Stories about Big Red

• ManO'War

  

  That was 1931. Big Red beat Massillon 19-0 in 1930 at Massillon.
  
  The 1931 game, in which Big Red won 68-0, also set a national single game rushing record of 734 yards, which stood until the early 1990's.
• CCRolly

  

  I'll be honest, the only Big Red memory I have is when Wooster beat them 21-6 in the '86 Playoffs at the Rubber Bowl. Our running back, Tony Lee, had a great game that night (around 200 yards rushing and 2 TD's) and the defense for the Generals was pretty stout.
• ManO'War

  

  I remember that game. Big Red's inept offense that year finally caught up with us....I still say that was one of Reno and staff's finest coaching jobs...to get that team to an undefeated season was quite the accomplishment. We averaged under 14 points per game, and the highest output all year was 21 points, but the defense only game up 66 in 11 games (21 vs Wooster).
  
  I recall that Wooster had a big Oline that wore us down in the second half. It was so bad at the end that the Wooster QB was sneaking for 10 yards a pop.
  BTW, Lee finished with 139 yards. He had 60 at the half, which Wooster led 7-6 before they took control of the game.
• FairwoodKing

  On another subject, how is Bill Klein doing?
• FairwoodKing

  There seems to be a lot of interest in the 1962 Massillon game. I'd like to share the Massillon's coach's take on this. His name was Leo Strang and he had been coach at Massillon for quite a few years. Around 1966 he became the head coach at Kent State. He coached there for four years but won very few games, so he was fired from his position. Instead of sending him away, KSU made him director of the newly build ice arena. That's where I met him. I was the first professional figure skater the Kent rink ever produced, and Strang and I became good friends. We spend many happy hours discussing high school football. It was really crazy when I introduced him to my father and to Bill Crabbe. Those guys could talk football forever.
  
  Getting back to the 1962 game, Strang blamed himself for the defeat. It was late in the first half and Massillon had the ball deep in their own territory. It was third and long. Massillon ran a play but failed to pick up the first down. However, there was a flag on the play, and Big Red apparently accepted it. Strang sent in a running play. Unknown to him, the flag was a dead-ball foul. It was actually fourth down and the running play failed. Big Red took over the ball deep in Tiger territory and went in for the score. That made the score 8-8. In the second half Big Red scored a touchdown but missed the extra points, so the final score was 14-8. If Massillon had punted instead of doing a running play on fourth down, Big Red probably would have lost 8-6. As I said, Strang blamed himself for not being more aware of what was going on.
• Thinthickbigred

  The Massillon ghost has been exorcised . We all knew we could beat them many times during Reno's tenure but we never got that chance . We were great in the 80's and thats when we really got our mojo working . We are no longer Massillon's little sister . The population of Steubenville is back on the rise as unemplyment is plumeting ,new housing is already going up . Bright days ahead for Steuby
• holdingout

  Thinthickbigred;1060870 wrote:The Massillon ghost has been exorcised . We all knew we could beat them many times during Reno's tenure but we never got that chance . We were great in the 80's and thats when we really got our mojo working . We are no longer Massillon's little sister . The population of Steubenville is back on the rise as unemplyment is plumeting ,new housing is already going up . Bright days ahead for Steuby

  Put the beer down and go to bed.
• scoreboard

  

  FairwoodKing;1057018 wrote:Are you sure?

  Yes.
  
  From Wikipedia: In 1956 and 1957, Lucas led Middletown High School to undefeated seasons and back-to-back Ohio state high school
  
  championships. [4] Lucas, at first, rarely needed the ballto help his team. He simply focused on offensive rebounds for scoring. By putting back so many misses, Lucas padded scoring and shooting accuracy marks while letting upper-classmen shoot and pass. Meanwhile, this amazing rebounding also often held opponents to one shot at the other end.
  
  As competition increased, Lucas became more importantto the team's base offense. He learned to help his own game and the team by developing an advanced pivot passing game. Meanwhile, his hook shot became nearly automatic and his shooting eye was strong well past 20', then unusual for a center. His star was born in the 1956 state quarterfinals. Lucas, still weeks from his 16th birthday, burned Cleveland East Technical for 53 pointsbeforea crowd of 5,000. He added 44 in the state final for a two game total of 97, still an Ohio high school record.
  
  During his junior and senior seasons, Lucas and Middletown soared to remarkable levels in fame and attention. In a time with no television or internet, Lucas was written aboutbythe New York Times as early as 1957. Game crowds of 10,000 were not uncommon for him in an era wherethe NBA typically drew 3500. At this time, the first national prep All-American teams were being named, and Lucas was soon considered among the best high schoolers in the country.
  
  An academic ace as well, whose mnemonic skills made him an A+ student, Lucas cut quite the image of the handsome young star student-athlete. Middletown ran their winning streak to an impressive 79 straight during his senior year. By this point, Middletown home games were jammed well past capacity, with hundreds more listening in their cars in the school parking lot. Coaches and scouts now traveled long distances to see Lucas. No Ohio high schooler would approach his level of fame until LeBron James nearly 40 years later.
  
  By 1958 Lucas had drawn crowds of 10,000 to the Cleveland Arena and St. John's Arena in Columbus. That same year, the rivalry Middletown-Hamilton high school game was moved to Cincinnati Gardens. When Cincinnati Royals owner Les Harrison saw Lucas thrill a crowd of 12,000 with a 49-point 34-rebound performance, he made the 18 year old a territorial draft pick of the NBA team.
  
  Statistically, Lucas averaged more than a point per minute for the 32-minute games. With numbers then not well-kept, his rebounding figures are unknown, but were likely about 17 per game. We do know he did hit a then very high 60% of his field goal attempts and over 80% of his free throws. Increasingly a passer, he may have also averaged 5–6 assists
  
  per game [citation needed]
  
  Wearing #13 as a senior, Lucas made news by surpassing Wilt Chamberlain's high school scoring mark. College scouts now came around in remarkable numbers. Before Lew Alcindor in the mid-1960s, the only high schoolertoearn more scholarship offers than Lucas was Chamberlain.
  
  One of the many to recruit Lucas was Kentucky coach Adolph Rupp. As legend has it, the 17-year-old told the coach to go home after one of his rare visits to a player in person during Rupp's fourth championship season in 1958. The truth is, interest in Lucas had reached such an amazing degree, with over 150 scholarship offers, that the young man made it known he would deny anyone who directly approached him.
  
  Lucas' Middletown team suffered its only loss in three years at the 1958 Ohio state finals. Losing by one point to an undefeated opponent shocked Middletown to such a degree that the school never honored its departing senior star with a ceremony, until 50 years later when the oversight was discovered. Lucas was rated Ohio's top high school player all three varsity years 1956–1958. Lucas was the first player to be named three time First Team All-Ohio by the Associated Press and on February 17, 2009 Jerry's number 13 was retired at Wade E. Miller gymnasium.
• Thinthickbigred

  I remember the 89 playoff game against Hoover and Big Red was down 31-7 late in the 3rd and came all the way back to win .
• FairwoodKing

  Scoreboard-- Thanks for the info. Too bad Big Red can't get a basketball player like that.
• Thinthickbigred

  FairwoodKing;1064023 wrote:Scoreboard-- Thanks for the info. Too bad Big Red can't get a basketball player like that.

  We should have won state in either 79-80 or 80-81 both teams won over 20 games and had all stars on them Purdue and Bradley
• bigred_dad

  

  Not a story, but a question, What was our parents thinking by letting us play football on that hill. Never noticed how close the fence was at the bottom of the hill and amazed we didn't get hurt.
• FairwoodKing

  bigred_dad;1066954 wrote:Not a story, but a question, What was our parents thinking by letting us play football on that hill. Never noticed how close the fence was at the bottom of the hill and amazed we didn't get hurt.

  I don't have an answer to your question, but since you asked it, I'll ask one. How did the parents back in the 1920's allow their boys to play at North End Field? My father attended many games there and told me many horror stories. First of all, there wasn't a blade of grass on the field. It was all gravel. When you went down, you really felt it. Secondly, helmets. The players were required to wear them, but they all took them off and threw them off the field after the first play. Hence, the players were playing on the worst field in the universe with virtually no protection. And the parents put up with it.
• Thinthickbigred

  FairwoodKing;1066974 wrote:I don't have an answer to your question, but since you asked it, I'll ask one. How did the parents back in the 1920's allow their boys to play at North End Field? My father attended many games there and told me many horror stories. First of all, there wasn't a blade of grass on the field. It was all gravel. When you went down, you really felt it. Secondly, helmets. The players were required to wear them, but they all took them off and threw them off the field after the first play. Hence, the players were playing on the worst field in the universe with virtually no protection. And the parents put up with it.

  We used to practice over where Bob Evans and Pizza Hut and the Bank are today when we were at Harding JR high and Big Red Freshman and there were rocks and bare ground all over . Heck we used to play pickup tackle in the street when it snowed alot . Them boys back in the 20's were tough as hell .. Incidently I have in my possesion 4 yearbooks from 1919 to 1922 and have Cartleges first year as football coach . They are in great condition ,but they dont have alot of pictures of North End field . i did find a few partial ones . Very very interesting though to look through . they were my great uncles . Never met him but he went on to teach at the University of Nebraska
• FairwoodKing

  Thinthickbigred;1067081 wrote:We used to practice over where Bob Evans and Pizza Hut and the Bank are today when we were at Harding JR high and Big Red Freshman and there were rocks and bare ground all over . Heck we used to play pickup tackle in the street when it snowed alot . Them boys back in the 20's were tough as hell .. Incidently I have in my possesion 4 yearbooks from 1919 to 1922 and have Cartleges first year as football coach . They are in great condition ,but they dont have alot of pictures of North End field . i did find a few partial ones . Very very interesting though to look through . they were my great uncles . Never met him but he went on to teach at the University of Nebraska

  May I suggest that you donate those yearbooks to the school library. That's what I did with mine and my father's. A number of years ago the collection of yearbooks at the school was stolen and I know Big Red would welcome your contribution.
• Thinthickbigred

  FairwoodKing;1067326 wrote:May I suggest that you donate those yearbooks to the school library. That's what I did with mine and my father's. A number of years ago the collection of yearbooks at the school was stolen and I know Big Red would welcome your contribution.

  I might someday . I dont know what they will do with them. I dont want someone to steal these ones . Howd you know those yearbooks were stolen?
• FairwoodKing

  Thinthickbigred;1067354 wrote:I might someday . I dont know what they will do with them. I dont want someone to steal these ones . Howd you know those yearbooks were stolen?

  The librarian told me they were stolen. The school was very happy to get mine.
• Thinthickbigred

  FairwoodKing;1067372 wrote:The librarian told me they were stolen. The school was very happy to get mine.

  When was that?
• FairwoodKing

  Thinthickbigred;1067380 wrote:When was that?

  They had to have been stolen more than six years ago, because that's when I donated mine.
• FairwoodKing

  I would like to nominate my choice for the blackest day in Big Red history. There are many choices to choose from, but one sticks out in my mind. Not only did we lose a game that would have guranteed us a state championship, but what happened after the game is a black mark Big Red will never erase.
  
  I'm referring to the game in November 1962 when Big Red played Toledo Central. Big Red had one of its best teams in the 1960's and was favored to win the AP championship. Toledo Central knew they would have a powerhouse and wanted to add a team with cachet. It just so happened that Canton McKinley was given the death sentence that year, so Big Red had to find another opponent. We agreed to play Toledo Central.
  
  Both teams won their first eight games and then headed to Harding Stadium for a game that everyone knew would determine the state champ. Both teams were flying high. Central had won some tough games and Big Red had just beaten Massillon for the first time in 31 years. The stage was set.
  
  The game did not go as Big Red planned. Toledo showed its toughness and beat the Red 20-12 in front of a jammed stadium.
  
  That was bad enough. The real black mark took place after the game. The Toledo Central Band had raised the money to make the trip with the team. They also asked us Big Red Band members to put them up for the night in our homes. My parents and I hosted several boys. The problem was that right after the game as the TCC Band was marching out of the stadium, some thugs from Big Red attacked the band members. Five of the band members ended up in the hospital, one with serious injuries. One of the boys who stayed with me had his front tooth knocked out. My dad had to take him to see a dentist at 7:00 the next morning. The band finally left Steubenville about 10:00 Saturday morning, badly shaken but happy that their team had won.
  
  If there is any good news to this story, it is that the thugs were caught. About a month later, the five injured TCC members were flown back to Steubenville to testify against the thugs. The thugs were convicted and spent considerable time in jail.
  
  I hope nothing like this ever happens again.
• FairwoodKing

  I've already nominated my choice for blackest day in Big Red history. The other black days that come to mind are the day in 1988 when we lost the state championship in double overtime to Buchtel, and the terrible loss to West Branch in 1994, and of course the loss to Massillon in 1966 (the night the lights went out). Anyone else want to make any suggetions?
• FairwoodKing

  Now for a happier thought, what are the brightest days in Big Red history. My nomination would the day we beat DeSales for the state championship in 2005. I was stuck in a rest home for a while because I severely busted my ankle in three places while playing ice hockey. The game started 8:00 am Seattle time. I was listening to the game on a computer in the community room. During the first half I was very quiet. Then when Big Red started the second half by scoring, I went crazy. I started screaming and hollering. The nurses rushed in to find me doing wheelies in my wheelchair. When they asked me what was wrong, I just kept yelling, "Big Red scored! Big Red scored! Go Big Red!!!" They all thought I was nuts. This went on throughout the second half. All I know is that they were glad when I finally left that rest home. At least I gave those old folks some excitement.
• I Am Ahab

  I remember hearing about some CCHS kids spray painting a Big Red players dog blue and gold the week leading up to the game. I also remember someone spray painting phrases involving the N-word all over the big wall overlooking the practice field, on the other side of the student section prior to a Wintersville game.
  
  Racism and animal cruelty. The only way to do high school football, in my opinion.
• Thinthickbigred

  I Am Ahab;1071761 wrote:I remember hearing about some CCHS kids spray painting a Big Red players dog blue and gold the week leading up to the game. I also remember someone spray painting phrases involving the N-word all over the big wall overlooking the practice field, on the other side of the student section prior to a Wintersville game.
  
  Racism and animal cruelty. The only way to do high school football, in my opinion.

  This has to be bannable in the HS forum especially after what just happened is Steubenville. If you want to post trash go to the basement where anything can be said .
• Thinthickbigred

  FairwoodKing;1068852 wrote:I've already nominated my choice for blackest day in Big Red history. The other black days that come to mind are the day in 1988 when we lost the state championship in double overtime to Buchtel, and the terrible loss to West Branch in 1994, and of course the loss to Massillon in 1966 (the night the lights went out). Anyone else want to make any suggetions?

  Well lets see a former Big Red star was killed a few days ago and now a current player is killed in a house fire tonight . Its pretty black today and very sad