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Jeannette Jayhawk's Unofficial Website
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JEANNETTE JAYHAWKS
This Page is dedicated to Coaches A. Markley Barnes Joe Mucci, Arthur Tragesser, Robert Murphy whose great coaching lead Jeannette Jayhawk's high school football Team to a winning tradition!!!!!
JEANNETTE HISTORY FROM 1895-1999
September 2, 1999
A CENTURY OF THRILLS
By BILL BECKNER, JR. and GREG TROUT
Six WPIAL championship teams; three WPIAL runner-up teams; 549 overall wins; ten
players who went on to play professionally.
Needless to say, the next 100 years of Jeannette High School football will have a
tough task in matching the first 100.
The Jayhawks' football program, one of the most successful in Pennsylvania history,
kicks off its 100th season Friday night against Deer Lakes, and they'll do it at the
same time they unveil the new version of their longtime home.
McKee Stadium, home of the 'Hawks since 1937, has been renovated since last
season, and while it may hardly resemble its former self in the physical sense, from an
emotional standpoint, all the history of the great Jeannette teams of the past remains
as strong as ever.
The legend that has become Jeannette High School football began in the fall of 1900
(just five years after a team from the city battled Latrobe in what many believe was the
first professional football game ever played), when the Jayhawks won the first game
ever played in school history, a 41-33 victory over McKeesport. The rest, as they say,
is history.
The names associated with Jeannette football are known and respected throughout
the region - Getto, Semenko, Hoak, Barnes, Mucci, and on and on. Jeannette
definitely has a big history for a small town.
IN THE BEGINNING...
After playing just three games from 1900-1905, the Jeannette High School football
program truly began to take shape in 1906, when Dr. B.F. Jenkins took over as coach.
The program was actually mired in mediocrity at first, posting just three winning
seasons from 1906-1922. In fact, three seasons were cut short. In 1915, the team
played five games, posting a 1-3-1 mark before the rest of the season was cancelled
because of the team's sub-par academic performance. In 1916, four games were
canceled for unknown reasons, and in 1918, the team played just two games because
of a flu epidemic.
In 1923, however, things began to roll and the Jayhawks began the journey that would
turn the program into one of the standard-bearers of Southwestern Pennsylvania
football.
Coach Frank W. (Pie) Williams took over in '23 and the Jayhawks responded with a
6-2-2 record, their first winning season since the 2-0 mark in the flu-ravaged 1918
season. The following year, the 'Hawks posted an 11-1 mark, with the only loss coming
to Norwin 19-12. A controversy over the use of ineligible players ensued, however, and
after a series of forfeits, the 1924 record was amended to 3-8. Williams left the team
after the '24 season with an outstanding two-year mark (on the field) of 17-3-2, but his
successor would do even better.
Lloyd Jordan took over in 1925 and in his three seasons at the helm, the Jayhawks
would go 25-2-2, including a 10-0 mark in his final season, 1927, in which Jeannette
outscored its opponents 319-13. During the five years Williams and Jordan coached
the team, the Jays dominated, outscored their 51 opponents 1268-186, an average
score of 25-4.
One of the standouts on those Jeannette teams was Mike Getto. After graduating from
Jeannette in 1925, Getto was an All-America tackle at Pitt and went on to coach
professionally with the NFL's old Brooklyn Dodgers under Jock Sutherland. He later
became head coach at the University of Kansas.
The 1928-29 Jayhawks' teams were successful under one-year coaches. In '28,
Joseph Harrick led the squad to a 9-1 mark, and in '29 Blair McMillan's Jays went
7-2-1.
With the start of the depression came a bit of a swoon in 1930, the first year of a two
season stint for coach C. Arthur Dahl. Dahl went 5-3-2 in '30.
A 1930 graduate, John Love, would become the first Jayhawks alum to play in the
NFL. After playing tackle at Pitt, Love signed with the Steelers in their second year,
1934, but saw his career come to an end during his rookie year because of an ankle
injury. Love later coached at Connellsville for five seasons.
The Jays bounced back in '31 to post a 7-2-1 mark and set the stage for the first of
many magical seasons in Jeannette.
THE BARNES ERA ...
In 1932, a gentleman by the name of A. Markley Barnes took over the Jayhawks.
When he left 26 years later, after the 1958 season, he would be the Jayhawks'
winningest coach and a local legend. During his tenure, the 'Hawks would post 22
non-losing seasons, including eight years of eight wins or more.
The first of those winning campaigns was Barnes' rookie year as coach in '32. After a
21-6 win over Sewickley to start the season, the Jays, led by Buster Clarkson, who
would later play pro baseball, gave up just eight more points the rest of the season on
their way to a perfect 9-0 mark and the school's first WPIAL championship. The
perfect season was clinched in front of an estimated 15,000 fans in a 13-6 win against
Greensburg at Offutt Field. The title was shared with New Castle and McKeesport that
season as no playoffs were held in that era.
In 1933, the Jayhawks may have been just as dominant, not allowing a point in their
first six games. After a 19-6 win over Youngwood and a 20-0 victory over Washington,
Jeannette lost a chance at a second title when they were beaten by Greensburg 13-0,
a loss which ended a 19 game winning streak. Ironically, Greensburg was the last
team to beat the 'Hawks to that point in 1931, and that was just the beginning of many
huge games between the teams over the years.
After slumping to 4-4-2 in 1934, Barnes ran off back-to-back unbeaten seasons in
'35-'36, the lone blemish being a 13-13 tie in '35 against Vandergrift. The '36 team
posted nine straight shutouts to start the season, and wasn't scored upon until the final
game of the year, a 25-6 win over Hurst. The defensive performances of those teams
were incredible, as the Jays blanked 17 of their 20 opponents over those two
seasons, including 11 in a row at one point.
Among the stars of that era were John Eibner and Albert ``Chick'' Caviggia.
Eibner graduated from Jeannette in 1934 and went on to become an All-SEC tackle at
Kentucky. He played pro ball with Philadelphia in 1941-42, then returned after military
duty in World War II to play one more season with the Eagles. He would later coach at
the University of Florida.
A 1936 graduate, Caviggia went on to star at LSU and was selected to play in the
Chicago College All-Star game in 1942. After leaving the Tigers, Caviggia played for
the New York Giants in 1945, but injuries ended his career prematurely.
After the glory comes the fall, they say, and that's what happened at Jeannette over the
next two seasons. The Jays went 4-3-1 in '37 and slumped to 1-7-2 in '38. 1937 would
later provide some fond memories, though, as that would be the year the new McKee
Stadium opened.
Despite the team's stuggles at the time, the Jays had a star in Alex Piasecky. A 1938
graduate, Piasecky went to Duke, then played three years for the Washington
Redskins as a two-way end before moving to the All-American Football Conference
for a season with the Miami Seahawks.
After a couple of down years, the 1939 team bounced back to go undefeated (10-0),
allowing just 20 points. The season was capped with a 6-0 win over Ambridge which
gave Jeannette its first outright WPIAL title. The only touchdown of the game came on
a 95-yard return of the opening kickoff by the Jayhawks' Bill Olezewski.
The next 16 seasons were a roller coaster ride for Barnes and the Jayhawks. There
were some solid seasons (7-1 in 1940, 7-1-1 in '42, 7-2 in '46 and 8-1 in '51) and
some not-so-solid ones (3-5 in 1941, 3-4-2 in both '43 and '45, and 2-7 in '50). After a
9-1 season in 1954, the Jays went 5-4 in '55, but were ready to bounce back and
return to their former glory.
The post-war years saw two stars rise to the pro ranks from Jeannette - Jack O'Brien
and Mel Semenko.
O'Brien graduated from Jeannette in 1950 and went on to the University of Florida
before going pro with the Steelers and seeing time in the Canadian League.
Semenko left Jeannette in 1955 and went on to the University of Colorado. A
successful pro career followed in the CFL with the British Columbia Lions, Ottawa
Roughriders and Montreal Alouettes.
The 1956 team, led by future Penn State and Steelers standout Dick Hoak, ran the
table, going 10-0, outscoring their opponents 204-33. It all could have came to an end,
however, in the final game of the season against Greensburg at Offutt Field, but the
'Hawks came away with a memorable 14-6 win.
``Bob Mitinger (of Greensburg) caught a pass down behind our defense and fell down
on the one-yard-line. We were ahead 7-6. They had four shots to get into the end zone
and they didn't get in,'' said Hoak. ``We took the ball right at the end of the third
quarter, we drove 99 yards and kept the ball the whole fourth quarter, except for about
a minute, and scored and then qualified to play Charleroi for the championship.''
Ironically, Mitinger and Hoak would become teammates at Penn State a short time
later. Mitinger would win All-America honors and go on to play for the San Diego
Chargers, while Hoak spent ten years with the Steelers as a player before joining their
coaching staff.
Hoak points out he wasn't the only star on that Jayhawks' championship squad.
``Wayne Tucci ... went to Purdue,'' he said. ``I had three cousins on that team - Charles
Evans, Buddy Torris and Frank del Gross. Buddy went to Penn State, Charlie went to
Clemson. We had a kid named Bob Lavella. Bob went to West Virginia ... I remember
all of them.''
That victory gave the Jayhawks a shot at their third WPIAL title, and they capitalized,
beating Charleroi 16-13 on a Jim Burzio field goal in the final seconds. Ironically, that
was the only field goal that Burzio ever attempted with the Jayhawks, and it won a
championship.
Barnes would coach for two more seasons, posting a career record of 168-68-13, the
most wins ever by a Jeannette coach.
After Barnes' tenure came to an end, the Jayhawks' program hit the skids and suffered
through the next decade, posting just 27 wins from 1959-67 under four coaches -
Alfred Amann, Joseph Mastro, William Baughman and Thomas Duff.
Bob Tatarek, a 1964 graduate, would go on to bigger things. After attending the
University of Florida, where he made honorable mention on All-America teams as a
junior and senior, Tatarek went on to play with the Buffalo Bills for four years after
being a second round draft choice in 1968. He was later traded to Detroit and spent
two years with the Lions, before going to the old World Football League and playing
with the Birmingham Americans and Jacksonville Sharks.
After going a combined 2-16-1 under Duff in 1966-67, Jeannette made a change that
would result in more than 30 years of top notch football.
THE MUCCI ERA ...
Joe Mucci was the first head coach at Greensburg Central Catholic prior to coming to
Jeannette in 1968 and before his retirement in 1985, he would lead the 'Hawks to 149
wins, two WPIAL titles and four WPIAL championship game appearances.
After three years at the helm, Mucci's 1971 team posted the first perfect season at
Jeannette in 15 years, going 11-0 and winning the WPIAL Class AA title over Beaver
14-7 in a game that saw two huge defensive plays near the goal line by Jeannette's
Dan Ereditario and a game-winning 62 yard run in the fourth quarter by fullback Russ
Matt.
``We had such an outstanding bunch of kids (on that team), from our captains on
down,'' said Mucci. ``I think we had a group of kids who were very dedicated, who
worked very hard, had a tremendous attitude.''
The next season, the Jays moved into the Keystone Conference, went 10-0 in the
regular season and in the process won the first of five section crowns in a seven year
span. Jeannette returned to the WPIAL Class AA final, but lost to Gateway 20-0. That
loss ended a 21 game winning streak.
The way the 'Hawks actually got to the final was highly unusual. There was no overtime
in the playoffs in '72, and after playing to a 14-14 tie with Monessen in the semifinals,
Jeannette was awarded the win by virtue of gaining more total yards than the
Greyhounds.
A 1972 graduate, Steve August was a late bloomer in football, but turned out to be
star. After leaving Jeannette, August went to the University of Tulsa and was later a
first round draft pick of the Seattle Seahawks in 1977 and went on to have a solid NFL
career. In fact, in the '77 draft, August was involved in the Seahawks' trade with Dallas
that allowed the Cowboys to select Pitt legend Tony Dorsett.
Another perfect regular season followed for the Jays in 1973, giving Jeannette 27
straight regular season wins. That streak would reach 29 before a 19-14 loss to East
Allegheny in Week 3. The Jays beat Greensburg-Salem 40-13 in the first round of the
playoffs but were eliminated the following week by Mt. Lebanon 33-14.
Despite posting winning record in each of the next seven seasons, the 'Hawks could
not get past the opening round of postseason play until 1981, the second year of the
new Allegheny Interscholastic Conference. The '81 team ran the table, going 9-0 in the
regular season, then beat Riverside (29-13) and Charleroi (13-0) before taking the
WPIAL title with a tremendous defensive effort in 26-7 win over Freeport.
The '82 team (10-2) won its third straight AIC title and made it to the WPIAL final
again, but lost to Beaver 18-13.
Undaunted by the '82 loss, the Jayhawks would again go perfect in 1983, led by Dante
Wiley, Maurice Chamberlain and Mark Brasco. After wins over South Park (29-7) and
Washington (21-19), Jeannette beat Canevin 6-0 on two Brasco field goals to take
their second WPIAL Class AA title in three years.
``In '81 and '83, we had such a good array of athletes,'' said Mucci.
After a 9-2-1 season in 1984, Mucci said farewell to the sidelines by posting an 11-1
mark in 1985, good for the championship of the AIC.
Although Mucci would leave coaching after the '85 season, his influence can be felt to
this day on the Jayhawks' sideline. Two of Mucci's disciples picked up for their
legendary mentor, and the 'Hawks haven't missed a beat.
THE GOOD NEW DAYS ...
Art Tragesser and Bob Murphy, two longtime Mucci assistants, have continued
building on Mucci's foundation of success right up to the turn of the century.
Tragesser took over from Mucci in 1986 and posted an outstanding record of 73-33-3
in his 10 seasons at the helm. He led the Jays to his first AIC title in 1989 and made it
to the second round of the playoffs before being eliminated by Freeport.
After another AIC title in 1991, Tragesser led Jeannette to a milestone in 1993 - the
500th win in school history. It came in a 14-0 win at McKee Stadium over Greensburg
Central Catholic.
The following season, after moving to the Century Conference in the WPIAL's
realignment and installing a new run-and-shoot offense, Tragesser and the 'Hawks
returned to the WPIAL championship game for the first time since 1983. The Jays
beat Seton-LaSalle (41-34) and Beth-Center (12-7) in the first two rounds, but a worn
down and beaten up Jeannette squad was no match for powerful New Brighton in the
final, losing to the Lions 36-7 in what would be the 'Hawks last trip to the finals to this
point.
After winning the Century Conference title in 1995, Tragesser left Jeannette to take
over at Penn-Trafford, where he continues to be one of the top coaches in the WPIAL.
Tragesser has many memories of his days as coach of the red, white and blue, but a
few, in particular, stand out.
``We had a lot of big games there. I think the biggest game we had that I can
remember was the playoff game against Greensburg (early 1970s),'' he said. ``We
had won the Keystone Conference, and Greensburg had won the Foothills
Conference. The Keystone was kind of looked down upon as maybe not a very good
conference. It was Quad-A, but it was mostly smaller schools. It snowed, and it was
cold, and we just had a great game. We beat a team that was supposed to beat us.''
``Working with Joe (Mucci) was great. We had a lot of good times together, and we're
good friends. I had a chance to work with a lot of different kids and families, like the
Halls, the Cooks, the Morgans, the Washingtons, the Matts and the Chamberlains and
all those guys. A lot of good memories.''
Taking over for Tragesser was his offensive coordinator, Bob Murphy. 1999 marks
Murphy's fourth year as head coach, and his .750 winning percentage (24-8) during his
tenure is third all-time among coaches who have spent at least three years at
Jeannette (Jordan .897, Mucci .807)
Murphy's first team won the 1996 Century Conference title before losing to Mars in the
WPIAL quarterfinals 26-12. In '97, The Jayhawks almost made it back to the WPIAL
championship game, but let a 13-0 lead against powerful Shady Side Academy get
away in a muddy quagmire at Valley and lost 14-13 in the semifinal matchup.
Last season, the Jays (7-3) once again made the postseason, but fell just short, 3-0, to
North Catholic in the first round of the WPIALs.
Murphy also has fond memories of the glory days in ``J-Town.''
``We had many big games at the old stadium,'' he said. ``One that jumps out in my
mind is the year we played Greensburg in a playoff game in the snow in the early
seventies. They brought the streetsweeper in to try and clear some of the snow off the
field, and I don't know how cold it was at that game, it couldn't have been much colder.
But the crowd at that game was just enormous. There was probably 12,000 people at
that game.''
``In my early years, I was always up in the press box during the games, fighting the
hornets and whatever else you would find crawling around in that old press box. We
had a lot of good seasons and a lot of good games.''
``Jeannette football tradition is so great. There have been WPIAL championship
teams, but in between, there have been so many other great conference
championships and outstanding teams. You can't always measure it by `did they win
the WPIAL championship?'.''
A major part of the Jeannette tradition, Mucci, is rightly proud of the job his successors
have done.
``As a head coach, one of the things you try to do is surround yourself with good
people,'' said Mucci. ``I couldn't have chosen any better than Bob Murphy and Art
Tragasser.
``It makes me feel proud because these are the type of people that I surround myself
with. We worked hard and committed a lot of time. Believe me, success didn't come
easy ... but I always found out that success breeds success. These guys were in a
successful program and when they took over, I think it became part of their whole new
programs and believe me, they'll continue winning.''
A NEW, OLD HOME ...
Sixty-two years after it was used for the first time, Jeannette's McKee Stadium has
received a facelift for the 1999 season. The old traditions of Jeannette football remain,
but in a new-look setting with all the modern conveniences.
The old cinder track has been replaced with a new all-weather surface, new restroom
and concession facilities have been constructed, along with a new press box. The new
stadium should seat close to 4,200 people.
``McKee was always a nice place to play a high school game,'' Tragesser said. ``The
surface of the field was always as good as you could get for grass. We always played
well there. It was just a nice place to play.''
Although the physical appearance of McKee Stadium has changed, one thing that
remains constant is the love of football in the Jeannette community.
``It's one of the last spots where it's still (the city's) high school,'' said Hoak. ``It's a way
of life in Jeannette. We were brought up that way.''
``There's something about this town ... it has a spirit that's so prevalent in this
community,'' said Mucci. ``I love this caliber of town, this caliber of the community, and
above all working with the children and youngsters of Jeannette has been just a
wonderful, wonderful experience.''
A banquet will be held tonight at Pitzer's in Jeannette, with members of all six
championship teams and several of the Jayhawks who went on to pro careers
attending. A reception will be held Friday before the season opener at the McKee
Middle School cafeteria and the former players will also be honored at McKee
Stadium before the game.
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