Elder Panther Football - 1954

First Row (l-r): Paul Kelly, Jerry Salamone, Tom Greiner, Bob Bushman, Brent Bleh, Frank Birri, Dick Royer. (Managers Joe Pope, Roger Robisch). Second Row: Ken Busch, Jack Elsaesser, Tom Groh, Jack Feldkamp, Jim Glatthaar, Ed Wandstrat, Dan James. Third Row: Father Bertke, Mike Honold, Mike Quinn, John Menkhaus, Ron Hausfeld, Tony Conte, Ray Bollhauer.

First Row (l-r): (Manager Frank Tepe), Dick Selcer, Joe Coffaro, Jerry Dirr, Pete Boeing, Don Andres, Joe Foote, Carl Feldman. Second Row: Dick Scott, Tom Brockhuis, John Peters, Lou Albers, Joe Schaffer, John Paschka, Don Bowling. Third Row: Paul Allison, Al Sayer, Tom Breuning, Bill Beck, Bob Reilly, Joe Cupito (Coaches Mr. Scardina, Mr. Ruberg).

 

REGULAR SEASON RECORD: 10-0

 
Game #
Date
Opponent
Site
Score
W/L
Record
1
9/17/54
Chillicothe
H
32-14
W
1-0
2
9/24/54
Hamilton Public
H
21-0
W
2-0
3
10/1/54
New Woodward
H
59-6
W
3-0
4
10/8/54
Portsmouth Public
A
28-0
W
4-0
5
10/16/54
Culver Military Academy
A
25-13
W
5-0
6
10/22/54
Dayton Chaminade
UD
46-0
W
6-0
7
10/31/54
St. Xavier
XU
27-12
W
7-0
8
11/6/54
Purcell
H
27-7
W
8-0
9
11/13/54
Roger Bacon
A
26-6
W
9-0
10
11/25/54
Western Hills
H
28-7
W
10-0

Head Coach: Virgil J. Scardina (Career Record: 14-5-1)

Captains: Dick Royer, Dick Selcer 

Final GCL Standings

 

Overall
League

1. ELDER
10-0
3-0

2. Purcell
7-2
2-1

3. Roger Bacon
4-5
1-2

4. St. Xavier
4-5
0-3

Season Highlights: The 1954 Panthers entered the record books as Elder's first undefeated and untied team. In Coach Scardina's second season as head coach, the team trounced 10 opponents, picking up 319 points on a record-setting 39 rushing TDs and 48 total TDs. Senior Co-Captain Dick Selcer led the offense at quarterback, tossing 6 touchdown passes and scoring 11 TDs himself. Senior Halfback Paul Kelly was the season scoring leader with 12 TDs and 3 conversions for 75 points. Danny James anchored the defense, which allowed only 65 points on the year and not more than 2 TDs in any game. The defense recovered 17 opponents' fumbles and intercepted 14 passes on the season, including 6 interceptions against Chaminade.

Throughout the season, numerous players stepped up to lead the team to victory. In Game 1, Chillicothe was held to only 4 first downs while the Panthers picked up 370 yards on offense. Paul Kelly and future coach and athletic director Mike Honold each scored 2 touchdowns. Against Hamilton, Kelly and Honold both gained 109 yards on the ground, with Kelly scoring a TD on a 65-yard run. Seven Panthers scored TDs in the Woodward game; junior Joe Cupito picked up six points on a 30-yard interception return. Against Portsmouth, the teams battled scoreless in the first half, but the Panthers pulled away in the second half with 4 unanswered scores.

Quarterback Dick Selcer rushed for 99 yards while the team gained 328 yards on the ground to top the Cadets from Culver Military. At Dayton Stadium, junior Bill Beck picked up 133 yards rushing and two TDs to lead the team to a shutout victory over Chaminade. Senior Pete Boeing led the way with 137 yards rushing in the win over St. Xavier, and junior Frank Birri ran for a 55-yard TD and 144 total yards to give Purcell their first GCL setback in four years. In Game 9, the leadership again returned to Kelly (129 yards) and Honold (97 yards), while the defense recovered 4 Spartan fumbles to seal the GCL Championship for the Panthers for the first time since 1941. The City Championship and first undefeated and untied season were secured on Thanksgiving Day when the Panthers defeated Western Hills, 28-7, on scores by Kelly, Selcer, Boeing, and Lou Albers. Not to be overlooked, kicker Carl Feldman kicked 28 points after touchdowns during the season, bringing his career total to 39.

Quarterback Selcer, Center James, and Tackle and Co-Captain Dick Royer were named Enquirer and Post first-team All-Stars. Dick Selcer was the Enquirer's Back of the Year, and Coach Scardina was named Coach of the Year. James and Selcer received first-team All-State recognition from the United Press, while the state sportswriters gave Selcer and Royer first-team recognition, placing James on the second team. (James went on to star at Ohio State, and played for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Chicago Bears in the NFL. Selcer quarterbacked at Notre Dame, was Xavier's head football coach from 1970-71, and coached in the NFL for the Bengals, St. Louis Rams, and Detroit Lions. Joe Schaffer attended the University of Tennessee and played 14 games for the NFL's Buffalo Bills.)

Team Roster

Number

Name
Position
Class
34

Albers, Louis
E
Sr.
53

Allison, Paul
G
Sr.
26

Andres, Don

Jr.
20

Beck, William
HB
Jr.
25

Birri, Frank
HB
Jr.
29

Bleh, Brent

Jr.
27

Boeing, Pete
FB
Sr.
47

Bollhauer, Raymond

Jr.

Bowling, Don

Sr.

Brockhuis, Tom
T
Jr.
30

Bruening, Tom

Sr.

Busch, Ken

Jr.
23

Bushman, Bob

Sr.
31

Coffaro, Joe

Jr.
37

Conte, Anthony
LB
Sr.
40

Cupito, Joe

Jr.
36

Dirr, Jerry

Sr.
51

Elsaesser, Jack

Jr.
57

Feldkamp, John
HB
Jr.
35

Feldman, Carl
K/G
Sr.
50

Foote, Joe

Sr.
55

Glatthaar, Jim

Jr.
43

Greiner, Thomas

Jr.
33

Groh, Thomas
E/S
Jr.
39

Hausfeld, Ronald

Sr.
28

Honold, Michael
FB
Jr.
54

James, Dan
C/LB
Sr.
21

Kelly, Paul
HB
Sr.
45

Kurtz, Gordon

Sr.
38

Menkhaus, John

Jr.
50

Paschka, John
HB
Jr.
46

Peters, John

Sr.
42

Quinn, Michael

Sr.
41

Reilly, Robert
MG
Sr.
48

Royer, Richard
T/DE
Sr.
22

Salamone, Jerry

Sr.
52

Sayer, Al
LB
Sr.
32

Schaffer, Joseph
E
Sr.

Scott, Richard
T
Sr.
24

Selcer, Richard
QB
Sr.

Vogt, Jim

Soph.

Wainscott, Ron

Soph.

Wandstrat, Ed
MG
Jr.

No. of Players
43
 

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