City Title Game Recaps
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1938
At Franklin Field
SJ Prep 7, Central 0
    Ed Agnew (20-80) ran 8 yards for a hotly-disputed TD with 3
minutes remaining and Tom Patchel (30-85) kicked the PAT. Central argued
that Agnew had stepped out of bounds just before entering the end zone.
The TD followed Agnew's 21-yard pass to Jim O'Connor. Central advanced
no closer than the Hawklets' 40.

1939
At Municpal Stadium
SJ Prep 27, Northeast 6
    Outshining his partners in The Prep's "Four-B's Backfield," Bill
Brady dashed for 205 yards and two TDs, highlighted by a 70-yarder.
Caught from behind by sprint champion Bob Fay, Brady had to settle for a
50-yard gain on what could have been an 83-yard score. The other members
of the Hawklets' backfield were Dick Baraldi, Francis "Bud" Buchy and
Harry Byrne. Buchy and Baraldi scored the other TDs. For Northeast, Erle
Baugher rushed 26 times for 118 yards and passed to Tom Ward for a
score. The game was halted with 1 minute remaining when the officials
could not clear the field of unruly fans.

1940
At Franklin Field
Frankford 13, West Catholic 0
    "Indian" Joe Nejman passed 5 yards for a TD to Ed Rzepski with
15 seconds remaining in the first half, then ran for a third-quarter
score of his own and Vince Galeone kicked the PAT. Rzepski had an
interception to set up his score and helped set up Nejman's when he
recovered the ball after Ed Kotz blocked a punt with his face. West's
best thrust took it only to Frankford's 37. Frankford QB Romeo Capriotti
missed the game with an injury. West running back Jack Kelly left the
game with a broken ankle.

1941
At Franklin Field
West Phila. 0, West Catholic 0
    With a Thanksgiving crowd of 40,000 -- largest to watch a
scholastic game in Philadelphia -- looking on, West Philly played its
fourth scoreless tie of the season. Twice within the last 6 minutes,
5-6, 145-pound Francis "Bud" Williams frustrated West Catholic by
sending out coffin-corner punts at the 2 and 10. Defense by Albert
"Buck" Gornish and Charles "Sonny" Leonard limited the Burrs to three
trips into Speedboy territory. In the final minute, WC's Cornelius White
completed passes of 11 yards to John Kenney and 27 to Frank Kane, moving
the ball to WP's 30. But the clock ran out. The following week, WC
defeated Harrisburg Catholic, 31-0, for the state's mythical Catholic
championship. Leo Dillon scored three TDs.

1942
At Temple Stadium
Northeast 7, SJ Prep 0
    On a slippery, snow-covered surface, Vince Stagliano ran 5 yards
for a TD on the fourth play of the second quarter and Joseph "Bud"
Sutton kicked the PAT. Stagliano and Sutton had second-half
interceptions to keep The Prep at bay. Sutton failed to score for the
first time all season, but punted in sensational fashion.

1943
At Franklin Field
West Catholic 21, Northeast 0
    West scored its first TD as star rusher John Tulskie fumbled at
the 1 and Tom Graham managed to pick up the ball and lug it into the end
zone. The other scores came on passes -- 23 yards from Graham to Dan
Brown and 5 yards from Bob Connor to Joe Dougherty. West had four more
good scoring opportunities. Northeast was held to 95 yards total offense
and four first downs.

1944
At Franklin Field
Southern 13, West Catholic 7
    Unaware that his brother, Albert, had been reported killed in
action in Guam, Tom Sabol returned an errant lateral 66 yards for a TD
and combined with teammate Anthony "Reds" Coletta to defend a pass in
the waning moments that could have tied the score. Coletta scored the
Rams' other TD on a 75-yard punt return while Dom Pendino punted seven
times for a 42-yard average. For West, which parted company with a
19-game winning streak, the TD resulted from Bob Connor's 50-yard pass
to Joe Dougherty.

1945
At Franklin Field
Southern 18, West Catholic 13
    Thanks to three drives covering 175 yards, Southern scored three
TDs in the last 7:40 to erase a 13-0 deficit and earn the stirring
victory before 54,000. The winning score came with 19 seconds left when
Anthony "Reds" Coletta, the would-be kicker, heaved an 11-yard pass to
Al Tulinsky, the would-be holder, out of a field goal formation. Coletta
then halted West's final possession with an interception. The Rams'
first score in the outburst came on Jack Del Bello's 37-yard screen pass
to Joe Carlozo. After Del Bello recovered a fumble, Coletta ran in from
the 2. The highlight of the final drive was Del Bello's 42-yard pass to
Carlozo. For West, Charley Albertus gained 75 yards on 18 carries and
passed for a TD to Frank McCartney. Ace runner Frank "Reds" Bagnell was
sidelined early in the second quarter with a broken collarbone.

1946
At Franklin Field
Northeast 33, West Catholic 20
    John Papit ran 29 times for 160 yards and three TDs and passed
3-for-9 for 56 yards and another score in a game attended by 60,000 and
halted by rioting with 10 seconds left. When Northeast's fans attempted
to tear down the goalposts in the final minute, West's fans ran onto the
field to defend them. Elsewhere, two fans connected with neither school
ran toward Northeast's backfield to tackle and slug Papit. With several
thousand fans on the field, officials ended the game. Soccer-style
kicker George "Bertie" Miller booted three PAT and averaged 52 yards on
six kickoffs. For West, Charley Albertus passed 8-for-20 for 186 yards
and two TDs and Emory McCourt carried 11 times for 91 yards.

1947
At Franklin Field
Roman 40, Frankford 12
    Largely behind the blocking of tackle Bob Evans, Larry Chiodetti
scampered for 186 yards on 12 carries, scoring TDs of 58 and 26 yards.
He set up his second score with a 30-yard interception return. Frank
Brill added 127 yards and a 55-yard TD on 18 carries. The Cahillites
rushed for 399 yards and attempted only one pass, which went incomplete.
For Frankford, Ernie Liberati returned a kickoff 87 yards (but not for a
TD) and Dave Markloff turned 18 carries into 83 yards and a score.

1948
At Franklin Field
Frankford 6, South Catholic 6 (tie)
    Frankford's Ernie Liberati rushed 28 times for 126 yards and a
1-yard TD with 2:10 remaining, then Dick Gagliardi blocked Howard
Graham's PAT to preserve the tie. Liberati carried the ball seven times
on Frankford's nine-play, 54-yard drive. South scored with 7:05 left on
Bill Brannau's 12-yard toss to Joe Schultz, who was wide with his PAT.

1949
At Franklin Field
North Catholic 21, Gratz 6
    Fran Berk (17-88) and Joe Andreotti (10-82) led North in
rushing, with the TDs going to Andreotti, Vince Furlong and John
McDonnell. Tom Formica kicked three PAT for the Falcons, who won their
16th straight game. Gratz was held to minus-14 yards rushing, but got a
score on a 52-yard pass from Bill Reddish to Les Graves.

1950
At Franklin Field
Bok 13, North Catholic 0
    Just two seasons after going winless in their first PL season,
the Wildcats of coach Anthony "Mex" Siani stunned the experts by halting
North's 25-game winning streak. Bok scored twice in the first four
minutes of the second half as Charlie Guida (5-for-8, 74) passed 11
yards to Bill Jennings and Bob Percell (15-49) ran in from the 3 after a
fumble on the kickoff. Frank Ventrola rushed 14 times for 55 yards and
made a 76-yard kickoff return to set up the first score. For North, John
McDonnell caught three passes for 64 yards.

1951
At Franklin Field
West Catholic 42, Bok 0
    Jack McEachern rushed for 118 yards and a TD and passed 6-for-12
for 75 yards and another TD for West, which never punted en route to
completing its first perfect season (10-0) since 1943. Art Dettra ran
for two TDs and John Bauer kicked six PAT. The Burrs won the total
offense battle, 341-71. Bok advanced to the West 13 late in the first
half, but was immediately pushed back to the 37.

1952
At Franklin Field
North Catholic 25, Lincoln 0
    John Hilferty turned four completions into 108 yards and TD
passes to John Lauch (58 yards) and Ed Kerpius (39 yards) and rushed
nine times for 42 yards and a score of his own. Jim Walsh produced the
fourth score by hitting John Conroy with a 37-yard halfback pass. The
Falcons accumulated 384 yards total offense. Lincoln's chances were
hampered by an ankle injury to ace passer Bill Zador, who hobbled
through a brief appearance.

1953
At Franklin Field
St. James 20, Northeast 20 (tie)
    St. James franchise Dick Christy carried 16 times for 131 yards
and a 79-yard TD, but he left the field dejected after his sure score in
the final moments turned into a fumble and end-zone recovery for
Northeast's Don Jones. Christy finished the season with 1,520 yards and
19 TDs. He also passed for 692 yards and six TDs, made nine
interceptions and punted for a 41-yard average. Don "Ducky" Van Horn
carried five times for 75 yards and two scores. For Northeast, Ed Kramer
ran for two short scores, passed for one and kicked two PAT. The leading
rushers were Bill Rushing (25-117) and Paul Boldin (18-85).

1954
At Franklin Field
South Catholic 34, Frankford 0
    Jim Grazione completed 7 of 17 passes for 102 yards and two TDs
to Tony DeSantis (4-71) as South extended its two-season unbeaten streak
under coach Paul "Bart" Bartolomeo to 17 games. Grazione also had an
interception. Bill Boegly added 131 yards and a TD on 15 carries and Jim
Tobin made three catches for 31 yards. For Frankford, John Wright
carried 13 times for 64 yards.

1955
At Franklin Field
La Salle 26, Northeast 0
    Each member of the starting backfield -- fullback Tom Hopkins,
halfbacks Bill Dick and Ray Frankson, quarterback Hugh Brolly -- scored
one TD each as the first-time CL champions rolled. Coach Jim Gallagher's
Explorers (10-0) finished the season with eight consecutive shutouts and
allowed just 20 points total. For Northeast, Marv Sloms gained 58 yards
on 14 carries, but Herb Adderley was unable to run because of an ankle
injury.

1956
At Franklin Field
North Catholic 12, Lincoln 0
    The blocking of guard Bob Koreck enabled North to grind out 190
rushing yards in the tightly-played game. Andy Lavin (15-68) led the
Falcons in rushing, but the TDs went to Walt Sroka and Don Rankin on
1-yard efforts. Jerry Wenclawiak knocked down a fourth-down pass in the
end zone to terminate Lincoln's most serious scoring opportunity. For
Lincoln, stifled by an eight-man defensive line (and sometimes nine),
Dick Constable gained 57 yards on 12 carries.

1957
At Franklin Field
La Salle 19, Roxborough 6
    After all-night and morning rains, which followed two days of
snow, Scott Maxwell collected 122 yards and two TDs on 29 carries as La
Salle finished unbeaten for the second time in three seasons. Johnny
Herrera added 40 yards on 17 rushes and scored a TD on Paul Aita's lone
completion in five attempts. Fred Shaughnessey and Walt McDonald had
interceptions. For Roxborough, Jim Pownall rushed 19 times for 52 yards
and lineman George Reistad rumbled 21 yards for a score with an
interception.

1958
At Franklin Field
Lincoln 28, La Salle 20
    Though La Salle's Vic Gittens returned the opening kickoff 88
yards for a TD, Lincoln persevered behind the running of Ed Silverberg,
who gained 193 yards on 21 carries and reeled off an 85-yard TD of his
own. Silverberg, who'd played tackle as a junior, added another TD and
two conversion runs. Bill Humenuk passed for two scores to Frank
Scornaienchi. Coach Ben "Moe" Weinstein's Railsplitters were the PL's
first city titlists since 1950. For La Salle, Scott Maxwell (15-89) and
Gerry Woltemate (18-77, TD) were the leading rushers.

1959
At Franklin Field
Bonner 54, Central 0
    Russ Hendricks rushed for 143 yards and one TD on 22 carries as
Bonner frolicked. Dave Connell passed 4-for-6 for 47 yards and TDs to
Frank Gallo and Frank Street. The Friars, who rang up 23 first downs
overall, scored 25 fourth-quarter points despite heavy substituting by
coach Jack Ferrante. Central had allowed only 26 points in eight PL
contests.

1960
At Franklin Field
La Salle 24, Frankford 0
    Tom Crow rushed 16 times for 78 yards and two TDs and completed
2 of 2 passes for 79 yards and a TD to Vince Dennery as La Salle won the
city title for the second time in four years under coach John "Tex"
Flannery, an assistant in '55. Dennery added another TD on a 41-yard
pass from Ed Stranix (3-for-4, 105). La Salle won the total offense
battle, 425-99, and did not punt. For Frankford, Connie Snyder rushed
for 26 yards on 12 carries.

1961
At Franklin Field
Bonner 20, Southern 13
    Jack McIlhenney passed 5-for-7 for 85 yards and two TDs to give
retiring coach Jack Ferrante, a former Eagle, his second city title in
three years. The clinching TD came with 5:32 remaining on McIlhenney's
10-yard flip to Joe Lombardi. Mike Facciolo set up two TDs with an
interception and a big return of a partially blocked punt. Leslie
Johnson (16-98) and Mario DeLiberty (16-71, TD) rushed for one TD
apiece. For Southern, fumble recoveries by Frank DeFelice and Paul Della
Vecchia set up rushing TDs by Bobby Petrella and Joe Briddell (12-65).

1962
At Franklin Field
West Catholic 20, Southern 20 (tie)
    Bob Mahan rushed 20 times for 70 yards and two TDs, including a
game-tying, 2-yard run with 42 seconds remaining. On a conversion run,
Mahan was tackled by George Gambone. Tom DeFelice passed 13-for-26 for
160 yards and a TD to John Paczosa. For Southern, Joe Briddell carried
16 times for 67 yards and a TD, but saw only spot action in the second
half due to a leg injury.

1963
At Franklin Field
Egan 16, Roxborough 16 (tie)
    After George Katzenbach made a tackle and fumble recovery at
Roxborough's 1 to keep Egan from going ahead, Egan's Paul Barczy and Joe
Frazer combined to tackle Frank Ruchalski for a game-tying safety with
1:35 remaining. With Egan going for the win after the free kick,
Katzenbach and Mike Riesberg forced a fumble and John Heiser recovered
on Roxborough's 6. Roxborough had taken a 16-14 lead on a safety of its
own (bad snap on punt). Paul McDowell (23-95, TD) and John Kerr (18-91)
led Egan in rushing. For Roxborough, the scores came on Bobby Feret's
79-yard punt return and Ron Darlington's 68-yard pass to Hal Werntz.

1964
At Franklin Field
Judge 19, Frankford 18
    Under coach Bill Brannau, star quarterback on South Catholic's
1948 co-city champions, Judge bagged the win with 56 seconds remaining
as QB Bill Kelly (6-for-12, 92 yards) scored from the 1 and kicked the
PAT. Gerry Bradford recovered a fumble at Judge's 44 to set up the
winning drive. Chuck Jarvis rushed 13 times for 54 yards and the game's
first two TDs and made four receptions for 47 yards. For Frankford, Gary
Friedhoff rushed 26 times for 148 yards and two TDs.

1965
At Franklin Field
West Catholic 34, Southern 18
    West scored on its first two possessions of the third quarter to
pull away from a 12-12 halftime tie and make a winner of first-year
coach John McAneney. Mike DiDonato ran 2 yards for the decisive TD
moments after reeling off a 39-yard punt return. Tom Jordan's
interception set up the next TD, John Small's 5-yard run. For Southern,
Frank Gorman passed for two scores and ran for a third.

1966
At Franklin Field
Egan 27, Franklin 0
    Sylvester "Pancho" Micir passed 5 yards to Frank Yacovino for
the game's first TD, then ran for two more as Egan cruised. The Eagles
scored two TDs in the final 4 minutes of the first half as Tom Duffy set
up the first with a 32-yard punt return and the second with a fumble
recovery.

1967
At Franklin Field
Egan 28, Central 12
    Larry Marshall churned out 182 yards and two TDs on 20 carries
while Mike Goetz added two TDs and 101 yards on eight carries. Under
coach Dick Bedesem, Egan became the third school to win back-to-back
city titles, joining St. Joseph's Prep (1938-39) and Southern (1944-45).
Central's highlight was a 50-yard scoring pass from Jack Gorman to
Handsome Wearing, while Johnnie Williams rushed 24 times for 79 yards
and a TD.

1968
At Franklin Field
Dougherty 48, Northeast 14
    David Bland (10-79) and Dan Heenan (12-76) each rushed for two
TDs as Dougherty stormed to the game's first 42 points and an easy
victory. The Cardinals (11-0) became the first city champ to post a
perfect record since La Salle in 1957. Ray Capriotti completed 10 of 20
passes for 125 yards and TDs to Bill Chambers, Steve Conway and Harvey
McGee. Bland made three receptions for 57 yards. For Northeast, Tom
Sherer rushed for 50 yards on 18 carries.

1969
At Franklin Field
Egan 29, Frankford 20
    Mike Friel's 72-yard pass to Ed McDowell gave Egan a 7-0 lead
after 70 seconds, but Frankford stormed to a 20-7 halftime bulge as
Warren Mays threw TD passes to Gregory Taylor, Mike Biddle and Ernie
Kinzler. Tackle Jim Helstrom began Egan's comeback by recovering
teammate Bob Lamina's fumble for a TD, then Friel and McDowell ran for
scores of 33 and 84 yards, respectively. McDowell finished with 22
carries for 209 yards, raising his career total to 2,258. Lamina added
100 yards on 18 carries to finish with 2,117 yards. Mays passed
10-for-21 for 125 yards.

1970
At Franklin Field
Central 13, Egan 6
    Ken Anderson (24-116) and Marty Israel (18-51) ran for TDs as
Central, coached by Ed Veith, became the first PL school to win the city
title since 1958 and only the third since 1947. Warren McAllister set up
Israel's TD with a fumble recovery. Joe Younge recovered a fumble to
thwart Egan's next-to-last possession, then combined with Greg Pittman
to sack QB Dick Bedesem Jr. and end Egan's last possession. For Egan,
Mike Fogarty rushed 10 times for 51 yards and a TD.

1971
At Franklin Field
Carroll 15, Frankford 14
    In only its third season of CL football, Carroll rallied from a
14-0 halftime deficit to capture the win under coach Joe McNichol. Bill
Zwaan sparked the comeback by passing 12-for-22 for 123 yards and TDs to
twin brothers Mike (4-37) and Steve Adelizzi (7-75). Mark Logue
(reception) and Mike Adelizzi (kick) provided the conversion points.
Harold Feiler (fumble recovery) and Paul Gray (interception) forced
turnovers to set up Carroll's scores. For Frankford, Steve Ebbecke ran
for one TD and passed 36 yards to Mark Townsell (3-60) for another.

1972
At Franklin Field
St. James 42, Frankford 0
    Tony Serge rushed 17 times for 154 yards and two TDs and Dave
Lansberry added two more scores while rushing 20 times for 134 yards.
St. James rang up 507 yards total offense and 23 first downs. Gus
Fernandez kicked six PAT. For Frankford, Gary Hegh was limited to 43
yards on 12 carries, but he finished his career with 2,595 yards.

1973
At Veterans Stadium
O'Hara 13, Frankford 6
    Tom Gallagher, playing with a lightweight cast on his left leg,
ran 56 yards for a third-quarter TD to expand O'Hara's 7-6 lead. Dennis
Buchanan rushed 19 times for 152 yards and John Leotta threw a 15-yard
scoring pass to Mark Cordes 6 seconds before halftime; a clock mixup had
resulted in the second quarter lasting 14 seconds longer than it should
have. For Frankford, Anthony Turiano gained 71 yards on 17 carries and
threw a 7-yard scoring pass to Leroy Williams. Rich Geiger gave
Frankford a chance at a tie or win with a late fumble recovery at the
O'Hara 19, but Bill Gargan quickly made a fumble recovery for the Lions.

1974
At Veterans Stadium
Wood 20, Central 8
    Out of a machinelike wishbone formation, Charlie Gross (26-100),
Greg Bedesem (19-70) and Ed Guarnaccia ran for second-half TDs as Wood
shrugged off an 8-0 halftime deficit. A 41-yard halfback pass from Gross
to Matt Perkins set up the decisive TD. For Central, Bob Fecanin
produced 91 yards and a TD on 20 carries.

1975
At Veterans Stadium
Judge 9, Frankford 6
    Pete Shelinsky caught three passes for 60 yards, including a
26-yard TD from Mike McKay (6-for-18, 91), and Mike Mullane recorded a
safety. Late in the game, Frankford's 210-pound George Benson was
tackled in the open field by 140-pound Bob Maley, likely preventing a
go-ahead, 62-yard TD run. Matt Kaupp then made an interception. For
Frankford, Mike DiSipio had two interceptions -- returning one for a TD
-- and a fumble recovery and Jeffery Clark boomed a free-kick punt 80
yards.

1976
At Veterans Stadium
Carroll 21, Bartram 6
    Nick Becker passed 7-for-10 for 100 yards and one TD apiece to
Kevin Mullen and Steve Austin as Carroll triumphed. Tom Kincade (17-116)
and Joe Kennedy (16-88, TD) handled the rushing. Joe Walsh led the
defense with three interceptions. For Bartram, Michael Gold rushed 25
times for 146 yards and a TD, finishing the season with 1,495 yards and
20 TDs. QB Michael White added 85 yards on 14 carries.

1977
At Veterans Stadium
St. Joe's Prep 14, Lincoln 13
    After rushing star Joe Rabuck was lost to an early thigh injury,
Joe McErlean (23-92) and Michael DeFeo (17-85) impressively took up the
slack and QB John Salera, who also made seven tackles at defensive back,
scored the TDs on runs of 1 and 5 yards. The tying TD came with 10:36
left and Aidan Diviny kicked his second PAT. For Lincoln, which made no
serious threat thereafter, Jon Meade (14-46) ran for two TDs, Frank
Pacifico passed 5-for-14 for 75 yards and Bill Cook and Jack MacIlvain
made 12 tackles each.

1978
At Kennedy Stadium
Frankford 27, Wood 7
    In a driving rainstorm, which turned the natural surface at
Kennedy Stadium into a mud-covered mess, Frankford relied almost
exclusively on the straight-ahead running of fullback Joe Galasso, who
responded with 155 yards and two TDs on 30 carries. The Pioneers were
just the PL's third winner since 1951. Coach Al Angelo had been 0-8-1 in
city title appearances as a player, assistant and head coach. Chris
Yurkow ran for one TD and completed his only pass for another. Walt
Parrish made four tackles for losses and recovered an errant pitchout.
For Wood, John Kafel returned the second half kickoff 80 yards for a TD.

1979
At Veterans Stadium
O'Hara 28, Lincoln 7
    Marty Cull rushed for 82 yards and a TD on 20 carries and QB
Greg Pergolese added two scores on short runs. O'Hara's defense
registered 11 sacks for 76 yards in losses, while Bill Wendel returned
an interception 50 yards for a TD and Dave Vitalli made 13 tackles. For
Lincoln, Zachary Armwood (11-83) raced 45 yards for a score one play
after O'Hara coach Bob Ewing removed his defensive starters en masse.

End of series . . .