Boston College - Sub Turri Yearbook (Boston, MA)

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Joe Johnson takes off on his 56-yard run for winning touchdown in ihe third period against the Wildcats. Villanova ' s Ralph Cecere (27) misses lackle and Mike Roarke gtunts on his knees. BOSTON COLLEGE 20 21 Ahearn, thy name is mud! Joe was just as glad in the sloppy game against Richmond, as he swam to a twelve yard gain over the Spiders. Grant took Richmond — and so did Boston College, Suh!

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And away I go, says rapid Robert Richards, q.b., w. as he improvises 18 yards for the first touchdown , • .• , „ over bewildered Villanova. defensemen, letting go with the long pretty pass to the left sideline ... of Sullivan pretending a hookback, outrunning Zienkewicz and Murphy, catching Kane ' s message over his shoulder and at deer-clip fleeing to the one ... of the Eagle defensive platoon, holding the Crusaders to 24 points below their previous scoring average and 190 yards under their seasonal rushing mark ... of tackle Tony Stathopoulos and end George Pollinger, their fine offensive play ... of Kane as the first freshman to receive the O ' Melia trophy ... of punter-safetyman Dick McBride being awarded the Henry Pinney citation as the unsung grid hero of the ' 51 season ... of Mike Roarke feted by the Varsity Club ... of Holovak and his staff — their determination paying off ... of Gil Bouley and the fruits of his line disciphne spelling Boston College 19, Holy Cross 14. VILLANOVA 13— B.C. 20 Until the Holy Cross upset, the victory over Villanova on November 17th was the big thing. The Wildcats, too, had only one loss (to Kentucky) prior to engaging the Eagles. Rated No. 3 team in the East, they had entertained serious Bowl intentions. The key touchdown for B.C. was Joe Johnson ' s 56-yard run for a 14-7 lead in the third period. The Eagles deadlocked the score 7-7 in the second quarter by whipping down the field for 82 yards on some razor crossbucks by Brosnahan and scoring on an opportunistic 18-yard run by senior quarterback Bob Richards. A Kane to Roarke pass sealed the issue halfway down the final quarter. From the Villanova 21, the Weymouth wizard made two sophisticated fakes while waiting for Capt. Mike to get by a defensive halfback. Then he let go and Roarke took it over his left shoulder going into end zone. It was the first major victory in the Holovak regime, and perhaps the most consoling. It demonstrated that Holovak had done a lot with a little and that his charges had come a long way since the Wake Forest game. Bouley ' s line was a hero all by itself, holding the Wildcats to 141 yards on ground. B.C. had 224 yards rushing. As an upset, the game received national attention. RICHMOND 7— B.C. 21 November 2, 1951. Boston College bad not won a game since November 26, 1949 and its name was mud. Just as well, because the weather was wet and receivers on both sides caught more mud- pies than they did footballs. Quagmires somehow make players hard to identify but fullback Joe Ahearn stood out anyway. He bulled his way to yardage like a small motorboat, and though he didn ' t score, he was most responsible for the win. Irwin, Kane and Mike Mikulics made the actual tallies. The Eagles rushed for 369 yards and 25 first downs — the Spiders for 24 yards and 5 first downs. That Bouley line! WAKE FOREST 20— B.C. 6 A starting backfield of Jack McKinnon at quarter, Dick Zotti and Joe Johnson at halves and Joe Ahearn at full did its best in the season opener September 21st, but couldn ' t match the weight and sophistication of Wake Forest. The Eagles stymied the Deacons on the ground. T quarter- back Dickie Davis triggered them successfully in the air. After a 55-yard sprint by Eagle halfback Jack Irwin, Capt. Mike Roarke went over on a flip from McKinnon for B.C. ' s single tally. 27

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Hold up thar, cries little linebacker Joe Coffey to Villanova halfback Dick Bedesem. MISSISSIPPI 34— B.C. 7 Crijmp Stadium, Memphis, October 5th. Tommy Joe Sullivan returned a kickoff 90 yards and Jim Kane made an impressive debut at quarter, but that ' s about all the Eagles had to offer in this one. Eleven fumbles by B.C. and a passer named Dick Lear accounted for most of the Rebel touchdowns. The temperature was over 90 and that didn ' t help things, either. FORDIIAM .S.5— B.C. 19 Kane ' s arm, unveiled for the first time to local fans, pitched the Eagles to their three touch- downs under the Braves Field lamps, but the Rams were as willing as the Rebels to capitalize on B.C. bobbles. Fordham q.b. Roger Franz passed well and when he wasn ' t there his running backs were. Ends Roarke and Pollinger and tiny halfback Zotti were the recipients of Kane ' s tossing enterprises and scored the Eagle touchdowns. DETROIT 19— B.C. 13 Unlucky! B.C. dropped its 13th straight on another dismal Friday night, this time to the oft- beaten Titans. Detroit jammed all its scoring into the second period. After Kane was banged up, forgotten senior quarterback Bob Richards went in and almost won the game. He threw one scoring pass and directed the Eagles to their best sustained marches of the contest. He was at the helm during a last -minute surge that might have resulted in a tally were it not for the nasty old clock. Johnson scored the other T.D. earlier. GEORGIA 35— B.C. 28 Georgia would have been a peach of an upset for B.C. — and that ' s almost what did happen, on October 27th at Athens. Kane, who was later put out of commission with a broken nose. 13 VILLANOVA RICHMOND chucked long ones to Roarke, Abeam and Brosnahan — all in the second period and all for touch- downs. At one time the Eagles led, 21-14. Richards hit Roarke again for a score with 4 minutes to play, but by then Bulldogs Zeke Bratowski and Harry Babcock had combined to push across the deciding markers in the third quarter. The Eagles complained bitterly that Georgia ' s third touchdown pass was caught on the first bounce. But what can you do? Fine showing, anyway. CLEMSON 21— B.C. 2 Better not even to talk about this one. After a good performance over Georgia and a win over Richmond the week before, the Eagles had all they could do to score a safety in the last 10 seconds. They fumbled away one chance after another. Tailback Billy Hair certainly got in B.C. ' s on an otherwise pleasant South Carolina November 10th. It was the 6th loss of the season for B.C. Down in the dumps? Yes, but two days later. Father Maxwell assured the Alumni that B.C. had no intention of giving up football — newspaper speculation notwithstanding. Only the Very Reverend Rector ' s predictions for success were realized sooner than he expected! Brosnahan slithers away from a Richmond back after a hand-off from Kane (20).