History 1922: Massillon 31, Dayton Steele 7
HIGH GRIDDERS CRUSH DAYTON STEELE, 31-7
GEM CITY ELEVEN SMOTHERED UNDER TOP-HEAVY SCORE
Massillon last Saturday afternoon wrote its name in capital letters among the list of entrants for intersectional scholastic football honors of these United States when the orange and black eleven of Washington high school, in its initial appearance of the 1922 campaign, scored a brilliant triumph over Steele high, of Dayton, intersectional champions of the middle west in 1921, by inflicting a crushing 31 to 7 defeat upon the southern Ohio gridders on the Pearl street battlefield. Unexpected and unlooked for before the encounter was Massillon’s spectacular victory over a school that has established the reputation of developing some of the strongest scholastic aggregations in the country.
Known across the breadth of Uncle Sam’s domain as a school where championship teams are turned out Dayton Steele was figured as an almost certain winner. With a team practically every bit as strong as the eleven which smothered the youthful Tigers under a 66 to 0 defeat a year ago, the Gem City gridders expected to hang up another victory over the local team in their first appearance on a Massillon field.
But Dayton Steele was to be the victim of an unlooked for surprise. It was to encounter a foe worthy of its strength, a foe that could play football, a team that had been well coached and was out to win. For five minutes the issue was in doubt. Then the sturdy orange and black clad lads opened an attack that was destined to smash the hopes of the southern Ohio warriors and make even the wildest dreams of local enthusiasts come true.
Dayton Steele has no alibi to offer for its defeat. It was defeated by a team superior on defense, superior on offense; in fact superior in every department of the game. With probably the most brilliant array of talent ever available for a high school football team Coach David B. Stewart has assembled an aggregation that should cover itself with thick layers of glory before the curtain is rolled down next November.
Fired by a determination to win if possible, Coach Stewart’s lads fought with every ounce of strength and energy they possessed. Never for a moment did they relent. They deserved to win because they played the kind of a game that brings victory. And Massillon today was proud to bestow praise upon its 1922 scholastic gridiron heroes.
With “Butch” Hill, husky fullback playing the stellar role on defense and Captain “Tink” Ulrich and “Midge” Thomas keeping the crowd on its feet by their brilliant offense tactics, the orange and black ripped its way through the formidable Steele high eleven for five touchdowns. Although the three lads mentioned above pulled down the lion’s share of the glory for their spectacular work they were not alone in bringing victory to their colors.
They were ably assisted by Bill Edwards, a husky tackle, Jamison, a speedy end, Kallaker, a fighting guard, Boerner, a halfback and all the rest of the players who participated in the encounter. They all played their best and they all deserve credit for it was the competent play that made victory possible.
It did not take the invading gridders from the south long to realize that they were up against a formidable foe. It was on defense that Massillon really showed its worth. The offensive attack of the local team has not yet reached the machine like precision that Coach Stewart is aiming for but the youthful Tigers Saturday displayed enough ability to warrant the assertion that before many more weeks roll by they will display a piercing attack that should batter its way through the stiffest kind of opposition.
Faced with the knowledge that it could not dent the bulwarks of Massillon’s sturdy defense which was supported by the brilliant tackling of Hill and Roth who were backing of the line Steele resorted to the aerial game in a desperate effort to score. But once more the downstaters were to be checked.
Time after time they attempted an overhead attack which was shattered to bits by the Massillon forwards who rushed in and either batted the ball to the ground or intercepted the pass. The local athletes followed the ball with unerring accuracy.
Steele might have been able to make matters interesting for the local team had it been able to worm its way through the orange and black defense. The attack of the southern Ohio School was centered around Captain Buchannan at quarterback. Steele had a varied assortment of shifts for end runs and line plays that might have proved damaging to a team less sturdy than Massillon. But when Steele attempted its pet formations against Coach Stewart’s lads the local gridders just simply rushed in and smashed the play to bits before it could get under way.
In its desperate effort to score Steele attempted 30 forward passes. Only eight of these were completed for about a total gain of 25 yards. Whenever Dayton did complete a forward aerial the receiver of the overhead heave was brought down in his tracks by some energetic Massillon youth. Nineteen of Steele’s attempted passes never materialized and three were intercepted by Massillon.
It was a break in luck that gave Steele its only touchdown in the fourth quarter. Massillon had been forced back to its 10-yard line through two 15-yard penalties. Hill, whose punting has been brilliant throughout the game, attempted to kick from the five yard line but Dayton broke through, blocked the kick and as the ball rolled back over Massillon’s goal line, Right end McGuire, of Steele pounced upon it for Dayton’s set of counters. Buchannan lifted a drop kick over the cross bars from scrimmage for Dayton’s other point following the scoring of the touchdown.
With this exception Dayton never once worked its way within Massillon’s 30-yard line. The goal line of the orange and black was as safe as the rock of Gibraltar from the attack of the downstaters.
It was a blocked punt that paved the way for Massillon’s first touchdown in the first quarter. After several exchanges of punts Steele was held on its 15-yard line and forced to kick. Potts, Massillon’s left end, smashed his way through Steele’s defense, blocked the punt and Guard Kallaker covered it on Steele’s 18-yard line. Hill made a first down on two plays through the line carrying the ball to Steele’s seven yard line.
Thomas ripped through Steele’s left tackle for six, placing the ball on the one yard line, but a Massillon player was offside and the local team drew a five yard penalty. Ulrich and Hill made plunges into the Dayton line. Then on a double pass, Thomas snaked the ball to Ulrich and skirted Dayton’s right end for the first touchdown. The quarter ended with the ball in midfield.
After an exchange of punts in the second quarter Thomas went around end for nine yards and Hill heaved a pass to Potts that was good for a gain of 18 yards and put the ball on Steels’s 25-yard line. But on the next attempted pass Liebenderfer intercepted the ball on his 13-yard line. Jamison threw Buchannan for a loss of five yards. Potts ripped through the line and nailed Buchannan so hard on the next play that he dropped the ball, Jamison recovering it on Dayton’s 21-yard line.
Then Thomas and Ulrich once more worked their double pass and “Tink” raced around Dayton’s left end for Massillon’s second touchdown. The quarter ended shortly afterward with Massillon in possession of the ball near midfield.
The battle raged fast in the third quarter. After several exchanges of punts, Hill snatched a Dayton pass out of the air and throwing off many opponents returned it 40 yards to Steele’s 40-yard line. A 15 yard penalty hurt Massillon’s chances to advance the ball and Hill punted, the oval being downed on Steele’s 18-yard line.
On the next play Jamison tackled Smiley so hard that the Dayton gridder dropped the ball. Hill ambled through the mass of struggling players, picked up the ball and scampered across Steele’s goal line for Massillon’s fourth touchdown. Thomas boosted the total to 25 by making a point from scrimmage after the touchdown.
But the most brilliant play of the encounter was still to come and “Midge” Thomas, brilliant little halfback, was to be the hero. After Massillon scored its fourth touchdown, Steele received and on the first play Edwards busted through and tossed Buchannan for a six-yard loss. Steele then punted. Thomas grabbed the ball on his 30-yard line and with brilliant interference and by spectacular dodging and sidestepping “Midge” raced 70 yards through the entire Dayton team for Massillon’s fifth touchdown while the fans made the welkin ring with their cheers for the little Massillon halfback.
For the balance of the third quarter and the entire fourth quarter the orange and black played largely on the defensive. Steele made on more first down than Massillon, having seven to its credit while the local team had six, making four of these in the second quarter. Massillon punted 12 times to 11 for Steele and completed only one forward pass out of three attempts, the other two being intercepted by Steele.
A Sweet Morsel
Dayton Steele – 7 Pos. Massillon – 31
Liebenderfer LE Potts
Thompson LT Edwards
L. Zimmerman LG Kallaker
Feight C Roth
P. Zimmerman RG Pflug
Mankat RT Salberg
McGuire RE Jamison
Buchannan Q Ulrich
Zumbren LH Boerner
Smiley RH Thomas
Turvene F Hill
Score by quarters:
Massillon 6 12 13 0 – 31
Steele 0 0 0 7 – 7
Substitutions: Massillon – Borza for Thomas, Thomas for Borza
Brooks for Edwards, Weirich for Potts, Potts for Roth, Hax for
Thomas, Define for Boerner, Rohr for Jamison.
Dayton Steele – Harlow for Turvene, Detmer for Liebenderfer,
Thompson for Harlow, Liebenderfer for Detmer, Turvene for
Smiley, Harlow for Zumbren, Miller for Thompson.
Touchdowns:
Massillon – Ulrich 2, Thomas 2, Hill.
Dayton – McQuire.
Points from try after touchdown – Thomas, Buchannan.
Referee – Reese, Denison.
Umpire – Roudebush, Denison.
Headlinesman – Newman, Allegheny.
Timer – Rider.
Time of quarters – 15 minutes.
