1982

1st in Division II Region 7

Ranked 3rd in AP Poll, 2nd in UPI Poll

 

 

 

BR	1982 Hedmond	OPP
26	Kiski Area Pa.	8
37	Cleveland John F. Kennedy	8
55	Cleveland Glenville	0
18	@ Dover	13
34	Columbus Marion Franklin	0
33	Beaver Local	6
27	Wintersville	0
45	Bellaire	7
19	Youngstown East	0
19	Steubenville Catholic Central	7
2	Youngstown Cardinal Mooney	13
315	10-1-0	62

Regional Final, Friday November 12th, 1982, Big Red (10-0) vs. Youngstown Cardinal Mooney Cardinals (7-2) at Death Valley.

Big Red will not continue its season next week and the season is no longer a perfect one, but players and fans of Steubenville High School have no reason to hang their heads. The Big Red football season was ended on a slippery and cold Harding Stadium turf Friday night when Youngstown Cardinal Mooney came away with a 13-2 victory in an opening round Ohio playoff contest.

But the win was a struggle for the visitors, to say the least, unlike last years affair in Austintown. Fans still have a hard time forgetting the 49-0 trouncing Steubenville took from the Cardinals last November, as Mooney moved the football with incredible ease all evening. That was not the case this evening, however, as Mooney could manage just 1 first down in the entire first half. The Cardinals turned the game around in the 2nd half, though, banging at the Big Red defense on the ground for 10 first downs. Steubenville managed just 3 first downs in the 2nd half, 2 of which came in the final seconds of the game. The 1st half of the game proved to be the land of missed opportunities for Big Red. Twice in the 2nd quarter the Big Red offense moved inside the Mooney 5-yard line, but could only come away with just 2 points, those the courtesy of an error by a Mooney defender. On a 2nd down from the 7-yard line with 1:51 left in a scoreless half, Andre Creech spotted Clint Watts in the endzone. His pass deflected off Watt's hands and into the hands of Cardinal defender John Dascenzio. Dascenzio, undecided whether to run the football out or not, inadvetently stepped across the goal line and was touched for a confusing 2 point safety. The error forced Mooney to kick the ball from its own 20-yard line. Rick Shepas' punt was fielded by Mike Mayo, who returned the ball to the Mooney 47-yard line with 1:44 left to play in the half. Watts caught an 8 yard pass and Ben Wiggins brooke loose for a 7 yard run to the Mooney 32-yard line. Fighting the clock, Big Red moved downfield. On a 3rd down and 8 from the 30, Creech found Wiggins open over the middle at the 10. He stormed forward to the 4-yard line as the throng of 8,354 frantically waved their red flags. The next play from scrimmage deflated those fans and was one of the key plays of the game. With 35 seconds left in the half, Creech dropped straight back to pass and was hit immediately. The ball popped loose and Kevin Koken dove on it for the Cardinals at the 12, killing the threat.

As the teams entered the locker rooms at the half, the statistics favored Steubenville in overwhelming fashion. The vaunted Mooney rushing attack had just 24 yards and the Cardinal offense had just 36 total yards. Big Red, on the other hand, had 96 yards rushing and 78 more through the air. Still, the lead was only 2-0. The second half got started and it appeared a different Mooney team was on the field. After forcing a Big Red punt, the Cardinals took the ball and moved it deep in to Big Red territory. The lone Mooney threat of the 1st half had come on a Big Red mistake. A snap sailed too high for punter Jeff Linn to handle. He was buried at his own 29-yard line, but the Big Red defense stiffened, setting the tone for the entire first half. But here it was different. Starting at its own 32, Mooney went straight to the rushing game, primarily right up the middle. John Klein, who was the Cardinals' leading rusher on the night with 22 carries for 67 yards, did most of the ball carrying. The Redbirds kept the ball for 11straight plays, not throwing the ball once, and got down to the Big Red 29-yard line. Klein carried for a yard on 1st down and quarterback Jon Saady carried for 5 more. When Dennis Sarisky was stopped a yard short on 3rd down at the 20, Mooney brought in its short yardage offense. Klein took the handoff, but was stacked up by a determined Big Red defense and the Cardinal drive was snuffed. With six minutes left in the 3rd period, it appeared Big Red would turn the momentum around again. After 2 runs presented Steubenville with a first down, Linn was forced to punt again. It was then the Mooney got the big play it was waiting for all night. On 1st down from its own 41-yard line, Mooney tried throwing the ball. Saadey dropped back and found his favorite receiver, Rick Shepas, open for a short gain. Shepas faked defender Tor Hill, though, and brooke loose downfield until he was hauled down at the Big Red 17-yard line. Sarisky and Klein carried for 3 plays, bringing the ball to the 1-yard line, and Klein dove over for the score. When Daniel Shannon's kick was wide to the left, Mooney had a 6-2 lead with 2:44 left in the quarter.

The momentum was obviously in the Cardinals favor and Big Red needed something to turn it around. On the final play of the 3rd quarter, Big Red received a break after the offense was forced to punt again. Robert Taylor fumbled the ball at his own 29, with Linn diving on it for Steubenville. As the final quarter began, Big Red was presented with a golden opportunity to regain the lead. On a 3rd and 8 from the 27, Creech was apparently caught in the backfield, but slithered away and rambled 12 yards to the 15. Two running plays brought the ball to the 10. On 3rd down, Creech dropped straight back and found Watts crossing over the middle in the endzone. He had the ball, but dropped it and the fans groaned in disbelief. A 4th down pass to Neal Hudson sailed out of bounds and the drive was thwarted. With 9:20 left to play, the teams traded punts and Mooney got the ball back with 5:24 left to play. The next time Big Red would see the ball, the game would be over and done with. The Cardinals drove 62 yards in 15 plays, primarily on the ground. The lone pass of the drive was a 12 yard toss to Mark Braydich on a 3rd down to keep the drive alive. Braydich's reception brought the ball to the 32-yard line. Klein carried the ball twice for 8 yards and Sarisky burrowed into the line for 3 yards a crack. With just 21 seconds to play, Klein concluded the drive with a 1-yard plunge. Big Red had exhausted its timeouts and its season as Brian Maruschak booted the extra point for a 13-2 lead. As the crowd sat silent in the stands, Big Red ran off the final 2 plays of its season. A roughing the passer penalty brought the ball to the Mooney 45-yard line, and on the final play of the game, Creech scrambled downfield again. He picked up 28 yards before being tackled from behind and Big Red's season was over as the Mooney faithful stormed the field.

Creech led Big Red rushers with 15 carries for 93 yards. He passed for 78 yards as well, all in the first half. Ben Wiggins carried 7 times for 33 yards, Steve Hython 9 for 23 and John Baldwin 6 for 18. Sarisky carried 12 times for 45 yards to aid Mooney's ground game. Mooney improves to 8-2 and will continue to seek its fortune in the playoffs. But for Big Red fans, memories will have to suffice. And there are plenty of them.

 

 

1982~
John Baldwin rb
John Blangor wr
Bryan Bunch s
James Cain rb
Andre Creech qb
Bob Demjan g
Neil Hudson te
Steve Hython lb
Tom Kerr lb
Jeff Linn lb
Doug Milewsky c
Terry Mamula g
Frank Littlejohn wr
Don Perine c
Ray Poole t
Clifton Spinner t
Frank Torini t
Ray Talamine wr
Clinton Watts wr
Ben Wiggins rb
George Harper wr
Bob Boykin rb
George Busby t
Randy Birden wr
Dave Clark wr
Rich Crossley t
Doug Dalbenzio lb
Tor Hill db
Fred Kosanovic wr
Frank Marker t
Mike Mayo rb
Brian Morrow g
Shawn Needham db
John Prayso c
Ken Shively wr
Kevin Shively wr
Remo Stirpe wr
Ron Taglione c
Tim Villies qb
Paul Williams end
Shaun Williams t