La Salle College High School Football:
In Retrospect
NOTE: This is the ninth of, I hope, many retrospectives highlighting some unique history
of the football program at La Salle. The topics to discuss seem endless at this time.
Hope you enjoy these.
Bill Wasylenko, ‘69
Issue Number Nine: Thanksgiving Football Memories
On Thanksgiving Day of 1958, at the tender age of 6, I returned home at high noon from
Nazareth Hospital, leaving my tonsils behind during a 3-day visit. My Mom greeted me
with open arms, welcoming me home from my ordeal, and then I marched straight to our
lone TV set, located in the dining room at the time. That was my highest priority, because
the Detroit Lions were hosting the Green Bay Packers on CBS.
During the 60’s, as first a grade-schooler and then a La Salle boy, I walked two blocks
from my house to the Northeast-Central Turkey Day game with my dad and my Uncle
Mike; my dad went to Central, and his brother went to Northeast. We never paid to get in,
choosing to keep our fifty cents in our pockets to watch the game from beyond the fence.
A family of tightwads.
Later in life, living in Warminster, I remember going to an Upper Moreland – HatboroHorsham game, and a Central Bucks East – Central Bucks West game, and as an outsider,
I enjoyed being out in the crisp air of a Thanksgiving morning watching football; it was a
great start to a very enjoyable day.
I started going to La Salle sporting events again in 2001, and went to several
Thanksgiving games against St. Joe’s Prep, all losses until a magical day in 2005, when
the Explorers upset the heavily favored Hawks, 14-13. Little did I know at the time that
this would be the last Thanksgiving game for La Salle, save for a 2007 game against
Bishop McDevitt. Having been away for so long, I assumed that a Thanksgiving game for
the Explorers had happened since the beginning of organized football! It finally dawned
on me that there were no Explorer Thanksgiving games during my own La Salle years!!
Based on what I’ve unearthed, La Salle’s first Thanksgiving game was not against the
Hawks; on Thursday, November 27, 1919, at 10 AM at Strawbridge & Clothier Field at 63 rd
and Walnut Streets, La Salle played West Catholic for the first time ever, and won the
game, 13-9. They followed that up the next year at Cahill Field by defeating favored
Villanova Prep, 12-0, as QB Donovan Rochford (great first name for a quarterback!)
rushed for both touchdowns.
It was 8 more years until La Salle played Burlington NJ in 1928, then the PA School for the
Deaf in 1929 and 1930, and Gratz in 1933 and 1934. Their first “traditional” rivalry started
with Germantown in 1945. The Bears were also known colloquially as the “Clivedens”;
somehow, rooting for a Cliveden escapes me; I’m sure it’s a part of local history.
1945 was quite a significant
year to start a Thanksgiving
football tradition; that
Thanksgiving Day in the year
that the war ended was, I’m
sure, extremely special for so
many families. There were
many longstanding Turkey
Day rivalries already in place
between high schools, and La
Salle and Germantown
seemed to be a natural fit.
The Explorers and the Bears played a game on that Thursday for three years, and then the
rivalry paused for an unknown reason. La Salle battled Bridgeton NJ in 1949, but the
Germantown game picked up again in 1953, only to cease forever after the 1957 game,
won by La Salle, 39-6. The Explorers won 7 of the 8 games against Germantown.
Of note in the 1954 tussle was the presence of #46, a senior halfback for the Bears on his
way to Temple and to greater fame. He returned a punt for a touchdown in that game.
In those Germantown years, La Salle played for the City Title twice (1955 & 1957), but well
after Thanksgiving, so there was no concern that the Turkey Day game would pose a
scheduling problem; at least, for now.
From the late 50’s through 1970, there were no Thanksgiving games for La Salle, except
for one lone game against Monsignor Bonner in 1963. The Catholic League was
expanding with new high schools opening up, and, as of 1963, La Salle’s schedule
outside of the newly-created Northern Division of the Catholic League would feature
early-season battles against Southern Division ancient rivals West Catholic, St. Joe’s
Prep, as well as Monsignor Bonner on occasions. Powerful Neshaminy was also an earlyseason foe, but the seasons ended without a Thanksgiving Day game.
In 1971, a Thanksgiving Day game was played for the first time since 1957, against
Roxborough. This, however, was just a one-year “tradition”, and Thanksgiving Day
games were put on the back burner for several more years.
Finally, in 1976, a tradition started that had traction. St. Joe’s Prep, the ancient enemy,
was in the Southern Division, and a Thanksgiving Day game was held, and won by La
Salle, 27-0. The venue for a while was Springfield High School, as La Salle had started a
transition from McCarthy Stadium for most of their home games. At some point, this
newly-minted tradition between the two schools anointed a game MVP with a trophy, and
a perennial team trophy was created to be kept by the winning school for the next 12
months. And it seemed as though this tradition would be one for the ages.
The next 3 games were tight affairs: 1977 saw La Salle win, 19-13, but lose in 1978 on a
field goal, 3-0. The Explorers eked out a 15-14 Turkey Day win in 1979, and won four more
in a row before losing in 1984 to the Prep in Tex Flannery’s last game, 16-0. Below are
some pictures and snippets of those Thanksgiving Day games vs. the Prep:
1983
1982
1987
After the upset victory over Prep
1986
Stanczak
Gibson
Colistra
1990
1994
Kevin Schmidt and Keith Conlin after Prep game
1995
2005
Turkey hasn’t tasted this good since 1998. That’s the last time La Salle was able
to beat the hated rival Prep. This game sent shockwaves throughout the city,
signaling the end of a hated Empire.
The Explorers were the only team to strike in the second half. They scored on a
great pass from John Harrison to a wide open Drew Wilkins, who caught his 4th TD
catch on the season.
Keith Lachawiec Thanksgiving MVP
1998
OVERTIME… Prep won the toss and chose to play at the other end of the field. La
Salle had the possession of the ball first in overtime and the first play Harrison
threw it to none other than good old Jack Forster, who used his defensive skills to
rip the ball out of the Prep defender's hands. TOUCHDOWN LA SALLE! The
Extra Point was nailed by Ryan Cain, who has been solid for Joe Colistra all
season. So now it was Prep’s turn to take the ball from the 10 yard line, and on
second down, Jamir Livingston ran the ball for a touchdown. Tim Edger went out,
lined up the ball and somehow kicked the ball into the waiting backs of his line.
GAME OVER! EXPLORERS WIN! EXPLORERS WIN! All hell broke loose on the
sidelines and in the stands
yells of “holy crap we just beat Prep” and even occasional weeping could be heard
throughout the celebration.
Thanksgiving Triumph
Everyone who was pouring out from the Blue and Gold stands onto the field was
ecstatic. The La Salle Alma Mater has never been sung as loud before as it was
that day. While typing this it’s hard to put into words how great this meant to
everyone affiliated with La Salle, from the freshmen band members to the student
council, and even to the alumni. This feeling was not only felt by La Salle faithful,
but also many in the Catholic League. The first win in the 5 game win streak on
Thanksgiving Day (1999) was a 21-20 victory for the Prep, which signified the
changing of the Catholic League powerhouse, and this day is the end of the
empire and the changing of the Catholic League powerhouse.
LA SALLE ON THANKSGIVING DAY
There are many great rivalries that
have taken place on Thanksgiving.
Some are no more, but others
continue, and some new ones have
formed.. Here are some of those
rivalries:
Northeast – Central
Father Judge – Lincoln
North Catholic – Frankford
Archbishop Ryan – G. Washington
Neumann-Goretti – Southern
Conwell-Egan – Truman
Roman – Roxborough
Overbrook – West Philadelphia
Franklin – Dobbins
Frankford - Fels
Germantown - King
Pottstown – Owen J. Roberts
Hatboro-Horsham – Upper Moreland
Cheltenham – Abington
Pennridge – Quakertown
Interboro – Ridley
Easton-Philipsburg NJ
St. Joe’s Prep now has a Turkey Day
tussle with Malvern Prep.
And there are many families that
host their own Turkey Day football
game!
YEAR
OPPONENT
W/L
SCORE
1919
1920
1928
1929
1930
1933
1934
1945
1946
1947
1949
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1963
1971
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2004
2005
2007
WEST CATHOLIC
VILLANOVA PREP
BURLINGTON NJ
PA SCHOOL FOR DEAF
PA SCHOOL FOR DEAF
GRATZ
GRATZ
GERMANTOWN
GERMANTOWN
GERMANTOWN
BRIDGETON NJ
GERMANTOWN
GERMANTOWN
GERMANTOWN
GERMANTOWN
GERMANTOWN
MONSIGNOR BONNER
ROXBOROUGH
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
ST. JOE'S PREP
BISHOP MCDEVITT
W
W
W
L
W
L
L
W
W
L
L
W
W
W
W
W
W
W
W
W
L
W
W
W
W
W
L
W
L
W
W
W
W
W
W
L
W
W
W
L
W
L
L
L
L
L
W
W
13-9
12-0
19-0
0-9
14-6
0-25
0-20
24-6
32-14
0-6
13-15
20-6
13-7
33-0
32-13
39-6
20-0
20-12
27-0
19-13
0-3
15-14
27-14
9-0
3-0
20-0
0-16
20-8
13-24
22-0
22-21
16-0
21-0
42-0
17-7
0-13
28-6
35-9
17-14
16-20
13-9
20-21
14-27
6-35
3-24
6-27
14-13
34-7
OVERALL RECORD:
33-15-0
Changes In the Wind
By the late 90’s, the Catholic League was changing. Certain schools became smaller and
smaller, and these smaller schools found it difficult to compete on the gridiron with
larger enrollment schools. In 1999, Northern and Southern divisions aligned by
geography were now replaced by Red and Blue, aligned by enrollment. After being in
opposite divisions since 1963, La Salle and St. Joe’s Prep were now squaring off in the
regular season as Red Division members. Though the unique matchup of Thanksgiving
Day was compromised by a regular season battle as well, it gave the loser of the first
game a chance to even things up at the end of the season.
But by 1999, the Hawks had become a powerhouse, and swept the regular-season and
the Turkey Day battles between 1999 and 2002. And then, the inevitable happened.
In 2003, the Explorers lost an early-season game to the Hawks, 37-0, but they strung
together a 4-game win streak to head into the playoffs on a roll. They defeated the
Raiders of Archbishop Ryan in a quarterfinal game, 28-14, setting up a semifinal game
against, you guessed it, St. Joe’s Prep. If the Thanksgiving game was to be played, it
would mean that the two schools would lock horns 3 times! Though the playoff game
didn’t coincide with Thanksgiving Week, it was decided to cancel the Turkey Day game
for this year.
The 2004 and 2005 seasons resumed the Thanksgiving rivalry, with a most memorable
overtime win for the Explorers in 2005, 14-13. Little did we know that this would be the
end, at least for now, of the La Salle/St. Joe’s Turkey Day rivalry.
In 2006, La Salle survived a late-season slump to win an overtime quarterfinal game
against Cardinal O’Hara, 39-38, and then they dispatched Roman, 28-7, setting up a
Catholic League Red Division Championship game against their ancient enemy, St. Joe’s
Prep.
But this time, the championship game was scheduled for Thanksgiving Saturday,
meaning that the rivals would play two games in three days!! This was resolved by a
compromise, with just the Championship game to be played on Friday instead.
Many of us who were at Charlie Martin Stadium that night still can’t believe that La Salle
stopped the Hawks 4 times within the 1-yard line to win the Catholic League Red Division
Championship, 14-7. And though it wasn’t a Thanksgiving Day game, it was a portent of
things to come.
St. Joe’s Prep ended the Thanksgiving Day rivalry by scheduling a new opponent,
Malvern Prep, for 2007. La Salle countered by scheduling neighborhood rival, Bishop
McDevitt. And the Explorers beat the Royal Lancers, 34-7, to end, for now, La Salle’s
Turkey Day tussles.
The Catholic League entered the PIAA in 2008, and La Salle was in the Quad A (AAAA)
Division, the one with the largest enrollment. The Explorers won the Catholic League,
but were upset by George Washington in the City Title game, 23-14, the week before
Thanksgiving. The one-year rivalry against McDevitt dissolved, as the 2008 game was
cancelled after the PIAA loss to GW.
On Thanksgiving Saturday in 2009, La Salle got revenge against the Eagles of GW with a
31-20 win at Northeast High School, setting up their run to the State Championship three
weeks later with wins against Easton, Ridley, and State College. A game against
McDevitt on Turkey Day suddenly seemed trite.
La Salle’s recent playoff fortunes have carried the seasons into December. The
fortuitous playoff schedule gave them a bye during Thanksgiving weekend from 2010 to
2012, and they capitalized on that rest with resounding victories in State Quarterfinal
games against opponents from the Lehigh Valley. Thanksgiving Day mornings at
McCarthy Stadium were now a long ago memory.
Thanksgiving and Homecoming
One benefit of the Thanksgiving Day game was an opportunity to host a Homecoming,
both at the game itself, and at La Salle the night before. I was at several of these in the
mid-2000’s, and getting together with up to 15 of my 1969 classmates was a real treat.
Knowing that I would also see others at McCarthy Stadium the next day was exciting as
well, and that doubleheader of enjoyment kept a smile on my face throughout all of
Thursday.
Traditions change, though, and the 2010 Homecoming picnic before the Bonner game,
celebrating the 1960 team, was a new festive event that may have begun its own
tradition. And I thoroughly enjoyed that experience as well, with the current version of
the Explorers frying the Friars of Bonner, 28-0, in front of 23 members of the 1960 City
Champions. 2011 saw the 1989 team feted, and 2012 celebrated the induction of the
1957 team into the new La Salle Hall Of Athletics.
And I think back to 1958, coming home from the hospital, my own Homecoming if you
will, and watching the Lions play the Packers on TV in a traditional matchup, thinking
that this was always the way it was. Those traditions changed, too: the Lions play, but
against different teams now; they have been futile over the last several decades, and
overtures have been made to drum them out of the early game. Dallas started a Turkey
Day game in the late 60’s, and gives me an opportunity to root for any team that could
beat them. And a night game has been added with a revolving host team; the Eagles
were a home team on Thanksgiving night a few years ago.
So, La Salle has no Thanksgiving Day game now, as the PIAA playoffs are now front and
center for the successful Explorer teams. And though those mornings at Springfield
High or McCarthy Stadium are no more, no one can take away our memories, especially
after a win against St. Joe’s Prep; the turkey somehow tasted better that day!!
One more thought:
Thanksgiving: The Last Game
For many years, especially for those seasons that did not bring home any hardware, the
Thanksgiving Day game was assured to be the last game of the year. For the seniors, it
very often was the last game of their lives. For those of you who didn’t play football,
think about that for a moment: the last game of their lives.
I can only imagine what that must feel like, if a senior contemplates that before the game.
You’ll do anything you possibly can to make that last game your best, because you’ll
remember it forever. If you’re a sub, your opportunity to get into that last game will be
something you’ll treasure for the rest of your life.
I can only imagine what it’s like in the locker room before that game, with the butterflies
for just one more time, wanting the game to start, but wanting it to never end.
But it does come to an end, and the Explorer record on Turkey Day (33-15-0) indicates
many happy endings to a senior’s career. And most special would be the seasons where
the team had a losing record, or needed a win against St. Joe’s to get to .500. And those
kinds of wins occurred in 1977, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1985, and 1987. The win against
McDevitt in 2007 was another. What a way to end your career!
On several Turkey Day games in the 2000’s, I walked down after the game to stand in
front of the band after the handshakes with the ancient enemy, and watched the team
come over for the Alma Mater. And I saw seniors with tears streaming down their faces,
and I cried, too, because I sensed what they were going through at that time.
You can’t play football forever. There certainly were times that you may have wanted to
give it up, but you stuck it out, and now you just don’t want it to end, but it does. BUT IT
ONLY ENDS ON THE FIELD! IT WILL NEVER END IN YOUR HEARTS, AND IN YOUR
MEMORIES! AND ALL OF THE DIFFICULT TIMES GET WASHED AWAY AFTER THAT
FINAL GUN, AND YOUR MEMORIES START TO CONSTRUCT A MONUMENT TO YOUR
INTERACTIONS WITH YOUR COACHES, YOUR TEAMMATES, AND YOUR FAMILIES, AND
THE FRATERNITY THAT FOLLOWS WILL BE WITH YOU FOREVER!
And your legacy will always be remembered at La Salle, as future generations of 9 th
graders show up on their first day of freshman football practice, wondering what could
possibly be in store for them at this new school. We can all let them know what they’re
in for!!
I hope you always enjoy your Thanksgiving with your families. For those of you who got
to play on a Turkey Day for La Salle, take a moment or two to remember that feeling.
I welcome your comments, corrections, and additions.
Go La Salle!!
Bill Wasylenko, ‘69
[email protected]
November 30, 2010, revised May 4, 2013
And a pitcher for the 2010 St. Joseph’s University Hawks is named Chad Simendinger,
from Salesianum High School in Newark, Delaware. In a write-up on the Hawk website,
Chad pitches well in a game against Fordham, picking up a win on May 9, 2010. Maybe
he pitched that day more like Cy Young than Cy Simendinger; after all, our Cy was an
outfielder, but boy, could he hit.
Ken “Cy”
Simendinger,
La Salle High,
1918
Ken
Simendinger,
Northeast
Catholic, 1930’s
Theodore John
Simendinger, Jr.,
La Salle High,
1943
PS: In addition to his playing
and coaching exploits, Cy
Simendinger referreed this La
salle – St. James tussle on
Sunday, October 6, 1946 at
Lloyd Field in Chester, won by
La Salle, 12-0.
Please let me know if you know more about
La Salle’s first legendary 3-sport athlete,
Cy Simendinger.
I welcome your comments, corrections, and additions.
Go La Salle!!
Bill Wasylenko, ‘69
[email protected]
September 28, 2010, revised April 19, 2013
Chad
Simendinger,
SJU Hawks,
2010