Elder Panther Football - 1959

REGULAR SEASON RECORD: 8-2

 
Game #
Date
Opponent
Site
Score
W/L
Record
1
9/19/59
Hamilton Taft
A
48-0
W
1-0
2
9/25/59
Dayton Colonel White
H
14-6
W
2-0
3
10/2/59
Withrow
H
42-6
W
3-0
4
10/9/59
Chillicothe
H
42-0
W
4-0
5
10/16/59
Alliance
H
14-8
W
5-0
6
10/24/59
Steubenville Central Catholic
A
20-8
L
5-1
7
11/1/59
Roger Bacon
XU
8-6
W
6-1
8
11/8/59
St. Xavier
H
14-6
W
7-1
9
11/15/59
Purcell
H
20-14
L
7-2
10
11/26/59
Western Hills
H
12-0
W
8-2

Head Coach: Virgil J. Scardina (Career Record: 41-26-3)

Captains: Frank St. Charles, Harold ("Butch") Bedinghaus

Final GCL Standings

 
Overall
League

1. Roger Bacon
8-1
2-1

1. ELDER
8-2
2-1

1. Purcell
8-2
2-1

4. St. Xavier
2-6
0-3

Season Highlights: Under the leadership of Co-Captains Frank St. Charles and "Butch" Bedinghaus, Coach Scardina's 1959 Panthers opened the season with 5 straight victories, on their way to an 8-2 season and a tie for first in the GCL. Outscoring their first 5 opponents 160-20, the undefeated Panthers traveled to Steubenville to battle the 5-0 Central Catholic Crusaders. Crippled by four interceptions, Elder outgained Steubenville in total yardage 258-183, but the Crusaders came away with the victory, 20-8.

The Panthers faced the Roger Bacon Spartans at Xavier Stadium the following week, who were undefeated in their last 16 games. An estimated 15,500 fans watched the struggle. With only a safety to show for the first three quarters, the Panthers held the Spartans to one touchdown, and scored a touchdown of their own in the final three minutes of the game, on a 58-yard drive engineered by junior QB Steve Tensi, to notch the win. In the next game against St. Xavier, an injured Steve Tensi was replaced by Tom Bushman, who led the team on a 73-yard drive and scored the winning TD on a one-yard plunge.

Purcell proved to be too much for the Panthers to handle, and the Panthers lost to the Cavaliers, quarterbacked by future NFL Hall of Famer Roger Staubach, 20-14. Roger Bacon forced a three-way tie for the league title by defeating Purcell in the last week of the season; Elder finished the season with a 12-0 shutout over Western Hills, on scores by Jim Kain and Mickey Lynch. In the West High game, the Panthers overcame three fumbles and two interceptions with a fumble recovery by Toby Schiller and interceptions by Tom Brennan, Joe Pedoto, and future Panther head coach John Owens.

Bernie Austing led the team in tackles and was named the team's Most Valuable Offensive and Defensive Player. Quarterback Steve Tensi (who passed for 818 yards, going 54 for 137 and 6 TD passes) was named Most Valuable Offensive Player, and Harold Gramke (who had 51 tackles on the season) was named Most Valuable Defensive Player. "Butch" Bedinghaus led the team scoring with 58 points, on 9 TDs and 2 conversions.

 

Team Roster

Number

Name
Position
Class
71

Austing, Bernard
T
Sr.
66

Averbeck, Richard
G
Sr.
20

Bedinghaus, Harold

Sr.
58

Bertsch, James

Jr.
59

Brennan, Thomas

Jr.
7

Bushman, Thomas

Jr.
85

Coleman, James

Sr.
67

Day, Dennis
G
Sr.
72

Diers, Jack

Jr.
31

Elsaesser, Harry

Jr.

Franklin, Daniel

Jr.
57

Frede, James

Jr.
73

Fry, Harry
OT/DT
Sr.
10

Gramke, Harold
LB
Sr.

Hassett, James

Jr.

Hendy, David

Jr.
35

Hennekes, Robert

Jr.

Hester, Bernard

Jr.
69

Humpert, Kenneth

Jr.
51

James, Robert
C
Sr.
33

Jansing, Thomas
HB/CB
Sr.
40

Kain, James

Sr.

Klusman, Mark

Jr.
22

Link, George
HB
Sr.
44

Lynch, Michael

Jr.
82

Marx, Gerald

Sr.
27

Minneci, Charles

Sr.
29

Owens, John
S
Sr.
75

Pedoto, Joseph

Sr.
50

Plagge, Robert

Jr.

Reinert, Michael

Jr.
60

Reiring, Lawrence

Jr.
81

Rogers, Terry

Jr.
77

Roney, Joseph

Jr.
83

Schiller, Toby
OE
Sr.
61

Schutte, Howard
G
Sr.
70

St. Charles, Frank

Sr.

Suder, George

Jr.
53

Sullivan, William

Jr.
11

Tensi, Stephan

Jr.
12

Tepe, Lawrence
FB
Jr.
68

Weber, Jerome

Sr.
54

Westendorf, Jack

Jr.
65

Whelan, Frank
G
Sr.

No. of Players
44
 

Back to The 1950's
Go to The 1960's