Bob Cullman; here coaching baseball Coach Cullman's All-City Players: FIRST TEAM     Derick Gallman Rec. 1973 Frank Armstrong L 1975 Bob Keels Rec. 1975 Joe Stellabotte RB 1975 Mike Wisher DL 1976 Vic Bellamy Rec. 1980 Greg Watson L 1981 Kenyatta Rush DL 1985 Rich Drayton Rec. 1985 Rich Drayton Rec. 1986 Jon Ford L 1986 Jerrod Washington MP 1988 Mark Hrubar L 1988 Roman McDonald MP 1991 Quentin Fuller L 1993 Raheem Islam DL 1996 SECOND TEAM     Joe Whalen T 1972 Don Alecxih L 1974 Bob Keels E 1974 John Long L 1975 Pete Gualtieri LB 1977 Al Twyman DE 1979 Mark Ross L 1979 Marc DeBeary Rec. 1982 Lance Adams LB 1985 Jason Lewis DB 1985 Tyson Price LB 1987 Sundiata Rush RB 1988 THIRD TEAM     Lavord Burns DB 1977 Ivan O'Connor DE 1978 Scott Glenn DL 1980 Pete Stolzer C 1980 Dennis Golden DB 1980 Jimmy Wilson RB 1983 Jon Irvine Rec. 1984 Mike Roche QB 1985 Mike Roche QB 1986 Robert Irlan LB 1989 Roman McDonald MP 1990 Sean Ryan LB 1996

Bob Cullman Tribute Page   Bob Cullman coached Central's football team for 25 seasons (1972-96), winning 163 games and three Public League championships. In 1985, the Lancers overcame a late blunder to  edge George Washington, 18-17, for Bob's second title. Here is that story . . . By Ted Silary   Mike Roche, Central High's talented junior quarterback, resides in Southwest Philadelphia.   If the gaffe Roche committed late in the Public League football championship game had caused Central to lose, however, you would not have found him Saturday night in the Southwest, the Northeast or any other sector of the city.   In fact, your search might have extended beyond the five-county area.   "Down in the dumps. In isolation. That's where I would have been," Roche said, after the Lancers defeated George Washington, 18-17, for their first championship since 1974. "I'd have been with bears. In the woods."    Observers and opposing coaches long have believed that the surest way to register a big-game win over Central is to stay close deep into the fourth quarter, then watch the Lancers disintegrate.   That credo almost proved correct again.   After Keith Singleton's 7-yard pass to Sean McAleer (Charles Wiggins blocked the conversion) brought Washington within 18-15, Central had only to melt away 49 seconds after Dennis Barnes recovered the onsides kick on the 37.   Not wanting to chance a handoff, coach Bob Cullman instructed Roche to run keepers and, above all, stay in bounds, mindful that Washington could only twice more stop the clock with timeouts.   First down: Roche kept right and lost 4 yards, Washington called time at 0:41. Second down: Roche kept left and gained 1 yard, but inexplicably allowed himself to be pushed out of bounds at 0:35. Third down: Roche kept right and lost 16 yards, Washington called time at 0:26. Fourth down: Roche retreated 18 yards into the end zone and knelt for an intentional safety at 0:18.   Singleton returned Ray Dimmler's free-kick kickoff 14 yards to Central's 48, then threw incomplete to the left sideline looking for a medium-sized gain that would have given Rick Pohl a field goal shot. Next, Singleton heaved a bomb intercepted by Jason Lewis on the 1 as time ran out.   "The whole time, I was terrified," Roche said. "I kept thinking, 'What if that (blunder) means the game?' "   Such a development would have been unfortunate, as it was the offensive balance provided all season by Roche's throwing that ultimately meant championship for the Lancers.    continued below . . .

SEASON BY SEASON Public League / Overall 1972: 5-1 / 5-2-1 1973: 6-2 / 6-2 1974: 8-0 / 10-2-1 1975: 6-2 / 7-5 1976: 6-0 / 8-2 1977: 6-0 / 6-4 1978: 4-2 / 5-4 1979: 5-1 / 8-3 1980: 6-0 / 7-2 *1981: None / 3-1 1982: 5-1 / 6-4 1983: 5-1 / 6-4 1984: 6-0 / 8-2-1 1985: 6-0 / 10-0 1986: 6-0 / 9-2 1987: 3-2 / 6-4 1988: 5-0 / 11-0 1989: 4-1 / 6-3-1 1990: 3-2 / 7-2 1991: 2-3 / 6-5 1992: 2-3 / 6-4 1993: 2-3 / 4-6 1994: 3-2 / 6-5 1995: 2-3 / 4-6 #1996: 1-3 / 3-4 Total: 108-36 / 163-78=4 *-tournament followed teachers' straike #took medical leave after 7 total games  --- PUBLIC LEAGUE TITLES 1974 1985 1988 -- PLAYOFF BREAKDOWN Appearances Ended in  . . . Quarterfinals (1) 1989 Semifinals (4) 1976, 1977, 1982, 1986 Finals (6) 1974, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1988 -- STAT LEADERS, 1981-96 (Italics: '74 or '75 season) TOP RUSHERS Yards Year Joe Stellabotte 1,679 '75 Jimmy Wilson 1,133 '83 Sundiata Rush 1,086 '88 Jerrod Washington 1,020 '88 Jerrod Washington 869 '87 Todd Richardson 829 '90 Frank Lundy 798 '92 Bryant Davis 792 '96 Bob Fecanain 789 '74 Ernest Hines 757 '94 Robert Irlan 744 '89 Omar Barlow 733 '93 TOP PASSERS Yards Year Mike Roche 1,313 '86 Bob Santore 1,058 '75 Mike Roche 1,046 '85 Daryl Payton 1,026 '74 Donatien Adams 850 '87 TOP RECEIVERS Yards Year Bob Keels 662 '74 Bob Keels 656 '75 Rich Drayton 600 '85 Rich Drayton 570 '86 Ray Navarro 472 '87

   Cullman several times in the past promised to open up his run-at-all-costs offense, but failed to deliver. This year, he
finally realized that footballs were meant to fly, at least occasionally, and Roche and junior Rich Drayton blossomed into one
of the league's better-ever combos.
  Roche-to-Drayton hookups of 23 and 38 yards were instrumental in Central's first and third scoring drives, while a 34-yard
halfback pass from Averell Stith to Billy Henry set up the second.
  "Last year, (Cullman) said we'd throw like crazy and we didn't. He didn't say anything this year and we threw pretty
much," Roche said, laughing. "I guess that was the key. He didn't say it, so we did it."
  In the past five years, the racial composition of Central's football team has undergone a gradual change from a 50-50 blend
of blacks and whites (including a heavy dose of Italians from South Philadelphia) to almost totally black, especially among
those who receive meaningful playing time.
  If Roche, who is white and lives in the section where racial tensions have brought about a state of emergency, maintained
the racial prejudices of some of his neighbors, and if his teammates knew he maintained them, the situation could have
gotten downright ugly the past few weeks.
  "Black, white. That stuff doesn't affect me," Mike said. "The younger generation isn't involved in that stuff, at least not
the people I know. It's people in their 30s and 40s. They're so used to things being a certain way.
  "West Catholic's the main school around me. Scott Thompson and Albie Crosby (black football players for West) live
around me. Nobody bothers them. Kids ask, 'What's it like playing at Central?' I say, 'Those guys are big and talented and
we get along great. That's all I care about.' "
  Speaking of care, Roche, along with Drayton, recently showed that in another area.
  The coaches' All-Public team is compiled on an allotment basis, with each division champion receiving six spots, the
runner-up five and so forth down the standings. Roche and Drayton rank among Central's top five players, along with
 two-way lineman Kenyatta Rush, linebacker Lance Adams and fullback Adrian Smith, but they told Cullman not to pick
them All-Public.
  "We have a lot of good seniors," Roche said. "The more seniors we have make All-Public, the more they have a chance to
get chosen for the City All- Star Game. It wouldn't have done us any good. We would have just been names on a list.
  "Now, if a senior can get into that game and play well, he may get a scholarship. I'll be up in the stands, watching and
cheering. I'll play next year."
  He'll throw, too. Perhaps very often.
  TITLE TIDBITS: Central owns a perfect season (10-0, counting forfeit win over William Penn) for the first time since
at least the mid-1920s. "We had a team of doers, not screamin' demons," Bob Cullman said . . . Adrian Smith (30 carries,
98 yards) scored two touchdowns, Mike Roche the other . . . Washington scored three plays into the game on a 66-yard
screen pass from Keith Singleton to Cleon Jones . . . With 6:27 left, Singleton was temporarily knocked out of the game
on a late hit that moved the ball to the 9. The efforts of Kenyatta Rush and Lance Adams helped the Lancers hold, as
did an ineligible receiver call on third down, and Rick Pohl (successful earlier from 43 yards) missed a 35-yard field goal.

This story was written after Bob steered Central to the 1988 Pub championship . . .

By Ted Silary
  Fran Schnering ended his scholastic basketball career three years ago, after spending a frustrating season on Central
High's junior varsity.
  "The guy who controlled the ball would never pass," he said. "I didn't like that one-man-offense stuff."
  Funny. During this just-completed football season, Schnering, as the quarterback, controlled the ball for Central and
he never passed, either. At least not much. By design.
  "There was hardly ever a need, not with the way Jerrod (Washington) and 'Sundi' (Sundiata Rush) can run,"
Schnering said. "Our game plan didn't call for it."
  Then came Saturday, and the Public League championship game at Northeast High. Again, the running of Washington
(23 carries, 92 yards, 1 touchdown) and Rush (18-51) accounted for much of the offense in a 14-6 victory over George
Washington that enabled Central to finish unbeaten (11-0) for the second time in four years.
  But the running game didn't account for all of the offense. Schnering, a 6-1, 185-pound senior, completed 7 of 10
passes for 89 yards and the game's first touchdown, a 33-yarder to Eric Mobley. He also completed a two-point pass
to Derrick Smith following Washington's 7-yard, third-quarter TD scamper.
  "I knew I had the ability to throw," said Schnering, who for the season completed 32 of 72 passes for 652 yards and
7 TDs. "It was a matter of getting the call. The chance was there today."
  "We knew we could throw, but nobody would believe me," said coach Bob Cullman. "I kept saying we had a
quarterback and receivers. If we had to throw, we could throw. We could play with anyone (using that approach).
  "After the day Fran had today, there's no telling what level of college ball he could play. He threw the eyes out of the
ball. Did you see that one play, where the snap went over his head, he picked the ball up, then threw it blind exactly to
he guy he was supposed to throw it to? What a play. That's the kind of athlete he is."
  Schnering's 1987 season consisted of 1 1/2 games. He split time at quarterback in the opener, then ran the show in
the Thanksgiving game with Northeast after the original starter had become academically ineligible.
  In between?
  "He hurt his knee, then disappeared," Cullman said. "He wasn't around at all."
  "It was a strain," said Schnering, a South Philadelphia resident and CYO basketball all-star. "Temple Sports Medicine
had me in a cast for five days, then told me to stay off it. Hardly being able to play made for a frustrating year.
  "When I played football for EOM (South Philly youth organization), I was a center. But when I came to Central, I
tried out for quarterback because I knew I had a strong enough arm."
TITLE TIDBITS
  Washington scored on Jim Wark's 10-yard pass to soph Doug Tulley with 10:09 left . . . The Eagles again threatened
with less than two minutes left, but Bernard Brown intercepted Wark's pass on Central's 7 and ripped off a 48-yard
return . . . Bob Cullman: "No one can say we played patsies. We defeated four teams from Division A (Frankford,
Lincoln, Northeast, Washington)." . . . Fran Schnering: "Coach Cullman said all year, 'The only thing that can beat us
is us.' "

This story was written after Bob won his first PL crown in 1974 . . .

 

  Below are the players who earned first team Coaches' All-Public honors during Bob
Cullman's 25 seasons as the coach at Central.
 

Name	Pos.	Year	Name	Pos.	Year
Joe Whalen	T	1972	Ray Vaughan	L	1984
Ron Porter	QB	1972	Kurt Wikiera	L	1984
Jacques Blackman	DL	1972	Bob Kilroy	L	1984
Frank Playo	DB	1972	Jon Irvine	Rec.	1984
Chris Jehlowski	G	1973	Keith Hodges	RB	1984
Derick Gallman	E	1973	John Barber	LB	1984
Larry Wiacek	DE	1973	Billy Edwards	L	1985
Quinton Newcombe	DB	1973	David Rosario	Rec.	1985
Bob Keels	E	1974	Adrian Smith	RB	1985
Daryl Payton	B	1974	Kenyatta Rush	DL	1985
Bob Fecanin	B	1974	Lance Adams	LB	1985
John Long	K	1974	Jason Lewis	DB	1985
Mark Sydow	LB	1974	Rich Drayton	Rec.	1986
Frank Armstrong	L	1975	Dennis Barnes	Rec.	1986
John Long	L	1975	Oscar Turner	Rec.	1986
Bob Keels	E	1975	Mike Roche	QB	1986
Joe Stellabotte	RB	1975	Jon Ford	LB	1986
Nick Peppinelli	L	1976	John White	DB	1986
Joe LaRussa	RB	1976	Jorge Moyett	L	1987
Mike Wisher	DL	1976	Jerrod Washington	RB	1987
David Eggleston	DL	1976	Tyson Price	LB	1987
Pete Gualtieri	LB	1976	Earl Gamble	LB	1987
Steve Metzinger	L	1977	Jerrod Washington	B	1988
Roy Sherrod	L	1977	Sundiata Rush	B	1988
Jeff Chapman	E	1977	Derrick Smith	B	1988
Pete Gualtieri	B	1977	Mark Hrubar	L	1988
Lavord Burns	B	1977	Eric Mobley	L	1988
Dwayne Wilson	DB	1977	Manny Williams	L	1988
Kurtis Todd	RB	1978	Robert Irlan	RB	1989
Ivan O'Connor	DL	1978	James Armington	DL	1989
Alan Peaks	DL	1978	John Iacobacci	LB	1989
George Godfrey	LB	1978	Bill "Scooter" Sedgwick	DB	1989
Joe Carlini	L	1979	Josh Todd	L	1990
Al Twyman	Rec.	1979	Todd Richardson	RB	1990
Dave Wasson	QB	1979	Warren Hilton	DL	1990
Scott Glenn	DL	1979	Roman McDonald	RB	1991
Mark Ross	DL	1979	Richard Cubbage	RB	1991
Scott Glenn	L	1980	Tyson Bellamy	LB	1991
Pete Stolzer	L	1980	Chris Camburn	K	1991
Vic Bellamy	Rec.	1980	Marc Wilson	RB	1992
Joel Murphy	QB	1980	Frank Lundy	RB	1992
Nick Silenok	DL	1980	Walt Campbell	DL	1992
Dennis Golden	DB	1980	Quentin Fuller	L-DL	1993
Greg Watson	L	1981	Brian Smith	LB	1993
Vernon Robinson	L	1981	Omar Barlow	RB-LB	1993
Cordell Chapman	RB	1981	Robin Pitt	L	1994
Bill Cullman	LB	1981	Lamar Kennedy	L	1994
Kent Cooke	L	1982	Ernest Hines	RB	1994
Dave Rodden	L	1982	Akhnaton Browne	RB	1995
Marc DeBeary	Rec.	1982	Khalif Stripling	L	1995
Brian Davis	LB	1982	Jeff Riley	LB	1995
Darren Tatom	DB	1982	Sean Ryan	RB-LB	1996
David Chapman	L	1983	Raheem Islam	Rec.-DL	1996
Jimmy Wilson	RB	1983
Curt Bellamy	DL	1983
Mike Vaughan	LB	1983
Terry Williams	DB	1983

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Recaps of Wins in Public League Championship Games 1974 At Northeast Central 16, Frankford 12     With 1:06 left, Frank Armstrong and Harold Watson combined to block a punt and Ken Goode recovered for Central on Frankford's 19. Backup QB Durwood Hankinson, inserted at halfback by coach Bob Cullman, then completed a 19-yard pass to Stanley Hendrickson to win it. Goode scored the Lancers' first TD on an 82-yard kickoff return. QB Daryl Payton ran for both conversions. For Frankford, Dan Oldfield rushed 10 times for 60 yards while Lee Felice had two interceptions and two sacks and blocked a punt. 1985 At Northeast Central 18, Washington 17     After mismanaging the clock, Central opted to take an intentional safety with 18 seconds remaining and then held on as Jason Lewis intercepted a pass on the 1 on the game's final play. Adrian Smith rushed 30 times for 98 yards and two TDs while Mike Roche passed 7-for-13 for 95 yards and ran 1 yard for a score. Rich Drayton added 78 yards on four catches. For Washington, Keith Singleton passed 6-for-14 for 127 yards and TDs to Cleon Jones and Sean McAleer (16 tackles) and Rick Pohl kicked a 43-yard field goal. 1988 At Northeast Central 14, Washington 6     Fran Schnering, an afterthought much of the season, passed 7-for-10 for 89 yards and a 33-yard TD to Eric Mobley as Central finished unbeaten for the second time in four years. Jerrod Washington (23-92, TD) and Sundiata Rush (18-51) led the rushing attack. For Washington, Jim Wark completed 6 of 14 passes for 64 yards and a TD to Doug Tuley, but was intercepted by Bernard Brown on Central's 7 with just under 2 minutes left.

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BASEBALL Recaps of Wins in Public League Championship Games 1976 At Temple's Erny Field Central 11, Southern 1     Bill Zitomer pitched a three-hitter (all singles) and John Sykes, the No. 8 hitter, went 2-for-3 with three RBI as the Lancers won their first title since 1956. Bob Santore had six assists at shortstop. Sub Bob Kinch had Southern's lone RBI on a bases-loaded walk. 1992 At La Salle University Central 7, Frankford 6     After losing twice in finals, 10 times in semis and three times in quarterfinals, Central finally won a title (its first since 1976) as Marc Priest (four innings), Chuck McCaffrey (1 1/3) and soph Joe Dugan did the pitching. Chris Whittle had a three-run triple off the leftfield fence. Priest and Dugan halved four hits. 1993 At La Salle University Central 4, Washington 3     Joe Dugan allowed 11 hits, but went the distance. First baseman Rob Mayer had a two-run single, but dropped a relay throw that should have resulted in a game-ending doubleplay. Ryan "Rusty" Share and Mark Roque followed with RBI singles and losing pitcher Jordan Nicgorski sent a screaming liner to third baseman Walt Campbell for the last out.