Back-to-back titles in 1970s a golden era for C-H football
Reggie Knapper
From left, Rich Campagna, Reggie Knapper and Dave Meili
Coach Don Clendaniel
Jim Petras
Coach Don Clendaniel
Dave Oliver
The seeds of their success were sown on the sandlot fields in Midland, Allison Plan and Houston – all part of the Chartiers-Houston School District – and in Canonsburg and Washington.
By the time they reached junior and senior high school in the early 1970s, the football players at Chartiers-Houston were together. They were one.
It led to three consecutive WPIAL championship games. At the time, Class B was the smallest of three classifications.
The first was a most-difficult defeat to South Side Beaver in the 1970 game at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Then, the Bucs, who posted three consecutive undefeated regular seasons, rose to glory in 1971 and 1972 with two consecutive 10-0 seasons and two WPIAL championship victories over Midland High School.
“By the time we got to organized football in junior high school, we knew we would play well as a team and how it would turn out,” said Vic Massack, a key member of the Bucs’ defense as a linebacker in the two championship seasons.
“We just all knew each other so well. We learned so much about football and about each other on the sandlots.”
Chartiers-Houston was led by Don Clendaniel, who coached the Bucs to a WPIAL title in 1968.
His assistants were Joe Ciferno, who led the defense and was the lead motivator, and Bill “Pappy” Craig.
Their influence on the program and individual members of those teams remains today, 45 years later.
Clendaniel passed away a little more than four years ago.
“Coach Clendaniel was the big key,” said Dave Oliver, a receiver and linebacker for the Bucs. “It started in 1968. He always tried to promote the program and encouraged guys to come out for the team. He employed a two-platoon system. He was smart and he was fair. Everyone knew they would get a chance to contribute. It was an honor to be on the kickoff team back then.
“It was all about the team. Whatever Mr. Clendaniel asked us to do, we did it. Sometimes it wasn’t what we wanted to do. People took pride in everything we did as a team. He had faith in us and we had faith in him. He was a good guy and we loved playing for him.”
Clendaniel coached Chartiers-Houston to four WPIAL championship games. He went 68-16-3 at the school and his teams won five conference championships. But it wasn’t the championships or victories that characterized him. He had a kind and decent way in dealing with people – young and old – that defined him. He was an upstanding man, who was likable and trustworthy.
The 1971 and ’72 Bucs were a combined 20-0 with two championship wins over Midland, a team that featured several top-notch athletes and players.
The consecutive titles came after that difficult loss in the 1970 WPIAL championship game to South Side Beaver, 20-12, in ugly weather conditions. The defeat was tough to take.
Chartiers-Houston rolled through the 1971 season, averaging 44.9 points per game and yielding just 3.9. Its closest regular-season game was a season-opening 21-point win over Peters Township. The Bucs scored at least 41 points in seven of their nine regular-season games and capped their season with a 15-6 win over Midland at Bethel Park Stadium.
In 1972, Chartiers-Houston averaged 31.2 points per game and allowed just 6.4. The closest game was a 9-2 decision over Avella and that season culminated in a 10-6 victory over Midland.
“We had good teams,” Ciferno said. “The players we had were dedicated and intelligent. They were athletic, big, strong kids.
“They were easy to coach. We pretty much outpassed and outmuscled everyone we played. We had a lot of chemistry between staff and team. It was awesome. It was perfect.”
Reggie Knapper was a senior running back on the ’71 team and he credited Clendaniel’s two-platoon system and a bevy of talented players for helping the Bucs to stand alone in Class B.
“We feel we could have held our own against anybody,” Knapper said. “We knew the type of talent and team we had.
“Our goal was to win a WPIAL championship. We wanted that in the worst way. We did play a lot of sandlot ball together. We whooped a lot of butts. We were always together, just hanging out.”
In the 1971 championship game, the Bucs rallied from a 6-0 halftime deficit to tie the game early in the third quarter, when Rich Davis scored on a 22-yard run.
Knapper intercepted a pass late in the quarter deep in Chartiers-Houston territory. He then returned a punt 67 yards to Midland’s 13-yard line. Davis then scored his second rushing TD of the game with 9:45 remaining.
Senior standout quarterback Rich Campagna made a field goal with just less than five minutes to play to seal the win for the Bucs.
“Losing in the championship game the year before was very motivating for me,” said Campagna, who went on to play at Georgia Tech. “None of us wanted to face losing in the championship game again. If we would have, we would have felt the whole year was a waste.”
“When we lost to South Side Beaver, we wanted to whine about the weather and circumstances,” said Oliver. “Those seniors told us to come back and work harder. In 1968, we watched it. We watched that team win a WPIAL championship. They had a big parade. We wanted that. Losing in that 1970 championship game. … the feeling stuck with us.”
In the 1972 title game at Montour High School, Midland stunned the Bucs when Larry Slappy busted an 84-yard TD run in the first quarter. A field goal by Massack left Chartiers-Houston down, 6-3.
But quarterback Jim Petras hit Pete Adams on a long, game-winning TD with less than three minutes to play to take a 10-6 lead.
“Midland had strong teams both years,” said Petras, who was a starting defensive end in 1971 before succeeding Campagna in 1972. “There were great athletes all over the field both years. I think about it today. We’re still friends. It’s a great feeling.”
Randy Glunt, a three-year starting lineman, said the respect and togetherness among teammates helped the Bucs reach such tremendous heights.
“I was very lucky to have been a part of a team that did not lose a regular-season game in three years,” Glunt said. “It was totally fantastic, unbelievable for all of us. And it was a spectacular thing for me personally.”
Chartiers-Houston is one of just three Washington County schools to capture back-to-back WPIAL football titles. Donora won the Class AAA titles in 1944 and 1945 and McDonald won the Class C titles in 1951 and 1952.
“It was a great time to be at Chartiers-Houston,” said Massack, who went on to play at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. “There was an upbeat vibe throughout the school and the community.
“Those were the best football teams I ever played on. We all meshed together to become WPIAL champions. When I went to college, it was a step down – in terms of equipment and facilities.
“It’s neat. When we see each other, we just kind of grin. Only we know. We were so close and we have wonderful memories. We just have a warm feeling for one another. We had great players and great leaders as coaches. That’s what drove it. Man, I loved being part of it.”