Aug 27, 2017 7 min read

Jim Edwards was the kind of running back who could run over, through or around opponents.

He was the kind of wrestler who wasn’t satisfied with being good.

Edwards drove himself toward greatness.

But most of all, the 1982 Charleroi graduate’s legacy is of success, kindness and honor.

He was the kind of guy who commanded respect because he gave respect. He was a man among young boys.

“Jimmy Edwards was like my brother,” said Dave Grillo, who enjoyed a friendship with Edwards that began on the youth fields in the Mon Valley and carries through today. “He ate at our house and I ate at his.

“He was a quiet kid. He kept his head down and kept going. Jimmy was special all the way around.”

Grillo and Edwards started playing football together in 1972 with the Black Bulldogs, a community league team. They were teammates throughout their athletic careers.

Grillo recalls their families packing a station wagon to go to wrestling matches and sporting events.

“It was like a big family,” Grillo said.

Edwards, a member the Charleroi Sports Hall of Fame and the Mid-Mon Valley Sports Hall off Fame, has lived in Terra Haute, Ind., since graduating from Indiana State University and lettering three years as a running back for the Sycamores’ football team.

His athletic prowess at Charleroi is legendary. Edwards was an outstanding running back for the Cougars. He was a WPIAL champion wrestler and an integral part of the school’s only team section championship in 1980. And he could play a little baseball, too.

But most of all, he is revered because of his personality, style and work ethic.

“Obviously, it’s a privilege that people feel that way about me,” Edwards said. “When I entered the Mid-Mon Valley Hall of Fame, a lot of my friends, teachers, coaches, teammates and those in my support system came for me. That was just a great thing.

“It was just very nice.”

Grillo said when you name the great running backs in the Cougars history, Edwards stands with Lou Rawls, Phil Hughes, Darrell Harding and Marvin Smith.

“Those are the guys who I saw or know about through stories or reading about them,” said Grillo, a standout lineman at Charleroi and two-year letterman at Pitt. “Believe me, Jimmy is right there.”

Words and numbers speak to that.

As a junior, Edwards – who was 5-8 and 168 pounds – rushed for 1,052 yards, scored 23 touchdowns and was the Century Conference’s leading scorer.

In his senior season, he rushed for a then school-record 1,420 yards and scored 23 TDs with 138 points. The Cougars went 9-1 that season and won all six of their conference games. He teamed with fullback Willie Davis, who rushed for 1,334 yards that year.

Charleroi won its WPIAL opening-round playoff game, 10-7, over South Park, before falling to Jeannette, 13-0, at Latrobe.

Edwards was All-Century Conference, honorable mention all-state, and was a Big 33 nominee. He also garnered the YMCA Pittsburgh Outstanding Athlete Achievement award and Leslie Morgan Award for that season.

“The closeness we had as a group was what made those teams good,” Edwards said. “That togetherness and friendship is what helps make a special team. We all came up through the ranks together and it molded togetherness.

“I always was kind of a quiet guy,” he added. “I was never a me or rah-rah type of person. I loved the guys I played with and hung around with. I just always tried to put my best foot forward and give my best. My goals in football were always the same. I tried to score two to four touchdowns a game, strive to gain 100 yards a game and 1,000 yards for a season. I felt, if I could do that, our whole team was being successful and that collective effort would lead us to victories.”

Edwards, 54, is employed by Canteen – a national vending company. He has worked for Canteen for about 30 years.

After Indiana State, Edwards married his high school sweetheart, the former Devitta Bass – a Monessen native – in 1985. The couple have three daughters, Ashley, Chelsie and Regine Edwards Benton.

While Edwards labelled his college football career “a little disappointing,” he is proud to have played for the Sycamores after being moved from tailback to fullback.

“I think about it, and sometimes wonder if I should have made a different decision out of high school,” Edwards said. “The coaching staff didn’t communicate well with the running backs.

“Finally, one of the coaches came up to me and explained there were a couple of seniors ahead of me but they needed me on the field. They wanted me to switch positions to fulback. I bulked up, added some muscle and kind of stayed there and played out my career at the position. I was a four-year starter, but I didn’t like playing fullback much. I do have some good memories. We almost beat the Florida in my first collegiate start.”

Edwards beat most opponents on the wrestling mats in high school.

After near misses as a sophomore and junior, he finally won the WPIAL championship he coveted in his senior season.

As a sophomore, Edwards won the Big 10 Tournament and a section title at 167 pounds, finishing with a 29-3 record. The next year, he captured another section crown and advanced to the WPIAL finals, before losing to Mark Marshall of Burgettstown in the title bout. Edwards finished with a school-record 31 wins.

In his senior season of 1982, Edwards went 24-0 despite missing three weeks with a neck injury. He won the WPIAL championship at 167 by pinning Chris Homistek of Mapletown.

Edwards won his first bout in the PIAA Championships at Hershey before suffering a difficult second-round loss in double overtime on criteria. A consolation loss followed to end his wrestling career with an overall record of 85-6, a .934 winning percentage.

Edwards teamed with Grillo and Derek Santini, among others, to form that section championship wrestling team in 1980.

Grillo said Cougars coach Lee Hall would often rally the threesome to pull out a dual meet win, as they were the final three wrestlers in the Charleroi lineup.

“Coach Hall called us the ‘Three Musketeers,'” Grillo said. “We could be down 12 points going into 167 and he’d call us together and let us know we had to get it done. He had great confidence in us.

“We were so tight as a group. At practice, we’d be in the corner leaning and beating on each other for two hours. I won when Jimmy won. We’ve been tight forever.”

The threesome travelled to State College in March to help honor Hall, who was inducted into the state wrestling hall of fame.

Edwards and Grillo agreed it was a good time being together again and enjoying Hall’s big honor.

While football and wrestling have a permanent spot in Edwards’ heart. He also enjoyed baseball. He credits Darryl Hixenbaugh and Jim Constantino for helping him as a young baseball player.

Edwards was the Cougars’ center fielder from 1980-82. His senior season, Charleroi advanced to the PIAA semifinals. He also played in youth leagues and was a member of the Mon-Yough South Colt All-Star team and Charleroi American Legion team.

“In football, he was like a combination of Earl Campbell and Tony Dorsett,” Grillo said. “He could juke you or run you over and he had great hands. Jimmy was a good baseball player, too. He could pitch, throw bee-bees.

“The greatest thing about Jimmy is his demeanor. When Santini and I tried to influence him, he was the voice and man of reason. Jimmy always was the voice of reason for all of us.”