Great Pennsylvania Teams
By Hal Wilson
KULPMONT 1938
In 1938, Kulpmont, a long narrow anthracite town in southeastern Northumberland County, playing in the Eastern Conference, fielded one of the great coal region teams. Veteran and talented, the Wildcats swept through a ten game regular season schedule, then buried Ferndale, the Western Conference representative, 50-19 in the East-West playoff, leading 50-7 before clearing their bench for the final time. Star Wildcat halfback Joe Pezelski had scored six touchdowns during the frigid afternoon in Kulpmont.
Mike Terry’s Wildcats handed Mt. Carmel its only 1938 loss, hammering the Tornadoes 25-2. Mt. Carmel had shut out Harrisburg William Penn 19-0 and played a scoreless tie with Shamokin, both stalwarts of the Big 15.
Halfback Joe Pezelski, swift and shifty, totalled 133 points for the season. He scored three touchdowns each against Coal Township, Hazle Township and Shenandoah, in addition to his six in the East-West game. His career point total was 212.
Fellow halfback Steve Filipowicz was a triple-threat who could run, throw and punt. At 5-8, 185, he was a driving ball carrier who also tallied three TD’s in the romp over Coal. Against Ferndale, Steve, a javelin man in the Spring, completed a pass to Earl Reese who lateraled to Sam Brazinski who ran for a touchdown on a play that covered 73 yards.
Brazinski, center and a demon defender, returned pass interceptions for long touchdowns in the Mt. Carmel Township and Mt. Carmel games.
While Kulpmont had experience at many positions, starting linemen Al Barkowski, Ed Kaminski and Pete Anoia were sophomores, and fullback Warren Jones was a freshman.
At unbeaten Scranton Tech after four easy wins, the Wildcats faced Aldo Cenci, Tech’s 225 pound fullback. Cenci tore up the Wildcat defense early, putting the heavy Tech unit ahead 6-0, but Kulpmont stiffened, scored twice in the second quarter, and won, 13-6.
At Danville, with Pezelski, Filipowicz and Anoia all out with injuries, the Wildcats scored three times in the second quarter to win 19-0.
The Mt. Carmel and Ferndale games were played at Kulpmont’s new home field. The Mt. Carmel showdown found the gridiron barren and water-soaked. 7,000 watched. Brazinski blocked a punt in the first two minutes and returned it 29 yards for a touchdown. Through much of the rest of the first half, the Wildcats punted on first down. Filipowicz’ toe was outstanding. The score was 6-0 at the half.
In the second half, a Kulpmont miscue helped Mt. Carmel record a safety. Then the Wildcats rolled as Pezelski ran a Tornado punt back 40 yards for a TD. Mt. Carmel had one first down all afternoon.
On Thanksgiving Day at highly-touted Lewistown, the Wildcats won 14-0 in a raging storm. Snow was ankle deep. Again Filipowicz punting was critical. From the Panther 30, Filipowicz threw to a wide-open Pezelski at the 20 who ran the rest of the way for a TD.
When Ferndale from suburban Johnstown arrived for the title game, they found a field covered with puddles from earlier rain that had turned to ice. Sawdust was scattered to make the field “playable”. Despite the cold and threatening weather, 5,000 attended.
Outweighed Ferndale battled valiantly, but theYellowjackets were overwhelmed by the Wildcats. First downs favored Kulpmont 15-7. Pezelski’s six TD’s came on three runs, two passes and a 48 yard punt return.
Mike Terry had taken over as Kulpmont coach in 1932, the third year of Wildcat football. He stayed until lured to rival Mt. Carmel in 1947. Before the days of Kulpmont High School, Terry, who lived in Kulpmont, was a star on Mt. Carmel’s 1927 East-West champions, scoring the touchdown in a 7-6 win over Western representative Bellefonte. He then went on to play for Villanova before returning to Kulpmont.
Today, quarterback Bob Balent describes Terry as a very able coach who could be “explosive” when necessary. Team member Tom Brennan says that “ Terry got the most out of a boy. He could not only tell us what should be done – he could demonstrate.” Manager Charlie Zlocki calls Terry a “ tough taskmaster”.
The Wildcats ran their offense from a basic T formation, shifting into the Notre Dame box left or right. Balent and Jones were the blockers with “Hurricane Halfback” Pezelski and “Farmer” Filipowicz alternating at the tailback spot.
Kulpmont’s great 1938 lineup:
E 23 Earl REESE 6-2 150
T 5 Al BARKOWSKI 5-11 170
G 4 Ed KAMINSKI 5-10 175
C 26 Sam BRAZINSKI 6-1 185
G 19 Pete ANOIA 5-11 175
T 8 Ed STAVENSKI 6-1 205
E 24 Ed MARCINCAVAGE 5-9 145
Q 14 Bob BALENT 5-10 150
H 13 Joe PEZELSKI 5-10 160
H 2 Steve FILIPOWICZ 5-8 185
F 15 Warren JONES 5-10 160
22 Ralph MIRIELLO, 5-7, 160, started the season at fullback but became ineligible after the seventh game when he reached the PIAA’s 20 year age limit. Coincidentally, Ferndale had lost its starting fullback, Tercik, late in the season due to the same age rule. Ferndale had beaten powerhouse Windber, 8-0, in their season opener.
As key reserves, Harry ARANT completed a 65 yard pass-run touchdown play to Tony NEZERSKI in the Coal Township game.
Joe WASCAVAGE and Frank OSIEL were able linemen who played well when injuries sidelined starters.
The perfect 1938 Wildcat season:
34 SHENANDOAH 0
19 ASHLAND 7
54 COAL TOWNSHIP 13
46 HAZLE TOWNSHIP 0
13 SCRANTON TECH 6
19 DANVILLE 0
24 MT. CARMEL TWP. 0
14 NORTHUMBERLAND 0
25 MT. CARMEL 2
14 LEWISTOWN 0
EAST-WEST PLAYOFF
50 FERNDALE 19
After the Ferndale victory, there was some talk of a post-season contest with unbeaten Hazleton, the best in the Big 15 , or even McKeesport, AA champion of the WPIAL, but no game was arranged.
Steve Filipowicz later starred for the Fordham Rams, including 60 minutes in the Rams’ 2-0 Sugar Bowl win over Missouri after the 1941 season. Following World War II, he played for both the NFL New York Giants and the major league baseball New York Giants, a unique distinction.
Pezelski and Brazinski went on to Villanova where both became key parts of good Wildcat teams, with Brazinski ( playing as Bray ) at center and Pezelski as the breakaway halfback.
Big Ed Stavenski, called “Truck” by his teammates, enrolled at Duquesne and was a tackle for the unbeaten untied 1941 Dukes. Bob Balent went west to San Francisco after Army Air Force service in World War II. Injuries forced him home and he completed a teaching education at Bloomsburg. He and Stavenski co-coached the perfect record 1951 Kulpmont team that beat Coal Township’s defending Eastern Conference champions 20-0.
Al Barkowski played as a 175 pound guard at Villanova, while Kaminski became an honored lineman at San Francisco.
In the mid 40’s, Mike Terry’s Wildcats won 25 straight games, beginning with the 1944 opener, and extending through the 1945 season to a scoreless tie with Berwick in 1946. The 1944 team, featuring halfback Joe Diminick, was a powerful and deep squad that lost out to Lansford in the final Eastern Conference Southern Division ratings.
In 1945, the unbeaten untied Wildcats led the Southern Division conference standings and defeated Larksville in Kulpmont for the Eastern crown. Big tackle Clem Tomaszewski, 6-1 and 220, was an All-State first teamer while converted lineman Bernie Barkowski was named second team fullback.
Barkowski later starred at guard for Pitt and was a 1949 All-American.
Terry died of a heart attack after Mt. Carmel’s final 1961 game, a victory over Shamokin.
Diminick, taking the Mt. Carmel reins after Terry’s death, became one of the state’s legendary coaches.
After the 1952 season, Stavenski became the sole head coach and mentored the Wildcats through the 1963 season. Kulpmont became part of the Mt. Carmel jointure in 1964.
First row. L. to R. Joe Litwin, Al Barkowski, Joe Wascavage, Bob Brennan, Warren Jones, Dan Peloski, Ed Bigus, Joe Wozney, Joe Fedock, Tom Brennan, Vince Chesney.
Second row. L. to R. Sam Brazinski, Al Koharski, Ed Kaminski, Steve Filipowicz, Ralph Miriello, Bob Balent, Joe Pezelski, Tony Benedetto, Tony Nezerski, Ed Marcincavage, Pete Anoia.
Third row. L. to R. Assistant coach Al Ruzgis, Jack Marietta, Ed Stavenski, Harry Arant, Frank Osiel, Bob Pupo, Casper Hoffer, Ken Wilson, Ed Kupchick, Earl Reese, Head coach Mike Terry.
Fourth row. L. to R. Frank Whalen, Charles Linetty, Joe Dallatore, Joe Buchkowski, Assistant coach Felix Kadel, Len Demidovich, Bill Scully, Dan Klokis, Jim Hanlon, Jim Ambrose, William McCabe, Lou Papp.