Tigers Sweat Out Victory Over Benedictine
By CHUCK HESS, JR.
“It’s hot out there
tonight!”
End Loren McGuire didn’t
know it but his pre-game statement in the locker room Friday night was to be a
prophetic one.
Forty-eight minutes later in
that same locker room, fullback Terry Manson provided the proof. Swathed in wet towels and ice, he lay on the
training table minus 15 pounds, nearly exhausted from the high temperature and
humidity on the Tiger stadium gridiron after playing one of the finest games of
his career.
The sweltering atmosphere in
the stadium played a key part in
During the final stanza in
the stadium sweat-box, the Tigers were minus their first 3 linebackers, Paul
Marks, Dave Whitfield and Will Foster, all with leg cramps, apparently brought
on by the heat. Safeties Dave Sheegog, who had done a lot of running previously, and Rick
Paige were tired by the heat. Manson was
missing from middle guard.
************
“I’M CONCERNED about keeping players in the game,” Tiger Coach Earle Bruce said
afterwards. “You just can’t lose players
like that in a big game and not get hurt.”
Larry Zelina,
junior halfback whom Bruce said is a “great ballplayer” and who Augie Bossu, Benedictine boss
said, “gave a real effort,” scored both of the last
quarter touchdowns for the Bennies. He
ran a punt back 17 yards to the
Zelina got into the act again, after a Massillon fumble, with
Zelina gained 170 yards unofficially rushing and running back kicks. He caught 2 passes for 70 yards. The non-TD catch being for
13.
Sheegog picked up 126 yards for the Tigers.
Manson was another key
figure in the victory. He latched onto a
fumble which set up the Tigers’ second touchdown and his running readied the
stage for the third.
*************
DEFENSIVE tackle John Rose, a senior, probably played his best game, throwing
Benedictine runners for key losses.
Halfback Walt Lemon scored 2
TD’s for the second week in a row.
MANSON jumped on a Bennie bobble with the score 6-0 in favor of
Lemon had gone in from the 2
on the same play only 32 second before for the first TD of the game following a
scoreless first quarter. The paydirt plunge followed an 85-yard drive which had started
late in the first period after a Benedictine punt.
The touchdown was set up on
the 12th play of the drive with fourth down on the 18. Sheegog passed to
Lemon on the screen to the 2. “Sweet
Walter” scored on the next play.
Benedictine failed to get
going before the intermission. Bossu said, “We had no offense in the first half.”
On the eighth play Sheegog faked to Manson who went into the line again
beautifully. But the handoff was to
Tommy James on the 24. “Tailspin Tommy”
revved up his engine and swooped past the startled Benedictine team on a
scissors play for the score with
The Obiemen weren’t
through. They came back again with 6
seconds left in the game. Rick Healy was
roughed on a punt and
Junior quarterback Craig
Maurer kept on the first play, saw daylight and was
off for the final tally of the night. He
eluded 2 Benedictine safetymen with some neat faking to go the last several
yards. Place-kicking specialist Bill Pearch put the finishing touches on the night.
Bossu acknowledged that Manson’s fumble recovery and James’ TD run were key
plays, as did Bruce.
Bruce was discouraged about
his team’s offside penalties on defense and felt that the Tigers played a poor
last quarter. He thought Benedictine
shouldn’t have scored.
Final statistics showed how
close the game was. Total net yardage
gained was 284 for
The
It was the 20th
straight win for
Benedictine’s season record
is 1-1.
************
Ends – Marcoguiseppe,
Pilcavage, Grimm, Kane.
Tackles – Inman, Drongowski.
Guards – Daray,
Hyclak, Busi, Russ, Morgan.
Center – Baumbick.
Quarterbacks – Betts, Mihalek.
Halfbacks – Zelina, Kucera, White, Novak.
Fullbacks – Scanlon, Sirecuss.
Ends – Paige, McGuire,
Healy, B. Williams, Humphrey,
Crone, Riese,
Tackles – Hartley, Neago, Petroff, Campbell, Sherrett.
Guards – Whitfield,
Richards, Kraft, Rose, Mazon, Porrini.
Center – Marks, F. Williams,
Ehmer, Gallion.
Quarterbacks – Sheegog, Maurer, Doolittle.
Halfbacks – Lemon, Foster,
James, Muhlbach, McLendon.
Fullback – Manson.
Placekicker – Pearch.
Score by
quarters:
Touchdowns:
Maurer
(35-yard run).
Benedictine
– Zelina 2 (17-yard run and 57-yard pass from
Betts).
Extra
points:
Pearch 1 (kick).
First downs—rushing 11
6
First downs—passing 2
4
First downs—penalties 2 0
Yards gained rushing 264 140
Yards lost rushing 18 11
Net yards gained rushing 246 129
Net yards gained passing 38 96
Total yards gained 284 225
Passes attempted 9 13
Passes completed 2 5
Passes intercepted by 0 0
Yardage on passes intercepted 0 0
Times kicked off 5 3
Kickoff average (yards) 55.0 42
2/3
Kickoff returns (yards) 68 60
Times punted 5 6
Punt average (yards) 33.0 38
Punt returns (yards) 55 20
Had punts blocked 0 0
Fumbles 2 2
Lost fumbled ball 1 1
Penalties 6 7
Yards penalized 50 55
Touchdowns rushing 4 1
Touchdowns passing 0 1
Touchdowns by interception 0 0
Miscellaneous 0 0
Total number of plays 64 51
Referee – Octavio Sirgo (
Umpire – Ed Corsi (
Head linesman – Sam DiBlasi (
Field Judge – Steve Herring
(