17 10
Yards gained rushing 333 126
Yards lost rushing 19 51
Net yards rushing 314 75
Passes attempted 6 12
Passes completed 3 3
Yards gained passing 31 60
Net yards gained 345 135
Times kicked off 5 3
Average kickoff return 6 18
Yards kickoffs returned by 18 89
Times punted 2 5
Average punts (yards) 40 42
Yards punts returned by 0 0
Had punts blocked 0 0
Total fumbles 3 3
Times lost ball on fumbles 2 2
Penalties 4 3
Yards penalized 40 35

Mike Hershberger
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

1956: Massillon 13, Alliance 0

Tigers Win Thriller From Alliance
Massillon Gridders Triumph 13-0; Erase Old Jinx For Coach

By CHARLIE POWELL

It was another heap big scare, m’am, and Massillon was mighty glad it won.

There was good reason for rejoicing in the Tiger camp; the Tigers could point to their third victory in a row, the Alliance jinx was something of the past and Coach Lee Tressel’s personal winning skein had reached 37 games.

The Aviators, mainly on their longest sustained drive of the night, which came late in the third period and fizzled out on the first play of the final quarter, were like so many previous Alliance combines. They simply gave all they had before bowing 13-0 before 7,819 paid fans at Mt. Union College stadium.

But what they had wasn’t enough, thank goodness.

Program Cover

Massillon parlayed first and fourth period marches into its 28th win in 33 meetings with Alliance clubs. Fancy prancing Ivory Benjamin dashed into pay dirt twice and teamed with hard-nosed Mike Hershberger and the two line-busters, Chet Brown and “Chuck” Beiter, to give the Tigers the advantage when it came to moving that pigskin.

That the ground attack was the big difference was evident in that for the second time this season Massillon enjoyed a statistical edge. Just take a look.

Massillon, 13 first downs to Alliance’s 10, 270 net yards gained to 173. One Tiger aerial connection made 14 yards while the vaunted Aviator air game went ker-plunk.
* * *
ALLIANCE TRIED eight passes and not one settled into the arms of the intended receiver. But four times it was not fault of the passer, sophomore Walt Zingg.

This boy Zingg really threw the oval around but his efforts were in vain.

For instance, in that third quarter march Zingg’s flings could have put the host club back in the old ball game. Twice his receivers raced behind the Tiger secondary and were practically all by their lonesome when the pass arrived. But on both occasions the aerials were dropped.

Then after the drive ended, the Tigers had to punt and early in the spine-tingling final frame the Aviators went to work again. After Mike Hershberger got off one of his fine punts, this one 53 yards to the Aviator 10, the Mel Knowlton-coached crew advanced to their own 43 and once again one of their receivers dashed behind the secondary. Again the ball was right there but again Zingg’s toss was missed.
* * *
THE ORANGEMEN then applied the clincher. A march of 81 yards, featuring Beiter’s
35-yard caper up the middle, was capped when Benjamin whizzed around the right side for the final 13 yards.

The goalposts came down and the thumping in Massillon hearts eased considerably. What happened after that, except for the celebrating, was anti-climatic – even the fact that end Clyde Childers was required to kickoff three times.

Thus the Alliance jinx which made Paul Brown, Chuck Mather and Tom Harp its victims, went down the drain. And responsible was a green gang of fighters who licked a scrappy band of veterans.

Coach Tressel, enjoying one of his happiest hours, wouldn’t try to pick out any standouts.

“We are improving, our tackling was better and our downfield blocking looked good again. However, we have some more tough ones coming up. They are all rough…I mean it…but I believe we can hold our own if we continue to improve,” he said.

Tressel was a little peeved because of a second quarter let down but he explained the boys may have been tiring. However, apparently they got their second breath after stopping Alliance’s one big push of the night and as the last drive that iced the verdict was marked by crisp blocking and some hard running.
* * *
THE TIGER COACH was high on the Alliance team. He singled out halfbacks Timmy Johnson and Gary Wilson, who were particular thorns on inside running plays, and also paid a tribute to Zingg, a passer of “real promise.”

Johnson and Wilson accounted for 167 yards between them but their fast and shifty dashes failed to overshadow those of the four lads who carried the brunt of the Orange attack.

Benjamin zipped 92 yards in 14 carries with his touchdown coming on nifty runs of 25 and 14 yards, Hershberger made 76 in 16 trips, the improving Beiter gained 70 in five carries and Brown toted seven times for 31 yards.

Their runs were made possible by a mobile line that handled its job mighty fine. There were no standouts – everybody played hard and smart.

The game was less than two minutes old when guard Tom Meldrum jumped on a fumble at the enemy 49 – and Massillon was on its way to its first touchdown.

Hershberger and Benjamin gained three and five, respectively, before the former, twisting away from two would-be tacklers on a sweep to the left, picked up 14 yards to the 27. Brown got a yard, Benjamin fought for five and Hershberger fumbled and recovered for a four-yard deficit before Benjamin got on his horse.
* * *
THE WHIRLING dervish who plays left half for the Bengals took the ball on a double reverse – which caught the Aviators with their defenses down – and veered to the right. Blocking was near perfect and Ivory had it comparatively easy the last 15 yards of his
15-yard gallop. He was knocked for a loop but in the end zone and with six and a half minutes remaining in the panel, the Tigers were in front 6-0.

It was still six to zero after Davie Richardson’s placekick hit the crossbar and bounced back.

The rest of the quarter was meaningless other than Johnson’s 18-yard run but the hosts made two more first downs as the second round got under way. However, the Tigers knuckled down and finally end Attlilo Giovanatto had to punt from the Massillon 48.

The Tigers moved to their own 49 before Hershberger got off another terrific punt and another exchange of punts followed. The last time Alliance had possession in the first half Zingg tried three passes. One was almost intercepted by Benjamin, and two others were too far for the intended receiver.

Tressel’s halftime talk must have been a honey.

The Tigers came out loaded for Aviators. Except for a 15-yard foray by Beiter the yards were ripped off in short chunks as the Orangemen took the kickoff and moved from their own 16 to the 39.
* * *
BOB RINEHART the smooth quarterback, then hit on his only completion with Benjamin the catcher. The play was good for 14 and the fourth first down of the march but then the boys ran out of gas. On a delay, Hershberger was nailed for a five-yard loss by linebacker Bob Miller and Beiter was held for no gain before Rinehart took to the airlanes again.

The first went to Benjamin at the 25 but it looked like Ivory tried to run before he made the catch. On fourth down Rinehart twirled into the end zone and the throw was just a shade too far for Dick Brenner to reach.

Alliance was fired-up again. It was Johnson, then Wilson to the Tiger 43 before an end dropped a Zingg aerial in the clear at the 20. The host team went to the ground again and Wilson on two smashes gained 23 to the 20. Alliance stands were roaring but another Zingg pass was dropped and Johnson got only two and Wilson three. Then on fourth down Zingg couldn’t find a receiver in the open and ran to his right. Chet Brown got a firm grip on Zingg’s jersey, wouldn’t let go and Massillon took over at its own 13.

Chet and Ivory picked up a first down but in three more plays the Bengals gained nine and Hershberger punted. This time his kick sailed 53 yards and dead on the 10.

And man, the Aviators had Tiger fans on the edge of their seats once again.

That same pair, Johnson and Wilson, carried the mail to the 32 and after the next two plays made eight, a Zingg pass was dropped for the fourth time.
* * *
THEN EVERYBODY was expecting the Red and Blue to go for the first down. It was fourth and about a yard and a half at the 43 but the Aviators punted.

Giovanatto lofted one 38 yards to the Massillon 19 and the Tresselmen got sharp to apply the clincher.

Chet Brown twice wriggled loose for 12-yard pick-ups as the invaders moved to the Aviator 43 before Beiter came through with his 35-yard jaunt. Beiter cracked the middle and almost went the distance but was brought down from behind at the eight. A Rinehart toss was short but Benjamin skirted right-end, smartly cut away from a couple defenders, and went into the end zone standing up. Richardson’s placement at 1:02 made Massillonians real happy.

Childers had to kickoff three times after the field was cleared of fans who walked off with the goalposts. Massillon was offside on the first; the second went out of bounds. Then kicking from his own 35, the lanky flanker sent one clear down to the Alliance five. Johnson ran it out to the 27 and on the second play from scrimmage guard John Heimann intercepted a Zingg pass and two plays later the final gun sounded.

STATISTICS
Mass. Opp.
First downs rushing 12 10
First downs passing 1 0
First downs by penalties 0 0
Total first downs 13 10
Yards gained rushing 278 180
Yards lost rushing 22 7
Passes attempted 6 8
Passes completed 1 0
Passes had intercepted 0 1
Yards gained passing 14 0
Net yards gained 270 173
Times kicked off 3 1
Average kickoff return -5 16
Yards kickoff returned by -5 49
Times punted 4 5
Average punt (yards) 42.5 36
Yards punts returned by 0 9
Had punts blocked 0 0
Total fumbles 2 3
Times lost ball on fumbles 0 2
Penalties 5 2
Yards penalties 35 20

Mike Hershberger
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

1956: Massillon 26, Canton Lincoln 13

Tigers Defeat Canton Lincoln 26-13
Lions Give Orange And Black Terrific Game Before Bowing

By CHARLIE POWELL

Over 13,000 fans came to Tiger stadium last night expecting to take in a whale of a football game.

They weren’t let down. Massillon’s Tigers and Canton Lincoln’s Lions saw to that. Nobody, nay nobody, felt the Hammering in his heart east up until the clock showed only a little over two minutes remaining and the Orange and Black out front by 13 solid points, 26-13.

As the rain, which fell intermittently for about 46 minutes, started to pelt down the teams were going through the motions – Massillon awaiting the final second and a celebration marking its second straight victory, the Lions beaten but far from being stung to the quick.
* * *
THE TIGERS topped a big strong and speedy ball club. A club that doesn’t give up ship is always hard to beat and Lincoln was just that.

Program Cover

There were times when it looked like Massillon was about to break the contest wide open. Especially when Mike Hershberger, the foot-loose and fancy free halfback scatted 79 yards on a kickoff return to put the Tigers ahead 20-13 late in the third period. But did Lincoln fold? It did not. In fact the Canton combine came battling back, drummed up two more threatening gestures and was only a fallen foe after its second big gamble of the night failed to pay off.

It was a ball game, which might very well have gone either way. Fumbles and penalties gummed the works for both sides and in the long run the Tigers’ ability to get their
post-haste leather luggers in the open field overcame a Lincoln attack featuring powerized smashes and a surprise pass play.

Down-field blocking certainly was a rose to Massillon but there are still loop holes which must be sewed up pronto. The Tigers have another mean enemy, Alliance, due next Friday night and the belief is that if the Orange and Black takes the Aviators – usually more dangerous on their home field – into camp they may well be on their way to many more happier hours.
* * *
COACH LEE TRESSEL wasn’t beefing about much after the smoke of battle cleared last night. He noted the improvement in the blocking, plugged the running ability of Hershberger, hurrying Ivory Benjamin and fullbacks Chet Brown and Chuck Beiter, and then in the same breath paid tribute to the hard-fighting Lincoln team.

“They surprised us with some of their new offensive plays. Their line was pretty big for our kids to handle. That kid Cosentino (Don) showed more speed than we expected.”

Tressel’s next statement will probably find most Tiger supporters agreeing with him: “I feel we have a good bunch of scrappers. That’s what it takes.”

Massillon HAD to scrap. The Lions, with possibly their best outfit since the 1945 team that held Massillon to a scoreless deadlock, had the most first downs (15 to 12) and the most yardage by passing and running (295 to 217). The breaks were just about even, consequently desire probably made the difference.

Lincoln fumbled six times, Massillon recovering four times while the Lions jumped on all four Tiger bobbles. The penalty marker also was a thorn fly in the ointment for both.
* * *
IN ALL PROBABILITY the most disheartening bits of bad luck for either side was the fumble which snafued a Lion bid after the Tigers wiped out a deficit and took a 7-6 lead in the opening quarter and the penalty which deprived Lincoln of a TD after Hershberger’s run. Lincoln grabbed the bull by the horns and rolled 57 yards before Beiter pounced on Cosentino’s miscue at the three.

Then in the third period it was 13-13 after Hershberger electrified the crowd of 12,375 paid admissions with is 79-yard kickoff return. Clyde Childers kicked off to the invading crew and it was Cosentino’s turn to romp. He did…for 52 yards after fullback John Farrall returned the kick to his own 48. But a holding infraction cost the Lions the score with the penalty being the third one of three similar ones chalked up against the Lincoln array in the same period.

The Tigers had their flabbergasted moments too.

They digested two clipping penalties during the sortie, which led to their second touchdown of the night and in the third chapter a fumble led to Lincoln’s tying touchdown. But the toughest break came when the Tigers had a chance to sew it up earlier. On the third play of the last period Benjamin went lickity-split for 48 yards only to lose the ball when he was downed at the Lion seven.

Three of the four Orange tallies came on get up and go gainers with Hershberger reaching pay dirt after runs of 42 and 79 yards and Benjamin hot-footing it 38 for another. Ivory’s other second TD was made on a 13-yard run. Dave Richardson, the student manager with the blossoming toe, kicked two extra points. In his two other attempts he was hurried, the ball sailed low and right into Lincoln rushers.

The first of the fumbles came on the fourth play of the encounter. Chet Brown fumbled and Lincoln had its first break. From the Tiger 36 it required the Lions six plays to go the rest of the way. Cosentino, Farrall, and Capt. Ronnie Worstell carried to the 11 from where Cosentino hit off tackle for the touchdown and it was still 6-0 after quarterback Chuck Dinkins missed the kick.
* * *
THREE PLAYS after the kickoff Lincoln had possession again. Quarterback Bob Rinehart threw a pass in the right flat but a fine leaping catch by end George Copeland put the Lions on the Massillon 32. However, three plays later Beiter’s catch of a Dinkins pass made the Tigers as active as a mouse in a cheese factory.

Chet Brown got the drive going with an 11-yard sweep from the 22 and he, Benjamin, Beiter and Hershberger advanced the pigskin to the Lion 42. After Brown out-foxed one defender and then bowled over another Massillon was penalized for clipping but Hershberger tallied the tying TD. Finding a hole at left tackle and aided by Benjamin’s block at the 15, Mike dashed 42 yards on a real heady job. Richardson split the uprights and with 1:52 left in the quarter the Tigers were ahead.

Apparently, the score was like a red flag to a bull. The Lions made 13 yards on the last three plays of the period (with a fourth down gamble paying off in a five-yard gainer by Farrall) and at the outset of the second stanza the Cantonians stayed on the ground to move to the three, only to see Cosentino fumble and Beiter recover.

It was the Tigers’ turn to roar. Benjamin swept end and ran 17 before slipping. Two clipping penalties hurt but a roughing call against the Lions and Rinehart’s pretty pass to Hershberger which picked up 12 helped and soon the Bengals were on the Lincoln 38.
* * *
AT THIS POINT Benjamin, with a wave of blockers ahead of him, wriggled around right end, got loose at the 25 and sprinted past the final stripe. End Dick Brenner was shaken up on the play and as Tiger coaches were taking a look at him the teams lined up for Massillon’s extra point try – and the Tigers then were called for delaying the proceedings. Everybody had figured time was out and Coach Tressel had a chat with the ref but the penalty stood. Richardson went back further for the kick and it was low and flew smack into the back of a Lincoln boy. Cosentino returned the kickoff to the 31 and the half was all over.

Following the rest period the fans really got their money’s worth.

After an exchange of fumbles Lincoln got the ball on the Tiger 42. After three plays the Lions were faced with a fourth and four situation at the 35 and here they decided to gamble.

A double-reverse pass came off with Dinkins doing the tossing. End Larry Ellison was all by his lonesome at the 12. He caught the oval and carried to the four. Worstell gained one, then cracked the middle for a touchdown and when Farrall ran across the point-after, matters were all even with 4:10 remaining in the frame.

Copeland kicked off and Hershberger fielded the ball in front of the east stands on the 21. He cut to his left, then went back to the right, got a needed block from Jim Mercer and outran some enemies to the Promised Land. Richardson again converted and it was 20-13 at 4:03.
* * *
COSENTINO got in the act with a 52-yard return but Lincoln was caught holding and Paul Dellerba’s team stayed in hot water after another holding penalty three plays later. The second penalty erased a 22-yard jaunt by the same Cosentino.

With fourth and 20 at the Tiger 44 the Lions gambled again and this time they didn’t hit the jackpot. The reverse pass play was called again on third down but Brenner came through, batting the ball down and on fourth down Dinkins’ shot intended for Ellison was way too short.

On the second play of the final round Hershberger punted to Worstell on the Lion 37 and the Lincoln halfback fumbled. The kid who kicked the ball dived on it at the Lincoln 45 but on Massillon’s first play from scrimmage, the Tigers relinquished possession again. Benjamin inserted a beauty of a run but fumbled when he was tackled and Ellison recovered on the seven.

Four plays later Cosentino made only one when the Lions needed three and it was Massillon’s ball on the Maroon 16. Hershberger got three before Benjamin scored. He cut around the right side and high-tailed it to the end zone as Hershberger and Beiter blocked nicely. At 8:02 Richardson’s kick was low but the Tigers had the clincher.

Lincoln gave it another whirl, moving from its own 42 to the Tiger 29 before the locals again took over on downs. Hershberger’s fumble was recovered by Ellison at the Tiger 19 and the visitors got to the three before time ran out.

MASSILLON – 26
ENDS – Brenner, Elvasky, Childers, Hagan, Geschwind, Wells.
TACKLES – Whitfield, Mercer, Brownlee, Bixler, Halter.
GUARDS – B. Brown, Meldrum, Heine.
CENTERS – Krier, Kiplinger.
QUARTERBACK – Rinehart.
HALFBACKS – Benjamin, Hershberger, Pledgure, Richardson, Bivings, Washington.
FULLBACKS – C. Brown, Beiter, Reese.

LINCOLN – 13
ENDS – Ellison, Wetzel, Copeland, Zettler, Bennett.
TACKLES – Groetz, Thewes, Craddock.
GUARDS – DePasquale, Vogelgesang.
CENTER – Stroia.
QUARTERBACKS – C. Dinkins, T. Dinkins.
HALFBACKS – Cosentino, Worstell, Van Benthuysen, Ferry.
FULLBACK – Farrall.

Score by quarters:
Massillon 7 6 7 6 26
Lincoln 6 0 7 0 13

Massillon scoring:
Touchdowns – Hershberger 2, runs 42, 79; Benjamin 2, runs 38, 13.
Extra points – Richardson, 2 (placements).

Lincoln scoring:
Touchdowns – Cosentino, run 11; Worsetll, run 3.
Extra point – Farrall (run).

OFFICIALS
Referee – Mack Schaffer, Ottawa.
Umpire – Leo Less, Youngstown.
Head Linesman – C.W. Rupp, Cuyahoga Falls.
Field Judge – Dick Klar, Dover.

STATISTICS
Mass. Opp.
First downs rushing 12 12
First downs passing 0 2
First downs by penalties 0 1
Total first downs 12 15
Yards gained rushing 235 246
Yards lost rushing 30 7
Passes attempted 2 6
Passes completed 1 2
Yards gained passing 12 56
Net yards gained 217 295
Times kicked off 5 3
Average kickoff return 41.3 19.2
Yards kickoffs returned by 124 96
Times punted 1 0
Average punt (yards) 25 0
Yards punts returned by 0 0
Had punts blocked 0 0
Total fumbles 4 6
Times lost ball on fumbles 4 4
Penalties 6 4
Yards penalties 65 50

Mike Hershberger
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

1956: Massillon 35, Toledo Central Catholic 0

Tigers Defeat Toledo Central 35-0
Long Runs By Bengal Backs Startle Foe

By CHARLIE POWELL

If the outcome of all the rest are like the one last night there will be a lot of happy people in Massillon – and Coach Lee Tressel will be able to toss his aspirins into the nearest trash can.

But before the 1956 edition of the Washington high Tigers had applied the finishing touches to their one-sided 35-0 conquest of an out-manned but stubborn Toledo Central Catholic grid team those who root for the good old Orange and Black were starting to think about the more troublesome obstacles which lie ahead.
* * *
CANTON LINCOLN is next and the Lions will be a different story. That’s what they were saying and apparently no truer words have ever been spoken.

Program Cover

Toledo Central had a spunky, hard-hitting outfit, one that probably kept the score down by controlling the swineskin. Those 35 points looked awfully good but they fail to tell the story. Only once did the Tigers put on a sustained drive, they were out-first-downed and without a couple of long gainers they would have been on the short end of total yardage.

The blocking stands improvement and we think it will be better. Ditto for the defense, which was somewhat off color in the tackling department. But there were some outstanding overtures played by the Tigers, who made it a romp before a goodly-sized turnout (10,257) considering a good many things.
* * *
BIGGEST THING in Massillon’s favor was its explosiveness. The three regulars operating out of the “hands” of Quarterback Bob Rinehart – Halfbacks Ivory Benjamin and Mike Hershberger and Fullback Chet Brown, with one big assist from sub fullback Chuck
Beiter – were the difference. Perhaps the energetic Benjamin came up with the more spectacular jaunts but the three others did man-sized jobs and although the Fighting Irish really acted tough on occasions, the mixture of speed and power put them on the
ropes – then knocked them off.

Hershberger, righthalf and co-captain, tallied two touchdowns on runs of seven and 20 yards, caught a pass for 10 more and in 11 trips with the mail averaged over seven yards per try. Benjamin carted nine times for an average of seven yards per and it was his
58-yard scamper, longest run of the night, which went for another Tiger TD. He also caught an aerial for a gain of 36 yards. Line-bucking Brown averaged over six yards in nine carries and Chet got into the scoring act on a six-yard smash. Beiter, impressive in his brief role as a line buster, scored the other touchdown on a 21-yard sock up the middle.
OUT FRONT of these lads was a line, which blew “hot and cold.” The opener staged in near-perfect football weather probably helped them a great deal and undoubtedly they will get better with each game. After all, the fact that none of them had ever before started a varsity scuffle must be considered.

Incidentally, the same holds true for the backfield – including Hershberger who sat out the 1955 season because of an injury.

Benjamin got the Orangemen headed goal ward midway in the first quarter when after an exchange of punts he grabbed another Toledo kick on his own 32. Cutting to the east sidelines he moved in the clear at the 40 and apparently was going all the way but the last defender standing a chance to stop him did just that. However, Massillon was in business at the Central 27 and in short order the Tigers’ first touchdown of the year was flashed on the scoreboard.

HERSHBERGER lost three at the left side and a Rinehart pass was incomplete but Bob, showing considerable poise, twirled again and this time Hershberger made a leaping catch at the 24 and toted four more yards. On the next play the same Hershberger, on a
quick-hitter, hit pay dirt after tearing away from one Toledo player, then outrunning two more.

Little Dave Richardson, who doubles as a student manager and place-kicker, came in and calmly split the uprights. And he did the same after each touchdown that followed.

Only two minutes, 32 seconds remained in the quarter and Massillon didn’t reach touchdownland again but the speedy, shifty Benjamin brought the crowd to its collective feet and got the Bengals knocking at touchdown door again.

The Centralites stalled and Quarterback Bob Stearns punted from the 17 to Ivory, who grabbed the leather on the 48 and zoomed to the Irish 38. The Tigers were on the prowl after being held at bay the last two plays of the period.

On the first play of the second quarter Rinehart ran to his left, fired the ball to Benjamin on the 42 and the Tiger righthalf made it to the 11 after neatly reversing his field in front of the Central bench. Ivory was bounced for a loss of two but Hershberger got six before taking a pitch out, wheeling left and fighting his way to the end zone. Richardson converted at 10:07.

Before the half it was 21-0.

BENJAMIN HAULED in a pass by Pete Kessler, sub for Stearns, and rambled from the Tiger 44 to the Central 42. It required the hosts six plays to make their third six-pointer. It was sub halfback Larry Washington for six, Benjamin three, Hershberger for the first down at the 32, Brown to the 21 and then Beiter, finding a big hole at center, buzz-sawing his way the last 21 yards. At 5:04 Richardson kicked the point. That’s the way it stood at intermission which arrived shortly after Hershberger halted a Central bid which reached the Tiger 23. Mike intercepted a throw at the three, cut back to within inches of his own goal line, and raced to the 35. With a couple of good blocks he might have gone the distance. It wouldn’t have counted through, as Massillon was penalized back to the 20 for clipping. Two plunges netted seven, two passes failed and the teams took a rest.

A poor kick which squirted off End Bill Compton’s foot and went out of bounds 15 yards away at the 35, paved the way for the Tresselmen’s third period touchdown.

After Brown got two and Beiter churned for five, Benjamin got on his “horse” once again. Hitting off the right side, he quickly burst into the clear and without a hand touching him, hot-footed it 58 yards to the Promised Land. Needless to say, Richardson booted it through to make it 28-0 with 8:45 remaining in the session.

THE IRISH of Tom McHugh followed with their best effort, which went from their own 44 to the Orange six. Two runs, two passes made it third and six at the six when Stearns unleashed an aerial intended for Halfback Dick Courturier. Instead Benjamin was the catcher. From the six-inch line he scooted up field and with Tackle Jim Mercer throwing the key block, reached midfield. For a moment the play spelled touchdown but two Toledo boys had an angle on him.

Apparently, the back-fire took the wind out of the visitors and the Tigers got rambunctious again. On the last play of the quarter Hershberger gained three and as the final round got under way the drive kept moving.

Cutting away from one enemy and stiff-arming another, Hershberger raced 12 and came back for 18 after Benjamin picked up four following a Rinehart pass, which was bent for End Don Elavsky, but broken up by Irish Halfback Ron Bueter. End Bob Brubaker nailed Rinehart before Bob could get his bearings, for a deficit of seven, back to the 20 but Brown barreled to the nine and Benjamin got six and with fourth and three on the board, the husky Brown hit over the left side and was hit by a brace of Irish at the two. But they failed to stop him and Chet just made it past the final stripe. At 8:39 Richardson’s kick wound up the scoring.

TRESSEL began to make more frequent use of his reserves and the Scarlet got the chance to advance the pigskin once more. Martin Grosjean, Bob Vetter and Kessler ran to the 19 and a pass, deflected by sub tackle Gary Ortiz, was caught by halfback Charley Miller who reached the 10. Two plunges got only a yard and on the last play of the encounter Kessler passed again. His throw sailed into the end zone and Fournier was set and waiting but defensive halfback “Corky” Pledgure came out of nowhere and batted the ball away.

Tressel was a very happy coach, “It’s always nice to win your opener,” he smiled.

Pointing out that Central controlled the ball a considerable amount of time (over five minutes at one stretch) the new Tiger tutor went on to say that this might not have been if his team’s tackling had been sharper. “Out-standing, I thought, was the fact that we didn’t fumble and were penalized only once.”

The coach emphasized that the attempted to keep his first unit intact over three quarters “because we need the work.”

STATISTICS
Mass. Opp.
First downs rushing 8 10
First downs passing 1 4
First downs by penalties 0 0
Total first downs 9 14
Yards gained rushing 227 152
Yards lost rushing 35 11
Passes attempted 7 8
Passes completed 2 4
Passes intercepted 2 0
Yards gained passing 46 47
Net yards gained 231 188
Times kicked off 6 1
Average kickoff return 14 12
Yards kickoffs returned by 14 82
Times punted 1 3
Average punt (yards) 40 28
Yards punts returned by 55 0
Had punts blocked 0 0
Total fumbles 0 2
Times lost ball on fumbles 0 1
Penalties 1 0
Yards penalties 15 0

Mike Hershberger
Massillon vs. McK - Throwback (Large)

1955: Massillon 7, Canton McKinley 13

Bulldogs Beat Tigers 13-7 On Breaks
Two High Passes Give Canton 2 Touchdowns And Likely State Title

By LUTHER EMERY

The Washington high school Tigers “passed” the state championship eight miles eastward Saturday afternoon when they handed the Canton McKinley Bulldogs a 13-7 victory before a chilled crowd of 21,000 fans.

Two high passes from center that went over the Massillon punter’s head, enabled McKinley to score its two touchdowns. One was covered in the end zone, the other only required a three-yard effort to get the score.

The Tigers got their touchdown the hard way – a 79-yard drive. They made more first downs, 12-4 and gained twice as many net yards, but lost the game.

In short, they beat the Bulldogs everywhere but on the scoreboard. But it is the score that counts and in years to come, the score, not the statistics will be remembered.

Program Cover

The Canton victory narrows Massillon’s edge in the 60-game series to three games. The Tigers have won 29, the Bulldogs 26 and five have ended in tie scores.
* * *
THE TRIUMPH brought Canton its first undefeated season since 1934 when a Bulldog team coached by Jimmy Aiken whipped Massillon 21-6 to hang up a string of 11 wins for the season which entitled it to a just claim to the state title.

McKinley was highly elated over its victory and had every reason to be. It was the first time the Bulldogs had beaten the Tigers since 1947, and the victory will undoubtedly gain them the state title.

The counting of ballots cast in The Associated Press poll tonight should only be a mere formality since the game was billed as one in which the state title was to go to the winner. As a result the Hall of Fame trophy, which Massillon has won the last seven years, will likely be awarded to Canton McKinley.

There’s a possibility a campaign by a couple of other undefeated teams will wrest some ballots from the Bulldogs.

Two out-of-town reporters with ballots in their pockets, who had watched the game on the television screen, indicated to us Sunday they were going to desert the Bulldogs and cast their votes for one of the other undefeated teams because of Massillon’s superior showing in statistics.

However, we cannot see their logic in denying the Bulldogs the title in that none of the other undefeated teams has played a comparable schedule or has beaten Massillon, the defending champ.
* * *
WE SHALL VOTE for Canton, although we shall do so with tongue in cheek, believing the Tigers are as good if not the best in the state.

But their 8-1-1 record is against them in the poll. We don’t know where they will finish in this week’s balloting.

Some writers may seize the opportunity to knock the local team far down in the ratings, particularly in view of the clamor for first place.

The Massillon gridders had nothing to be ashamed of Saturday and that helped to temper the loss. Our only criticism, and about the only criticism we heard of Massillon’s play, was a bit of dilly-dallying in the huddle in the last three minutes of the game. It took them 35 seconds to get off next to the last play of the game.

The game, which was supposed to have been a tremendous offensive contest, actually resolved itself into more of a defensive game, and the Tigers had nothing to be ashamed of.

They were superior to McKinley on both offense and defense.

The locals who rolled to nine first downs the first half only got three the second half, but still out-gained McKinley in net yardage from running and passing plays the last two periods, 54 to 52.
* * *
CANTON McKINLEY’S vaunted offense, which had been rolling along at an average of over 400 yards a gained, was held to a net gain of 62 yards, while the Tigers rolled up 194 net yards rushing and passing. Deduct 52 yards on two passes from center that went over the punter’s head and you still have 142 net yards from scrimmage to the Bulldogs; 69 – and Canton called the game a defensive victory for the Bulldogs.

Actually the victory was a gift to McKinley for both touchdowns were donated. No blame should be placed on the centers responsible for the passes. Both felt the world had fallen in on them at the end of the contest. It should be pointed out that they were handling a slippery ball and that a center in modern T football has little opportunity to actually pass the ball 10 yards or more under game conditions.

They practice it often but get little actual game experience because the Tigers seldom punt more than once or twice.

In fact, we saw two poor center passes, one of which resulted in a blocked kick, in a recent professional football game.

The breaks just came at inopportune moments and although the decision of the contest rode on them we haven’t heard anyone criticize either player.

Furthermore, an examination of movies of the game failed to substantiate a report that on both occasions a McKinley player had bumped the ball or put pressure on the centers. McKinley in no way contributed to the play.

The first touchdown was presented in the opening period of play with the Tigers in possession of the ball on their own 36-yard line, fourth down and nine to go.

Dave Archibald dropped back to punt and Tom Spicer’s pass from center soared over his head. Archibald took after the ball and it rolled to the three-yard line before he could get on it.
* * *
IT TOOK NAP Barbosa three whacks at the line to get over but he made it on the third attempt and Nate Harris kicked the extra point to put McKinley ahead 7-0.

The Tigers tied it up by taking the kickoff and gallantly marching 79 yards on 18 plays to score. While doing so they were helped along by 20 yards in penalties which actually were more than nullified by 25 yards in penalties assessed against them.

Don Duke scored the T.D. from the two-yard line with eight minutes and 10 seconds remaining in the second period John Kasunick kicked the extra point a high boot that tied the score at 7-7.

The Bulldogs got their second touchdown without effort in the second minute of the fourth quarter. The Tigers had gotten themselves into a hole when Ivory Benjamin fumbled a punt and Canton covered it on the Tigers’ 45.

Dave Archibald got the ball back for Massillon when he intercepted a Barbosa pass and was downed on the 20.
* * *
THROWN BACK a yard by the Bulldgos in three downs, Archibald again tried to punt. This time Jim Dowd was centering the ball. His pass, like that of Spicer’s was high and soared over Archibald’s head and into the end zone. Archibald dove for the ball and so did two Canton players. Bill White got on it for a touchdown. Harris missed the extra point and that ended the scoring.

Except for the Tigers’ long touchdown drive, neither team threatened seriously from scrimmage.

The Tigers came within striking distance on only two other occasions. The first time they got the ball in the second half they worked to the Bulldog 32-yard line where they surrendered the pigskin to Canton on a fourth down incompleted pass.

McKinley and Massillon both got into each other’s territory in the second period.

The advances were the result of good punt returns. Benjamin ran brilliantly to the Canton 39 before being knocked out of bounds but a 15-yard clipping penalty put the ball way back on the Massillon 31, an actual loss of 30 yards and a real blow to the Tigers who were hot at the moment for it was the first time they had gotten the ball after scoring their touchdown.
* * *
EVEN SO they marched with it from their own 31 back to the Canton 35 where with two yards to go and fourth down coming up they punted.

Ike Grimsley, returned brilliantly, lugging the ball back to the Massillon 47. Two five-yard penalties against the Tigers and a six-yard gain by Don Garman produced a first down on the 31. Barbosa passed seven yards to Jackson, who fumbled when hit hard by Bob Tracy and Dave Schumacher pounced on the ball for the Tigers on the 24.
* * *
CANTON MADE one other effort the last time it had the ball in the game. The Bulldogs aided by a 22-yard run by Barbosa, the best Canton gain form scrimmage, worked the ball into Massillon territory but lost it on downs on the 27.

Charlie Brown, Tiger safety man, had a possible opportunity to tie the score on this series when he almost intercepted a pass by Barbosa with what appeared to be a clear field ahead of him. He juggled the ball while going full steam ahead and dropped it.

That just about sums up the offensive maneuvers of the day.

The Tigers succeeded in stopping the highly vaunted McKinley offense with a special defense cooked up for the game.

They called it an eagle defense. The three men in the center of the five-man defensive line had the responsibility of taking care of five men in the McKinley line, tackle to tackle. Bob Cocklin, who has been a linebacker, and Jim Houston, who has been the defensive left end, changed positions. Tracy’s assignment was also switched. The ends and the two wing linebackers had the responsibility of holding in Bob Williams and Herman Jackson, the Bulldog ends, and they did a good job of it. McKinley didn’t dare to try its end around stuff and the ends had difficulty getting downfield for passes. Only three were attempted. One was intercepted, one was almost intercepted and the receiver fumbled the only one completed when tackled.

Likewise the three men in the middle of the line did excellent work. Ken Fisher started on defense as a linebacker for the first time this season but was knocked out in the second quarter and didn’t play any longer. He was replaced by Jack Butcher who played well.

Fisher was taken to the Massillon city hospital where he has recovered from a slight concussion and was to be released today.

His experience undoubtedly was missed by the Tigers offensively in the second half.
* * *
THE TIGER DEFENSE stopped Ron Carnahan, the Bulldogs’ leading ground gainer for the season, with a net loss of nine yards for his ball carrying efforts.

They had all the other backs bottled up until late in the third period when Barbosa began running from short punt formation. He gained 61 of McKinley’s 78 yards rushing.

His longest run of 22 yards was exceeded only by a 26-yard dash reeled off in the first period by Willie Long in the process of the Tiger’s touchdown drive.

Top ground gainer of the day, however, was Duke with 66 net yards on 20 carries.

The Bulldogs actually got off only 21 running plays, three pass plays and three punts from scrimmage (exclusive of penalty plays) during the game, while the Tigers got off 54 running, three pass and four punt formation plays.
* * *
CHIEF REASON for McKinley failing to get off more plays was inability to move the ball the first half and the Tigers controlling the ball for 10 minutes and 14 seconds while marching to their only touchdown.

In that drive they got the ball through a punt on their own 20. Brown made two yards and Duke four. McKinley drew a 15-yard penalty which put the ball on the 41. Brown hit for seven, Duke one and Long picked up five yards for a first on the Canton 48. Duke made two and James, running on an option, raced 13 yards to a first on the 33.

The Tigers were penalized five yards back to the 38 for offside. Long made two yards and the Tigers drew a 15-yard clipping penalty. A four-yard pass to Brown gained four yards but another five-yard penalty was slapped on the Tigers for offside, moving the ball back to midfield. There Long, running from fullback, sent 26 yards and Archibald in a two-yard plunge made it a first down on the 22.

Archibald carried two more times in a row, getting four yards on each try and putting the ball on the 14. The Tigers drew a five-yard penalty when Jim Houston jumped offside on the next play, but got it right back when a delay of game penalty was slapped on McKinley for a substitution.

Duke plunged to a first on the 11 and James went seven yards to the four.

Duke in two tries went over for the touchdown, getting two yards each time.

The play on which James did his running in this series was especially cooked up for the game. He flared out as though to pass but had the option of running if the defense dropped back. He gained 56 yards in the game and lost 15 for a net of 41.

The line-up and summary:
MASSILLON
ENDS – Canary, Houston, Welcher, Cockling, Nagle.
TACKLES – Graber, Maier, Whitfield, Schumacher, Hofacre, Allen.
GUARDS – Fisher, Roan, Ertle, Tracy, Kasunick.
CENTERS – Spicer, Dowd, Gentzler.
QUARTERBACKS – James, Brenner.
HALFBACKS – Brown, Duke, Long, Radtke, Butcher, Benjamin, Washington.
FULLBACKS – Archibald.

McKINLEY
ENDS – Williams, Jackson, Jack, Bryant.
TACKLES – Patterson, Rocknich, Infantides.
GUARDS – Clawson, Bell, Martin, Bender.
CENTERS – Perdue, White.
QUARTERBACKS – Barbosa, Grimsley.
HALFBACKS – Carnahan, Garman, Phil Martin, Martins, Fontes.
FULLBACKS – Harris.

Score by quarters:
Massillon 0 7 0 0 7
McKinley 7 0 0 6 13

Touchdowns:
McKinley – Barbosa, White.
Massillon – Duke.

Points after touchdown:
McKinley – Harris (placekick).
Massillon – Kasunick (placekick).

Jim Houston
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

1955: Massillon 27, Akron Garfield 20

Tigers Defeat Akron Garfield 27-20

By LUTHER EMERY

The Tigers squeaked by Akron Garfield 27-20 in Tiger stadium Friday evening before a surprising crowd of 9,444 and now let’s BEAT McKINLEY!

The BEAT McKINLEY cry went up immediately after the game as a banner was unfurled at one end of the field as the team and the band and students joined in a rally on the field.

But in the Tiger dressing room the BEAT McKINLEY spirit had not yet caught on, for the young Massillon athletes were a bit glum over their close shave with the Akron gridders.

Evidently they figured they hadn’t put up their best game against the gallant Akron team, which at the same time must have been wondering what you have to do to win a ball game.

Of course, the answer is “score more points,” and that the Tigers did, with the help of a fumbled Garfield punt that Ken Fisher covered on the Garfield six that led to the third Massillon touchdown.

The game was a close repetition of the 1954 Massillon-Garfield game which saw the Tigers trail 6-0 at the half and finally win 21-13 in the last quarter. It was the kind of a game you can expect a team to play when everyone is talking about the game a week away with Canton McKinley instead of concentrating on the job at hand.

The Tigers might well have lost last night’s encounter just as they could have lost the Garfield game a year ago.

Now it is up to the Massillon gridders to bounce back as they did a year ago and BEAT McKINLEY!

The Bulldog foes who they will meet next Saturday afternoon in Fawcett stadium, Canton, were witnesses at last night’s game.

Wade Watts, their coach, said Friday afternoon he ordinarily doesn’t permit his team to watch an opponent before a game. However, he waived the ruling Friday, feeling he had made a mistake last year by not permitting his team to see the Tigers play Garfield the week before the Massillon-Bulldog game.

“I felt that had my boys seen Massillon against Garfield last year, they might have come over with more confidence.”

As you know, the local gridders whipped the Bulldogs last year, 26-6.

What reaction last night’s Massillon-Garfield game will have on the Canton team remains to be seen.
* * *
CERTAINLY the Tigers were anything but sharp, while Garfield, playing with all of its might, was denied an upset or at least a tie by the narrowest of margins.

The Tigers for instance, scored their first touchdown after Garfield had lost the ball on downs on its own 34. Then the fumbled punt set up the third.

Garfield on the other hand was well on its way to a touchdown in the second period and had the ball on the eight-yard line when set back by a 15-yard clipping penalty.

Of course the Presidents got some breaks too. They covered three Massillon fumbles, a couple of them deep in Massillon territory, but were unable to cash in on them.

Garfield’s main weapon was the same as that of Barberton – the forward pass. Tiger opponents have sensed a weakness in Massillon’s pass defense and are throwing the ball. The Presidents completed nine of 18 passes for 177 net yards.

Two of their touchdowns were the direct result of passes and a long throw led to the other.

For the most part the receivers were fairly well defensed by the Massillon secondary but they caught the ball over the Tigers’ heads.
* * *
DAVE CHRIS, the slick little Garfield quarterback, eluded Tiger tacklers most of the evening when they attempted to rush him and worked from a good pocket of protection thrown up by his teammates. This gave him a lot of time to pick out his receivers.

He had a fine assortment of passes too, and the visitors gained on all of them, including a pass off a buck lateral.

The Tigers froze up in their passing game, tried three and completed one, a 16-yard toss to Jim Houston.

They gained a net total of 278 yards on the ground to 103 for Garfield, but the net sum of both running and passing was 294 for the Tigers to 280 for Garfield. First downs were
17-13 in the local team’s favor.

Leader in the ground gaining department for Massillon was Don Duke with 118 yards in 47 carries. Dave Archibald gained 72 in 14 carries and Charlie Brown 68 in 10. Christ, who gained 77 and lost 19, was the top runner for Garfield.

The first half, as has been the habit so many times this season, found the Tigers battling for their lives.
* * *
GARFIELD came on to score first as it took the opening kickoff on its 38. A 33-yard run by Chris and two passes, an eight-yarder from Chris to Gene Zuravel and one of 12 yards off a buck lateral to Sterling Shepherd who tossed to Manzie Winters, were included in the 62-yard march. The peg to Winters put the ball on the one and Chris took it over on second down. Mobley scored the extra point and made it 7-0.

Don Duke almost got away with the kickoff that followed, returning 61 yards to his 28 where he was bumped just enough to knock him off stride.

Garfield bristled and threw back the challenge, however to take the ball away from the locals on the 25.

But the Tigers also braced and stopped Garfield when, with fourth down and less than a yard to go, it tried for a first down. The locals took the ball on the 34 and from there moved quickly to score. Duke hit for 10, James one, Archibald six and Duke for the last 17 to score the first of his three touchdowns. John Kasunick kicked the extra point to tie the score at 7-7.

But that didn’t discourage Garfield.

Welcher booted the ball straight into the hands of a Garfield player on the 50. On the first play Chris fired to Zuravel for a touchdown, a gain of 50 yards. The attempt at the extra point was lost and the score stood at 13-7.

The second period was almost two-thirds gone when the Tigers managed to tie it up. Garfield had succeeded in getting down to the eight and was penalized back to the 23 for clipping. Earl Radtke ended the threat by intercepting for the Tigers on the 11. From this point the local team marched 89 yards to score. Duke and Archibald alternated carrying the ball and made six first downs on the four. Archibald took it over in two attempts to tie it up at 13-13.
* * *
THE TIGERS who received to start the second half fumbled to Garfield on the first play of the period on the 32, but the visitors were unable to take advantage of the break and were forced to punt, the ball going over the goal and the Tigers getting it on their 20. A 15-yard penalty against Garfield for unnecessary roughness moved the ball up field and the Presidents forced the locals to punt.

Archibald got off a good one but the Akron safety man fumbled it on the six and Fisher pounced on the pigskin for the Tigers. Duke shot over on the first play to score and also plunged the extra point over to put the locals ahead 20-13.

The Tigers forced Garfie4ld to punt after the kickoff, and they got the ball on their 35. Brown got 19 yards and the locals only successful pass of the evening, a 16-yard effort to Houston, brought a first on the 30.

Archibald made two and Brown ran to a first on the 11. Duke took it over from there and Kasunick kicked the extra point that made the score 27-13.

That ended the Tigers’ scoring efforts, but Garfield still had another up its sleeve.

It took the kickoff on the 30 and never stopped until it reached the Promised Land. Chris passed 21 yards to Winters to start the proceedings and a pass to Winters off a buck lateral to Shepherd gained 29 more and a first down on the 23. Mobley picked up four and Chris hit John Lampley for the touchdown, a gain of 19 yards.

The Tigers made one more effort to score but fumbled the opportunity away on the 26-yard line.

The line-up and summary:
MASSILLON
ENDS – Houston, Canary, Welcher.
TACKLES – Graber, Maier, Schumacher, Kreiger, Hofacre, Meldrum.
GUARDS – Fisher, Roan, Kasunick, Tracy, Ertle, Harrison.
CENTERS – Spicer, Dowd, Gentzler.
QUARTERBACKS – James, Brenner.
HALFBACKS – Duke, Brown, Long, Radtke, Butcher, Cocklin, Benjamin, Herring, Washington.
FULLBACK – Archibald.

GARFIELD
ENDS – Lampley, Winters.
TACKLES – Parker, Genda.
GUARDS – Suggett, Parks, Prim, Stevens.
CENTERS – Gay, Grecni.
QUARTERBACK – Chris
HALFBACKS – Shepherd, Zuravel, Miller, Miskar, Arshinkoff, Taylor.
FULLBACK – Mobley.

Score by periods:
Massillon 7 6 14 0 27
Garfield 13 0 0 7 20

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Duke 3, Archibald.
Garfield – Chris, Zuravel, Lampley.

Points after touchdown:
Massillon – Kasunick 2 (placekicks); Duke (carried).
Garfield – Mobley (carried); Winters (placekick).

Official
Referee – Lobach.
Umpire – Gryska.
Head Linesman – Holzbach.
Field Judge – Sweitzer.

STATISTICS
Mass. Akron
First downs 17 13
Passes attempted 3 18
Passes completed 1 9
Yards gained passing 16 183
Yards lost passing 0 6
Net gain passing 16 177
Yards gained rushing 290 130
Yards lost rushing 12 27
Net gain rushing 276 103
Net gain rushing and passing 294 280
Times kicked off 5 4
Average kickoff (yards) 38 44
Yards kickoffs returned by 94 65
Times punted 2 2
Average punt (yards) 37 22
Yards punts returned by 0 0
Times fumbled 4 3
Lost ball on fumbles 3 1
Times penalized 4 4
Yards penalized 27 27

Jim Houston
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

1955: Massillon 26, Barberton 14

Tigers Defeat Barberton 26-14
Massillon Grid Team Given Good Lesson In Passing By George Izo

By LUTHER EMERY

The Washington high Tigers sputtered and almost drove their coach and 2,000 Massillon fans crazy in the Rubber Bowl Friday evening, but when all was over they were 26-14 winners over a stubborn Barberton high school football team.

Held to a 7-7 tie the first two periods, the orange and black had to chalk up 19 points in the second half to extend their undefeated skein to 15 games.

Program Cover

Today the Massillon gridders know what the pros are up against on Sunday afternoons, for Barberton played that kind of game – a passing game – relying almost entirely on the strong arm of Quarterback George Izo. His individual brilliance last night would probably get him a unanimous vote for the All-Ohio from the disappointing crowd of 8,335 spectators.

It was Izo’s pitching and Massillon’s own errors, that had the folk, on edge much of the evening. With a few ifs and ands you could have had an upset, or on the other hand you could have had Barberton humbled by a pretty sizeable score. It was that kind of a game.

Take the first half for instance.
* * *
THE TIGERS rolled up 191 yards from scrimmage to Barberton’s 72, yet only succeeded in matching Barberton’s seven points. Another T.D. was pushed over on a forward pass, but it was ruled out and a penalty slapped on the local team because one of the backfield boys moved around illegally.

Then penalties on two other occasions brought the ball back to midfield, when touchdowns were in the making with first downs within the 10-yard stripe.

But looking at it from another way, the Tigers scored their last touchdown on a freak pass interception, the ball bounding off a Barberton players hands into the arms of Halfback Earl Radtke, who ran 70 yards to score. Most folks throught the ball had bounced off the ground but according to Radtke and officials it hit the leg of the intended Barberton receiver.

It was the kind of game you have a hard time figuring out and Coach Tom Harp in the dressing room after the contest decided there’s a lot of figuring to do.

“You should score more than seven points when you gain 191 yards from scrimmage,” Tom theorized, and added, “We are going to have to find out what’s wrong.”
* * *
ONE OF THE THINGS wrong was the number of penalties, 96 yards in all, slapped on the Tigers during the game.

Illegal procedure, offside, backfield in motion and forward movement on a lateral cost the Tigers not only penalties but a lot of lost yardage that would have swelled their net 378 for the evening well over the 450 mark. There were more flags on the field last night than you see on an entire Flag Day in Massillon.

The Tigers, who are making an unenviable reputation for themselves as a poor first half team, gave their Massillon followers a headache in the first quarter when Izo pitched his club to the first points of the game after his team had covered a fumble on the Massillon 38. He completed three passes in four attempts for 24, six and eight yards, the latter a toss to Dave Bartee for the touchdown. His perfect point after touchdown from placement made it 7-0.

The Tigers managed to tie it up in the second period after getting the ball on the Barberton 22, Dave Archibald plunging through center for the last eight and the score.

The local team went ahead in the third quarter by scoring two touchdowns, one on a
six-yard plunge by Duke after covering a Barberton fumble on the 24 and the other on a drive from the Tiger two that actually went 108 yards, penalties included.

Radtke’s 70-yard return of an intercepted pass gave the locals a 26-7 lead in the fourth quarter and Barberton scored last as Izo again fired 31 yards to Bartee for a first down on the three and then plunged the ball across himself.
* * *
THE MAGICS were anything but easy.

They were a rugged team, considerably heavier than the Tigers, and the locals bore the marks of a hard contest on their faces and bodies.

Coach Harp had to rush the injured Jim Houston into the contest to help stem the Magics advance and to provide extra punch for his own offense.

The team as a whole came out of the contest in good condition although some concern was felt for an injury to the arm of Center Tom Spicer who appeared to have a sprained wrist. X-ray pictures were to be taken to establish the extent of the injury. He sustained it in the first quarter, but played on.

Izo was always dangerous. The entire Barberton offense was built around him. He threw from the T or punt formation and his passes were accurate whether long or short. He completed 15 out of 27 and would have had an even better percentage had not receivers dropped three of them. His flips were good for 214 yards. The Tigers intercepted four.

Credit must also be given Izo’s teammates for the pocket of protection they formed around him, giving him all the time in the world to pick out his receiver and throw. At one time he even waved to the receiver to go deeper downfield.
* * *
ONLY ONCE were the Tigers able to sift through the wall of protection and then two of them missed their tackle and Izo eluded the pack to get away for a sizeable run.

Save for Izo’s passes, Barberton had little in the way of an offense. The Magics made only 30 yards on the ground and were thrown for 20 yards in losses leaving them with a net 10.

The Tigers completed three of eight passes for 38 yards.

Leading ground gainer for the local team was Don Duke with 119 net yards in 17 carries. Archibald gained 111 yards in 12 carries, and Charlie Brown 75 net in seven carries for the best average of all. Willie Long carried seven times for a net 30.

Hard fought as the game was there were no punches thrown until the very last play of the game when a Barberton player caught a pass and Bob Tracy snatched the ball away from him as he was falling to the ground. The infuriated Barberton player took a swing at Tracy and a game official grabbed Tracy’s arms while the Barberton player swung again. With that it ended.
* * *
SUMMARIZING, the game went like this:

The Tigers won the toss and received, got one first down but lost the ball on downs on the Barberton 30.

Barberton was forced to punt, the Tigers getting the ball on their 32, only to fumble on second down, Barberton covering on its 38. Izo hurled 24 yards to Bartee, six yards to Debevec, and then eight to Bartee for the touchdown.

The Tigers reeled off three first downs in a row after the following kickoff but were stalled by 20 yards in penalties and had to punt to the Barberton 15.

A penalty set the Magics back to their nine and a poor punt only went to the Massillon 22.

It took only two plays to get the touchdown. Brown ripped off 13 yards and Archibald got the last nine, and the score. John Kasunick kicked the tying point.
* * *
JIM CORMANY brought the following kickoff back 36 yards to the 48 but Archibald got the ball back for the Tigers when he intercepted on the 33.

After making one first down on an 11-yard pass to Houston, the Tigers were forced to punt to the 11.

Barberton made a first down on Izo’s 13-yard toss to Debevec but then had to punt to its own 47.
James passed 13 yards to Duke for a first on the 33 but a five-yard penalty for offside moved the ball back to the 38. Brown went 25 yards to the 13 and moved up four more to the nine. James hit Houston with a pass as he stumbled into the end zone but the Massillon backfield was caught in illegal motion and the T.D. was not allowed. The half ended shortly thereafter.

On the second play after the second half kickoff, Barberton fumbled and the Tigers covered on the 24.

Archibald hit for four, Duke for eight, Archibald for six and Duke for the last six and T.D. Kasunick missed his kick and it was 13-7.
* * *
BARBERTON roared back with Izo completing three consecutive passes of six, seven and 40 yards for a first down on the eight.

He missed his next attempt and when he threw again, Archibald intercepted on the two.

It was Duke, Archibald, and Duke, Archibald for three, six, five and 13 yards. Then Duke broke loose for 34, Brown got three and Willie Long 23 for a first down on the 24, the runs also overcoming a 15-yard penalty. Duke cut the distance 14 yards in two carries and Archibald rammed through for the last 10. Kasunick also missed this kick and that left the score 19-7.

Barberton received and Izo tossed consecutive completions to Nevling for four and to Hatula for five. Nevling made it first down on his 44. The quarterback tossed seven yards to Andy Gissinger, then carried for a gain of four. He passed for three more and threw one that bounced off Debevec’s leg into the arms of Radtke who went 70 yards to score.

That made it 26-7, as Kasunick converted.

The Magics took the kickoff and Izo passed 23 yards to Bartee, eight to Smith and seven to Gissinger. Nevling lost five but Izo fired to Bartee for 31 yards and a first down on the three and then carried it over. He kicked the extra point to make it 26-14 and that ended the scoring.

The line-ups and summary:
MASSILLON
ENDS – Canary, Nagle, Houston, Kasunick, Welcher, Chengery.
TACKLES – Graber, Maier, Kreiger, Schumacher, Hofacre, Whitfield, Allen, Meldrum.
GUARDS – Fisher, Roan, Harrison, Tracy, Ertle.
CENTERS – Spicer, Gentzler, Dowd.
QUARTERBACKS – James, Brenner.
HALFBACKS – Duke, Brown, Long, Washington, Radtke.
FULLBACKS – Archibald, Chet Brown.

BARBERTON
ENDS – Bartee, Debevec, Gissinger, Hampton.
TACKLES – Mollric, Boden, Cooksey, Goletz.
GUARDS – Creager, Chaykoski, Brosko, Dean, Flesher, Savage.
CENTER – Thombs.
QUARTERBACK – Izo
HALFBACKS – Nevling, Iverson, Burnette, Burrough, Jones, Smith.
FULLBACKS – Hatula, Morgan.

Score by periods:
Massillon 0 7 12 7 26
Barberton 7 0 0 7 14

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Archibald 2, Duke, Radtke.
Barberton – Bartee, Izo.

Points after touchdown:
Massillon – Kasunick 2 (placekicks).
Barberton – Izo 2 (placekicks).

Officials
Referee – A.N. Smith (Elyria).
Umpire – Virgil Hinton (Canton).
Head Linesman – Bud Shopbell (Canton).
Field Judge – Stan Macheck (Elyria).

STATISTICS
Mass. Barb.
First downs 16 11
Passes attempted 8 27
Passes completed 3 15
Had passes intercepted 1 4
Yards gained passing 38 214
Yards gained rushing 358 30
Total yards gained 304 244
Yards lost 16 20
Net yards gained 378 224
Times punted 2 3
Average punt (yards) 33 26
Yards punts returned by 0 6
Times kicked off 5 3
Average kickoff (yards) 39 34
Yards kickoffs returned by 23 62
Times fumbled 1 2
Lost ball on fumbles 1 1
Times penalized 10 4
Yards penalized 93 50

Jim Houston
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

1955: Massillon 34, Warren Harding 7

Tigers Defeat Warren 34-7
Massillon Eleven Gets Back On Victory Trail
By Crushing Old Rival

By LUTHER EMERY

The Tigers are back on the road of triumph again. There was happiness in the dressing room and noise in the stands as the Massillon gridders defeated their old rival Warren 34-7 here Friday evening before 11,087 fans.

Gone was that gloom that characterized last week’s 12-12 tie with Mansfield, and another link was welded into the Tigers undefeated chain which now stands at 14 games, with three to go before the end of the season.

Program Cover

The same team whipped Warren last night as that which dueled a week ago with Mansfield but it didn’t look the same. In the early moments when Warren drove to its only touchdown and the first of the game, there was apprehension that the night would have grave forebodings for the Tigers.

But it only aroused the Bengals and they struck back to control the ball the rest of the way.
* * *
THEY ONLY managed to come out with a tie the first half, but they completely outplayed the Panthers getting 10 first downs to the latters’ one. Only an error here and there kept the score from growing.

But when Halfback Charlie Brown grabbed a punt on his own 31-yard line in the second minute of the third period and aided by a tremendous block by Earl Radtke, to run 69 yards for a score – the jig was up for Warren.

The Tigers were off to the races thereafter and taking advantage of Warren mistakes, shoved over two more touchdowns in the period and another in the fourth to win by a sizeable margin.

When it was all over, Warren had lost its fifth game of the season as against two wins and was a pretty badly beaten team – physically, statistically and in points.

The Panthers had to take many times out for injuries; they yielded 250 net yards to Massillon on the ground and 54 from passes for a total of 304 net yards to their own 96 and trailed 17-6 in first downs.

Of great satisfaction from a Massillon standpoint was the Tigers’ improved defense and the point after touchdown kicking of John Kasunick. He proved the leading cheer-getter last night as he booted four out of five over the cross bar.
* * *
COACH TOM HARP was visibly pleased at the outcome too. He felt the team showed considerable improvement in its defense and he complimented Kasunick for his placekicking, the result of a lot of practice the past two weeks.

“There were mistakes,” said Harp, “But with the continued improvement of school spirit, community spirit and the boys’ desire to go to work, we should be able to correct these mistakes and continue to improve.”

The Tiger dressing room presented a far-different picture last night, than a week ago, for the boys knew they had played a ballgame and the gloom was gone from their faces as well as those of the many well-wishers who came in to congratulate them.

In whipping Warren they had rolled up the second largest score of the season on the Panthers this year. Only the 46-0 walloping handed Warren by Canton McKinley in the second game of the season exceeded last night’s spread of points.

The Tigers mixed passes with their running attack last night, throwing 10 and completing four, one for a touchdown, for a total of 54 yards.

They also ran 46 plays on the ground, excluding a punt, Dave Archibald ran 19 of them to lead the ground gaining with 126 net yards. Brown ran five for 28 yards and two touchdowns, one a punt return; Don Duke 12 for 52 net yards and a T.D.; Willie Long, six for 35 yards and John James four for 10 yards including a touchdown.

The Tigers’ other touchdown came on a pass over center, James to Dave Canary for 13 yards.
* * *
THE PANTEHRS ran 35 plays on the ground and tossed nine passes, completing three for 20 yards.

Chief ground gainer for the visitors was Nate Reed with 23 yards in nine attempts. Nick Spitogiania gained 17 yards in four carries and Frank Lengel 16 in five.

The Tigers won the kickoff for a change and on their first possession of the ball carried to midfield only to have Rickey Lawrence, a halfback, intercept a James pass and dash back to the Massillon 22. Reed was stopped without gain on the first play but then Lengel hit for two and seven and Reed for five that gained a first on the eight. Carries by Lengel and Reed failed to gain a yard but on third down the ball was pitched out to Reed who went around his left end to score with seven minutes and seven seconds still to play.

That fired up the Massillon team. They took the kickoff and with Archibald and Duke carrying and aided by a pass from James to Canary for nine yards, reeled off four first downs in a row to put the ball on the 12 by the end of the quarter.

On the first play of the second period with fourth down coming up and seven to go, Brown took a pitch and went around his left end to score and Kasunick added the extra point.

The high school reserves will play the Akron St. Vincent reserve team at 8 o’clock tonight at Tiger stadium.

The Tigers pushed Warren all over the field the remainder of the period for six first downs to the Panthers’ eight yards gained, but were unable to score.

A fumble which they recovered stopped one drive and they lost the ball on a fumble in another effort.

The actions was fast the third quarter.
* * *
WITH THE SCORE tied 7-7 Warren received to start the second half. The Tigers forced a punt and Brown gathered in the ball on his 31 and set sail for the Warren goal. Radtke, who had injured a leg knocking down a pass on the previous play, liberated Brown with a block that took two Warren tacklers out of the way. The Tigers by that time had set up a wall of interference that protected Charlie as he raced down the sideline.

Kasunick’s placekick made it 14-7.

The Panthers got off a pass for 15 yards, John Theoharis to George Beck, after the kickoff, but after that they went backwards. Theoharis pressed hard, fumbled and Canary was on the ball for Massillon on the 30. Archibald, Duke and Brown took it to the 13 and James on third down fired over the line to Canary who got across the goal with the ball.

Warren only got off one play after the following kickoff when Grover Danage fumbled and Dave Schumacher flopped on the ball on the Warren 46. Bottled up trying to pass, James went down the middle for 15 yards and Archibald reeled off 21 more for a first down on the 10. Warren was penalized five for offside and Duke got two yards and James went over on a keep play. Kasunick missed his only try for point of the evening after this touchdown.

The Tigers got their last score after Schumacher again gained them position by covering Abrams’ fumble on the Tiger 36. Warren got to that point largely as a result of an attempted on-side kick that barely got off the tee.

After Duke had gained the Tigers a first down on the locals’ 49, Warren all but stopped the Massillon march. But Archibald, running from punt formation and from behind some good blocking, went for 20 yards and a first on the 28. A five-yard penalty set the Tigers back but Long got five and then raced 21 yards for a first down on the seven. Archibald moved it four yards closer and Duke took it over. Kasunick kicked the extra point.

The Tigers picked last night to try the onside kick which they have been practicing but it fizzled out, the ball not traveling the required 10 yards and going to Warren inside the 50.

The line-up and summary:
MASSILLON
ENDS – Houston, Canary, Chengery, Nagel, Welcher.
TACKLES – Graber, Maier, Kreiger, Schumacher, Whitfield, Hofacre.
GUARDS – Fisher, Roan, Tracy, Ertle, Kasunick, Harrison.
CENTERS – Spicer, Gentzler, Dowd.
QUARTERBACKS – James, Brenner.
HALFBACKS – Duke, Brown, Cocklin, Long, Herring, Radtke, Benjamin, Washington.
FULLBACK – Archibald.

WARREN
ENDS – Szuch, Beck, Minotti, Greskovich.
TACKLES – Shively, Leard, Dehringer, Gibson, Coldiron, Johnson.
GUARDS – Maras, Foy, Bartlett, Braden, Ondik.
CENTERS – McEwen, Todd, Bender, Millero.
QUARTERBACKS – Theoharis, Abrams.
HALFBACKS – Dowell, Reed, Spitogianis, Lawrence, Armour, Dotson, Lengel.
FULLBACKS – Gorby, D. Szuch, Danage, Danko.

Score by periods:
Massillon 0 7 20 7 34
Warren 7 0 0 0 7

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Brown 2, Duke, James, Canary.
Warren – Reed.

Points after touchdown:
Massillon – Kasunick 4 (placekicks).
Warren – Beck (pass).

Officials
Referee – Lymper (Mansfield).
Umpire – Russ (Youngstown).
Head Linesman – Tobin (Akron).
Field Judge – Klocker (Akron).

STATISTICS
Mass. Warren
First downs 17 6
Passes attempted 10 9
Passes completed 4 3
Had passes intercepted 2 0
Yards gained passing 54 20
Yards gained rushing 266 99
Total yards gained 320 119
Yards lost 16 23
Net yards gained 304 96
Times punted 1 3
Average punt (yards) 13 25
Yards punts returned by 69 0
Times kicked off 6 2
Average kickoff (yards) 26 33
Yards kickoffs returned by 16 60
Times fumbled 2 4
Lost ball on fumbles 1 3
Times penalized 3 2
Yards penalized 15 10

Jim Houston
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo

1955: Massillon 12, Mansfield 12

Tigers Battle Mansfield To 12-12 Tie
Massillon Knots Count In Last Two Seconds After 72-Yard March

By LUTHER EMERY

The Washington high school Tigers and Mansfield battled to a 12-12- draw Friday night and if you were one of the 13,244 fans who sat through that one you should live to be 100.

And fortunate was Massillon to come out with a tie. The clock on the scoreboard showed only two seconds of the game left to play when Halfback Don Duke threw himself over a pile of humanity to score the tying touchdown.

There was even a chance to win by kicking the extra point. The ball had height and distance but was a little to the right of the upright and the game ended on the following kickoff – deadlocked.

Put yourself in the shoes of John Kasunick, the kicker, and you can realize the pressure he was under trying to get that extra point. And disappointed as John and Massillon fans were that it didn’t go between the uprights, think of the anguish of Mansfield fans had it done so.

They were in despair as it was.

Their team with four regulars sidelined had completely outplayed Massillon the first half of the game. They had out-gained the Tigers 227 to 193 in net yardage, made 15 first downs to Massillon’s 10 and had the verdict wrapped up twice when breaks went against them. And there it was on the scoreboard 12-12 with only two seconds, left to play.
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ACTUALLY nobody was happy.

The Mansfield gridders were disappointed they had not accomplished an upset even though they were the first team to tie the Tigers this year – and the Massillon dressing room was more sober than it has been since the defeat by Alliance last year – despite the Tigers’ gallant last second surge that gained the tie.

Many missed the crucial finish. Massillon fans began streaming out of the park when the Tigers had failed in what most folks thought was their last bid to tie the score when they lost the ball on downs to Mansfield on the latter’s 33 with less than five minutes to play.

And the hard hitting visitors banged away, consuming as much time as possible as they clicked off two first downs and moved the ball to the Tiger 33.
There the Massillon gridders covered a fumble by Bill Hightower, Tiger halfback, Jerry Kreiger getting on the ball on his own 38 with the clock showing two minutes and eight seconds left to play.
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WHAT HOPES Tigers had, flickered out on the next’s play when on a statue play Willie Long was thrown for a 10-yard loss. It looked like the end of time on the next one when Hightower, redeeming his fumble, intercepted Johnny James’ pass and got back to midfield with a minute and 38 seconds remaining.

But here Mansfield defeated its own effort to win. The visitors were guilty of mauling James on the pass and a 15-yard penalty was stepped off.

That returned the ball to the Tigers and kept them breathing.

Things happened in rapid fire after that. James shot a pass to Charley Brown for a first down on the Mansfield 44. Then Charley gained four on a statue. Another pass, James to Jim Houston was good for eight and got a first down on the 32. James hit Houston again for 26 yards and a first down on the six. Only 51 seconds remained and the Tigers had consumed their timeouts. They had to go for it and quick. Wasting little time in the huddle, James handed to Don Duke for three yards. He stuck the ball into Archibald’s stomach and he leaned over for two more. Only 19 seconds remained: time for one more play and a yard to go. The ball went to Duke again. He hit hard. The momentum took him over and the Tigers had preserved their undefeated record for the season, though they failed to extend their victory string of 12 games.

Massillon stands went wild with joy. An audible groan was heard from across the field, because what a few minutes before had seemed a certain 12-6 Mansfield upset victory now read 12-12 on the scoreboard.
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THE MASSILLON comeback in the face of defeat was the one bright spot in the Tigers’ play last night.

They were outclassed completely the first half when they gained only 11 net yards from scrimmage and failed to make a first down, while Mansfield was rolling up eight first downs and 124 net yards.

We have never seen a Tiger offense so thoroughly stopped in many a year.

Two Tigers had the ball but twice in the first quarter. They ran three plays each time, then punted for a net gain of 10 yards.

They had the ball but two times the second quarter. They ran three plays the first time, then punted. They ran only two plays next time, losing the ball on the second on an intercepted pass. Capitulating, they ran only 14 plays the first half, including three punts and an intercepted pass.

The second half was a different story.

Trailing 6-0 as a result of a 64-yard Mansfield march which ended with Willie Mack plunging over from the one-yard line for a touchdown, the Tigers changed their strategy when they came out for the third period and did more inside running.

They took the kickoff and in two plays got their initial first down of the game. Mansfield forced them to punt on the next series but, on the first play from scrimmage, Mack fumbled and Kreiger recovered on his 47.
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THAT SET the Tigers in motion for their first touchdown drive led by Duke. He rammed for three and Archibald got four. Then Duke was freed for a 25-yard dash that took him to the 21-yard line. He just about went the distance but was caught as he was pulling away from the last Mansfield tackler.

Archibald got four yards and Duke in two more carries battled his way to a first down on the 10.

It looked bad for the Tigers when Duke got only one and James was tossed for a three-yard loss on the next play to put the ball back on the 12.

But the Tigers came out with their Statue of Liberty and it was the only time it worked all night. Willie Long took the ball and running hard to his left, did a tight rope walk down the sideline to go into the end zone standing up and tie the score at 6-6. Kasunick also missed this kick, the ball being high and long enough but lacing direction. Only two minutes and 43 seconds of the quarter remained when the T.D. was scored.

The Tigers tried to contain Mansfield, but there was no stopping All-Ohio Mack. Before the period was over Mansfield had taken the kickoff and Mack had ripped off runs of 21 and 14 yards which, coupled with 10 yards made by his teammates, had the ball on the Tigers’ 27.

It didn’t take long from there. Mack hit for one yard, then nine. Hightower got four and Quarterback Jack Ward banged his way through for seven more. That put the ball on the six and Mack took off like a jet to catapult himself into the end zone. He seemed to sail through the air for five of the yards and Mansfield was ahead 12-6. A bobbled pass from center for the extra point hit the ground and Ward picked it up and tried to run it over but was tossed out just short of his goal. So it remained 12-6.
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THE TIGERS gamely surged back with the kickoff, went for three first downs with Archibald and Duke doing the lugging, but they didn’t get closer than the 28 and lost the ball on downs on the Mansfield 33. That set the stage for the dramatic finish we have already recorded.

We can understand Mansfield’s anguish at seeing the Tigers gain a tie.

The breaks were against the visitors. The 15-yard penalty was one and the loss of the ball three times on fumbles were others. One of these losses came on the visitors’ first offensive bid. They started with the kickoff from their 39 and marched straight through the Tigers for three consecutive first downs until Dave Canary pounced on Bob Thompson’s fumble on the Massillon 13-yard line to end the threat. As already mentioned, Jerry Kreiger covered two other Mansfield fumbles.

Mack scored Mansfield’s first touchdown in the second period with two minutes and 34 seconds left after a drive of 64 yards. He carried the ball eight times in the march, gaining 49 of the yards himself.

The Tigers made a great defensive effort to contain the visitors after they had gotten a first down on the three-yard line. They gave Mack a yard on his first attempt, stopped him without gain the second time and allowed Ward a yard on a center buck, Mack barely getting over for the last yard and T.D.

Mack was easily the outstanding man on the field. He was by far the best back the Tigers have faced this season, and was almost as outstanding on defense. He carried the ball 24 times and personally gained 152 net yards which is an average of slightly more than six yards per try. Thompson gained 24 net yards in 11 tries, a fraction over two yards per try.

The average is far below what the two visiting ball carriers had made prior to last night’s game. They had averaged better than 10 yards per carry against five previous foes.

Hightower gained 34 net yards and Ward 17.
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LEADING the Tigers in rushing was Duke with 65 net yards in 13 carries. He was given the ball only once the entire first half, gaining three yards on that first quarter play. Dave Archibald gained 50 net yards on 12 carries, Willie Long five net yards on four carries and Brown one on four carries.

The Tigers threw six passes but only five actually counted in the game, since the one which was intercepted was nullified by the 15-yard roughing the passer penalty. Of the five that counted, three were completed in the tying T.D. drive for 47 yards. One was incomplete and one was intercepted. Mansfield didn’t complete a pass in four attempts.

Asked by the Tigers did not pass earlier in the game, Coach Tom Harp said, “We didn’t have a chance. We tried the one and it was intercepted. After all we only had the ball the four times the first half and lost it on one of these times on the interception. Then in the third period we found we could gain on the ground so we stayed there.”

The Tiger coach expressed disappointment over the tie score but added “we were fortunate to get the tie.”

“We feel Mansfield played a tremendous ball game. We couldn’t move the ball the first half and couldn’t contain them. I think Willie Mack played a great game. The one bright spot was the desire and determination by our kids when defeat stared them in the face and they came back to gain the tie.”

Harp said Mansfield’s heavier line was strong enough to permit spreading of personnel on defense to stop the Tigers’ end sweeps which have been gaining most of the ground for the locals this season.

Mansfield played the game with four regulars sidelined. Kermit Wilson, regular end has been out since the Middletown game. Rock Hinkel, tackle and Earl Roth, guard, were hurt in an auto accident last Saturday and Dave Guiher, halfback, who was slated to start last night was kept out because of an old injury that was aggravated in the same accident.

The line-up and summary:
MASSILLON
ENDS – Canary, Houston, Welcher.
TACKLES – Graber, Maier, Kreiger, Schumacher, Whitfield, Hofacre, Allen.
GUARDS – Fisher, Roan, Tracy, Ertle, Kasunick.
CENTERS – Spicer, Gentzler, Dowd.
QUARTERBACKS – James, Brenner.
HALFBACKS – Duke, Brown, Long, Radtke, Harrrison, Cocklin.
FULLBACK – Archibald.

MANSFIELD
ENDS – Travis, Franta, Ackerman.
TACKLES – Beabout, Johnson, Jones, Bill Franta, Calver.
GUARDS – Mayer, Lutz, Hood, Bell.
CENTERS – Orosan, L. Johnson.
QUARTERBACKS – Ward, Carver, Bair.
HALFBACKS – Hightower, Mack, Zivkoff, Philpott, Wilson, White.
FULLBACK – Thompson.

Score by periods:
Massillon 0 0 6 6 12
Mansfield 0 6 0 6 12

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Long, Duke.
Mansfield – Mack 2.

Officials
Referee – Machock (Elyria).
Umpire – Rupp (Cuyahoga Falls).
Head Linesman – Murphy (Cleveland Heights).
Field Judge – Stewart (Smithville).

STATISTICS
Mass. Mansf.
First downs 10 15
Passes attempted 5 4
Passes completed 3 0
Had passes intercepted 1 0
Yards gained passing 47 0
Yards gained rushing 146 227
Total yards gained 193 227
Yards lost 33 12
Net yards gained 163 215
Times punted 4 2
Average punt (yards) 36 35
Yards punts returned by 0 29
Times kicked off 3 3
Average kickoff (yards) 36 42
Yards kickoffs returned by 40 40
Times fumbled 1 6
Lost ball on fumbles 0 3
Times penalized 2 3
Yards penalized 10 25