To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the first Pioneer team to play in the Cape Ann League, I am taking a week by week look back at the 1973 season.
 |
Wayback Wednesday: The 1973
CAL Champion Pioneers |
October 17, 1973 - A third into their inaugural Cape Ann League season, it still wasn't clear what head coach Bill Rodan had on his hands with this band of Pioneers. Yes they were 3-0, the first time a Lynnfield football team had started the season this well since 1962, and they were locked in a four way tie for first place.
But who had they beaten?
They easily defeated a Triton team that had been in existence for only two years and would go on to post a winless 1973. They struggled past a scrappy Ipswich squad that would finish the year a mediocre 4-4-1 and they were coming off an uninspired win over a Masco team that would end the season with only two victories.
So just how good were these Pioneers?
They were about to find out.
The middle part of the schedule shaped up to be a Battle Royale with tough games against the CAL iron. They would travel to Hamilton and Newburyport and host Amesbury and Pentucket.
The next four weeks would tell the tale.
First up was a trip up Route 1A to take on the Generals, "a big, tough team" as Rodan described them, who came into the game with a 2-1 record. It was the first meeting ever between the schools and the first crucial test of the season for the upstart Pioneers.
They passed with flying colors.
Featuring a vise-like defense that held Hamilton-Wenham to 13 total net yards, the Pioneers rudely introduced themselves to the Generals, pummeling them in a 26-0 beatdown. The visiting Lynnfield squad thoroughly ruined the Generals' homecoming party with an explosive second half that expanded a 6-0 halftime and allowed the Pioneer JV's to get in on the festivities in the fourth quarter.
Steve Olsen should have been named Homecoming King as he shredded the General defense in a 6 for 9 performance with three TD passes and a two point conversion. The Pioneer running attack paced by Brian Rea, Steve Celata, Glenn Dolbeare, Bob Olsen and Dan Moore rolled for 167 yards on the ground. In all the Pioneers piled up 256 yards of offense, according to the account by Steve Farrar in the Wakefield Item.
"The offense was nearly flawless," reported Geof Simons in his Villager account, "with junior Steve Celata leading the the rushing game. John Imbrescia and John Callahan played a 'helluva" game at the offensive guards, according to Coach Rodan."
But as good as the offense was, it was the defense that was truly stunning.
"The Pioneer front five consisting of Brian McMahon, Jim Neumann, John Imbrescia, Brian Robinson and Mark Stone, helped out by the linebackers Craig Franklin, Larry Mitkus and Steve Celata, sacked the Hamilton-Wenham quarterback Jon Silva four times for 48 yards in losses and held the General offense to a standstill," Farrar wrote in his game story. "Defensive deepbacks Lindsey Ross, Alan Harrington and Brian Rea allowed Silva only one pass completion in 11 attempts."
As dominating as the Pioneers were, they would only take a one touchdown lead into the locker room at halftime.
Ross set up the score by returning a punt to the H-W 16 yard line. Ross finished what he started by hauling in a TD pass from Steve Olsen two plays later. A bad snap ended the point after try.
Checkin' on the Young 'uns
But who had they beaten?
They easily defeated a Triton team that had been in existence for only two years and would go on to post a winless 1973. They struggled past a scrappy Ipswich squad that would finish the year a mediocre 4-4-1 and they were coming off an uninspired win over a Masco team that would end the season with only two victories.
So just how good were these Pioneers?
They were about to find out.
The middle part of the schedule shaped up to be a Battle Royale with tough games against the CAL iron. They would travel to Hamilton and Newburyport and host Amesbury and Pentucket.
The next four weeks would tell the tale.
First up was a trip up Route 1A to take on the Generals, "a big, tough team" as Rodan described them, who came into the game with a 2-1 record. It was the first meeting ever between the schools and the first crucial test of the season for the upstart Pioneers.
They passed with flying colors.
Featuring a vise-like defense that held Hamilton-Wenham to 13 total net yards, the Pioneers rudely introduced themselves to the Generals, pummeling them in a 26-0 beatdown. The visiting Lynnfield squad thoroughly ruined the Generals' homecoming party with an explosive second half that expanded a 6-0 halftime and allowed the Pioneer JV's to get in on the festivities in the fourth quarter.
Steve Olsen should have been named Homecoming King as he shredded the General defense in a 6 for 9 performance with three TD passes and a two point conversion. The Pioneer running attack paced by Brian Rea, Steve Celata, Glenn Dolbeare, Bob Olsen and Dan Moore rolled for 167 yards on the ground. In all the Pioneers piled up 256 yards of offense, according to the account by Steve Farrar in the Wakefield Item.
"The offense was nearly flawless," reported Geof Simons in his Villager account, "with junior Steve Celata leading the the rushing game. John Imbrescia and John Callahan played a 'helluva" game at the offensive guards, according to Coach Rodan."
But as good as the offense was, it was the defense that was truly stunning.
"The Pioneer front five consisting of Brian McMahon, Jim Neumann, John Imbrescia, Brian Robinson and Mark Stone, helped out by the linebackers Craig Franklin, Larry Mitkus and Steve Celata, sacked the Hamilton-Wenham quarterback Jon Silva four times for 48 yards in losses and held the General offense to a standstill," Farrar wrote in his game story. "Defensive deepbacks Lindsey Ross, Alan Harrington and Brian Rea allowed Silva only one pass completion in 11 attempts."
As dominating as the Pioneers were, they would only take a one touchdown lead into the locker room at halftime.
Ross set up the score by returning a punt to the H-W 16 yard line. Ross finished what he started by hauling in a TD pass from Steve Olsen two plays later. A bad snap ended the point after try.
The General defense was strong in the first quarter but the Pioneers began to figure it out in the second.
"The Generals seemed to lose all the defensive power that they exhibited in the first quarter," wrote Simons. "Lynnfield pushed for three more first downs before the close of the first half, but failed to score."
The Pioneers would remedy that early in the third quarter when they quickly took advantage of a poor General punt that gave them the ball on the H-W 38 yard line. Olsen quickly made them pay tossing "a perfect strike" as Farrar called it, to Ross for the 38 yard score. It was the fifth Olsen-Ross touchdown connection of the season as the pair hooked up for TD passes in all four of the Pioneer contests of the year so far. The rush for two points failed but the Pioneers led 12-0.
Lynnfield continued to control the game in the third quarter highlighted by an 88 yard touchown march that featured a nifty 41 yard scamper by Celata to get the ball into General territory. Celata and Rea continued to pound the H-W defense to get to the 18 yard line. Olsen then completed his TD pass hat trick when he found Mitkus for the 18 yard score. The same pair connected for the two point conversion and the Pioneers led 20-0 early in the fourth. The way the defense was playing, it seemed like 200-0.
Rodan was comfortable enough to empty his bench, and the JV's got to get in on the romp.
Sophomore quarterback Jim Nelson led the JV offense and they picked up a couple of first downs before handing the ball over to the Generals on downs.
The Pioneers got it back quickly when Dolbeare picked off a pass and returned it 20 yards to the H-W six yard line. Carries by Dolbeare and Nelson got it to the two and Moore banged in in for the score to make it 26-0.
One of the big stories of the game was the significance of Olsen's big day. His three TD passes gave him eight on the season and 18 in his career, setting a new record for most all time TD passes by a Pioneer breaking the mark set by Steve Mucica who tossed 15 from 1960-62.
Neither Farrar nor Simons mentioned this in their articles, so I assume neither was aware of it. That isn't surprising since when I began covering Lynnfield football in 1989, I couldn't find any comprehensive records. That's why I spent several years putting together what I believe to be the most accurate record book for the Pioneers.
Olsen would continue to add to his record as the season rolled on.
Also unknown at the time was that Ross' two TD catches gave him the Pioneer career record for touchdown receptions. At this point he had five in 1973 and combined with the two he caught in 1972 gave him seven all time, pushing him past Charlier Meeker (1959-60) and Frank Berardino (1959-60) each of whom had six for their careers. Ross' five TD receptions for the year tied Charlie Meeker for the most touchdown catches in a season. Meeker hauled in five in 1960. The way the Dynamic Duo of Olsen and Ross were connecting, that mark would likely fall shortly.
Also unknown at the time was that Ross' two TD catches gave him the Pioneer career record for touchdown receptions. At this point he had five in 1973 and combined with the two he caught in 1972 gave him seven all time, pushing him past Charlier Meeker (1959-60) and Frank Berardino (1959-60) each of whom had six for their careers. Ross' five TD receptions for the year tied Charlie Meeker for the most touchdown catches in a season. Meeker hauled in five in 1960. The way the Dynamic Duo of Olsen and Ross were connecting, that mark would likely fall shortly.
The defense was also beginning to make a name for itself. The second shutout extended their opponents' streak to nine quarters with the last tally against them coming in the third quarter of the Ipswich game. After four games, they were now averaging only six points per game allowed.
The win kept the Pioneers in a tie for first place, but now only three teams were knotted up as Amesbury, Lynnfield's next opponent, was upset by North Reading to drop them into second place. It would be another key battle for the Pioneers to see if they could continue to flex their muscles.
Checkin' on the Young 'uns
The JV Pioneers meanwhile picked up where the varsity left off the following Monday when they pasted the General JV's 20-6 on three touchdowns by Dolbeare. The teams battled to a first half scoreless tie but the Generals took a 6-0 lead early in the third period. After catching a long pass from Nelson, Dolbeare tied the score with a one yard plunge.
The running of Frank Guarino set up the second Pioneer score, a 15 yard TD pass from Nelson to Dolbeare. The Pioneer defense added a safety by crushing the H-W punter in the endzone to make it 14-6. Dolbeare added Lynnfield's final touchdown on a 60 yard punt return.
The win lifted the JV's record to 3-1.
Meanwhile, the freshmen team moved to 2-1-1 on the season with a 32-0 drubbing of the Generals. The passing of Tom Turner and the running of Jay Donegan (two TD's) led the ninth graders. Turner connected with Nelson Burbank on a 55 yard TD pass then hit Scott Brewer with a 60 yard bomb.
Next: First ever meeting with Amesbury
1973 Flashback
On the eve of Town Meeting, town leaders agreed to postpone an article to construct a new baseball diamond at the high school. Neighbors complained "of hard hit baseballs going outside the field into private yards posing a danger to children playing in the area." The consensus was to take the issue up again in April.
The movie "Straw Dogs" starring Dustin Hoffman was playing at the North Reading Drive In on Main Street (now the site of the Super Stop and Shop). A couple of R rated flicks were also showing: "Good Grief It's Candy" and "The Harrad Experiment" ("Harrad College...where free, liberated relations between coed students are encouraged!").
Only $3.50 per carload so no need stuffing friends in the trunk.
The running of Frank Guarino set up the second Pioneer score, a 15 yard TD pass from Nelson to Dolbeare. The Pioneer defense added a safety by crushing the H-W punter in the endzone to make it 14-6. Dolbeare added Lynnfield's final touchdown on a 60 yard punt return.
The win lifted the JV's record to 3-1.
Meanwhile, the freshmen team moved to 2-1-1 on the season with a 32-0 drubbing of the Generals. The passing of Tom Turner and the running of Jay Donegan (two TD's) led the ninth graders. Turner connected with Nelson Burbank on a 55 yard TD pass then hit Scott Brewer with a 60 yard bomb.
Next: First ever meeting with Amesbury
1973 Flashback
The movie "Straw Dogs" starring Dustin Hoffman was playing at the North Reading Drive In on Main Street (now the site of the Super Stop and Shop). A couple of R rated flicks were also showing: "Good Grief It's Candy" and "The Harrad Experiment" ("Harrad College...where free, liberated relations between coed students are encouraged!").
Only $3.50 per carload so no need stuffing friends in the trunk.
If you played on or were involved with the 1973 Pioneers and would like to share a memory, please pass it on to me at tcondardo@gmail.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment