This
Date in Blue Devil Football
•
November 8th •
By BOB
MILLER
Daily Herald Sports Editor
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Bellwood-Antis played Greenfield Township of Claysburg on November
8, 1941. This was a Saturday game, instead of the usual Armistice
Day date for the game the previous two years. In 1939, the two schools
played on Saturday Nov. 11, and in 1940, the BA-Greenfield Township game
was played on Monday, Nov. 11.
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Greenfield Township was the only Western Conference Class B and Inter-County
Conference team that was undefeated in 1941, while Bellwood-Antis was
3-4 with two straight wins to get close to the .500 mark.
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Bellwood-Antis was very hot on that afternoon upsetting the previously
unbeaten and unscored on Bulldogs 19-0. The big Blue Devil win threw both
conferences into a big free-for-all with remaining games deciding titles
everybody had supposed were personal property of Greenfield Township.
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Bellwood-Antis scored early when John Rowan raced 64 yards for the first
touchdown scored against the Greenfield defense all year. Greenfield Township
fumbled the following kickoff and Joe Garman capped a short drive with
a 19-yard score.
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Playing opportunistic defense, Bellwood-Antis blocked a punt in the second
quarter and recovered the ball at the GT-30. Jim Walters climaxed a seven-play
march by diving over the goal line for the final TD of the game. Garman
booted the ball through the uprights for an extra point and coach Bob
Killen and assistants Lew Myers and Tim Nolan and the Blue Devils had
evened their record at 4-4.
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Greenfield Township defeated Saxton-Liberty the next week 18-12, and Bellwood-Antis
knocked off Williamsburg 13-0. With their win, Greenfield Township did
manage to hang onto the Inter-County crown, but Bellwood-Antis won the
Western Conference.
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On November 8, 1947, Bellwood-Antis won their ninth straight game
of the season after opening with a 14-0 loss to Tyrone, smashing Beaverdale
39-6, for head coach Lemont “Duke” Burkholder and assistants
Lew Myers and newcomer Earl Strohm. In his first year on Burkholder’s
staff, Strohm would replace Duke when Burkholder took a coaching job at
Dubois in 1949. B-A had lost only two games of their last 38 and both
had been to Tyrone (19-14 in 1945 and 14-0 in 1947).
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The weather was a little cold, but the Blue Devils play melted the ice.
Harry Campbell led the way on offense with for touchdowns behind a hard-charging
line led by Earl Henry, Buss Carr, Tommy Conrad and Alton McCaulley.
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Campbell put the finishing touches to the first scoring drive with a five-yard
run for the TD and Bob Sitman kicked the PAT. Tommy Conrad recovered a
first-quarter fumble at the Beavers-21. Campbell rushed for the six-pointer
by diving in from the three-yard line.
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Buss Carr forced a short Beaverdale punt to get the ball back. Roy Pickens,
one of just two Blue Devils in school history to gain 1,000 yards both
running and passing in his high school career, rambled 16 yards to the
B-dale-25 on the final play of the first quarter.
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A five-yard penalty moved the Blue Devils back, but Sitman made 15 yards
on a reverse. Gerry Treese rumbled for 10 yards and then Campbell picked
up his third TD from a foot out.
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From there, the reserves would get a lot of playing time for Bellwood-Antis
the rest of the game.
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Len Hummel stopped a Beaverdale drive with an acrobatic one-handed interception
and the first half ended 19-0.
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In the third quarter, a fumble recovery by Carr at the Beaverdale-26 gave
the Blue Devils excellent field position. Four plays later, Pickens slammed
four yards for the TD and Sitman added the extra point kick.
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Carr picked off a pass and returned the interception to the Beavers-22.
Beaverdale stopped B-A on that drive, but on the first play from scrimmage
on the following series, Alton McCaulley fell on a fumble at the Beaverdale-10.
Campbell added his fourth score of the night and Sitman’s PAT kick
gave the Blue Devils a 33-0 lead.
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A B-A fumble was recovered at the Blue Devils-21 and Beaverdale put their
lone TD on the board.
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The B-A reserves came right back with the final tally of the contest.
A trio of Len Hummel to Jack Cody aerials and the running of Gene “Mouse”
Moore highlighted the series with Moore rounding end for the 14-yard score.
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On November 8. 1985, Bellwood-Antis copped the Mid-Penn Conference
crown with a 28-8 win over Northern Bedford at Bellwood Memorial Stadium.
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A very tough Blue Devil defense would hand the ball to the B-A offense
on three fumbles and an interception to shortenthe field for Bellwood-Antis.
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B-A lineman Jim DeGennaro recovered the first miscue at the BA-35. Bob
Noye bulled for five yards to start the march. Don “Booker”
More scampered for 29 yards and then Jack Dorminy burst over the right
for 13 more. Adam Claar picked up eight and then Moore, who rushed for
115 yards on 18 carries, scored from the three. Shawn Bailey booted a
perfect placement for a quick 7-0 advantage.
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Northern Bedford ran only one play and Adam Claar fell on a fumble at
the NB-35. Booker Moore capped a five-play drive with a four-yard TD and
Bailey’s PAT stretched the early lead to 14-0.
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Northern marched 61 yards on the next series, but came away with nothing,
when Moore intercepted a trick halfback pass.
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Midway through the third quarter, Bellwood-Antis took over following a
punt at their own 29. Moore picked up 23 yards on four carries, Dorminy
17 on two cracks and Noye went 13 yards to pick up a big first down. Moore
cracked over from the seven for his 25th TD of the year.
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Despite the scoring, the Blue Devils moved at will some times and seemed
half-asleep at others. B-A woke up again to drive 64 yards in 10 plays.
Claar picked up 19 yards on three carries, including the seven-yard TD
and Bailey added the PAT kick.
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Northern Bedford attempted to get back into the contest late, but senior
Mark Zabinski stopped the drive with an interception for the Blue Devils,
who improved their recrd to 11-0 for coach John Hayes.
