Massillon v. McKinley Archives - Page 7 of 14

1967: Massillon 20, Canton McKinley 15

November 11, 1967July 19, 2017
by Eric Smith

One Play Away From Perfect Year

By CHUCK HESS, JR.

“Only one play away from an undefeated season.”

As one looks back today on the 10 games which the Washington high grid team played this year and also contemplates the final Associated Press poll due Tuesday, Tiger Coach Bob Seaman’s words sum it up pretty well.
* * *

EVEN WITH the Tigers’ 20-15 victory over Canton McKinley at rain-pelted Fawcett stadium last Saturday afternoon before a full house of 20,500 to write a 9-1 finish to the 1967 season, it’s not likely to be enough to bring the Bengals a state championship.

Undefeated Upper Arlington (10-0) will probably be the King-pin come Tuesday as the result of that fourth and 7 counter play recalled by Seaman after the victory over McKinley. It was that strategy which led to Arlington’s 7-6 win over the Tigers.

But “Operation Comeback ‘67” can still be rated a success in the minds of the fans of the Orange and Black. For their team has bounced back from a 4-5-1 season to probably second place in the state and the championship of the All-American Football Conference.

The last win came every way but easy. The Tigers shot out to a 12-0 first period lead but barely got out of the game alive against an outstanding Bulldog eleven coached by Ron Chismar. Only a last-minute pass interception by junior Halfback Bert Dampier staved off disaster.

The Pups had the ball on the Massillon 14-yard line, third and 7 after a 51-yard pass-run play from Quarterback Ted Bowersox, who had previously scored twice, to Wingback Gerald Davidson. His 33-yard run after the catch found him going out of bounds on the 17. Bowersox tried to hit Davidson again in the end zone but Dampier came down with the pigskin for a touchback and Massillon ran out the clock.
* * *

IT WAS THE Bengals defense which did the job as the offense never really got going after the first quarter. One drive in the second quarter got as far as the McKinley 35 but Bowersox intercepted a pass on the 30 to stop the threat.

The Tigers had the ball for 6 series in the second half, not counting the final one when they ran the clock out. The WHS eleven got only one first down and that was via a personal foul penalty.

The Bulldogs outstanding job of pursuing led by Middle Guard Gaylord Sweat, effectively throttled the Seaman-men. Seaman said McKinley did a “good job of getting to the ball.” Chismar said his charges did a “great job. It’s a shame they couldn’t have won.”

The Tigers were paced by a superlative defensive secondary, which allowed the Bulldogs to complete only 6 of 24 passes. Dampier, besides his game saving interception, also aborted a McKinley drive with an interception on his 15 in the third period.

Manson was in the game due to a first quarter ankle injury suffered by Co-Captain and Quarterback Trevor Young. Junior Marc Malinowski was forced to vacate his safety spot to do the signal calling and showed promise for next year. However, Young’s absence affected the offensive timing.
* * *

THE BENGALS’ other co-captain, Linebacker Ron Ertle, was all over the field again. Both ends, Tim Richards, and Russ Fenton, did a good job of containing Bowersox.

Linebacker Hoyt Skelton recovered a fumble on the Bulldog 38 in the third quarter. But the Tigers couldn’t move the ball.

Shortly thereafter, Tom Houser downed a Malinowski punt on the 3 to put McKinley into a

deep hole. On the third down in the ensuing series, Bowersox faded to the end zone from the 5, and hit End Jim Iams in the flat. But “Monster” Larry Shumar, weighing only 152 pounds, decked the 175-pound end for a safety, one of several nifty plays by the diminutive junior during the afternoon.

Junior Tailback Jim Smith led the offense by scoring one of the first period touchdowns and collecting 99 net yards in 18 tries for a season’s total of 1,011. Art Hastings’ 1,274 in 1969 marked the last time a Tiger had over 1,000 yards.

Malinowski got the other welcome frame tally.

But the most spectacular score was Mark McDew’s 90-yard runback of the second half kickoff for the Tigers’ third touchdown behind some fine blocking. Only 10 seconds ticked off the clock. Smith missed on the conversion run.
* * *

SMITH’S SCORE came over left guard on first down from the one with 6:05 left in the first quarter. The 75-yard drive took only 5 plays. Smith set up his own score with a
54-yard blast through the center which put the ball on the one. McKinley Co-Captain Ron Martin made the tackle.

Then came the conversion keeper on which Young got hurt.

McKinley fumbled on its 40 while driving after the kickoff McDew recovered and the Orange and Black had its second TD 6 plays later with 2:40 left. Malinowski ran off left tackle on a keeper on third and 4 from the 10 after bobbling the ball and crossed into pay dirt. Twelve and 14-yard runs by Malinowski and Smith had set up the score.

A pass fell incomplete on the conversion try.

Junior Tackle Jon Brandyberry recovered a fumble on the Tiger 44 and 11 plays later the Pups were on the scoreboard with 4:35 remaining in the second quarter. An 8-yard run by Bowersox, a 10-yarder by Martin and 6 and 9-yard passes for Bowersox to Davidson and Iams set up the 6-pointer, the latter coming on fourth down from the 14 and giving the Bulldogs a first down on the Bengal 5.

Bowersox scored through the center on third down from the one and then kicked the conversion. On the Tigers’ first try after the kickoff, Bowersox recorded his interception on the McKinley 30 to stop a drive highlighted by sophomore Darnell Streeter’s 23-yard kick return and Smith’s 18-yard romp off right tackle.

McKinley’s other score came with 4:45 left in the game. The Bulldogs drove 78-yards following a Tiger punt in the dying seconds of the third quarter. The push took 17 plays.
* * *

THE BIG maneuvers were a 21-yard pass-run combination from Bowersox to Davidson’s 4-yarder which netted a first down on the one by a gnat’s eyelash.

Bowersox scored on the next play through the center and passed to Davidson to make it 20-15.

MASSILLON – 20
Ends – Dampier, Houser, Richards, Twiggs.
Tackles – Snowball, Ricker, Laase, Snyder.
Guards – D. Gipp, Ertle, Whitfield, M. Cardinal, Doll, Harig, Russell.
Centers – B. Moore, Skelton.
Quarterbacks – Young, Malinowski, Shumar.
Halfbacks – Smith, McDew, Fenton, Staples, Evans, Hodgson, Manson.
Fullbacks – R. Moore, Streeter.

McKINLEY – 15
Ends – Lewis, McDonald, Iams, Dubose, Roman, Gallus, Duckworth.
Tackles – Milan, Mancini, Brandyberry, Hoskins.
Guards – Roose, Sweat, Shimek, Harris, Gibbons.
Centers – Downing, M. Bush.
Quarterback – Bowersox.
Halfbacks – Davidson, LeFlore, Truitt, Rich, Walker, Martin.
Fullbacks – Tibbs, Haines.

Massillon 12 0 8 0 20
McKinley 0 7 0 8 15

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Smith (one-yard run); Malinowski (10-yard run); McDew (90-yard kickoff return).
McKinley – Bowersox 2 (one-yard runs).

Safety:
Massillon – Shumar (tackled Iams in end zone).

Extra points: McKinley – Bowersox 3 (kick and run).

INDIVIDUAL RUSHING
Massillon
Player Att. Net. Ave.
Smith 18 99 5.5
Young 2 3 1.5
McDew 5 17 3.4
Moore 4 14 3.5
Malinowski 14 25 1.8

McKinley
Player Att. Net. Ave.
Bowersox 14 36 2.6
Martin 9 31 3.4
Tibbs 6 17 2.8

OFFICIALS
Referee – George Ellis.
Umpire – Chuck Lorenz.
Head Linesman – Jack McLain.
Field Judge – Tom Ascani.

Attendance: 20,500

THE GRIDSTICK
Mass. McKin.
First downs – rushing 8 8
First downs – passing 0 4
First downs – penalties 1 1
Total first downs 9 13
Yards gained rushing 183 140
Yards lost rushing 25 15
Net yards gained rushing 158 125
Net yards gained passing 6 89
Total yards gained 164 214
Passes completed 1-3 6-24
Passes intercepted by 2 1
Yardage on passes intercepted 15 13
Times kicked off 4 4
Kickoff average (yards) 49.8 43.5
Kickoff returns (yards) 139 81
Punt average 7-35.4 6-39.3
Punt return (yards) 6 6
Had punts blocked 0 0
Fumbles 2 3
Lost fumbled ball 1 2
Penalties 5 5
Yards penalized 32 65
Touchdowns rushing 2 2
Touchdowns passing 0 0
Touchdowns by interception 0 0
Miscellaneous 1 0
Total number of plays 53 72

1967: Massillon 26, Steubenville 16

November 3, 1967July 19, 2017
by Eric Smith

Bengals Stifle Big Red Title Hopes
Jim ‘Tiger Turbine’ Smith Scores 4 TDs, Gains 184 Yards

By CHUCK HESS, JR.

The Massillon Tiger showed Friday night why he has been king so many times. He put forth the strongest side of his twany, battle worn hide at monsoon like Harding stadium in Steubenville.
* * *

THE WASHINGTON high gridiron aggregation rode into the “Valley of Death,” marches on through it and right out the other side with a hard-fought 26-16 victory over the state’s previously top-ranked and undefeated Big Red, apparently stifling the River City’s title hopes 2 years in a row.

The estimated standing room only crowd of 13,000 got the word that the Tigers believe they still have a right to the Buckeye throne even though showing an 8-1 record. The Stubbers, likewise 8-1, also hung out the message ensigns in a formation which read, “We still deserve second spot.”
* * *

THE BIG HERO had to be junior Tailback Jim Smith. The “Tiger Turbine” was at his best power wise, unstoppable outside, off tackle, up the middle and probably anywhere else Quarterback Trevor Young had directed him to go. He scored all 4 of his team’s touchdowns – may have had a fifth but slipped on the wet turf – and gained 184 yards in 39 carries for a 4.7 average.

Smitty’s effort got him a new team number for number of carries. The late Bob Glass had the previous mark at 31 when Massillon beat Steubenville 13-0 in 1937.
* * *

THE WIN ALSO put the Tigers into first place in the All-American Football conference with a 3-0 mark. The Big Red, the strongest and most versatile team Massillon has played to date, dropped to second at 2-1. They do not play Niles.

Another thing which the contest served to point out is what sound, conservative football will do for you – like hatching valuable time, which the opposition would like to use, off the clock, thereby limiting the foe’s potential scoring opportunities.
* * *

THE GAME also served to show that when the Tigers are at full strength offensively – which they weren’t when Upper Arlington handed them their only defeat – that Bob Seaman’s crew is hard to beat.

Tight End Tom Houser and Fullback Reggie Moore, both seniors and both out with injuries since the Altoona game 3 weeks ago, were back at their bruising best. Houser hacked away at defenders on his end of the line. Moore mangled them out of Smith’s path off tackle and added some timely running. Neither he nor Smith suffered any losses.
* * *
THE BENGAL Landers stepped out to a 14-0 lead at the beginning of the second period but the tough Stubbers were in front 16-14 at halftime. The toast of Tigertown roared in front again to stay with 12 points in the goodbye canto.

Three of the 4 TDs by the Tigers came on long drives, the last after a fumble recovery close in. The Tigers moved 69 yards on 14 plays after the opening kickoff for a tally with 4:38 remaining in the first quarter.
* * *
SMITH SCORED over left tackle on third down from the one-yard line after charging
20 yards around end on third down to the Steubenville 30 minutes earlier to keep the drive going. He might have also scored the conversion on a pitchout but slipped on the muddy turf and fell short of his target.

A 10-play, 51-yard drive after Russ Fenton’s 19-yard runback of the Stubbers’ next punt put Tiger fans into ecstasy again and took the game into the second period. As in the first drive, Smith picked up most of the yardage and tallied on second down from the one-foot line off right tackle with 11:12 left in the half. Young helped with a beautiful 33-yard scamper around end to the 3.

Young’s pass to Ertle made it 14-0.
* * *
STEUBENVILLE took over a Massillon punt on the Tigers’ 49 midway to the second period. Six plays later junior Fullback Bob Sims, a great runner even though hobbled by a leg injury, slipped off right tackle on first down from the 25 and got the Big Red’s first 6 points with the clock showing 6:49 left.

Halfback Keith Burke got a lateral from Quarterback Dave Corsi and hit End Jim Smith for the conversion.

Sims, who picked up 65 yards on 10 carries without a loss during the night, scored the other Big Red TD. After Burke had recovered Young’s fumble on the Massillon 39, the Stubbers got their deadly passing game into high gear and scored after 10 plays.
* * *
CORSI BEGAN hitting flanker Don Osby, connecting for 4, 14 and 16 yards. The crucial sky counter was a 4-yard fourth down pass from the 5 to Burke for a first down on the one. Smith scored over left tackle on the next play 27 seconds left in the half.

Corsi threw Bob Young for the conversion. Young making the catch on the one and going on in to put the Stubbers in the lead.

It began to look like the Big Red’s passing warfare might be too much for the Tigers, but secondarymen Mark McDew, Bert Dampier and Marc Malinowski, all juniors, were equal to the task in the second half.
* * *

ANOTHER JUNIOR, Larry Shumar, starting at “monster” back for the first time as senior Bill Simon was lost to the team for the remainder of the season with fractured neck vertebra put a lot of pressure on to dent the Big Red’s running hopes. Simon’s injury showed up in X-rays taken Friday after he had complained of neck pain all week.

Steubenville failed to get past the Massillon 46 in the second half as the Tigers put on a great defensive show to go with their offensive masterpiece.
* * *

TAKING OVER ON their 21 after a Steubenville punt near the end of the third quarter, the Obies opened up their ground attack still more by utilizing Wingback McDew on short, sliding pass pattern to the right, the first time the locals attempted to pass during the night.

Eleven plays later Smith had his third score with 10:41 left in the last quarter. Big plays were on Young-to-McDew connections on the aforementioned slides – 32 yards to the Big Red 48 and 16 yards to the Stubber 28, both setting up first downs on third down strategy.

Smith scored through the middle on first down from the 3. Burke knocked down a conversion aerial headed for McDew.
* * *

DAMPIER INTERCEPTED a pass intended for Burke on the Steubenville 47 with 3:04 left in the game. Massillon was unable to get the first down, Malinowski’s punt traveled only about 20 yards but Steubenville was offside, giving Malinowski another try.

Burke muffed the catch attempt on his 15, senior Tackle Bill Ricker, replacing the injured Ernie McGeorge, hopped on the ball and the Tigers continued in business. Three plays and 2 penalties later, Smith went off tackle from the 3 for the clincher with 30 seconds remaining in the contest.

Corsi grounded Young’s conversion pass to Ertle.

MASSILLON – 26
Ends – Houser, Dampier, Richards, Ertle, Twiggs.
Tackles – Snowball, Ricker, Laase, M. Snyder.
Guards – Whitfield, D. Gipp, Russell, M. Cardinal, Doll, Couto.
Centers – B. Moore, Skelton.
Quarterbacks – T. Young, Malinowski, Shumar.
Halfbacks – Jim Smith, Fenton, McDew, Fichter, Autrey, Evans.
Fullbacks – R. Moore, M. Gipp. Streeter.

STEUBENVILLE – 16
Ends – Jim Smith, B. Smith, Styles, Monroe.
Tackles – Reid, Mills, Brimmer, Muklewitz, Manfred, Brondo.
Guards – Jackson, Patterson, (unreadable) Haire.
Quarterback – Corsi.
Halfbacks – Osby, B. Young, (unreadable) Burke, Edwards.
Fullbacks – Sims, Culbreath.

Massillon 6 8 0 12 26
Steubenville 0 16 0 0 16

Touchdowns: Massillon – Jim Smith 4 (1, one-half, 3 and
2 yard funs).
Steubenville – Sims 2 (25 and 1-7ard runs).

Extra points:
Massillon – Ertle 2 (pass from T. Young).
Steubenville – Jim Smith 2 (pass-lateral from Corsi to Burke);
B. Young 2 (pass from Corsi).

INDIVIDUAL RUSHING
Massillon
Player Att. Net. Ave.
Young 17 49 2.9
Smith 39 184 4.7
McDew 4 16 4
Moore 6 23 3.8

Steubenville
Player Att. Net. Ave.
Sims 10 65 6.5

OFFICIALS
Referee – Dr. Phil Davidson.
Umpire – Tom Costello.
Head Linesman – Tom Stratis.
Field Judge – Ed Sutton.

Attendance: 13,000 (estimate)

THE GRIDSTICK
Mass. Steub.
First downs – rushing 16 5
First downs – passing 2 3
Total first downs 18 8
Yards gained rushing 288 86
Yards lost rushing 17 9
Net yards gained rushing 271 77
Net yards gained passing 49 75
Total yards gained 320 152
Passes completed 2-3 7-20
Passes intercepted by 2 0
Yardage on passes intercepted 15 0
Times kicked off 5 3
Kickoff average (yards) 43.8 40.3
Kickoff returns (yards) 31 80
Punt return (yards) 5-33.0 6-35.8
Had punts blocked 15 41
Fumbles 2 1
Lost fumbled ball 1 1
Yards penalized 6-55 3-20
Touchdowns rushing 4 2
Total number of plays 72 47

1967: Massillon 6, Upper Arlington 7

October 20, 1967July 19, 2017
by Eric Smith

Arlington ‘Bears’ Down on Massillon 7-6
Injuries To Bengals Are Too Much Anyone For A Break In Tigers’ Slate?
Schmidt Gains 108 Yards

By CHUCK HESS, JR.

The rigors of a 10-game “Murderers Row” football schedule caught up with Massillon’s Tigers Friday night at Tiger stadium. Those who would seek to criticize Coach Bob Seaman for daring to suggest the Obies should have a “breather” now and then found out what happens when you don’t have one.

Playing without two-thirds of their power blocking because of injuries last week to Reggie Moore, 200-pound fullback, and Tom Houser, 224-pound tight end and sometimes front man in the I, the Bengals were clawless. The absence of 220-pound senior Linebacker Hoyt Skelton didn’t help matters either as Upper Arlington edged the Orange and Black 7-6 before the season’s biggest crowd, 19,017, on Homecoming night.
* * *

IN BEATING Massillon, the Bears ended a 6-game winning streak and extended their skein to 7. Tiger chances for a state title have dimmed but the lights haven’t been turned out yet.

To make the situation even worse, Friday Tom Robinson, 174-pound junior who practiced all week as Houser’s replacement, injured a knee in practice Thursday night. Mike Snyder, 192-pound senior, was switched from strong tackle at the last minute to fill in for Robbie and did the best he could under the circumstances.

Had the Obiemen had a “breather” Friday night instead of a continuation of their killer slate, those on the injury list would have had a week to recuperate.

Co-Captain Trevor Young, near tears after the game said, “We let the fans down.” But the Tigers didn’t let anybody down. They had about as much chance of winning as an
8-cylinder car has of moving with the wires off 5 of its spark plugs.

Except for the beginning of the game when the Bengals moved well outside, they couldn’t get any kind of continuity of attack going. Without Moore, to work inside, junior tailback Jim Smith couldn’t move at all on the outside, averaging his lowest rushing figure of the season, 2.9 yards.
* * *

THE BENGALS got out of their own territory only twice all night – in the first and second quarters. The last half was played mainly in the shadow of the Obies’ goal post, as Massillon got only 2 first downs.

“Did the injuries hurt us?” Seaman asked and then just as quickly answered. “I guess they did! They stopped our offense purely and simply. We missed Houser. When he double teams down, he double teams down!”

“There are not many teams who can lose 3 first stringers, one a 2-wayer (Houser) and have subs fill in and do the job they did tonight. I’m not pleased, of course, but I’m proud of our boys.”

Houser was in for only 4 plays while Moore did some kicking off. Skelton saw very limited action.

In an obvious reference to Arlington’s schedule, Seaman said, “I wish I had to get ready for only one game a year instead of 10. We play too darn many tough ones.”
* * *
WITH JUNIOR fullback Geoff Schmidt, showing the way as he did last year, with 108 net yards in 31 tries, for a 3.5 average, the Bears beat the Tigers at their own game – control football. The Bruins ran 83 plays to the Obies’ 51. Without their power attack, the Orange and Black couldn’t hang on for any length of time.

Marv Moorehead, who has seen his charges win here 2 years in a row, watched the Bears total 144 more yards and 11 more first downs than Massillon.

“Our defense won the game,” Moorehead said. “It was great in the second half. The whole interior was a thing to behold.”

Then Moorehead spat out names like a machine gun, mentioning linebacker and
Co-Captain Carl Compton, tackle Jim Merrell and ends Steve Sikora and Bruce Johnson as his big guns.

Actually, the game boiled down to 2 plays – one to Massillon’s credit in the second stanza and another in Arlington’s plus column in the goodbye canto. The former was Marc Malinowski’s 75-yard interception return for a touchdown helped by Russ Fenton’s key block with 6:41 left. A pass to Smith for the conversion was incomplete.

The latter came on fourth and 7 on the Obiemen’s 29. Senior Co-Captain and halfback Gary Moore scampered 22 yards on a counter play, one of the few calls made by Moorehead all night. An offside penalty put the ball on the one and after Schmidt missed on a dive play, he drilled off tackle for the equalizer at 4:46 with Scott Hustson’s kick the clincher.

It appeared the Bengals were going to be off to the races in the first quarter. Mark McDew, junior halfback, pilfered a pass on Massillon’s 39 as Arlington went on the move after the opening kickoff.

Smith raced 20 yards on an option left on the first play. Two plays later Young charged through the center for 16 yards to the 14.
Young and Smith moved the ball to the 4-yard line but the Tigers were hit with a procedure penalty. Smith and Young again combined to get to the 2 but someone in the line missed a faking maneuver and Young was tossed to the 7 ending the invasion.

The Tigertowners’ only other drive came at the beginning of the second quarter after a punt. They moved 40 yards to the Arlington 44 with McDew running 17, 10 and 8 yards.

However, with fourth down on the Bears’ 43 and the ball short of a first down on what must have been one of the closest measurements in Bengal football history, Smith couldn’t get the necessary yardage with the Obies’ blocking short circuited.

Arlington made repeated drives into Bengal land and almost scored in the third period but ran into a clipping penalty on the Massillon 6. Holder Ted McNulty ran with the ball on a fake field goal attempt on fourth down but was felled 9 yards short of the mark.

The Tigers return to All-American conference warfare next week by ending the home season against Warren Harding.

ARLINGTON – 7
Ends – Ball, McKenzie, Johnson.
Tackles – Carter, Merrell, Harding, Sikora.
Guards – Scovanneri, Loewel, Miely.
Center – Condit.
Quarterbacks – Stanley, McNulty, Reiter.
Halfbacks – Moore, Gilbert, Dicke, Huston, Lloyd.
Fullbacks – Schmidt, Compton, Crim.

MASSILLON – 6
Ends – Houser, Dampier, Snyder, Richards.
Tackles – Snowball, Ricker, Laase, McGeorge.
Guards – D. Gipp, Ertle, Whitfield, Doll, Couto.
Centers – B. Moore, Skelton.
Quarterbacks – Young, Shumar, Malinowski.
Halfbacks – Smith, McDew, Autrey, Fenton, Evans, Streeter.
Fullbacks – Moore, Simon, M. Gipp.

Arlington 0 0 0 7 7
Massillon 0 6 0 0 6

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Malinowski (75-yard interception return).
Arlington – Schmidt (one-yard run).

Extra points: Huston (kick).

INDIVIDUAL RUSHING
Massillon
Player Att. Net. Ave.
Young 10 48 4.6
Smith 17 49 2.9
McDew 10 45 4.5

Arlington
Player Att. Net. Ave.
Moore 13 81 6.2
Schmidt 31 108 3.5

OFFICIALS
Referee – Howard Wirtz.
Umpire – Harvey Hodgson, Jr.
Head Linesman – Bill Makepeace.
Field Judge – Nick Ruggiero.
Back Judge – George Ellis.

ATTENDANCE: 19,017

THE GRIDSTICK
Mass. U.A.
First downs – rushing 8 14
First downs – passing 0 5
First downs – penalties 0 0
Total first downs 8 19
Yards gained rushing 179 240
Yards lost rushing 29 11
Net yards gained rushing 150 229
Net yards gained passing 0 65
Total yards gained 150 294
Passes completed 0-3 11-21
Passes intercepted by 2 1
Yardage on passes intercepted 75 14
Times kicked off 2 2
Kickoff average (yards) 47.0 56.5
Kickoff returns (yards) 23 21
Times punted 6-33.0 3-40.0
Punt return (yards) 5 5
Had punts blocked 0 0
Fumbles 0 1
Lost fumbled ball 0 1
Penalties 4 6
Yards penalized 16 40
Touchdowns rushing 0 1
Touchdowns passing 0 0
Touchdowns by interception 1 0
Total number of plays 51 83

1966: Massillon 16, Canton McKinley 25

November 12, 1966July 18, 2017
by Eric Smith

Seaman Says ‘Wait Until Next Year’
McKinley Wins; Bengals Have Losing Mark

By CHUCK HESS, JR.
Independent Sports Editor

Fans of the old Brooklyn baseball Dodgers had the right idea at a time like this: “Wait until next year.”

Washington high Coach Bob Seaman had his own version: “We’ll be back next year and should have a heck of a team.”

The error-pocked and anguish-filled 1966-football season is history. The final chapter was penned Saturday in a bruising 25-16 Tiger stadium loss to Canton McKinley in the 71st annual inter-city classic.

For the first time since 1931 the Bengals ended below .500 with a 4-5-1 record. There have been only 4 other seasons of 8 or more games since 1894, which have ended below the
Break-even point.

The only consolation for Seaman was that he has a lot of company among first-year coaches who have lost to McKinley. Seven other mentors, including Paul Brown, either lost to or were tied by the Bulldogs in the first or only year those coaches were here.

McKinley ended a 9-year famine in wining and assured itself of a winning season under Ron Chismar with a 6-4 record. The Bulldogs also dropped the defending champion Tigers into a cellar tie in the All-American High School football league at a 1-3 ending.

Niles won the title with a 3-0 record, Steubenville finished 2-1, Warren 2-2.

Massillon’s play, at times Saturday, resembled the zany Dodgers referred to above. Maladies, which have plagued them all-season burst out in full bloom – inability’s to handle kicks and fumbles. Three McKinley touchdowns happened because of miscues on handling kicks. The fourth resulted from an inability to stop a punt return.
* * *

SOME SAY the Pups didn’t deserve the win but they were a good enough team to capitalize on the breaks and reverse the script of the past 2 seasons when the Tigers bounced back to win after half time deficits.
The contest started as if it were to be a high-scoring affair with both teams scoring in the first one minute, 54 seconds of play. McKinley went over on the first play from scrimmage after Bengal sophomore Marc Malinowski attempted unsuccessfully to return George Fronimo’s stocking footed, soccer-style kickoff which rolled pass Malinowski to the 5-yard line. End Henry Lewis recovered a fly ball fumble on the 9.

Quarterback Milford Lucius passed to halfback Leroy Wilder, who was to score twice more, on the 5 with Wilder carrying the rest of the way. Fronimo’s boot made it 7-0 with 11:32 remaining.

Halfback Tommy James got the Obiemen to their 38 with a 29-yard runback of the next kickoff. On second and 4 from the 44, fullback Will Foster cut through the center and back to the right for the Tigertowners’ longest run from scrimmage this season at 11:26. Quarterback Craig Maurer hit James in the right corner of the end zone to make it 8-7 in Massillon’s favor.

Massillon scored again in the first quarter but not before squandering a first and 10 at the Bulldog 18 after a pass interception by Foster with a fumble by James recovered by halfback Ted Bowersox.
* * *

LINEBACKER Hoyt Skelton pilfered again on the Pups’ 40. Four plays later, Maurer took off from 26 yards out on first and 10 and scampered into pay dirt on a counter keeper to the left at 3:55. He hit James with another right corner end zone pass for a 16-7 score that was the Bengal fans’ last cause for joy.

McKinley missed an opportunity after Jim Krenzer’s punt was blocked by one of his own men at the beginning of the second stanza. George Austin recovered on the Massillon 25.

On third down Clayton grabbed a pass on the 25, ran to the 17, was pushed out of bounds and into the east track seats. A 15-yard personal foul infraction was called during the melee and Chismar rushed onto the field to engage in a violent argument with head linesman Joe Romano.

McKinley was set back to the 30. Linebacker Ron Ertle intercepted a pass on the next play to halt the drive.

Massillon was forced to hold on again later in the period when Bulldog linebacker Jerry Hontas recovered Foster’s fumble on the Tigers’ 24.

Fronimo’s bad-snap punt following the first Bulldog series of the second half grazed Tiger junior Trevor Young; subbing for James, who was injured earelier. Pete Coleman’s recovery gave the Bulldogs a life on the Tigers 34.
* * *
EIGHT PLAYS after a 12-yard run by Lucius and an 11-yard scamper by fullback Larry Clayton, who broke tackles numerous times during the afternoon, Wilder scored around the left side on a pitchout at 4:21. Lucius was halted short of conversion territory as the scoreboard showed Massillon with a 16-13 lead.

Massillon got the ball but once in the third quarter going nowhere.

With Fronimo punting on the second play of the final stanza, junior Tiger safetyman Kevin Henderson fumbled on the 5. Coleman recovered again – this time on the half-yard line.
Lucius sneaked through the center at 11:28 for the score. Fronimo tried to run the conversion after a bad snap, fumbled after a tackle. Bowersox recovered and ran over but the ball was ruled dead, giving McKinley a 19-16 lead.

Fronimo kept the Tigers in the hole with long punts in the second half and the Bulldog defense kept the Orange and Black there. On one of these frustrating occasions Krenzer punted to Wilder on the McKinley 42. A touchdown runback along the west-side line resulted at 4:21 with the help of a block by Paul Robinson at the 3.
* * *

FRONIMO MISSED on the PAT. McKinley led 26-15 but the Tigers weren’t dead even though many fans started to exit.

The Bengals got back to the McKinley 4 after the kickoff to 8 and 20-yard passes to sophomore halfback Mark McDew and senior tight end Keith Griffin and 7-yard runs by Foster and Maurer. But the Tigers ran out of downs.

In the last minute of play, Maurer hit McDew for an 8-yarder and interference was called on a 24-yarder. It took several minutes to clear fans off the field in order to run the final play after the penalty, which had occurred as time lapsed. A pass into the end zone was incomplete.

Seaman agreed that the Tigers had been placed behind the 8-ball too many times by errors. “Each week we’ve done something wrong,” he said. “This time the specialty team hurt us.” Then he mused, “McKinley got a negative 3 yards in the last quarter and 3 touchdowns. We evened the battle of statistics.”

Chismar said, ‘It was a real great game. Our linebackers Hontas and John Patterson did as much as anybody to shut off their defense. But it was a team effort.”

The much-hearlded battle of fullbacks was a standoff. Clayton, who left the contest in the final quarter with torn ankle ligaments had 83 yards in 19 tries. Foster had 85 in 14.

McKINLEY – 25
Ends – Snell, H. Lewis, Iams.
Tackles – Austin, Adamski, Rushe.
Guards – Robinson, Sweat, Shimek.
Centers – Dowing, Coleman.
Quarterbacks – Lucius, Bowersox, Hontas.
Halfbacks – Wilder, B. Lewis, LeFlore, Fronimo.
Fullbacks – Clayton, Patterson.

MASSILLON – 16
Ends – Griffin, Moyer, Smith, Sterling, Richards, Liggett, Gallion.
Tackles – Houser, Campbell, Neago, Sherrett, Ricker.
Guards – Porrini, Russell, White, Hauenstein, Beiter, Ertle.
Centers – Senften, Kraft, Skelton.
Quarterbacks – Maurer, Henderson, Malinowski, Young.
Halfbacks – James, Simon, McDew, Fenton, Hannon, Staples,
McFadden, Muhlbach.
Fullbacks – Foster, Moore.

McKinley 7 0 6 12 25
Massillon 16 0 0 0 16

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Foster (58-yard run); Maurer (27-yard run).
McKinley – Wilder 3 (9-yard pass run from Lucius, 3-yard run, 58-yard punt return);
Lucius (half-yard run).

Extra points:
Massillon – James 4 (passes from Maurer).
McKinley – Fronimo 1 (kick).

OFFICIALS
Referee – Tony Pianowski.
Umpire – Harold Rolph.
Head Linesman – Joe Romano.
Field Judge – Brenton Kirk.

Attendance: 20,140

THE GRIDSTICK
Massillon Opp.
First downs – rushing 5 5
First downs – passing 1 0
First downs – penalties 2 1
Total first downs 8 6
Yards gained rushing 168 124
Yards lost rushing 32 22
Net yards gained rushing 136 102
Net yards gained passing 35 19
Total yards gained 171 121
Passes attempted 11 9
Passes completed 4 2
Passes intercepted by 3 0
Yardage on passes intercepted 24 0
Times kicked off 3 5
Kickoff average (yards) 52.3 51.6
Kickoff returns (yards) 94 63
Times punted 6 5
Punt average (yards) 25.3 36.8
Punt return (yards) 0 85
Had punts blocked 1 0
Fumbles 8 3
Lost fumbled ball 5 1
Penalties 3 3
Yards penalized 32 35
Touchdowns rushing 2 2
Touchdowns passing 0 1
Touchdowns by interception 0 0
Miscellaneous 0 1
Total number of plays 50 53

1965: Massillon 18, Canton McKinley 14

November 13, 1965July 15, 2017
by Eric Smith

Tiger Rally Repels Bulldogs 18-14
Real Champs Fight Back!

By CHUCK HESS, JR.

“That’s the mark of a real champion!”

Those words might have been uttered by a Massillon football fan. They might have been pronounced by a Washington high school coach. They might have been written by this reporter.

But they weren’t. That’s why they mean so much more today to one of the most terrific bunch of boys ever to wear the famous orange and black garb of the Tigers.

Following the Bengals’ 18-14 come-from-behind victory over Canton McKinley Saturday at Fawcett stadium in Canton before a standing-room only crowd of 22,326. Jim Smith, coach at Lake high school in Hartville, uttered the words which lead off this story. He paid the supreme compliment to the Obiemen through veteran assistant Carl (Ducky) Schroeder.

* * * * *
THE TIGERS convinced one outsider that they deserve to wear the Ohio high school crown. And maybe they convinced more around the state. Whether they did or not cannot be known until Tuesday when the final wire service polls come out.

But the Brucemen convinced all the Tiger fans watching at Fawcett that they deserved to wear a second straight crown. Any team which can be down 14 points at half time to a fired-up, superbly coached, hard-hitting team like McKinley and come back to win -–for the third time this season—certainly deserves to be called a champion.

The other 2 times the Orange and Black turned the tide was against equally tough Steubenville and Warren teams. This trio of feats will be etched in the memories of the Tiger faithful forever.

The 1965 season truly saw a superb team effort on the part of the players. Each did his part. Each came to the fore time and again during a 10-game slate, which had more pressure-packed moments than an old-time movie serial.

The win Saturday gave Massillon an undefeated season in 10 games, 28 consecutive victories, 9 in a row over McKinley and a third straight title in the All-American high school football league. The Bengals have not lost a league contest since the circuit’s inception in 1963.

For Coach Earle Bruce it was a 43rd straight unbeaten game, counting the August all-star game. He now has a 3-1 record at Fawcett, having split 2 games there with Canton Timken while at Salem.
* * * * *
FOR THE thousands of fans who watched via television Saturday, it must have been like seeing a replay of an old movie on the late-late show for this year’s game came close to being a carbon copy of last year’s. The Tigers beat McKinley 20-14 at Tiger stadium in 1964.

This time, however, the WHS eleven started its comeback earlier, not waiting for the last quarter to roll around. Quarterback Dave Sheegog, playing in his final high school game, got his mates started with a 24-yard run-back of the second half kickoff to his 34-yard line.

The Tigers moved in for a score in 11 plays, finally getting their deadly, ground-gobbling, time-consuming offense into high gear. “Sweet Walter” Lemon, another senior, picked up 16 yards in 5 plays on the drive with Sheegog and junior Tommy James also in on the effort.

The touchdown came after a first down procedure penalty had set Massillon back to the McKinley 39. Sheegog handed to James on the trip up the middle and “the Scooter” was “Gone With the Wind.” He cut back to his left and scurried for payoff territory, arriving with 6:05 left in the third period. A fumble nullified the conversion attempt.

With almost 6 precious minutes chopped off the clock in the scoring soiree, McKinley attempted to get a drive going following the kickoff. But 3 plays later it was “TJ for the TD” again.

Bulldog quarterback Larry Haines attempted a pass with second down on his 33. James intercepted on the 40, went down the left sideline and scored with 5:14 remaining in the period. Another fumble aborted the conversion try.

The Bengals forced a punt on the next series as linebacker Paul Marks threw Haines for a 10-yard loss on third down. Sheegog ran back 31 yards with the boot to the McKinley 24. But a penalty and 2 incomplete passes halted the drive on the 24.

It looked as if McKinley were about to come charging back. Their outstanding fullback Larry Clayton went booming off right tackle for 28 yards to the Massillon 48 with Paige making a desperation tackle to save a score. Four more plays put the pigskin on the 35.

* * * * *
THEN SHEEGOG intercepted another pass on what McKinley Coach Ron Chismar called the key play of the game. Massillon then drove 76 yards in 13 plays for the winning score. Most important about this drive was that it clipped 8 minutes off the clock allowing too little time for McKinley to rebound. This was about the umpteenth time that the Tiger trademark of 1965, possession ball, had paid off. It couldn’t have come at any better time.

Lemon, Sheegog, Foster and James all had a hand in the assualt. Lemon had an 8-yard run, Sheegog a pair of 8’s and Foster an 11.

It was Foster who came up with what Bruce thought was the key play and so did all of the Tiger fans. Massillon had fourth down on the 17. Sheegog was about to be trapped on a pass-run when (name unreadable) out a low clothes line. Foster made a swan dive on the 9 and came up with the ball. Umpire Tony Pianowski immediately signaled a legal catch.

Foster blasted through the middle to the 3 and over, off left tackle, in successive plays with 2 minutes remaining. Sheegog tried to hit Paige for the conversion but Rick couldn’t hold it.

But the heart-throbs weren’t to stop. McKinley, showing the great stuff it is made of, continued to fight, moving the kickoff to the 29 after a 23-yard runback by Mathews to the 25.

With third down on the 27, Haines hit end Ed Hinton on the 39. Then Haines faded to pass, slipped and went down on the 29 with Mike (Big Boy) Sherrett on top of him.

* * * * *

THE NEXT PLAY saw Haines fade again. This time Marks picked off the fourth McKinley pass of the day, more than in any other game for the Tigers. Massillon took over on the Bulldog 46 and ran out the clock.

Unlike in the second half, McKinley was in command in the first period. Hopped up like a horse on loco weed, the Pups rammed away for 2 quick TD’s before the startled Tigers knew what had hit them and it looked as if an upset were in the making.

Half Fred Mathews was the star here. He ran the opening kickoff back 44 yards to the Massillon 48. Although there is no intent to play down a fine performance by Mathews, it has to be stated that a couple of Tiger defenders slipped in the mud just about the time they were going to haul Mathews down.

He picked up 40 more yards on the drive, the payoff coming on a 32-yard pass-run combination with Haines on the propelling end. The down was third and the time remaining 9:40. Greek-born George Fronimo booted the extra point soccer style in stocking feet.

The Tigers got a 20-yard runback to the 30 by Sheegog. But then disaster struck Sheegog, passing into the teeth of a strong wind, saw his aerial hold up short. Mathews hauled down the errant toss on the McKinley 35 after a frantic effort by Paige to bat it away and
hot-footed it to the Massillon 43 for 22 yards on another fabulous return. Eight plays later the Bulldogs had their second score and it looked like curtains for the Bengals.

* * * * *
WITH CLAYTON carrying the ball 5 times and picking up 25 yards, the Bulldogs got their next TD with 4:15 left in the welcome frame as Haines sneaked in from the one. Fronimo again connected on a conversion kick.

Mathews had a key third down pass reception for 6 yards on the Tiger 21. Clayton brought the ball to scoring distances by bursting through the center on successive plays to shake off tacklers and travel from the 21 to the 3.

Sheegog ran back the kickoff to the Massillon 34, a distance of 24 yards. But on the first play, Bill Knucklos recovered a Bengal fumble on the Massillon 37.

The Brucemen then stopped the Bulldogs’ drive on the Massillon 32 and the Pups got into Massillon territory only once the rest of the game.

The remaining seconds of the first period and all of the second were a standoff. McKinley had the ball for only 9 plays in the second canto. Massillon’s deepest penetration was to the 21 just before the half ended.

The Obiemen had 2 drives going, one for 6:30 and the other for 4:15. Junior “monster” back Ron Muhlbach intercepted a pass to start one thrust. The Tigers failed to make it once on a fourth down play and got bogged down by 3 procedure penalties the other time.

Chismar said after the game that he thought Massillon had a “great football team.” He said the difference between the 2 halves of play was Bruce’s throwing ‘junk” at the Bulldogs in the first half and playing his normal game in the second.

* * * * *
BRUCE confirmed Chismar’s statement about using a lot of odds and ends in the first half. He felt that his team did a better job of rushing the passer in the second half, which helped cut down on the effectiveness of the Bulldogs’ passing.

When asked what it was he said at half time to fire up the Tigers, Bruce replied, “Go Get them!” He added, “That old Massillon tradition of coming back is hard to beat.”

Chismar commented on his passing in the second half by saying that broken patterns were involved when James intercepted for a TD and Sheegog pilfered to start the drive for the winning score.

“They wouldn’t have scored if it hadn’t been for that,” Chismar said.

Chismar, a fine sportsman, refused to say that the absence of speedster Darryl Rippey hurt. “Elbert Bradley did a fine job of filling in,” he said. “I cannot take anything away from him.”

Tiger defensive backfield Coach John Behling explained the reason for the Bengals’ trouble in covering passes in the first quarter. “The boys couldn’t hear their cover calls,” he said.

The Lineups. . .

MASSILLON – 19
Ends – Paige, B. Williams, McGuire, Gallion, Griffin.
Tackles – Hartley, Neago, Petroff, Sherrett.
Guards – Rose, Whitified, Kraft, Richards, Zorger.
Centers – Marks, F. Williams, Ehmer.
Quarterbacks – Sheegog, Doolittle.
Halfbacks – Lemon, James, Muhlbach, Smith, Healy, McFadden, McLendon.
Fullbacks – Foster, Manson.

McKINLEY – 14
Ends – Ring, Snell, March, Hinton.
Tackles, Scott, Adamski, Rushe.
Guards – Robinson, Hall, Nucklos, Shimek.
Centers – D’Antonio, McEwen.
Quarterback – Haines.
Halfbacks – Mathews, Bradley, Johnson.
Fullbacks – Clayton, Dickerson.

Score by Quarters:
Massillon ………….. 0 0 12 6 – 18
McKinley………….. 14 0 0 0 – 14

Touchdowns:
Massillon – James 2 (39-yard run and 40-yard pass interception return);
Foster (3-yard run).
McKinley – Mathews (23-yard pass-run from Haines);
Haines (one-yard sneak).

Extra points:
McKinley – Fronimo 2 (placekicks).

OFFICIALS:
Referee – George Ellis (Akron).
Umpire – Tony Pianowski (Cleveland).
Head Linesman – Branton Kirk (New Philadelphia).
Field Judge – Tom Ascani (Canton).

Attendance: 22,326

Statistics . . .

Statistics
Mass. McKin.
First downs—rushing 10 7
First downs—passing 3 3
First downs—penalties 0 0
Total first downs 13 10
Yards gained rushing 165 153
Yards lost rushing 2 29
Net yards gained rushing 183 124
Net yards gained passing 43 60
Total yards gained 226 184
Passes attempted 12 11
Passes completed 4 4
Passes intercepted by 4 1
Yardage on passes intercepted 42 27
Times kicked off 4 3
Kickoff average (yards) 45.0 49
Kickoff returns (yards) 65 63
Times punted 1 1
Punt average (yards) 40.0 29
Punt returns (yards) 28 0
Had punts blocked 0 0
Fumbles 1 2
Lost fumbled ball 1 0
Penalties 5 1
Yards penalized 25 15
Touchdowns rushing 2 1
Touchdowns passing 0 1
Touchdowns by interception 1 0
Miscellaneous 0 0
Total number of plays 38 31

1964: Massillon 20, Canton McKinley 14

November 14, 1964July 15, 2017
by Eric Smith

TIGER CHAMPS AWAIT CROWNING

State Title Assured By Comeback Victory Over McKinley, 20-14

By STEVE HAPANOWICZ

There’s no truth to the rumor the ABC Television Network has offered the 1964 Massillon Tigers mass employment as scriptwriters.

The network well might hire the Tigers because the Ohio State high school football champions came up with as great a finish to a perfect season as any scriptwriter could dream up in his wildest imagination.

Trailing 14-0 going into the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game against Canton McKinley, a game that had the state championship at stake, an undefeated season hanging in the balance, 22,685 emotionally charged fans watching in Tiger stadium and un-numbered thousands viewing on television, the Tigers staged one of the greatest come-from-behind victories any Massillon team has put together to win 20-14.

The Tigers, who led the Associated Press poll voting as the No. 1 team in the state most of the season, should be officially crowned state champs when the final poll comes out Tuesday.

Outplayed by the hard hitting McKinley squad, stopped at the 1-yard line by the McKinley defense in the second quarter, stopped again at the 14 and at the 3-yard line in the 3rd quarter, Massillon for better than 2½ quarters of the game was a toothless Tiger held at bay by a pack of angry Bulldogs.

BUT THEN the unwritten script began to unfold, putting junior quarterback Dave Sheegog in the starring role. Sheegog, 5’ 10”, 170-pounds, came into the contest on offense when regular quarterback Steve Kanner went out with cramps in his leg. The Tigers started to move with Sheegog at the controls and by the time the gun went off signaling one of the greatest mob scenes ever seen in the stadium, the Tigers were on top, with a brand new set of teeth that look like they will last another year.

There were other hero’s in the Tiger comeback that will rate as one of the greatest in Massillon football. Gene Biddle replaced the injured John Muhlbach at center in the second half when Muhlbach sustained a severely bruised hip; Jim Lawrence, who was the most consistent runner for the Tigers beside Sheegog, and Walt Lemon who took some of the pressure off Sheegog in the late stages of the drive with his running.

Determination and persistence paid off for the Tigers who kept the pressure on McKinley despite the 14-point deficit and wore down the Bulldogs. McKinley played almost the entire game without Ed Jones, the roving cornerback, in the “monster” defense and Larry Haines who broke a finger in the second quarter, but managed to come back and almost bring the Bulldogs into the lead with a drive in the wining second of the ball game. In the final analysis, Massillon’s depth told the story. The Tigers had Sheegog, Biddle and Lemon.

The Bulldogs broke on top with 5:32 left in the first quarter. Massillon took the opening kickoff and on the third play from scrimmage lost the ball on a fumble by Ed Herring on the McKinley 49. With Kalogeras banging into the line for consistent yardage and Fred Mathews picking up a 12-yard gain, the bulldogs took 11plays to get to the 9 from where Haines hit Emanuel Bradley all alone in the end zone for the first score. Guard Henry Vafides kicked the extra point to make it 7-0.

Sheegog fumbled the ensuing kickoff with the Bulldog’s guard Tom Bradbury recovering on the Massillon 19. Kalogeras picked up 15 yards on 4 carries. With a third and 9, Haines hit end Nick Roman with a pass but Roman was stopped inches short of the goal. With fourth and inches, Kalogeras plowed over for the score. Vafides kicked what was to be the Bulldog’s final point.

************

THE TIGERS MOUNTED one offensive more in the second quarter moving from their own 46 to the McKinley 1. A penalty against McKinley for grabbing a facemask gave the Tigers the ball at the Bulldog 10 with first down. Lawrence picked up a yard up the middle, Kanner sneaked out for 3 and Hewitt went 5 to the one. With fourth and 1 Lawrence went high into the middle of the line but McKinley replused him short of the goal.

The third quarter looked no better for the Tigers despite the recovery of 2 McKinley fumbles. On the second play from scrimmage following the kickoff for the second half, Willie Hall fumbled and end Wes Goodnough recovered at the Bulldog 23. Lawrence gained 6 yards in 2 carries and Herring 3. With the ball at the 14 the Bulldogs held Lawrence on a fourth and 1 to no gain.

McKinley moved the ball to the 21 when Will Hall fumbled and Massillon’s Tom Whitifield recovered on the 19. Lawrence picked up 6 to the 13 and another 5 to the 9. After a 2-yard loss, Bobby Hewitt carried to the 4. Lawrence gained a yard and on fourth and 3 Herring was stopped at the 2 by Mathews the last man with a chance to get him.

After moving to the 11, the Bulldogs punted, Romans’ kick coming to rest at McKinley 40. There were 3 minutes and 54 seconds left in the third quarter when the Tigers started their greatest comeback in many a year.

Hewitt picked up 2 and Kanner 3. Kanner left the game and Sheegog came in. Giving a sign of things to come, Sheegog picked up 10 yards on a roll out. Hewitt picked up 4 on a second down and with third and 6 Sheegog hit end Ken Gillmore with an 8-yard pass putting the ball on the 13 with a first down coming up. Lemon squirted off for 6 yards as the quarter ended. With second and 4, Herring went to the 4 and then to the one from where Lawrence scored the first touchdown at 10:11. The extra point run by Lawrence failed and the score stood at 14-6.

McKinley couldn’t move the ball and punted to the Tiger 39 where the Tigers started a 9 play 61-yard drive. Sheegog picked up 6 yards and then hit Herring with a pass up the middle to the Bulldog 35. Lawrence gained 4 and Lemon 9 before Sheegog hit Lawrence with a pass at the 10. Lemon picked up 7 to the 3 and Lawrence 3 more.

Sheegog gained a yard to the 2 and with fourth and 1 Hewitt just made it over the goal line for the score. Sheegog tied the score at 14-all by scoring the extra points over the left side with 3:32 left in the game.

************

McKINLEY TOOK Paul Marks’ kick to the 12 and gained 6 yards in 3 carries. Roman punted to the Massillon 45 where Sheegog fielded the ball and returned it 33 yards to the Tiger 17.

Massillon missed connections on a pass and Sheegog gained 3 yards to the 14. With third and 7 Sheegog faked to Lawrence going into the line, kept the ball and went over right tackle. He broke into the clear only to be met by McKinley’s Ray Kinnard at the 3 and Mark Mathieu at the 1, but he just strained forward for the touchdown that put the Tigers ahead 20-14 with 54 seconds remaining.

But the ball game wasn’t over. With 48 second left on their own 24 the Bulldogs moved to the 42 on an 18-yard gain picked up by Haines. A halfback pass from Mathews to Hall picked up 8 yards and another pass from Haines to Mathews, the Bulldogs most dangerous runner, put the ball on the Tiger 24. On first down, Haines tried to hit Mathews with a pass inside the 5-yard line but Dave Whitfield deflected it and Mathews never had a chance for it with 11 seconds left. Mathews got another pass to move it to the 17. Thinking time had run out Massillon fans swarmed on the field, but with 1 second left to play, officials and 15 Massillon policemen cleared the field and McKinley tried one more play, Haines throwing the ball to center Jim Roman after being rushed by the Massillon defense.

Bedlam reigned for a long time on the field and in the Tiger locker room.

Coach Earle Bruce being congratulated in a packed office said, “I still can’t believe it.” Asked if he made any adjustments in the second half, Bruce replied, “No. Sheegog came through with flying colors. He’s a calm, cool and collected quarterback. We went with the quarterback keep off the inside belly series. Our game plan was to run the ball. We fumbled in the first half and didn’t in the second. Physically we came on in the second half.”

Asked if he thought the Tiger could come back while trailing 14-0, Bruce said. “You know, once you’ve come back, you always think about coming back,” Bruce said referring to the Niles game. “They just made mistakes in the second half. We made ours in the first half.”

************

FOR DON NEHLEN, who brought the Bulldogs up to contention for the state title after taking over a team that was 6-4 last year, it was a bitter defeat.

“Massillon didn’t beat us. We beat ourselves. Our mistakes beat us,” he said after the game.
“Sheegog was great for them, but Kalogeras was by far the best football player on the field. We just didn’t have quite the depth.”

Asked if his team tired late in the game, Nehlen said, “No, I don’t think so. You’d look that way too if you had your back to the wall like that. Let’s just say our daubers were down a bit.”

Nehlen was unhappy with the officiating.

“We recovered 3 of their fumbles, but we didn’t get the ball. None of the officials even looked at it,” he said.

Statistically, Massillon had the slight edge getting 215 yards to 214 for the Bulldogs and 10 first downs to McKinley’s 7. The Tigers got 158 yards rushing while McKinley had 156. In passing it was 58 for McKinley to 57 for Massillon. Massillon held the ball for 57 plays while McKinley had it for 51.

Statistics
Mass. McKin.
First downs—rushing 10 7
First downs—passing 4 2
First downs—penalties 1 0
Total first downs 15 9
Yards gained rushing 173 170
Yards lost rushing 15 14
Net yards gained rushing 158 156
Net yards gained passing 57 58
Total yards gained 215 214
Passes attempted 10 7
Passes completed 5 5
Passes intercepted by 1 0
Yardage on passes intercepted 22 0
Times kicked off 4 3
Kickoff average (yards) 46.5 53.3
Kickoff returns (yards) 62 27
Times punted 1 5
Punt average (yards) 34.0 30.6
Punt returns (yards) 52 0
Had punts blocked 0 0
Fumbles 4 3
Lost fumbled ball 2 2
Penalties 0 5
Yards penalized 0 40
Touchdowns rushing 3 1
Touchdowns passing 0 1
Touchdowns by interception 0 0
Miscellaneous 0 0
Total number of plays 57 51

McKINLEY – 14
Ends – N. Roman, E. Bradley, Ring, Chaney.
Tackles – Scott, Miller, Carpenelli, R. Kinnard, Dodd,
Frazier, Shaheen.
Guards – Spencer, Bradbury, Vafides, Ra. Spencer.
Center – J. Roman.
Backs – Haines, Mathieu, Mathews, Hall, Rippey. E. Bradley,
Kalogeras, Dunnerstick.

MASSILLON – 20
Ends – Gilmore, Franklin, Paige, Goodnough, Garcia,
D. Whitfield.
Tackles – Binge, Morgan, Rambaud.
Guards – T. Whitifield, Laursel, Zorger.
Centers – Muhlbach, Biddle.
Backs – Kanner, Sheegog, Herring, Hewitt, Lawrence, Frieg,
Pribich, Manson, Lemmon, Conti, Marks, Schenkenberger.

Massillon…………. 0 0 0 20 – 20
McKinley………… 14 0 0 14 — 14

Touchdowns – McKinley: Bradley (9-yard pass from Haines); Kalogeras (1-yard run).
Massillon: Lawrence (1-yard); Hewitt (1-yard run); Sheegog (14-yard run).

Extra points – Vafides 2 (kicks); Sheegog 2 (run).

Officials:
Referee – Tony Pianowski (Cleveland).
Umpire – Harold Rolf (Ironton).
Head Linesman – Joe Romano (Mansfield).
Field Judge – Russ Kemper (Cincinnati).

1963: Massillon 22, Canton McKinley 6

November 9, 1963July 15, 2017
by Eric Smith

City Still Raving About Tigers Today
A Sparkling Defense Stops McKinley 22-6

By CHUCK HESS, JR.

In a song of a few years back the whole town was talking about the Jones boys.

But today Massillon is still raving about something even better – its terrific Tigers and their scintillating defense. The Bengal fans are also waxing enthusiastic about a master piece of strategy by their Coach Leo Strang and questioning with unbelief the words of McKinley Coach Tony Ware following Saturday’s game at Fawcett stadium.

Put all these factors together and you have the story of Massillon’s convincing 22-6 conquest of the Bulldogs before an overflow crowd of 21,965. The victory will probably open the door of the throne room for the Tigers, giving them their 20th state championship.

The Bengals gave every last bit of effort to show their fans, the people of Canton and the state of Ohio that their first victory over McKinley 24-20 at Tiger stadium last month was no fluke.
* * *
THE TIGER defense stunting and blitzing held McKinley to 26 net yards on the ground and 35 in the air for a total of 61 and tossed the Bulldogs for two safeties in the second half. Time and again Bengal defenders stopped McKinley ball-carriers before they got started and intercepted three passes, one for a touchdown. The vaunted Willie Hall was held to 47 yards, breaking loose only twice.

That’s why Massillon fans today still found it hard to understand how McKinley Coach Tony Ware could say that their Tigers “didn’t bother us defensively. Our offensive mistakes beat us.” He added, “We played our worst game of the season.”

But Strang knew what beat McKinley. In the jubilant dressing room after the game he said, “Did we defense them or did we defense them?” He added, “Oh that was sweet! I never wanted anything more in my life. We had some bad breaks in there, too.”

Massillon did well offensively, too, picking up 202 yards on the ground and 44 via the aerial route for a total of 246.

The cunning piece of strategy by Strang was putting seniors Terry Getz and Bill Blunt back into the spots at which they had started the season. Knowing that Ware would set his defense for Blunt’s running from the tailback slot, Strang inserted “The Rabbit” as wingback and the curly-haired Getz at tailback, thus effectively foiling Ware’s efforts.
* * *
WITH BLUNT decoying defenders, Getz the more powerful of the two, ended his high school career in tremendous fashion behind some outstanding line blocking. Terry ran hard and picked his holes well to tally two touchdowns and collect 107 yards.

His unselfish comment was, “Give the credit to the line. They blocked beautifully.”

The Tigers wasted little time cranking into high gear offensively. After forcing McKinley to punt, minutes after the opening kickoff, the WHS eleven took over on its 22-yard line. Quarterback Ron Swartz broke through the middle on a play which netted 29 yards to McKinley’s 49 even though Swartz stumbled, fumbled the ball and Tom Roderick eventually recovered it during the action.

Lawrence ran a play. Then Getz carried three straight times for a total of 36 yards, putting the ball on the eight. Swartz fumbled on the four on the next play. McKinley’s Fred Mathews recovered.

Nobody got anywhere for the remainder of the first period.
* * *
McKINLEY GOT its only threat going as the result of an intercepted pass by Pete Kalogeras on the Massillon 49. He ran back to the 34. But the Bulldogs got no further than the 20. Henry Vafides tried a field goal but sent the ball way off to the right.

The Tigers had two bad breaks during their next time with the ball. A delay penalty set them back from third and six on their 49 to third and 11. On the next play, Will Perry bobbled a pass while in the clear for a score.

As the second quarter was nearing its close, the Tigers got their first score. Perry, playing his only game at defensive tackle, charged in and hit quarterback Arnie Fontes as he was about to pass. The pass went weakly off to the side.

Cornerback Grady Eckard tipped the pass into the air on the 30. With amazing reaction he reached back, grabbed the ball and raced in for the score. There were two minutes, 30 seconds left.
* * *
SWARTZ TRIED right end on a keeper for the conversion but fumbled and was hit short of the goal line.

With a little more than a minute remaining in the quarter, Floyd Pierce intercepted a pass on his 30 and ran back to the 43. The Tigers then moved 55 yards to the two-yard line thanks to a roughing the passer penalty and a fine catch of a 19-yard pass from Swartz by Blunt.

With 10 seconds left, Blunt raced off right tackle from the two on third down. Massillon fans thought he was in the end zone but the officials didn’t and the half ended.

The Orange and Black got to the McKinley 34 after taking the second half kickoff but Steve Kanner was forced to punt. The ball rolled towards the end zone and Frank Scassa downed it on the one to set up the Tigers’ first safety.
Fontes faded from the five to pass on third down and was lassoed in the end zone by Eckard with six minutes, 11 seconds left in the third canto. The score was 8-0.
* * *
THE BENGALS used 4y minutes on their next scoring drive, moving from the McKinley 33 after a 22-yard runback of the kickoff following the safety. Getz, Lawrence and Swartz took turns running the ball on eight plays with three first downs.

Getz ran the last two plays off right tackle, picking up nine yards on fourth down, then going in from the three with 1y minutes showing on the clock. Swartz missed the conversion run off tackle.

Seconds into the fourth quarter linebacker John Muhlbach intercepted a McKinley aerial on the Bulldogs’ 35 and ran the ball to the 15. But a clipping penalty nullified the runback and three plays later Lawrence fumbled on the 21 with Mathews again Johnny on the spot for the recovery for the Pups.

McKinley got two series and Kalogeras went back to punt on fourth down from the 39. A tremendous charge by the Tigers caused a fumble. Kalogeras tried to punt the ball while it was rolling loose, but ended up with a penalty for illegally kicking a free ball. Massillon was awarded the ball at the spot of the infraction and was off for its final six-pointer.

Eight plays, three first downs and six minutes, 47 seconds later Getz went off right tackle again on second down from the two after running six of the plays on the drive. With one minute, 43 seconds showing on the clock, Bobby Hewitt missed running the conversion.
* * *
TOM RIVERA got to kickoff from the Bulldog’s 45-yard line, thanks to a piling penalty between the extra point try and the kickoff. His boot went into the end zone for a touchback.

On the next play Bobby Johnson tried a “Statue of Liberty” play from the 20, was forced to retreat all the way to the goal line and was thrown into the end zone by Mike Jones. This was probably one of the few 20 yard safeties on record. Massillon led 22-0 with one minute, 32 seconds left in the game.

Hoping to score another touchdown, Blunt passing in a game for the first time, suffered an interception by Martin Smith on the McKinley 20 after the kickoff. He ran back to the Massillon 19.

Three plays later on first down from the nine, Fontes passed to End Dwayne Lipkins for McKinley’s only score with 15 seconds left. Fontes misfired on an attempted conversion pass.

Massillon had one more chance following the kickoff. Swartz just missed hitting Blunt deep in McKinley territory for a score.

The Tigers ended the season with a 9-1 record. McKinley finished 6-4. Massillon has now won 36 games in the series, McKinley 27. Five have ended in ties.

This was the second straight time that Massillon had beaten McKinley twice in one year.

The year 1909 was the only other time this happened.

One group of men who are usually overlooked and seldom praised for their efforts we would like to give a pat on the back for a job well done Saturday. These are the traffic officers who kept the cars on the move before and after the game.

We recall missing the kickoff at Fawcett two years ago because of a traffic jam, though we thought we had given ourselves more than sufficient time to get to the game. We left
one-half hour later this year and drove right into the stadium without any delay. Maybe there were tie-ups in some places but we didn’t encounter any.

MASSILLON – 22
Ends – Perry, Pierce, McAllister, Hose, Jones and Goodnough.
Tackles – Miller, Tarle, Morgan, Lash and Binge.
Guards – Larsuel, Castile, Rivera, Roderick, Swisher, Muhlback and T. Whitfield.
Center – Scassa.
Quarterbacks – Swartz, Gatsios and Kanner.
Halfbacks – Getz, Blunt, Rink, Schenkenberger, Eckard and Marks.
Fullbacks – Lawrence and Hewitt.

McKINLEY – 6
Ends – Lipkins, Roman , Card and Jones.
Tackles – Miller and Shumick.
Guards – Turner, Barney, Hall and Vafides.
Center – Roman.
Quarterback – Fontes.
Halfbacks – Johnson, McElroy, A. and M. Smith, Carter and Mathews.
Fullbacks – Hall and Kalogeras.

Massillon 0 6 8 8 22
McKinley 0 0 0 6 6

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Getz (three and two-yard runs); Eckard (30-yard pass interceptions).
McKinley – Lipkins (nine-yard pass from Fontes).

Safeties:
Massillon – (Fontes tackled by Eckard and Johnson tackled by Jones).

Officials
Referee – Brenton Kirk (New Philadelphia).
Umpire – Harold Rolph (Ironton).
Head Linesman – C.W. Rupp (Cuyahoga Falls).
Field Judge – Harvey Hodgson, Jr. (Massillon)

GAME STATISTICS
Massillon Opp.
First downs, rushing 10 3
First downs, passing 3 3
First downs, penalties 1 2
Total first downs 14 8
Yards gained rushing 211 79
Yards lost rushing 9 53
Net yards gained rushing 202 26
Yards gained passing 44 35
Total yards gained 246 61
Passes attempted 14 12
Passes completed 5 6
Passes intercepted by 3 2
Times kicked off 4 4
Kickoff average (yards) 40.5 37.5
Kickoff returns (yards) 43 19
Times punted 2 3
Punt average (yards) 41.0 36.3
Punt returns (yards) 8 8
Had punts blocked 0 0
Fumbles 4 3
Lost fumbled ball 2 0
Penalties 2 3
Yards penalized. 20 45

1963: Massillon 24, Canton McKinley 20

October 11, 1963July 15, 2017
by Eric Smith

Tigers Beat Fired-up Bulldogs 24-20
Point Conversions Represent Bengals’ Margin Of Victory

By CHUCK HESS, JR.

The yellow lights on the scoreboard at the south end of Tiger stadium seemed to take an eternity to toll off the last 4:20 of the game. And when they had blinked out 0:00 against the black October night sky, a huge sigh of relief and a mighty cheer came up from Tiger fans.

The Washington high school eleven, playing gritty football, had held on to edge arch-rival Canton McKinley 24-20 in the 67th renewal of the oldest high school grid rivalry in the nation.

Friday night’s game marked the first time any Massillon-McKinley game had been played under the arcs. It was also the first game in the new All-American High School Football league.

The two teams will meet again on the afternoon of Nov. 9 at Fawcett stadium in Canton. And you can be sure they’ll pack the place for that one.

An unofficial 16,252 sat in Friday night.
* * *
THAT THE BULLDOGS gave Massillon all they could handle and then some is for sure. But the Orange and Black also dished out its share of hard-hitting football.

The game seemed to become a personal vendetta between Massillon’s Bill (Rabbit) Blunt,
165-pound senior halfback, and McKinley’s Willie Hall, 225-pound junior fullback, to see which one could inflict the heaviest damage on the opposition.

Blunt scored two touchdowns and two conversions. His use of the limp leg and swivel hip gave him a good change of pace, enabling him to do some outstanding running.

Said his Coach Leo Strang, “He was terrific. His stop and go running was great.”

Said Tony Ware, “Blunt is a great athlete.”

Hall didn’t score any touchdowns but he did pick up a conversion and lots of valuable yardage, including some key first downs as did Massillon’s fullback, junior Jim Lawrence.

Ware said of his big back, “He did a tremendous job.”
* * *
STRANG REVEALED, “Hall caught us by surprise. He had never run sweeps before. We adjusted just in time at the end of the game.”

Hall had tremendous interference on those sweeps which made them very effective as he bulled his way through.

Strang said of the game, “It was a good one, like all Massillon-McKinley games should be. Besides Blunt’s and Lawrence’s running I thought Swartz (quarterback Ron) did some good throwing. “We gave them two touchdowns and missed two we should have had. You just can’t give them touchdowns and not expect trouble.”

About the McKinley team he said, “They were sure fired up. They were in the game all the way.”

Ware said, “Massillon is a well-coached team and played good ball. They took advantage of an injury weakness at left side (the speedy Bill Snell was sidelined) and it hurt us.”

Strang reminded that “linebacker Ken Swisher, defensive end and Captain Mike Jones and tackle Tom Miller were either out of action or used sparingly.

Of his own team Ware said, “I couldn’t ask for anymore from the boys. They gave their all. We’ll beat the Tigers in November. We would have beaten them this time if we had scored on that first pass and hadn’t fumbled on the one.”

But the Bulldogs got two tremendous breaks in the second half which they converted into touchdowns, offsetting the bad breaks. Had it not been, therefore, for the tenacious Massillon defense rising up to stop two of McKinley’s conversion attempts, the game might have ended tied 24-24.
* * *
THE FIRST BREAK came right after the second half kickoff. Massillon was forced to punt following its first series. Steve Kanner dropped back to his 45-yard-line. Frank Scassa’s snap was bad, the kick was blocked and 210-pound right tackle Dick Miller picked up the pigskin on the 41 and raced in for the score with 10:04 left.

Hall converted through the center to make the score 16-14.

The next break came midway through the last quarter. Massillon forced McKinley to punt and as the ball rolled to the Massillon 26, it hit safetyman Tom Gatsios and an alert Bulldog recovered.

Three plays later on third and one from the 17 quarterback Arnie Fontes threw to right end Nick Roman down the middle at the goal line to make it 24-20 with 4:27 remaining. Hall missed the conversion.

The Tigers played good control football from there on out to win the game. The last play of the game, however, saw Fontes sweep right end for 21 yards and just miss getting away for a winning tally. McKinley had gotten the ball with only 26 seconds left.
* * *
McKINLEY BECAME the first team to score at Tiger stadium this year and the first to get a touchdown before the Tigers by going 57 yards after taking Massillon’s initial punt. Fontes scored on a keeper from the two-hard line on second down with 3:03 remaining in the first quarter.

He missed the conversion on the same play.

Hall and halfbacks John McElroy and Bobby Johnson did a lot of running on the drive. Hall had one run of 19 yards around left end from his 43 to the Massillon 38. The missed pass which Ware spoke of came during this series. Fontes misfired to left end Dwayne Lipkins on second down from the Tiger 30.

The early touchdown only served to infuriate the Tigers and after Tom Gatsios had turned in an 18-yard runback of the kickoff to the Massillon 35, Ron Swartz cocked his right arm and hit Blunt down the right side. “The Rabbit” grabbed the pigskin on the McKinley 40 and eluded five would-be tacklers on his romp to pay dirt at 2:39. He got some fine blocking along the way.

Blunt blasted off right tackle for the conversion which put the Tigers ahead 8-6.

Massillon struck again early in the second period. McKinley punted after one series. The kick was grounded on the Bengals’ 39 with 13 seconds left in the first quarter.
* * *
BLUNT TOOK off over right tackle on the first play of the second quarter behind good blocking. He used that outstanding running ability of his to good advantage again, going all the way to the McKinley three. But the Tigers were guilty of clipping and were set back to the McKinley 35.

The Bengals marched the ball in from there with Lawrence going over the top of a big pile from the one with 6:22 left. Blunt went off right tackle for the two extra points.

McKinley took the kickoff and marched 70 yards only to have Johnson fumble on the one. Blunt made the all-important recovery for Massillon.

McElroy had an 18-yard runback of the kick. Hall had a 36-yard romp on a sweep from the Massillon 46 to the 10.

The Tigers then initiated a drive of their own, going to the Bulldog seven before missing on three straight before missing on three straight passes into the end zone. The margin of difference was inches.
* * *
DURING this 92-yard invasion, Blunt took a pass on the right side and almost went for a touchdown but collided with long side end Will Perry who was trying to block for him. The play covered 25 yards – from the Massillon 13 to the 38.

There was also another fine run by Blunt off left guard – again with good blocking – on the next play. “The Rabbit” moved all the way to the McKinley 11, 51 yards.
Massillon’s other score came at the 5:45 mark of the third quarter. Blunt ran a kickoff back 26 yards to the Bengal 38. Then with Blunt, Swartz – who seldom runs the ball – and Lawrence carrying, the Orange and Black moved the ball to the Bulldog 28 for a first down.

Blunt set sail again on the next play, going to his right, cutting back and racing for touchdown land. Again a combination of good running and fine blocking told the tale. Swartz converted.

Game statistics showed that Massillon got a total of 382 yards net to McKinley’s 217. The Tigers piled up 271 rushing. McKinley 200. The Bengals got 111 passing, the Bulldogs 17.

The fact that McKinley lost only four more yards rushing than did Massillon, 16-12, points up the terrific, almost even battle of the lines.

Massillon’s record now stands at 5-1 with a four-game winning streak riding. The Bulldogs stand at 3-3.

McKINLEY – 20
Ends – N. Roman, Turner, Lipkins and Card.
Tackles – Miller and Shumick.
Guards – Vafides, Barney and Ball.
Center – J. Roman.
Quarterback – Fontes.
Halfbacks – Johnson, McElroy, Carter and Smith.
Fullbacks – W. Hall and Kalogeras.

MASSILLON – 24
Ends – Pierce, Perry, Hose, Jones and Goodnough.
Tackles – Morgan, Lash, Rarle, Binge, Paul and Passalacqua.
Guards – Castile, Larsuel, Rivera, Muhlback, Roderick, Swisher and T. Whitfield.
Centers – Scassa, Frank and Rambaud.
Quarterbacks – Swartz, Gatsios and Kanner.
Halfbacks – Blunt, Getz, Eckard, Schenkenberger, and Marks.
Fullbacks – Lawrence.

McKinley 6 0 8 6 20
Massillon 8 8 8 0 24

Touchdowns:
McKinley – Fontes (two-yard run); Miller (41-yard run on blocked kick); N. Roman (17-yard pass from Fontes.
Massillon – Blunt 2 (65-yard pass from Swartz and 26-yard run); Lawrence (one-yard run).

Points after touchdown:
McKinley – Hall (run).
Massillon – Blunt 2 (runs). Swartz (run).

Officials
Referee – Bobby Brown (Parma).
Umpire – Harvey Hodgson, Jr. (Massillon).
Head Linesman – Bill Makepeace (Cincinnati).
Field Judge – Joe Romano (Mansfield).

GAME STATISTICS
Massillon Opp.
First downs, rushing 12 9
First downs, passing 4 1
First downs, penalties 0 1
Total first downs 16 11
Yards gained rushing 263 216
Yards lost rushing 12 16
Net yards gained rushing 271 200
Yards gained passing 111 17
Total yards gained 382 217
Passes attempted 8 3
Passes completed 4 1
Passes intercepted by 0 0
Times kicked off 4 4
Kickoff average (yards) 45.0 36.2
Kickoff returns (yards) 62 82
Times punted 1 4
Punt average (yards) 42.0 34.2
Punt returns (yards) 15 0
Had punts blocked 1 0
Fumbles 1 1
Lost fumbled ball 1 1
Penalties 2 1
Yards penalized. 20 15

1961: Massillon 7, Canton McKinley 6

November 18, 1961July 15, 2017
by Eric Smith

Tigers Beat McKinley
Bengal Team First In local History To Win 11 Games In A Season

By LUTHER EMERY

The ballots have been cast and in their number is the 1961 Ohio high school football champion.

Which team will it be?

Massillon’s Washington high school Tigers have the best record in games won and lost – 11 straight this season. No other state power can boast that many, and the Tigers have met and conquered many of Ohio’s strongest teams.

They deserve the title.

Last week they led the Associated Press poll by 29 points, and since last week they have added an 11th triumph to their schedule a 7-6 victory over Canton McKinley Saturday, to become the first team in Massillon history to win 11 games in a season.

* * *
UNFORTUNATE the determining factor of some pollsters appears to be how close Massillon comes to losing a game, rather than by how many points the Tigers have measured some of the state’s powerhouses.

Since Saturday’s game was a close one, this could again be a factor in this week’s final voting in the AP poll which is recognized by the Ohio High School Football Coaches association as the poll to determine the state champion. The results of the poll will be officially announced Tuesday afternoon.

A gallant Canton McKinley team gave the Tigers all they could handle Saturday afternoon before 20,000 fans at Fawcett stadium Canton, and outplayed the Tigers in many departments except points.

Here the Tigers led and 50 years from now the score will still read Massillon 7, McKinley 6.

Both touchdowns were scored in the first half – Massillon going across the first time it got the ball – McKinley scoring early in the second period.

The Bengals won by a toe and a foot so to speak. The toe was that of Wil Paisley, the guy who came out of the halls to boot 16 of 17 extra point attempts from placement, including the point that beat McKinley, and the foot was the measurement of ground the Tigers refused to yield when the Bulldogs had them hanging on the goal line in the fourth quarter.

* * *
THAT GOAL LINE stand brought out the championship caliber of the Massillon team.

McKinley folk had much to be proud of even in defeat.

Their fighting Bulldog eleven, which had been made underdog by as many as 32 points, became aroused and fought the Bengals to a standstill. They had the advantage in total net yards gained from scrimmage and in first downs, and made more serious threats than the Tigers, who actually had but the one scoring opportunity.

The McKinley team by far played its best game of the season. The Bulldogs’ coach Pete Ankney, asked each boy to give a little extra measure Saturday and they all did. And for it Ankney, bitterly disappointed at having an upset victory so near his reach, never-the-less was thankful and praised his boys for it.

“We gave it everything we had,” he said in a little room off a quiet McKinley locker room.

“Our boys for their size did a Herculean job and I thought they deserved to win it. We worked hard for this game. I thought all day we would win. I was real proud of our team right down the line, offensively and defensively. Our assistants and our associates did a good job of scouting Massillon. I knew Massillon had a great team and a great staff. I want to congratulate Strang and his fine team for a great year.”

* * *
AND STRANG, whose eyes were dripping too – but from tears of joy – said in a happy Massillon dressing room. “It is a tremendous feeling to know your team has set a school record of winning 11 games in a season. That was a great McKinley team we played out there today. Ankney has done a great job of bringing them along this season. Why today they could have beaten most of the teams in Ohio.”

We asked Strang why he didn’t open up more. “We were probably more conservative than we should have been,” he replied.

“But gosh, when you have two passes intercepted and you are leading by a point, you don’t like to take a chance on much ball handling. Remember from the start of the second half when we fumbled the kickoff and were downed on our own five yard line, we never had the ball where we could afford to take chances.”

Strang was particularly proud of the goal line stand of his Tiger team that thwarted McKinley in its bid for a winning fourth quarter touchdown and Ankney was still second-guessing himself hours after the game, if maybe he should have tried a field goal on fourth down instead of trying to ram a foot through the Tiger line for a touchdown.

We asked Pete if he had considered a fourth-down field goal attempt at the time. He said, “I did, and I have a thousand times in the last 20 minutes, but I thought the chances of getting that foot and a touchdown were better than trying for a field goal and three points. If the ball had only been on the five-yard line, there wouldn’t have been any question, we would have tried for a field goal – and maybe we would have won the game.

* * *
BUT ANKNEY, we are certain, made the choice that 40 out of 50 high school coaches would have made and tried for the touchdown.

Massillon fans will be talking the rest of the year about that goal line stand.

McKinley, trailing 7-6, had gained possession of the ball on its own 49-yard line when Ken Austin covered Ken Dean’s fumble, which would have given the Tigers a first down. The Bulldogs marched to a first down on the Massillon three and the Tigers dug in.

Mark Hall banged into the line for no gain. Willie Dent dented the center for a yard and a half to put the ball not much more than a foot from the goal line. Came the last big effort for both teams.

The Tigers were dug in with their toes just on the goal line when Williams came crashing forward again. Ken Ivan and Charles Whitfield met him with a thud that could be heard in the stands. Williams’ forward momentum was stopped and he coughed up the ball which was grabbed quickly by Ivan. The Bulldogs had been stopped in their tracks and the Tigers had saved the day. Three plays later they had moved the ball out nine yards for safe punting distance and as the game turned out that was it.

Both teams had difficulty moving and not much to show in the way of offense for an afternoon’s effort.

Ankney threw what amounted to a nine-man line against the Tigers all afternoon but the boys were able to drop back quickly enough to intercept the only two passes thrown by Massillon, thereby frightening the locals into clamming up. The Bulldogs jitterbugged on the defensive line and after the first quarter were fairly successful in jamming up the middle down which the local team ran most of its stuff.

* * *
AND THE TIGERS were far from sharp. They gave McKinley the ball twice on fumbles and twice on intercepted passes and they had a couple of other fumbles which though they recovered, retarded their offense.

Looking at the statistics, Canton made 11 first downs to Massillon’s 8 and gained 42 yards passing to none for the Tigers. The Bulldogs gained 135 yards rushing, two more than Massillon, but lost 22 to the Tigers seven giving the locals a net rushing advantage of 126 to Canton’s 113. But in net yards gained rushing and passing, Canton again had the advantage, 155 yards to 126 for the Tigers.

The way the game started it looked as though the Tigers might be complete masters of the day.

They kicked off to McKinley, forced the Bulldogs to punt and poorly at that, to the Canton 47.

Charlie Brown got five yards on two tries and Philpott 11 for a first on the Canton 31. Brown hit tackle for two and Philpott 11 more for a first on the 18. Ken Dean banged through for nine yards on two lugs and Jim Alexander on a sneak put the ball on the Bulldog four. Dean slammed through to the one and Alexander went over. Paisley kicked the extra point and that was Massillon’s scoring for the entire day.

The Bulldogs took the kickoff and began a drive that carried over the centerfield stripe where Charlie Brown made a one-handed pass interception to end the threat. The Tigers came back into Canton territory but a pitchout was fumbled and Hall covered for Canton on the Tiger 49, on the first play of the second period.

AUSTIN made nine yards on a keeper and Jim Patterson fumbled and covered for a first down on the 36. McKinley was penalized back to the 41 for being in motion. Austin and Williams moved it up two yards and Lou Harris fired the ball on third down to Willie Dent for a touchdown. Dent getting behind the Tiger secondary to make the catch.

McKinley elected to run with the ball and try for two points to get the edge on the Tigers. Roy Yancey was thrown before he got to the goal line and the score stood at 7-6.

And that’s were it still stood when t he game was over.

The Tigers never threatened again in the entire game. In face, they only got as close as the 49-yard line once and that was on the last series of plays when the game ended with the Bengals in possession of the ball on the McKinley 28.

Canton was in Massillon territory four times after scoring its touchdown. It had a first on the 23 late in the second period but could not get any closer. It got over the midfield stripe on an intercepted pass early in the third period but lost the ball also on an interception by Floyd Pierce on the Massillon 40.

After being stopped on the one foot line the Bulldogs made one more bid and got down to the 21 before giving up the ball on downs.

The victory was Strang’s 38th against two losses and a tie since coming to Massillon four years ago.

From all appearances the game will be the last between Massillon and Canton until 1963, because of McKinleys suspension in Ohio interscholastic competition for one year for having allegedly used undue influence in getting a family to move from Portsmouth to Canton so that two boys could play football at McKinley high. Members of the McKinley Booster club and an assistant coach were named in the accusations. Canton school officials are considering taking the suspension into court.

The Big One

MASSILLON
Ends – Ivan, L. Ehmer, Pierce, Paisley, Garland.
Tackles – Spees, Strobel, Mercer, C. Bradley, Clendening.
Guards – Radel, Clendenin, Whitfield, Poole.
Center – Ben Bradley.
Backs – Alexander, Philpott, Schenkenberger, Dean, Brown, Blunt, Davis, Snively, Baker.

McKINLEY
Ends – Singleterry, Parks, Barboto.
Tackles – Day, Seymour, Peterson, Campbell.
Guards – Johnson, Currence, Ghezzi, Turner, Hall.
Centers – Wood, Pope.
Backs – Harris, Fontes, Dent, Patterson, Yancey, M. Hall, F. Hall, Williams and Auston.

Massillon 7 0 0 0 7
McKinley 0 6 0 0 6

Touchdowns – Alexander (one-yard plunge),
Dent (39-yard pass from Harris).

Point after touchdown – Paisley (placekick).

OFFICIALS
Referee – Tony Pianowski.
Umpire – Jim Lymper.
Head Linesman – Jack McLain.
Field Judge – Bobbie Brown.

STATISTICS
Mass. Can.
First downs – rushing 8 9
First downs – passing 0 2
First downs – penalties 0 0
Total first downs 8 11
Yards gained rushing 138 135
Yards lost rushing 7 22
Net yards gained rushing 129 113
Yards gained passing 0 56
Total yards gained 129 169
Passes attempted 2 12
Passes completed 0 3
Passes intercepted by 2 2
Times kicked off 2 2
Kickoff average (yards) 47.7 45
Kickoff returns (yards) 0 30
Times punted 4 1
Punt average (yards) 34.7 28
Punt return (yards) 0 17
Had punts blocked 0 1
Fumbles 4 2
Lost fumbled ball 2 0
Penalties 0 2
Yards penalized 0 10

1960: Massillon 42, Canton McKinley 0

November 19, 1960July 15, 2017
by Eric Smith

Tigers Wait For Poll After Crushing Win
65th Game Is History As Locals Maul Pups, 42-0, Before 19,036

By JIM QUILTY

The ‘City of Champions’ has been assured of another championship.

Combining an awesome display of offensive power, a virtually immovable defense and an unquenchable fighting spirit which led them back from the 19-18 loss to Warren to three irreputable victories, the No. 1 ranked Washington high school Tigers ‘trapped’ Canton McKinley into its worst defeat of the 65-game football series, 42-0, before 19,096 impressed fans Saturday afternoon.

It was a sunshine filled football finale for 24 Washington high seniors who were given individual thunderous applause when Coach Leo Strang removed them from the lineup one by one, for the last time in their high school grid careers.

With the realization an impressive victory was necessary to cement the top ranking they have maintained during the entire 1960 season, the Massillon gridders performed their task with precision workmanship.

* * *
STARTING with the first time the Tigers took possession minutes after the start of the game, their unmistakable superiority was grossly evident. In the first six plays it had the ball, Washington high moved 76 yards, Ken Dean rolling the final 32 for the touchdown.

* * *
HEROES WERE MANY. But Art Hastings, the sure-fire all-Ohio fullback who scored four times with a scintillating display of broken field running, and Lawson White, who generaled the defensive wall, were exceptionally out-standing.

For Hastings, the afternoon was reminiscent of many evenings throughout the past two years. He concluded his final two years of varsity competition with 220 points, over 2,400 yards rushing and innumerable other marks which may withstand the assaults of future years.

* * *
THE TURNING point of the game was when Massillon kicked off.

McKinley’s top scorer Jim Patterson covered Dean’s kickoff on the 12. Three plays, then a five-yard penalty netted the Bulldogs a first down, their only one in the first half.

Sirgo punted with Bob Baker fumbling it back to the 18. He then picked it up and returned to his own 24. Quarterback Dave Null picked up 25 yards, Dean seven and Hastings 12 to the Pup 32. Dean then went in behind Center George Demis and short side guard Gary Wells, broke to the west stand sideline and sprinted 32 yards into the north end zone for a 6-0 lead. Ken added the conversion but an illegal motion penalty ruled it out. Null’s pass was then incomplete for a 6-0 lead at the 5:48 mark.

Receiving the kick, McKinley failed to move. Sirgo booted out of bounds on Massillon’s 43.

The Tigers moved to the Canton 38 before a fumble with McKinley’s George Smith recovering. Again the losers failed to move. Sirgo booted again, this time to the Massillon 24.

Martin Gugov, still hobbled by the bad knee, started the TD drive with a 23-yard burst. Dean, Null and Hastings quickly complemented that run by moving to the McKinley 15 early in the second period.

* * *
HASTINGS then eluded tacklers three different times while streaking into the end zone for his first of our scores on another trap, this time through Demis and Jay B. Willey, long side guard. Hastings’ PAT attempt failed keeping the lead at 12-0.

With the Cantonians again stalling, Sirgo booted with Baker returning the ball to the 34. A clip on the 43 gave the locals first and 16 on their 28.

In six plays the Tigers had racked up TD No. 3 with Hastings barreling in from 29 yards out. Dean has chipped in 35 yards and Hastings 22 in the drive, which was slowed by a
15-yard holding call against the hosts.

A final first half scoring bid was thwarted by a holding call which set the locals back to the 24 after Null had combined with Hastings, then Charlie Brown, to the Pup nine. Hastings was tossed down on the 31 as the half came to a close. Massillon led, 18-0.

The Tigers met a similar fate at the start of the second half as they moved from their own 32 to the McKinley 18 where a fourth and eight pass from Null went astray.

A defensive holding penalty and a 14-yarder by Roland DiMickele brought the ball to the mid-field stripe, for Canton. Sirgo then had to punt with Baker ripping up the sideline while bringing the ball back to his own 49.

On the next play Hastings went through the same hole Dean used in his first period score for 51 yards and a touchdown. Charlie Brown added the two-point conversion for a 26-0 lead seven minutes into the final half.

* * *
DEAN’S next kickoff went to Patterson who fumbled with Dave Smith pouncing upon the ball on the McKinley 33. In three plays, including a 15-yard toss from Null to Larry Ehmer, the Tigers had moved to the enemy five. Hastings then bolted off his inside tackle for the score. Quarterback John Larson added the conversion on a keeper for a 34-0 advantage after three periods.

McKinley took Dean’s next kickoff and moved to the hosts’ 41 before losing the ball on downs.

Hastings picked up 24, nearly breaking away for his fifth tally. But then the Tigers faltered. Deans’ punt on a fourth down situation was blocked with Tom Wucinich recovering on the Tiger 37.

Three plays, including a completed pass, lost nine yards, Sirgo booted and Baker returned it to his 36.

Joe Heflin, playing his final game, streaked for 11 and a first down on the Bengal 47. On the next play, he ripped through the line and out-raced the defending Bulldogs for a
53-yard touchdown. Dave Smith went behind his outside tackle for the final two points of the productive 348 point season.

With Strang letting each of the seniors take his bow, the final drive by Massillon carried to the Pup six. There an incomplete pass gave Canton possession.

They picked up 21 yards in our carries as the season came to an abrupt halt.

* * *
THE TREMENDOUS pressure placed on McKinley Quarterback Tom Sirgo by White, Gary Wells, Wally Brugh, Duane Garman, Ken Herndon, Jim Houston and Ken Ivan, permitted the usually sure-fire passer only two completions, both in the flat, for a net gain of no yards. His first one picked up four but the second connection lost them all back.

* * *
IT WAS also an extremely pleasing performance for Coach Leo Strang, who with the victory, tied Chuck Mather for the most victories gained by a Washington high team in the first three years as Tiger coach. The win was No. 28 against only two defeats and a tie.

In three years against the Bulldogs and losing McKinley Coach Jim Robinson, the Tigers have turned in three straight victories. The Saturday invaders haven’t scored in their last 10 quarters after the 16-16 first half tie in Strang’s initial year at the helm, 1958.

But after 11 regular season games and two weeks with the victorious North All-Stars beginning in August, Strang was indeed ready to call it a coaching year.

“I’m glad it’s all over,” Leo disclosed with a beaming victory smile outside the Tiger dressing room. “It’s been a long one.”

Not once during the entire afternoon did the Bulldogs, owners of 320 points in 10 previous games, put together what even resembled an offensive threat. Early in the fourth period a 15-yard gain by Matt Brown, a 15-yard holding penalty against the Tigers, and several short gainers moved the Bulldogs to the Massillon 41.

That’s the most the visitors could do.

* * *
THE CLIMAXING game of the 1960 season gave the Orange and Black an impressive 10-1 slate marred only by the one-point loss to Warren. The win also kept Strang’s perfect home string in tact. In three years under Strang, the Tigers have yet to bow at Tiger stadium.

With the squad in as close to perfect health during the last three games as anytime during the season, the Tigers chewed up over a mile rushing and passing.

The 1,657 yards came on 517 yards in the Toledo Waite game, 544 against Springfield South and the 596 against ancient rival Canton McKinley.

Houston, Brugh, Wells, Garman, Gugov, Bob Herring, Joe Smith, Null, Larson , Demis, Willey, Richard Crenshaw, Ron Herbst, Virgil Bukuts, Herndon, Pete Anzalone, Don Kurzen, Theopolis Bodiford, Jim Fuchs and Chuck Royer along with Dave Smith, Hastings, White and Heflin closed out their high school football careers.

It was a pleasant finale that the boys won’t soon forget.

A Fine Finale

WASHINGTON HIGH SCHOOL
Ends – Bodiford, Royer, Ivan, Anzalone, Ehmer, Fuchs, Houston.
Tackles – Crenshaw, Bukuts, Brugh, Garmon, Herndon, Herbst.
Guards – White, Willey, Wells, Radel, Whitfield.
Centers – Demis, Bradley.
Backs – Null, Larson, Baker, Alexander, Hastings, J. Smith, Dean,
Snively, Schenkenberger, Kurzen, Herring, Gugov,
Heflin, D. Smith, Brown, Lash.

CANTON McKINLEY
Ends – Beane, Singleterry, Luchitz.
Tackles – Dragomer, Agnes, Day.
Guards – turpin, Seymour, Wucinich, Thomas, Ghezzi.
Centers – Hudak, Carr.
Backs – Sirgo, Pettersoh, DiMickele, Smith, Wood, Cobb.

SCORE BY QUARTERS
Massillon 6 12 16 8 42

SCORING
Massillon – Dean (32, run); Hastings 4 (15, run; 29, run;
51, run; 5, run); Heflin (53, run).

CONVERSIONS
Massillon – Larson (run); Brown (run); D. Smith (run).

STATISTICS
Tigers Bulldogs
First downs – rushing 22 3
First downs – passing 2 0
First downs – penalties 0 3
Total first downs 24 6
Yards gained rushing 573 90
Yards lost rushing 22 17
Net yards gained rushing 551 73
Yards gained passing 45 0
Total yards gained 596 73
Passes attempted 6 12
Passes completed 3 2
Passes intercepted by 0 0
Times kicked off 7 1
Kickoff average (yards) 41.0 48.0
Kickoff returns (yards) 20 73
Times punted 1 8
Punt average (yards) 0 37.6
Punt return (yards) 73 0
Had punts blocked 1 0
Fumbles 2 1
Lost fumbled ball 1 1
Penalties 4 2
Yards penalized 60 30

Category: <span>Massillon v. McKinley</span>

Tiger Rally Repels Bulldogs 18-14 Real Champs Fight Back!

Tiger Rally Repels Bulldogs 18-14
Real Champs Fight Back!