Tag: <span>Chuck Mather</span>

History

1948: Massillon 21, Canton McKinley 12

Tigers Beat Bulldogs 21-12 To Win State Championship
Massillon Gridders Outclass Heavy Canton Eleven All The Way

By LUTHER EMERY

The old adage “ox cannot lick tiger” was proved conclusively again Saturday afternoon in Tiger stadium before a crowd of 22,000 spectators as the Washington high school Tigers defeated the Canton McKinley Bulldogs 21-12 to win the mythical Ohio high school football championship. Today still found Massillonians and students celebrating the fruits of victory.

Hats off to Chuck Mather and staff and their Tiger football players! Battling against tremendous odds in weight they out generaled and out charged the McKinley Bulldogs as they sped to their ninth victory in 10 games, their first victory over Canton since 1943 and their first state championship since that same year.

Program Cover

Rolling to touchdowns in three of the four periods, and narrowly missing a couple of others, the Tigers demonstrated to the spectators their right to claim the state title as they handed the vaunted McKinley team its first loss of the season. The Bulldogs were ranked No. 1 in the Ohio scholastic football poll last week and Massillon No. 2. The order should be reversed this week.

It was asking a lot and it took hearts on the part of the Tiger players to overcome the 15-pound per man weight advantage of the Canton team, but the Massillon gridders played courageous football and dented the anatomies of the Bulldogs as they beat the Cantonians to the charge.

Just for example, little Bill Morrow a 153 pounder was pitted against 200 pound John Kostas and moved him around at will most of the afternoon. And there was Pat Ebbert , 155 pounds, getting a head start on every defensive play, smashing through the center of the Bulldog line from his line-backing position to stack-up McKinley ball carriers.

Booster Club
Rally Tonight

Bob Willison, president of the Tiger Booster club, has called a meeting of all Booster club members for 8 o’clock tonight in the Washington high school auditorium to celebrate the Tigers 21-12 defeat of the McKinley Bulldogs Saturday and the winning of their first state championship since 1943.

Coach Chuck Mather will be present at the meeting and will show motion pictures of the game.

In fact, a couple of pinch-hitters, Ebbert and Irvin Crable were most important cogs in the Tiger victory. Pat went in to fill limping Jack McVey’s shoes on defense and Crable replaced the injured Clarence Johnson at right halfback and roared to all three of the Tigers’ touchdowns.
* * *
BUT YOU couldn’t pick any two guys out of Saturday’s game and say they carved the bacon. Give credit to the whole team, and to Capt. Al Brown, who played his heart out in what was the greatest game of his three years of football, and who fell hysterical on the sidelines when removed in the last minute of the contest. Al and the other seniors wanted to have a victory over Canton McKinley written in the records of their high school athletic careers and they gave their all to accomplish it in their last chance Saturday. That goes for Mike Takacs, Bill Paul, Ben Roderick, Joe Jones, McVey, Jack Houston, Jack Hill, Art James, Eddie Bush, Jim Campbell, Chuck Crone and other seniors who didn’t get into the contest, but who wound up their high school football careers with the defeat of Canton and the winning of a state championship.

No wonder hysteria broke loose in the Tiger dressing room after the game. It began when substitutes at the crack of the final gun streamed from the bench to the playing field to embrace other members of the squad and join them in hoisting Coach Mather to their shoulders and carry him to the dressing room. You could hardly get into the room as fans streamed in – proud fathers to congratulate their sons; Boosters with broad smiles and hoarse voices; old alumni, including many former Tiger players now in college; as well as former Massillon men who are coaching in other cities and who arrange their schedules so that they can be home for the annual Canton-Massillon classic. Signs reading “state champs”, printed in advance, were hoisted immediately in the dressing room to resounding cheers.

Mike Takacs runs the ball

It was an outpouring of spontaneous enthusiasm such as this city hasn’t seen in a long time and a deserving recognition to a great team.
The classy Tiger gridders were into the game up to their necks every minute, but as it turned out, they had the victory all the way. They controlled the ball, rolled up more yards, made more first downs, scored more points, gave Canton McKinley but two scoring opportunities both of which the Bulldogs cashed in on, and they were hammering at the red and black’s goal line all afternoon, narrowly missing two other touchdowns, one by a step and the other by a trip.

As Dave Stewart, who himself coached Washington high to a state championship in 1922, said after the game, “That’s one of the finest Massillon teams it has been my privilege to see.” Dave came over from Sharon, Pa., for the contest.
* * *
MOST OF all the victory was a tribute to the coaching of Chuck Mather and his assistants, Paul Schofer, Carl Schroeder, Lauri Wartiainen, and Dave Putts, who have scouted McKinley every game, who figured out the Bulldog’s weaknesses and how to take advantage of them both on offense and defense.

They met Canton’s vaunted power with a four-man line which looked like a five-man line with Ebbert as a crashing line backer, who got a head start on most every play.

They went through the Bulldog defense through the execution of reverses and trap plays that drew the red and black out of position and permitted ball carriers to get into the secondary time and again.
* * *
THE TIGERS won without the ball carrying services of Clarence Johnson, their leading ground gainer of the season who has averaged almost three more yards per try than McKinley’s John Colceri, who likewise was unable to lug the leather because of injuries. Johnson got in only to kickoff a couple of times and boot the Tigers’ three points from placement.

McKinley undoubtedly would have had more offense with Colceri in the backfield, but whether he would have made any difference in the outcome of the game is a subject for folks to debate the next 12 months of the year.

The breaks of the game were fairly even. The Tigers recovered two McKinley fumbles and intercepted on pass, but the Bulldogs got the biggest break of all when Ben Roderick after leaping high in the air to snare a pass, came down with a foot out of the end zone that cost the Tigers a fourth touchdown.

The local gridders lost what might have been a couple of others when in the second quarter with the ball on the 13-yard line, Crable tripped over Jack Hill’s foot on a statue play and fell with an open field ahead of him on his left flank. Again in the third period he picked up a bounce fumble of his own and ran 25 yards to the McKinley 17 where he was ticked on the leg by a Canton tackler that threw him just enough off balance to cause him to stumble and fall. No one was between him and the goal posts.
* * *
THOUGH STATISTICS were 18 first downs to 11 in the Tigers’ favor and yards gained 317 to the Bulldogs’ 185, the outcome was hanging in the balance until the Tigers’ scored their third touchdown with only one minute and 36 seconds left to play.

The air was tense when the Bulldogs struck back after each Massillon touchdown to match the Tiger’s goal line efforts, and Massillon fans grew uneasy while Canton partisans’ hopes were buoyed as Quarterback John Rogers pitched a fourth-down touchdown pass to End Elijah Lipkins to bring the score to 14-12.

Coach Mather sent in his offensive substitutes but before doing so wrapped a big arm around Capt. Brown. “Al, you gotta hold that ball. Anytime Canton gets it we might lose this game. You gotta go all the way, Al, all the way.”

Here the Tigers demonstrated their greatest courage of the game. Against a suddenly inspired McKinley team they took the kickoff on their own 20 and methodically pounded all the way to their third touchdown. They used up six minutes and 47 seconds in the drive, and crossed the Bulldog goal with only a minute and 36 seconds remaining to be played.

That last touchdown drive was a clear cut demonstration of the championship caliber and determination of the Massillon team.

There were those at the half who thought Bulldog power and weight would surely be a deciding factor before the end of the contest, but in the Tigers final march to points, they actually beat the Cantonians down to their size and appeared the stronger team at the final gun.
* * *
DESPITE the hard play of members of both teams, none was seriously injured. Members of the local eleven came out of the contest in as good a condition as they entered it.

Dick Jacobs took as hard a beating as anyone, and several times was the victim of a pileup that knocked the wind out of him.

Both teams were strictly offensive minded all afternoon and as a result each punted only once. The Bulldogs in their desperation to catch the Tigers were thrown back once on fourth down when they failed to make yardage on the Tiger 39. But on another occasion while back in their own territory and 11 yards needed for a first down, they caught the Tigers napping and fired a long pass that started them on the way to their second touchdown.
* * *
THE TIGERS appeared tense when the game got underway. They won the toss and elected to receive, but the Canton kickoff bounced around through the Massillon team and Capt. Brown fumbled on his first attempt to pick up the ball. When he finally did get it, Canton tacklers were upon him and he was downed by Mariano on the two-yard line.

Massillon folks breathed heavily, but Al on second down got out to his 13 for a first down which at least gave Jacobs some room to punt when the Tigers gained only seven yards. Dick, booting against the wind, got the ball to his 39-yard line where it rolled dead.

Then the Tigers got a break that made up for Al’s fumble of the kickoff. Mariano, on first down fumbled and old reliable Mike Takacs pounced on the ball for the Tigers.

The Tigers launched their first touchdown march. After Brown got but two yards at right end, Hill dropped back and shot a long pass that Ben Roderick took to the Canton 38. Jacobs came right back to circle his right end for another 13 yards and a first down on the Canton 25, McKinley took time out but it did no good, for on the next play Jacobs again wormed through for a first down on the Bulldog 12. Crable got four, but Brown failed to gain. Then the Tigers came up with their double reverse that has thrown other opponents out of position this season. It worked perfectly and Crable, led by a wave of blockers, cut to his left and raced down the sideline for six points. Johnson went into to blast over the extra point.
* * *
THE BULLDOGS took the kickoff and came roaring back for six points themselves. With Mariano and Tony Ranalli doing most of the leather lugging, they started from their 33 and 12 plays later were on the one foot line as the quarter ended.

Came the second period and on the first play, Rogers bucked the ball through center for six points. Ernie Ghezzi tried to kick the extra point but missed and the Tigers led 7-6.

The Massillon gridders took the kickoff and struck back into Bulldog territory. Starting from the 34, Jacobs went for 10 yards and a first on his 44. When two plays gained but a yard, Hill pitched the ball to Jacobs for a first down on the McKinley 44. Brown went through on the next play for another first on the 32 and Jacobs on a trap went on to the 20. Hill lost four yards when a play backfired, but Jacobs went to the 13. With third down coming up and three yards to go, the stage was set perfectly for a statue play. The entire Bulldog team was sucked out of position, but in the handoff, Crable tripped over Hill’s foot and fell for a seven-yard loss. Not discouraged Hill shot a pass to Roderick in the end zone on fourth down that Ben took in a leaping catch, but when he came down his foot was out of the end zone and the Tigers had lost a touchdown.
* * *
McKINLEY took over on the 20 and got by the midfield stripe before Crable intercepted Rogers pass on his own 31. Three plays later the Tigers had a first down on their own 45 and when two plays only gained five yards, Brown passed to Eddie Bush for a first down on the Canton 22. The Tigers thought a double reverse might fool McKinley more than a forward pass in the final seconds but Crable was caught as the half ended.

McKinley received to open the third period, Mariano making a great return of the kickoff and almost getting away to take the ball to the Tiger 48. Three plays gained seven yards and the Bulldogs tried to run the ball on fourth down. The Tigers were equal to the occasion, however and Ranalli was thrown before he could make the necessary yardage.

Taking the ball on their own 39, Crable went for eight yards and Brown made it first down on the Canton 43. Crable dribbled the ball but picked it up and got to the Canton 17 where the safety man barely ticked his foot enough to throw him off balance and he fell with an open field ahead. The Bulldogs threw the Tigers back two yards on the next four plays and took over on the 19. The locals held and forced Mariano to punt. Jacobs caught the ball on the run and made a fine 22-yard return to the Canton 23-yard line. Roderick was stopped without gain, but Crable was turned loose for a touchdown and Johnson kicked the extra point to make the score 14-6.

Canton took the kickoff and assisted by a 15-yard penalty and a 10-yard run by Mariano got to its own 42 where Rogers’ fumble was recovered by the Tigers. On fourth down, Brown got loose for a first down on the Canton 21, but the Tiger attack was stopped again by the Bulldogs who took over on their 24 and began a touchdown drive of their own. They got up to their 44, where they were stopped cold for three downs. Behind by eight points, they gambled on fourth down with 11 yards to go and won. Rogers shot a long pass to Louis Scrimo who got to the Tiger 29. Mariano immediately got loose to the six-yard line and the Tigers put eight men on the line of scrimmage. The Bulldogs failed twice on line plays and a pass was batted down. On fourth down, however, Rogers tossed quickly over the line of scrimmage to Lipkins for the red and black’s second touchdown. Ghezzi again failed to kick the extra point and the Tigers led 14-12.
* * *
EIGHT MINUTES and 23 seconds of the game remained to be played when Mariano kicked off to Massillon. Brown brought the ball back to his 20 and the Tigers began their determined and deliberate 80-yard touchdown march. Crable went for six yards and Jacobs moved for 18 to a first down on his 44. Crable made two and Brown bulled his way to a first on the Bulldog 43. Jacobs got eight yards at center and then piled through for three more and a first on the Canton 32. Crable made eight at left tackle and t hen was freed through center for a first on the McKinley 19. Hill, Crable and Brown carried to another first down on the nine-yard line.

The Massillon captain struck for five more to put the ball on the four-yard line and hit again only to have the ball called back and the Tigers penalized five yards and back to their nine for being offside.

That didn’t stop Brown. Mather had said, “all the way” and that’s the way it was going to be. He smashed through for four yards and on the next play Crable ran his right end for the final touchdown of the game.

Johnson missed his first try for the extra point but Canton was offside so he booted it over in a second attempt to bring the final score to 21-12 with a minute and 36 seconds remaining to be played.

Krisher kicked off to Canton’s Sam Parks who came back to his 31. Rogers tossed to Scrimo for a first down on the 50, but another attempt was grounded and he was hit hard by a flock of Tiger tacklers for a 13-yard loss when he tried another pass. He tossed one to Scrimo on his 42 as the last seconds of the game expired.

State Champs

MASSILLON
ENDS – RODERICK, HOUSTON, Slicker.
TACKLES – KRISHER, TAKACS, Jones, Schumacher, A. James, Campbell.
GUARDS – MORROW, REICHENBACK, Paul, Ebbert.
CENTER – McVEY.
QUARTERBACKS – HILL, D. James.
HALFBACKS – JACOBS, CRABLE, Johnson, Bush, Crone.
FULLBACKS – BROWN, Shine.

McKINLEY
ENDS – WEBER, LIPKINS, Mozaco.
TACKLES – GHEZZI, O’BROVAC, McCullough, Scrimo, Ripper.
GUARDS – JOHNS and JIM KOSTAS, Byers.
CENTER – PUCCI.
QUARTERBACKS – ROGERS, Prandine.
HALFBACKS – RANALLI, MARIANO, Parks.
FULLBACKS – STOSIC, Palombo.

Score by periods:
Massillon 7 0 7 7 21
McKinley 0 6 0 6 12

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Crable 3.
McKinley – Rogers; Lipkins.

Points after touchdown:
Massillon – Johnson 3 (placekicks).

Referee – Titus Lobach.
Umpire – C.W. rupp.
Head Linesman – Verlin Jenkins.
Field Judge – Ralph Shafer.

Statistics Of The Game
Mass. Canton
First downs 18 11
Passes attempted 6 6
Passes completed 3 3
Had passes intercepted 0 1
Yards gained passing 59 52
Yards gained rushing 285 164
Total yards gained 344 216
Yards lost 37 31
Net yards gained 317 185
Times punted 1 1
Average punt (yards) 20 32
Times kicked off 4 3
Average kickoff (yards) 47 51
Yards punts returned by 22 0
Yards kickoffs returned by 39 70
Times fumbled 1 2
Lost ball on fumble 0 2
Times penalized 3 1
Yards penalized 25 2

INDIVIDUAL
MASSILLON
Carried Gained Lost Net
Brown 22 105 1 104
Jacobs 11 90 10 80
Crable 17 112 10 102
Hill 3 3 5 -2
Roderick 2 1 0 1
_____ _____ _____ _____
TOTALS 55 311 26 285

CANTON
Mariano 16 93 1 92
Ranalli 11 46 0 46
Rogers 5 11 0 11
Stosic 4 18 3 15
____ _____ ____ ____
TOTALS 36 168 5 164

Jack Hill
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

1948: Massillon 28, Barberton 0

Tigers Defeat Barberton 28-0 Before 13,000 Fans
Three Players Hurt In What May Prove To Be A Costly Victory

By LUTHER EMERY

The Washington high school Tigers chalked up their eighth triumph in nine games before 13,000 fans in Tiger Stadium Friday evening, as they defeated the Barberton Magics 28-0, but it was a costly victory, for three Massillon regulars were removed from the game with injuries that may slow them for next week’s bread and butter game with Canton McKinley high school.

The three injured were Jack McVey and Clarence Johnson, regular center and right halfback, respectively and Ben Roderick, who plays left end and right halfback.

Johnson and McVey sustained leg injuries while Roderick suffered a hip bruise. The three injuries bring to four the number of cripples on the Tiger team, for Jack Houston, regular right end has been hobbling around all week on a leg injured in last week’s game with Toledo Waite high school.

Coach Chuck Mather and Dr. Merle Singer, are hoping none of the injuries will be serious enough to keep the boys out of next week’s all important contest, but as Dr. Singer said after the game, “You just can’t tell the extent of the injuries now.”

Coach Mather used 43 players in the contest and the free substituting had everyone confused including the players, fans and himself, but a lot of boys managed to get in their lick and may become better football players some day because of it.

The free substituting undoubtedly held down the score, which gives the lie to first downs, for the Tigers only made six to Barberton’s 11 while gaining 244 yards to Barberton’s 180.

It was a screwy and uninteresting game for the most part with play frequently interrupted because of penalties and substitutions. The officials walked off 75 yards against the Tigers, and twice penalized the locals for having too many players on the field.
* * *
THE TOUCHDOWNS, all of them, were, on the other hand, of a sensational variety and furnished most of the excitement. Capt. Al Brown, who had done a lot of long running this season, got two on runs of 55 and 21 yards, Irvin Crable scored on an explosion run of 19 yards through center and Bill Morrow pulled a Notre Dame stunt by scoring the first points of the game as he snared Mark Scarr’s lateral to Bob Yoak and went 46 yards for his only points in his three years of varsity competition. He was perhaps the happiest “kid” in the dressing room after the game for a touchdown is a touchdown to a backfield man but to a guard it’s a TOUCHDOWN.

While the Tigers frequently bogged down offensively, the shining light in their performance last night was the work of their defense. They tackled harder than at any time this season and gave the opposing ball carriers a heavy shoulder when brining them to earth.

The defensive spirit of the team reached its peak in the second quarter when the cats bristled over a 15-yard penalty that gave Barberton a first down on the Massillon
three-yard line. Bob Confer on first down took it to the one, but thereafter there was no Magic in the Barberton attack. In three plays the visitors were thrown back 25 yards to their 26-yard line where the Tigers took over.

Barberton had but one other touchdown opportunity, that on a Tiger pass thrown short in the flat. Mike Kulcsar had a chance for an easy interception with a clear field ahead of him, but he bobbled the ball and dropped it.

The defensive play of Bill Paul and little Eddie Bush, were outstanding contributions to the Tiger victory. Both socked their opponents regularly and helped to set them back for losses. The Tigers will need that kind of hard hitting next Saturday if they hope to tame the McKinley Bulldogs.
* * *
THE LOCALS only completed two of eight passes but with better receiving could have made good on 50 percent of their throws. One of the passes was a 42-yarder from Al Brown to Don Studer that moved the ball into position for the last touchdown of the game. It put the ball on the Barberton 19, and Irvin Crable went through like a rifle shot on the next play for the remaining distance.

Brown’s 55-yard run for the second touchdown was the prettiest piece of footwork seen all evening. He was given a lot of good blocking, but he likewise had to run right over three Barberton tacklers while doing a right wire walk along the side line to keep from going out of bounds.

Barberton presented a smooth running team, that might have caused the Tigers some difficulty on one or two nights this season, but which went up against the locals when the latter were at their best defensively.

The Magics early in the game confined their efforts to running the ends, but ball carriers were frequently tossed for big losses, especially after the second period 15-yard penalty that was slapped on the local team for defensive holding. It appeared to arouse the Tigers to play a better brand of football. It also irked Coach Mather, who argued long and hard with the officials over the decision, contending the penalty should have been five yards and first down. The penalty for offensive holding is 15 yards.

Local fans also didn’t like a 15-yard penalty slapped on the local team for unnecessary roughness when tackling a Barberton passer and throwing him back on his own five-yard line. He still had the ball when downed.
* * *
THE FIRST period was nearly half over before the Tigers scored their opening touchdown. The locals for the second straight week elected to kickoff after winning the toss. The Tigers stopped Barberton on its first series of plays and the latter halted the locals on their own 40-yard line. Then on third down and the ball on the 46-yard line, Scarr attempted to pitch out a lateral to Yoak. Morrow came busting through from his guard position to grab the ball and run unmolested for a touchdown. Johnson placekicked the extra point.

The Tigers scored the next time they got the sphere, with Brown going 55 yards for his sideline run on the first play from scrimmage. Johnson again kicked the extra point.

Neither team threatened in the second quarter until Barberton got a Tiger punt on its own 41 and began a drive which with the aid of 20 yards in penalties brought a first down on the Massillon three.
* * *
CONFER hit center for two, and then the Tigers got mad. Stimac was tossed for a
nine-yard loss, Confer for a nine-yard loss and Cain on an end around play for a
seven-yard loss to end the threat and gain the ball for the locals on the Massillon 26-yard line.

The Tigers’ third touchdown came the first time they got the ball in the second half. Jacobs brought a Barberton punt back to his 46, Johnson ran to the Barberton 35 and Jacobs and Brown produced another first down on the Magics’ 21. Brown went through for the remaining distance and also kicked the extra point.

The drive for the last touchdown began late in the third quarter from the Massillon 28 and ran into the fourth period. Brown and Dick Shine, who replaced the injured Johnson, carried to a first down on the Tiger 39. There Hill pitched a lateral to Brown who drifted back and fired a long pass that Studer caught on the 19. On the next play Crable went through for the final points of the game and Krisher kicked the extra point. Neither team threatened again.

Now For Canton

MASSILLON
ENDS – RODERICK, STUDER, Slicker, Gleason, Streeter, Negley, Zellers.
TACKLES – JONES, TAKACS, A. James, Krisher, Stanford, Schumacher, Campbell, Pizzino.
GUARDS – MORROW, REICHENBACH, De Walt, Paul, W. Houston, Turkal, Rohr, Leinenveber.
CENTERS – McVEY, Patt, Kent.
QUARTERBACKS – HILL, D. James, Close.
HALFBACKS – JOHNSON, JACOBS, Crable, Bush, Shine, Grier, Russell, Waikem, Clinage, Crone.
FULLBACKS – BROWN, Lane, Howe, Ebbert.

BARBERTON
ENDS – CAIN, CRAIG, Murphy, Welch.
TACKLES – JENCO, ARVEY, Foky.
GUARDS – BLANAR, STEWART, Potinger, Kulcsar.
CENTERS – PETERMAN, Yoder, Krisey.
QUARTERBACKS – SCARR, Stimac.
HALFBACKS – MITCHELL, YOAK, Confer, Miller.
FULLBACKS – MADJERAC, Cox.

Score by periods:
Massillon 14 0 7 7 28

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Brown 2; Crable; Morrow.

Points after touchdown:
Massillon – Johnson 2 (placekicks); Brown (placekick); Krisher (placekick).

Referee – George Brown.
Umpire – George Ellis.
Head Linesman – Lawrence Gilboy.
Field Judge – R.E. Petrequin.

Statistics Of The Game
Mass. Barb.
First downs 6 11
Passes attempted 8 18
Passes completed 2 5
Had Passes intercepted 1 2
Yards gained passing 59 28
Yards gained rushing 185 152
Total yards gained 244 180
Yards lost 2 65
Net yards gained 242 113
Times kicked off 6 0
Average kickoff (yards) 48 —
Yards kickoffs returned by — 59
Times punted 2 6
Average punt (yards) 19 29
Yards punts returned by 49 0
Fumbles 2 1
Lost ball on fumbles 2 0
Times penalized 9 2
Yards penalized 75 20

Jack Hill
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

1948: Massillon 19, Toledo Waite 7

Tiger Gridders Whip Toledo Waite In Deep Mud 19-7
Massillon Team Scores First Three Times It Gets Hands On The Ball

By LUTHER EMERY

The Washington high school Tigers beat Jupiter Pluvius and the Toledo Waite football team 19-7 before 12,000 dripping fans in the Lucas county city Friday evening to score their seventh victory in eight games.

Qualifying as worthy seamen for the way in which they sailed their ship of victory around the Toledo ends, the Massillon gridders triumphed against odds as great as those overcome by President Truman in his ballot box sweep last Tuesday.

On a dry night, they could have named their score, as far as we are personally concerned, but it was a wet night and the word cannot properly describe it.

In fact you have to feel kind of sticky and wacky, with mud oozing from your shoes hair hanging around your ears and clothes faded on your underwear, to get into the spirit of this little ditty.

The Massillon gridders wanted a dry field. They feared what would happen on a wet gridiron and they didn’t dare give thought to a quagmire such as developed before the game was more than a few minutes old.

Waite evidently wanted a wet field, and Jupiter Pluvius was on its side, for the rain poured and poured, but the tarpaulin that could have been rolled over the gridiron was left beneath the grandstand where tarpaulins shouldn’t be.
* * *
THE TIGERS were magnificent as they overcame Waite’s 20 or more pound average per man to push over three first half touchdowns, (that’s as many times as they had the ball) while holding the Toledoans to one – a questionable score that came after the end of the second period.

The locals made two touchdown efforts the second half, and both were called back for violations, one of the two nullifying a brilliant 54-yard run by Capt. Al Brown for what would have been his third touchdown of the game.

He was also part loser on the other when he ran from his 13 to the Waiter 37 where he pitched the ball out to Clarence Johnson who went the rest of the distance. Handkerchiefs were thrown all over the field on this play. To start with, Waite was offside and the officials said Brown’s attempted lateral to Johnson went forward. They ruled the one infraction cancelled theother and the ball went back to the 13.

The Tigers as a whole played it safe the second half, punting once on third down and not chancing tricky ball handling.

The game was the rough and bruising affair it was expected to be and at times almost threatened to turn into a free for all. It was virtually impossible to identify players, by number, face or otherwise, and most of the time they looked like someone emerging from a clay massage or models for a plaster cast. They staggered around blinded by mud, and with the supply of towels exhausted, officials eventually used their red handkerchiefs to wipe the ooze from the eyes and mouths of members of both teams so that they could see in which direction to run.
* * *
THOUGH it was muddy from the start, the Tigers scored their three touchdowns the first three times they got the ball when the mud was only ankle deep and ‘twas well they did for they found it hard to move in the later stages of the game when it looked as though they were running around on stumps.

The difference in statistics was not as great as the score, and yet it could just as well have read 31-0 instead of 19-7. First downs were the same, 10 for each team, and the locals only gained 201 yards to Waite’s 189. Because of the slippery ball, both teams feared to throw and only three passes were attempted all night, the Tigers trying one and Waite two. None was completed.

Some idea of what might have happened on a dry field was unfolded in the first period and a half when the Massillonians rolled to their three touchdowns. It took only three plays to get the first score.

Waite received to start the game and Clarence Johnson kicked a long floater that held Waite to its own 14-yard line. Failing to make more than seven yards in three attempts, the Indians punted to Irvin Crable who was downed on his 45. On the first play from scrimmage, Dick Jacobs, who substituted for Crable, broke away to his 25-yard line Johnson hit through tackle for one and the Tigers ambushed the Indians as Jack Hill tossed a pitchout to Al Brown who scampered for the remaining 24 yards and the first touchdown of the game. The attempt for the extra point went bad when Hill couldn’t hold on to a low pass and fumbled the ball.
* * *
THE TIGERS SCORED their second touchdown the next time they came into possession of the pigskin. It began when Ben Roderick covered a Waite fumble after the Indians had marched the ball from their own 20 to the Tiger 43. Brown scooted 24 yards to the Waite 33. Three plays failed to gain a yard but on fourth down, Brown reeled off 24 yards to a first down on the Waite nine. Hill lost two yards in recovering his own fumble, but Johnson made it up on the next play when he was turned loose around his left end for a touchdown. Brown carried the extra point over to make the score 13-0, just as the period ended.
The Tigers marched to their third touchdown the third time they got the ball. Dick Jacobs put them in position with a brilliant 41-yard return of a Toledo punt, to the 31-yard line. Brown went to the 18 around his right end on the next play and here the Tigers got a series of breaks that helped them on their way. They fumbled and Waite recovered, but Waite was offside and penalized five yards. Brown ran to a first down on the five-yard line and another offside penalty against Waite put the ball on the one-yard line. Brown smacked through right tackle with room to spare for a touchdown. Hill tried to sneak through with the extra point but failed.

Waite took the following kickoff on the 37 and marched the ball the remaining distance of the field for a touchdown. Once the Tigers had the Indians apparently stopped on the locals’ 40-yard line, but an offside penalty against Massillon started Waite moving again. Using power plays on off tackle smashes, the Toledo boys bulled their way to first downs on the 38-yard line, 23-yard line and 11-yard line against a weakening Tiger. Here the Tigers made the mistake of taking time out with only 35 seconds left to play. A five-yard penalty for offside advanced the ball to the six and another offside penalty put it down on the one. The Tigers went into an eight-man line. Steve Katich plunged into the Massillon line but was thrown back. Waite took time out. Thomas hit center for no gain and Waite again was given a time out when two substitutes entered the game. As Waite came out of its huddle time was again started and apparently the half had expired before the ball was passed to Quarterback Bill White who sneaked it over by inches.

Coach Chuck Mather and assistants rushed on to the field to protest the stopping of the clock when the two Toledo substitutes entered the game prior to the last play claiming the Toledo team had already used its timeouts and should have been given a five-yard penalty.

The officials did not allow the protest.

Ronald Bedee placekicked the extra point and that wound up the scoring for the game at 19-7. As it turned out there was no need for the second half, for neither team was able to get the ball legally over the other’s goal line and players contented themselves with ramming faces into the mud.
* * *
THE NEAREST the Tigers came to the Waite goal the second half was the 18-yard line but the effort ended when Waite covered a fumble by Roderick on a double reverse. Waite likewise drove to the Tiger 13 in the fourth period but also lost the ball on the 13. The game ended with the Tigers marching 40 yards to a first down on the Toledo 25.

The victory was the Tigers’ seventh in eight games and also ended a 10-game winning streak for Toledo Waite that began in the later part of the 1947 season. Undoubtedly the local eleven will receive at least a fourth place ranking in the scholastic football polls next week, for it was tied with Waite for fourth in this week’s Associated Press poll and was two notches behind the Indians in a rival news poll, all of which shows that football polls are no more accurate than those of the presidential variety.

Because the Waite stadium does not have a dressing room, Tiger players dressed at their hotel and returned to it immediately after the game.

We hate to think what the hotel rooms must have looked line after the local boys got through taking off their dirty togs. They did take one precaution to try to keep the place clean – they had house slippers with them so they would not have to walk through the hotel lobby and halls in their muddy football cleats.

Jack Houston, was the only local player removed from the contest because of injuries. He suffered a strained knee.

Coach Mather used fewer players than at any time this season, with only 20 boys getting into the game.

The Tigers have two games yet to play. Next Friday they take on Barberton in the local stadium and once again have an old score to settle in that encounter, for Barberton, the 1947 state champion, was one of four teams to tie the Massillon Bengal down last year.

After the Barberton game comes the traditional daylight clash with Canton McKinley to be played Nov. 20 in Tiger stadium.

Muddy But Good

MASSILLON
ENDS – SLICKER, HOUSTON, Studer.
TACKLES – KRISHER, TAKACS, Jones, Schumacher, Campbell.
GUARDS – MORROW, REICHENBACK, Paul.
CENTER – McVEY.
QUARTERBACK – HILL
HALFBACKS – CRABLE, JOHNSON, Jacobs, Roderick, Bush.
FULLBACKS – BROWN, Lane.

TOLEDO WAITE
ENDS – DAILY, BEDEE, Bee.
TACKLES – JESCHKE, HARRISON.
GUARDS – TIMM, ANTOINE.
CENTER – BUESCHEN.
QUARTERBACKS – WHITE.
HALFBACKS – FETZER, B. THOMAS, Owens, Nicholas, Lammie.
FULLBACKS – KATICH, Thompson.

Score by periods:
Massillon 13 6 0 0 19
Waite 0 7 0 0 7

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Brown 2; Johnson.
Waite – White.

Points after touchdown:
Massillon – Brown (carried).
Waite – Bedee (placekick).

Referee – Paul Landis.
Umpire – George Meulich.
Head Linesman – Forrest Fordham.
Field Judge – Frank Toth.

Statistics Of The Game
Mass. Waite
First downs 10 10
Passes attempted 1 2
Passes completed 0 0
Yards gained rushing 201 189
Yards lost 8 11
Net yards gained 193 178
Times kicked off 5 0
Average kickoff (yards) 53 —
Yards kickoffs returned by 0 70
Times punted 1 2
Average punt 29 38
Yards punts returned by 54 0
Times fumbled 4 4
Lost ball on fumbles 1 3
Times penalized 8 4
Yards penalized 40 30

Jack Hill
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

1948: Massillon 38, Warren Harding 14

Tigers Whip Warren 39-14 For Sixth Victory Of Season
Passes And Long Runs Provide Thrills For Father’s Night Crowd

By LUTHER EMERY

Writing their scores both in the sky and on the ground, the Washington high Tigers romped through Warren Harding, high here Friday evening for a 39-14 triumph and their sixth in seven games before a small crowd of 11,000 fans.

Uncorking a potent passing attack for the first time, the Tiger gridders showed off before their dads who were seated on the sidelines and who at the end of the game wore grins on their faces as big as the numbers on their backs.

It was Dads’ night and a good night for the Massillon gridders to perform. Because it was Dads’ night, Warren was undoubtedly saved from a more humiliating defeat for Coach “Chuck” Mather, eager to give every boy a chance to show his Dad how it is done, swept his bench of players and used all 44 uniformed men in the game, the greatest number that has ever participated in a Washington high school game, as far as we have been able to learn.

The Tigers took Warren to the races, with Tiger backs getting off to long runs for touchdowns. The only sad part of it all is that it had to happen to a grand guy like J.O. (Heinie) Beck, Warren coach.

It was a game in which the statistics belied the score. You don’t chalk up first downs when a fellow covers 60 yards for a touchdown. You give him six points instead and as a result Warren had 11 first downs to the Tigers’ six.

The yards gained tell the truer picture, however, for here the local eleven rolled up 480 to Warren’s 251.
* * *
THE PANTHERS scored as expected, causing Coach Mather his only concern of the game. “If we could only keep somebody from scoring,” he moaned after the contest while the public address announcement of Canton McKinley’s 46-7 victory over Alliance was still ringing in his ears.

The Tigers came out of the game in pretty good shape, though Jim Reichenback and Dick Jacobs were touched up with injuries which were not believed to be too serious.

The boys ran for the goal line like a colt for the oats bin, as they fattened the Tiger scoring column with points. Most of the local team’s scores, were on long thrusts. Clarence Johnson went 31 and 60 yards for two of the touchdowns and snared a pass from Jack Hill good for 34 yards and a third score. Irvin Crable scored from 14 yards out and Al Brown got away for jaunts of 60 and 47 yards.

Warren was stubborn the first half and the visiting linemen fought hard to trap Tiger ball carriers. They could be moved easier the last two periods, however, when the Tigers did most of their scoring. The Warren touchdown drives were unleashed with the Tiger second stringers in the game, though the first team line was on the field when a third period
five-yard pass produced Warren’s first touchdown.
* * *
THE RUNNING of the Tiger backs was some of the hardest of the season, but when Coach Mather grades his pictures he will probably find the overall performance of the team was below that of the Mansfield game.

There were many hard blocks, some weak ones too, and many instances of tacklers sliding off Warren ball carriers when a good shoulder might have brought the runner to earth.

With it all the Massillon gridders score was 14 points better than that made by Canton McKinley against Warren, but the Bulldogs on the other hand held the Panthers scoreless.

Most pleasant part of the performance was the improvement in the Tiger passing attack. The team completed seven of 10 attempts for 183 yards, and climaxed the aerial works by going 87 yards for the last touchdown in two pass plays.

Passes also figured in other touchdown drives. Jack Hill was given the best protection accorded him this season, affording him every opportunity to pick out his receivers.
* * *
HERB EDINGTON, the guy who ran the Tigers wobbly at Warren last year, was once again the offensive star of the visiting team, though Teammates Bill Bevan and Williams were close behind.

Edington churned up the turf with his hard running and actually exploded through tackle in the fourth quarter to score the visitors’ second touchdown from 14 yards out.

The Tigers rolled to a touchdown the first time they came into possession of the ball. Only a few seconds more than four minutes of the first period had expired when on fourth down and a yard to go, Clarence Johnson was given the ball on a double reverse. The Warren team was completely fooled as he raced around left end for 31 yards and six points. Jerry Krisher placekicked the extra point.

Warren got to the 20-yard line toward the close of the quarter, its deepest penetration of Tiger territory in the entire first half, but lost the ball on a fumble. The Tigers took over and after an exchange of punts, launched a touchdown drive from their own 31. With the help of a 33-yard pass to Johnson and a 19-yarder caught by Roderick, they advanced the ball to the 14-yard line from where Irvin Crable went over on a double reverse. Two Warren tacklers sensed the play, but were taken out of Crable’s path by some timely blocking.
* * *
THE TIGERS shot the works in the third period and scored every time they came into possession of the ball. It didn’t take two minutes to get the first when on the fourth play of the second half, Johnson burst through the Warren line to run 60 yards for a touchdown.

Al Brown followed with another 60 yarder the next time he came into possession of the ball, and with a 26-0 lead, Coach Mather began sending in a steady stream of substitutes who soon found Warren was a pretty tough bunch to handle. The Panthers shoved the second string line backward and rolled 65 yards to the seven-yard line where Coach Mather decided to give his first string line a try at a goal line stand. Two plays later the visitors had their first touchdown on Robison’s peg to Manyak.

Only one minute and 43 seconds of the third period remained but it didn’t take the Tigers that long to get their next score as they took the kickoff, moved to the 47 where Al Brown was released for a dash into pay dirt that brought the score to 32-7.

Warren marched right back with the kickoff from the Panthers’ own 45-yard line to the 14 where Edington broke away for the visitors’ second touchdown.

The Tigers final score came the last time they managed to gain possession of the ball. They stopped a Warren drive on their own 18, were penalized five for being in motion, then took to the air for two plays and a touchdown. Johnson took a lateral, dropped back and fired a terrific pass that Jack Houston caught on the Warren 34, where he was downed in his tracks. Hill rifled the ball the rest of the distance to Johnson, who scampered over for the Tigers’ last points of the game.

In beating Warren 39-14, the Tiger players accomplished one of their objectives – that of whipping the Panthers by a greater score than that made by Alliance in a pre-season practice game which Alliance won 12-7.

The local gridders will now turn their attention toward the invasion of Toledo Waite next Friday evening. The sophomores will go to Mansfield today for a scrimmage with Augie Morningstar’s youngsters.
Smiles For Dads

MASSILLON
ENDS – SLICKER, HOUSTON, Roderick, Gleason, Streeter, Studer, Zellers, Crone, Martin.
TACKLES – JONES, TAKACS, Krisher, A. James, Stanford, Mitchell, Schumacher, Campbell, Kalleker.
GUARDS – PAUL, REICHENBACK, Morrow, De Walt, W. Houston, Turkal, Laps, Leinenveber.
CENTERS – McVEY, Kent, Patt.
QUARTERBACKS – HILL, D. James, Close.
HALFBACKS – JACOBS, JOHNSON, Crable, Shine, Bush, Grier, Russell, Waikem.
FULLBACKS – BROWN, Ebbert, Lane, Howe.

WARREN
ENDS – MANYAK, ZOFKO, Haidaris, Rounds, Stocz.
TACKLES – SWOPE, B. JAMES, Lafferty, Doing.
GUARDS – BAILES, SALVATO, Capito, Ylisela.
CENTERS – BOHYER, Liberatore.
QUARTERBACKS – ROBISON, Venetta, Manusackis, P. Smith.
HALFBACKS – MACHUZAK, CLESS, Edington, Williams.
FULLBACK – BEVAN.

Score by periods:
Massillon 7 6 19 7 39
Warren 0 0 7 7 14

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Johnson 3; Brown 2; Crable.
Warren – Manyake, Edington.

Points after touchdown:
Massillon – Krisher 2; Johnson (placekicks).
Warren – Bevan 2 (placekicks).

Statistics Of The Game
Mass. Warren
First downs 6 11
Passes attempted 10 17
Passes completed 7 10
Had passes intercepted 1 0
Yards gained passing 183 91
Yards gained rushing 297 166
Total yards gained 480 257
Yards lost 6 37
Net yards gained 474 220
Times punted 2 5
Average punt (yards) 33 35
Punts returned by (yards) 28 0
Times kicked off 7 3
Average kickoff (yards) 45 43
Kickoffs returned by (yards) 69 123
Times fumbled 2 4
Lost ball on fumble 1 1
Times penalized 7 2
Yards penalized 35 10

Jack Hill
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

1948: Massillon 34, Steubenville 21

Tigers Whip Steubenville 34-21
Massillon Gridders Stave Off Late Surge By Big Red Gridders

By LUTHER EMERY

MASSILLON 34, STEUBENVILLE 21!

Read it, thank your lucky stars it ended that way and give Chuck Mather’s Tigers and Howard Brinker’s Big Red boys a pat on the back for having played one of the finest offensive football games seen in Tiger stadium in many a moon.

It was a game long to be remembered, a battle of touchdowns, with both teams too strong offensively for the other’s defense and each ready to take advantage of every break and scoring opportunity.

Program Cover

Steubenville showed its power in the first two minutes by marching the ball from kickoff to the Tiger goal line, and the Tigers let the Big Red know they were not to be trifled with by tying up the count two minutes later.

That’s the kind of football you read about in story books and seldom see. But it was on display in real life before 18,000 fans in Tiger stadium Friday evening and what a game it turned out to be.

The Tigers were the better team on the field, on the scoreboard and statistically, but they were playing with dynamite when with a 27-7 lead they gave the Big Red an opportunity to light their fuses in the fourth quarter. The latter exploded with two touchdowns within four minutes of each other that had everyone on the seat’s edge wondering what was coming next.
* * *
IT WAS one of those games in which anything was apt to happen at anytime with breaks playing an important part in the scoring. Each team fumbled five times and only one of the 10 fumbles was recovered, that by Massillon. The visitors had their butter fingers the first half and the Tigers made the most of every break. In the last two periods it was the Massillon team that couldn’t hold the ball and the Big Red who seized the opportunity to turn the bobbles into touchdown drives.

Had the breaks only gone Steubenville’s way, the Tigers could easily have been the loser, for the Big Red was strong at the tackles and had speed and deception in the backfield of a caliber good enough to defeat most of its opponents this season.

However, the Tigers, despite a series of bad breaks which cost them two certain touchdowns, got help on a couple of others and emerged on the long end of the score.
We believe the Tigers the better team, possibly by as much or more (unreadable….) between the two scores, but we also are certain that no one can toy with Steubenville this year and get away with it.

No one visioned a possible 28-17 Steubenville victory on the scoreboard anymore than did Massillon’s Chuck Mather after the Big Red had scored its third touchdown with five minutes of the game remaining to be played.
* * *
MATHER, with a 27-7 lead built up in the first two periods, was playing the part of a good fellow and allowing as many members of his team as possible to get in a period or two of football for experience which would also apply toward that letter M which is the goal of every varsity player. He used 25 in all and had quite a patched up lineup in the ball game when lightning struck twice within four minutes and the Big Red crept up to within six points of his team. There were long seconds and dark moments until Mather’s regulars could again take over and surge to their fifth touchdown and put the game on ice.

It takes a good team to do that and the Tigers’ comeback attests to the quality of the team even more than the 34-21 margin of victory.

Massillon fans were proud of their team for that. They liked the way their Tigers came right back after being swept off their feet to match Steubenville’s first period touchdown and make the visiting fans swallow their cheers and they liked the way they retained their fourth period calm when, with but a six-point lead and the possibility of another disastrous fumble turning victory into defeat, they drove 71 yards for their fifth and last touchdown.

It was considered a test game for the Tigers and they passed the examination by a sufficient margin so as to convince the skeptics of their ability.

Regardless of breaks, any team that can roll up 27 points on Steubenville in two periods this year is a good football team and we have an idea no other will bag that many against the Big Red in two consecutive periods the remainder of the season.
* * *
THE TIGERS were hitting and running hard. To pick out an outstanding performer from just watching the game would be an injustice to any boy. We’ll let Chuck Mather decide that from the pictures. All members of the starting backfield, Jack Hill, Clarence Johnson, Irvin Crable and Capt. Al Brown, ran well and each had a part in the scoring, while the line ripped openings in the Steubenville forward wall that the backs poured through for long gains.

They rolled up 489 yards from scrimmage which is more yards than any Massillon team has made in a single game since the middle of the 1943 season. Their improved passing attack gained 138 of these yards for them, while they got the remaining 351 on running plays. Steubenville made 322 yards, of which 80 were on passes and 242 on ball carrying. First downs were 18 to 12 in the Tigers’ favor.

Between them, Clarence Johnson of the local eleven and Gino Leilli, of Steubenville kicked seven off eight attempted goals which is some placekicking for high school boys. The only miss was Johnson’s second of five attempts. The ball went wide of the uprights.

The Steubenville backs, Harry Thompson, Nick Tsangeos, Bob Jones and Waddell Snyder, caused the Tigers no little trouble and Robert Beattie with a little better receiving would have had a good percentage of pass completions. He can toss the ball well and several of his pegs marked down as pass failures went directly into the arms of teammates.

The Steubenville ball carriers in fact caused trouble the very first time they came into possession of the ball. They brought the kickoff back to the 35-yard line and on the first play of the game exploded a bomb in the Massillon line that permitted Snyder to run to a first down on the Tiger 48. Next time he carried he made it to the 36 and just when it appeared the Tigers would stop this first threat, Beattie dropped back and fired a 27 yarder to Tsangeos for a touchdown. Leilli added the extra point and there was great joy on the Steubenville side of the field.
* * *
THE MERRIMENT was soon dispelled; however, when on the first play after kickoff, Johnson whipped a “Long Tom” to Crable who went all the way to the Steubenville 13 before he was hauled down from behind. It was a 59-yard effort. Brown sliced to the eight, but two more attempts by Brown and Crable gained but a yard leaving fourth down and the ball still seven yards from the goal. Johnson was fired through left guard for the touchdown and he kicked the extra point from placement to tie the score.

The Tigers got the first break of the game when Snyder fumbled the opening play after the kickoff and Ray Lane, Massillon linebacker, pounced on the ball on the Stub 21. Johnson took a short lateral and circled his right end to the eight. On fourth down Crable went over on a double reverse. This time Johnson missed the extra point and the score stood at 13-7.

Another break set the Tigers up for their third touchdown when Bill Paul pounced on Tsangeos fumble on the locals’ 46. The goal was still 54 yards away, but Hill slipped a pass to Johnson for a first down on the 37 and another to Crable took the ball to the 17. On a delayed trap, Brown went to the four-yard line and hit off right tackle for the remaining distance.

Steubenville came back from the kickoff with a drive that got to midfield when Takacs covered Tsangeos’ fumble which rolled back to the Big Red 36. When two plays failed to gain, Hill rifled the ball to Crable. Beattie managed to get in the way and partially block it, but as the ball was falling to the ground, Crable dove for it and came up with the leather in his arms and a first down on the 16. Crable picked up three and when Hill was bottled up trying to pass, he ran for it and went over the goal standing up for the Tigers fourth touchdown of the half.

The locals were knocking again when the half ended and had the ball on the Big Red
five-yard line.

Neither team scored in the third period but each had the ball too close to their opponent’s goal for comfort. Steubenville got in position by covering Brown’s fumble on the Tiger 19. The Big Red marched to a first down on the Tiger seven, but here the local team held and took the ball away after four downs on the four-yard line.
* * *
A PARTIALLY blocked punt by Ronald Patt, sub center, gained the ball for the Tigers toward the end of the period on the Steubenville 48. Crable took a pass from Hill for a first down on the 30 and the Tiger quarterback tossed one to Ben Roderick for what would have been a first on the one-yard line, but the Tigers were declared in motion and were penalized five yards.

A 30-yard run by Snyder that put the ball on the 15-yard line set up Steubenville’s second touchdown. A fourth down pass to Bob Turrnetine put the ball on the five and two plays later Snyder went over for the touchdown.

Crable’s fumble, which Nick Tsangeos covered on the locals’ 49-yard line started Steubenville off on its last scoring spurt. Snyder and Jones lugged the leather to the 14 and Beattie’s pass to Turrentine provided a first down on the one-yard line. Jones went over for the six points. Leilli kicked the 21st and both Massillon and Steubenville fans had visions of a possible Big Red victory.

Mather sent his regulars back into the fray and the offensive unit operated as though it had no knowledge of the score. The boys started with the kickoff on the 29 and Johnson bulled his way through to midfield. He hit for nine more and Brown ambled to the 21. Crable went to the 18, then to the six and fourth down Brown circled his right end for a touchdown with only 33 seconds remaining to be played. By controlling the ball the last five minutes the Tigers had not only saved their game but had increased their margin of victory.

For the most part, members of the team emerged from the contest unscathed, and should be in good shape for the next week’s hot contest at Alliance.

GREAT GOING

MASSILLON
ENDS – SLICKER, HOUSTON, Streeter, Studer, Gleason.
TACKLES – KRISHER, TAKACS, Jones, Pizzino, Schumacher.
GUARDS – MORROW, PAUL, Reichenback, De Walt, Ebbert.
CENTERS – McVEY, Patt.
QUARTERBACKS – HILL, James.
HALFBACKS – JOHNSON, CRABLE, Roderick, Bush.
FULLBACKS – BROWN, Lane.

STEUBENVILLE
ENDS – TUREENTINE, FRALEY, Delave.
TACKLES – WICKHAM, MORATES.
GUARDS – D’ALFONSO, STACY, Bickerstaff.
CENTER – DUNCAN.
QUARTERBACKS – BEATTIE, Leilli.
HALFBACKS – THOMPSON, TSANGEOS.
FULLBACKS – SNYDER, Jones.

Score by periods:
Massillon 13 14 0 7 – 34
Steubenville 0 7 0 14 – 21

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Brown 2; Johnson; Crable; Hill.
Steubenville – Tsangeos, Snyder, Jones.

Points after touchdown:
Massillon – Johnson 4 (placekicks).
Steubenville – Leilli 3 (placekicks).

Referee – Rupp.
Umpire – Gross.
Head Linesman – Boone.
Field Judge – Jenkins.

Statistics Of The Game
Mass. Steubenville
First downs 18 12
Passes 13 13
Passes completed 6 5
Passes intercepted 0 0
Yards gained passing 138 80
Yards gained rushing 351 242
Total yards gained 489 322
Yards lost 20 7
Net yards gained 469 313
Times punted 1 3
Punts blocked 0 1
Average punt (yards) 36 10
Punts returned by (yards) 0 13
Times kicked off 6 4
Average kickoff (yards) 49 43
Kickoffs returned by (yards) 37 109
Times fumbled 5 5
Lost ball on fumbles 4 5
Penalties called on 9 1
Penalties refused by 0 1
Times penalized 8 1
Yards penalized 60 5

Jack Hill
Massillon Tigers Black Letter Logo History

1948: Massillon 28, Youngstown South 7

14,000 See Tigers win From Youngstown South 28-7
Massillon Gridders Beat Mahoning County Team For Third In Row

By LUTHER EMERY

A stubborn Youngstown South high school football team, was upset 28-7 by the Washington high school Tigers before 14,000 people here Friday evening and fans are still wondering how strong the Massillon team actually is.

Going into the game heavy favorites to win as they pleased, the orange and black gridders found themselves face to face with stiff opposition and a screwy assortment of defenses that often bogged them down offensively and stemmed the flow of points that had been expected to pour over the Youngstown goal.

Touchdowns were hard to get for the Tigers, but they did manage to shove over three in the second quarter after a scoreless first period, and added another in the fourth to match South’s only scoring effort of the game in the final frame.

Program Cover

Twenty-eight points should be enough to satisfy most any fan, but Massillonians have been hungering for touchdowns for several years and one T.D. only whets the appetite for another and another.

Frankly South came out with more opposition than most folks, players included, had anticipated. After floundering around in their opener with Youngstown Ursuline, which they lost, the South boys have been improving each week, and last night’s showing was a better performance than a week ago when South whipped Boardman 20-0.
* * *
“THEY HIT HARD,” was the way several members of the Tigers team described the Youngstown eleven after the game, and the visitors did make the local team give ground frequently during the evening.

Statistics however were all in the local’s favor, 14 first downs to 11 and 434 yards gained from scrimmage to South’s 235. Then too, one goal line crossing and what would have been another, were nullified by penalties which set back the Massillon team and ruined both attempts.

Coach “Chuck” Mather, however, does not like opponents making 235 yards against his team. That’s enough to win an average football game and certainly calls for some intensive defensive preparations for Steubenville’s Big Red who invade Tiger stadium next week, undefeated and with one of the best early season offensive showings of any team on the schedule. After that game Massillon fans will know more about the strength of their team.

But don’t sell this Massillon team short. Mather hasn’t let any one combination in long enough to get acquainted, but there’ll come a time. He used 25 players last night.

The Tigers’ blocking looked better than it did a week ago against Canton Lincoln though there were instances when a missed block meant the difference between a small gain and a touchdown. There were also signs that the many clipping penalties charged against local players in Canton last week may have made them dangerously cautious.
* * *
THE TIGERS showed improvement in their passing department too, as they completed four of six attempts for two touchdowns and a total gain of 49 yards. The prettiest pass of all; a screen, from Jack hill to Don Slicker, good for 80 yards and what would have been a fourth period touchdown, didn’t count because of a clipping penalty.

South’s determined defense spoiled some of Mather’s plans to give more sophomores a taste of varsity competition before he attempts to tear down murderer’s row, but it looks as though the boys will have to wait a long time to get into a game what with Steubenville, Alliance, Mansfield, Warren, Toledo Waite, Barberton and Canton McKinley lined up for the next seven weeks of competition.

Nevertheless, 25 players got a chance to show what they could do against South, and some of them were in and out of the lineup continually throughout the evening.

Biggest improvement in the scoring department was the placekicking of Clarence Johnson for points after touchdowns. Prior to last night the Tigers had scored but three extra points in 11 attempts. Johnson, finally keeping his head down, booted all four chances through the uprights last night which brought a lot of joy to teammates, coach and fans. He can kick’em through all day in practice but in games has had a tendency to lift his head to see if the ball was going where he had aimed it. The result was the same as a raised head in golf—a topped ball—and most of Johnson’s boots prior to last night were just that kind. “Kick the ball, spit on the ground at the spot you kicked it before you look up,” Mather told Johnson in an effort to correct the fault.

He did last night and four points were the result.
* * *
PENALTIES and inability to coordinate their attack stymied the Tigers at intervals throughout the game, though they generally were able to move forward with the ball.

They were well on their way after taking the opening kickoff when they lost the ball in midfield on a fumble, South stopped them on their second attempt, but the third time they got the pigskin they launched a drive that swept 64 yards to a touchdown. The point parade actually got underway in the closing minutes of the first period when Irvin Crable brought a South punt back to his 36. The Tigers were up to the South 25 when the period ended and on fourth down and on the second play of the second period, Don James fired a floater to Crable who caught the ball in the end zone for the six points.

Scores came quicker after that and the Tigers scored touchdowns the next two times the came in possession of the ball. Their second set of points came on a 63-yard drive with Johnson running up the alley for 31 yards and the score. It wasn’t long thereafter until another 63-yard march moved to the eight-yard line where Hill fired the ball into the end zone to Jack Houston who caught the pigskin while running laterally with the goal line.

Most folks figured the Tigers would run South out of the stadium in the second half but ‘twas not so, and play was fairly even throughout both periods. South worked the ball as close to the Tiger goal line as the 25-yard line after taking the second half kickoff and the Tigers regaining the ball, got down to the three where a 15-yard penalty set them back and ruined the scoring opportunity.
* * *
THE FOURTH period was nearly a third gone before South managed to score. Starting from their own 23, the visitors ran and passed their way to the Massillon one-yard line where Angelo Danessa plunged it over on third down. A pass, Byrdy to John Guerriero, produced the extra point.

Six plays after the following kickoff the Tigers scored the last points of the game, Crable running the last 25 yards for the touchdown.

The running of Halfback Davis from the single wing and the passing of Sonny Friend and Davis were outstanding to the visitors’ offensive contribution.

While the game did not gain the Tigers any particular amount of prestige in state scholastic circles because of South’s previous showings, it served to give Washington high a 5-4 edge in football games played between the schools at intervals in the past 31 years. Prior to last night each team had won four in the series which dates back to 1917.

The Tigers were fortunate to finish the contest without serious injury to any player. Jack Houston was touched up a bit but the injury is not considered serious enough to keep him out of the lineup.

VICTORY NO. 3

MASSILLON
ENDS – SLICKER, HOUSTON, Streeter, Studer.
TACKLES – TAKACS, JONES, Krisher, Stanford, Schumacher.
GUARDS – MORROW, PAUL, Reichenbach, Ebbert, Laps.
CENTER –MCVEY.
QUARTERBACKS – HILL, James.
HALFBACKS – CRABLE, JOHNSON, Sine, Bush, Roderick Crone.
FULLBACKS – BROWN, Lane.

YOUNGSTOWN SOUTH
ENDS – POPOVICH, GUERRIERO, McBride, Schossel.
TACKLES – DeLUCIA, BAKER, Evans, Oliver, Masucci.
GUARDS – BRIACH, BEACH, Goist, S. Danessa, Lamarco, Baumiller.
CENTERS – STEELE, Davies.
QUARTERBACKS – FRIEND, Byrdy.
HALFBACKS – HARMICAR, DAVIS, Keln, Manolukas, Hall.
FULLBACKS – A. DANESSA, Stawaski.

Score by periods:
Massillon 0 21 0 7 28
South 0 0 0 7 7

Touchdowns:
Massillon – Crable 2; Houston; Johnson.
South – A. Danessa.

Points after touchdown:
Massillon – Johnson 4 (placekicks).
South – Guerriero (pass).

Referee – McPhee.
Umpire – Brown.
Head Linesman – Hodnick.
Field Judge – Rainsberger.

Statistics Of The Game
Mass. South
First downs 14 11
Passes attempted 6 15
Passes completed 4 3
Had passes intercepted 0 1
Yards gained passing 49 93
Yards gained rushing 385 142
Total yards gained 434 235
Yards lost 36 20
Net yards gained 393 315
Times punted 2 3
Average punt (yards) 29 37
Punts returned by (yards) 31 13
Times kicked off 5 2
Average kickoff (yards) 47 39
Kickoffs returned by (yards) 35 70
Times fumbled 6 3
Lost ball on fumbles 2 0
Times penalized 6 4
Yards penalized 60 50
Penalties refused 2 1

Jack Hill