Lewisburg High School - Oneida Yearbook (Lewisburg, PA)

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CHAMPIONS 1919 by Donald Johnson and Skeet Smith as told to the Editors l Ftow1 - llett to rightl - Robert Heim, William Duck, Luther Bingaman, Harold Painter. Row 2 - Davis Arnold, Max Reed, Donald Johnson, Leiser Eisenhower, Skeet Smith. Row 3 - Coach Dr. Malcolm Musser, Dale Wagner, Gordon Scholl, Albert Johnson. Our 1919 championship team had 13'players, and our two subs had to be able to play all positions, Skeet Smith recalls. Now retired after 32 years with the Ford Motor Company, Skeet was the power- house fullback of the Green Dragons. What we lacked in quantity, we tried to make up in the quality of our game, Skeet noted. Of course, it didn't take a bus to transport us to the away games. On our schedule were Lock Haven, Sunbury, Shamokin, Bellefonte, and two games against Williams- port and Dickinson Seminary, which is now.Lycoming College. They were all tough battles, but the game of games that year was a re- turn match, a Thanksgiving Day affair at Williamsport. We played to a tie earlier in the season, and Will- iamsport issued a challenge to Lewisburg to play for the champ- ionship, guaranteeing S200 for expenses, Skeet recalled. The coach of Williamsport was Bart Bartholme, a former star end at Bucknell. Our unofficial coach, Mal Musser, and that great trainer, Sid Thomas, kept our spirits and our muscles in tune for the game, which we won, the former star fullback noted. What I would like to see is for some one to honor both of those fine men, still residing in the Lewisburg area, for their many contributions to their alma mater, Lewisburg High School. In fact, one of my best memories is that of Sid carrying his little black bag in which he always had a bottle of White Horse linament. As Donald Johnson, quarter- back and team captain notes: Our principal formation was the single wing, but we also used the straight T which, may I add, was long before it became a popular college and pro formation. We also used to great effect a wide or spread formation. 4 We called it formation F, and we used it to run and to execute both forward and lateral passes. Observing that credit should be given to Bucknell for granting to the high school free of charge the use of Tustin gym and the football field, Don said that we couldn't have played our home games without that help. In fact, we coached ourselves and used much of the Bucknell offense and defense which we observed as young fellows growing up in Lewisburg. Dean Mal Musser and Harry Bourne, our high school principal, also gave us advice and traveled with us to all our away games. Now an attorney with his residence in Philadelphia, the former quarterback's son, Donald Dee Jr., was a star running back at Lewisburg High in the '51, '52 and '53 seasons, scoring a record 29 points in one game against Milton High. Don Jr. later became

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Row 1 - lleft to rightl - Dale Wagner, John Kling, Bill lrvin, Cy Johnson lCaptainl, Donald Johnson, Max Reed, John Purnell, Horace Hann. Row 2 - Alvin Wagner, Emil Gedrich, Davis Arnold, Sam Smith, Harry Johnson, Charles Purnell, Albert Johnson, Leiser Eisenhauer. Row 3 - Malcolm Musser, Coach. by AI Wagner During the summer of 1914, a group of Lewisburg High School boys, who liked the game and wanted to play, canvassed the merchants of town to ask for financial help to buy needed equipment. Since only enough funds were collected to buy balls, the boys had to furnish their own equipment. About 20 boys reported for the first practice, which was held on the former municipal playground, across the Buffalo Creek bridge. During the 1914 season, three games were played -- two with Bucknell Academy and one' against a fraternity team. All those who participated were high school boys, mostly sophomores and juniors. The seasons of 1915 and 1916 showed a little more progress, both in the interest of the boys and the general public, but the team did not get any financial support from the school board. To make a better appearance on the field, squad members bought white sweatshirts and had their mothers sew green piping around the neck and down the front. Two away games were played in 1915 -- against North- umberland and against Dickinson Seminary in Williamsport. Starting with the 1916 season, more boys came out for the team and more games were scheduled. Because so few nearby towns had football teams, the schedule had to include teams from more distant communi- ties. Thus games were played with such high schools as Lock Haven and State College, and included two games per season with Dickinson Seminary, now Ly- coming College. No games were scheduled in 1918 since some of the key players had enlisted in the army when World War l broke upon us. However, 1919 was a banner year. The schedule was enlarged to include Williamsport High School and Sunbury High School. At the close of school in June, 1917, the football squad met and decided each would strive to save enough money out of his summer earnings to buy regular football jerseys in the fall. Not only did the team appear for the 1917 season in all-Green iersevs, but also the outfits included green and white stockings. School colors were worn with pride. The '14 and '15 teams did not have a regular coach. The boys would get together and make up their own plays and the captain of the team would assume the responsibility of a coach. Then, in 1916, Dr. Malcolm Nlusser, who was then a Bucknell student, became the unofficial coach and gave the teams the inspiration and leadership they needed. 3 THE YEARS THAT WERE ...1914-1919 Football continued for a few more years until soccer took its place as a fall sport. In a few years, football was reinstated and Mose Quinn, a former Bucknell quarter- back, was hired by the administra- tion as the first paid football coach at L.H.S. lt is interesting to note that, although only 16 boys signed up for the football team in 1914 and that very little publicity was given to high school football, each suc- ceeding year saw more and more boys signing up for the sport. Few of us who played on those early formative teams little realized that football at Lewisburg High School would attain the popularity it now has, nor that it would become as successful as it has under the present system. 1917 Linemen . llelt lo righll - John Kling, Cyrus Johnson, Dale Wagner, Max Reed, John Purnell, Horace Hann, Charles Purnell.

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the most valuable player at the University of South Carolina, in 1957, where he played under one of his dad's teammates, Max Reed, one ofthe greatest players from the Lewisburg area. We had to travel by train for away games, Attorney Johnson recalls, and we usually had to play not only the opposing team, but the officials and the crowd. This was especially true in Williamsport and Shamokinf' Recalling the 'game of games that year in Williamsport, Skeet Smith asked us to picture our squad, all 13 of us, with no band and only several devoted fans who accompanied us on the train and then sat on the bench to help fill it up. However, all the players had only one purpose in mind: 'Beat Williamsport! ' As Skeet remembers: We played straight football in that game, with very little passing. We just waited for a break. lt came in the fourth quarter when they had to punt from behind their own goal line. Our brilliant center, Max Reed, crashed through the line, blocked the punt, and fell on the ball for a score. We won 6-O Both Skeet and Don had high praise for the business and professional men in town who donated funds to equip the squad. Congressman 'Ben Focht and Attorney Andrew Leiser each gave 510, a big amount in those days, to start the fund, Attorney Johnson recalls. We raised S200 and Billy Donehower sold us 13 complete uniforms and one football, a football we used throughout the season for practice and for play. Both men noted that the team members, with a little help, rigged up a shower in the high school basement, a shower which was connected to the cold water pipe only. Nobody hung around in that shower for too long, the former team captain stressed. Who were the members of this small but mighty band that won the first championship for L.H.S.? We list them here with comments of Skeet Smith and Don Johnson: MAX REED: Now deceased: the center of the squad who had a brilliant career as a player and coach. Carl Snavely called him one of the greatest football minds in the nation. Max coached at Bucknell, Cornell, and the University of North Carolina under Snavely. He later was line coach at the University of South Carolina and for the Washington Redskins. DAVIS ARNOLD: Now de- ceased: tackle on the the squad, he served as a civil engineer with the Pennsylvania Department of High- ways. WILLIAM DUCK: Now de- ceased: a really fine end and a man of high intelligence, he served as Dean at Gettysburg College. GORDON SCHOLL: Now de- ceased: a tough-nosed guard, he operated a successful florist business in Florida. HAROLD PAINTER: Now de- ceased: the versatile man who played all positions as a substitute, he served for many years as manager of the Reading Office for Bell Telephone. LEISER EISENHOWER: Now deceased: our other crashing tackle, he was a high school principal for over 30 years. His son, Marine Lt. Col. Steve Eisenhower, was team captain and an All-Ameri- can at the U.S. Naval Academy. ALBERT JOHNSON, JR.: One of the ends on our team who is now a practicing attorney in Roaring Spring, Pa. ROBERT HEIM: The flashy halfback of the team is now retired from a successful career in investment banking. He now resides in Briarcliff Manor, N.Y. DALE WAGNER: The second speedy halfback is now retired from his teaching career and resides in Owensboro, Kentucky. GLENN MORROW: Our se- cond all-position substitute now resides in Lewisburg. He is retired after a successful career in electrical engineering. LUTHER BINGAMAN: The other hard-hitting guard is now retired and living in Endicott, N.Y. FULLBACK: Skeet Smith OUARTERBACK AND CAP- TAIN: Donald Johnson, who also played one year of pro ball in Millville, NJ. A BRIEF INTERLUDE ...1924-1925 No records of L.H.S. teams from 1920 to 1923 could be found, but football was on the scene in 1924 and 1925. As the Saturday News reported on November 8, 1924: Lewisburg boys deserve much credit because they have been without a coach or equipment the greater part of this season. The 1924 team defeated the Milton iunior varsity tor Second team i by a 19-0 score. They lost to Picture Rocks, 12-O: to Sunbury, 47-0: and to Lewistown, 53-0. Team Captain was Charles W. Kalp, a halfback. Other backs included Paul Johnson, Milton Wagner, R. Henry Coleman, and Burtoff Koser. Ends were Bill O'Brien and Raymond Pearson: and the linemen included Warren Sherman, H. John Stahl, Harry Stahl, Thomas Zeiber, Charles 5 Liddich, Charles Lewis, Willard Poeth, Floyd Kline, Edward Kleck- ner, and Orvis Campbell. Bill O'Brien was elected captain of the 1925 team, which posted a 2-6 record. The Green Dragons defeated Watsontown and St. Joseph's tAshlandi, but lost the rest. This was only their second season after a lapse of several years, and inexperience took its toll. Some interesting data uncovered during our research: the Picture Rocks team outweighed the Dra- gons by 25 lbs. per man: and the Milton game was the highlight of the season, being played on a snow-covered field on Thanks- giving. Seniors on the 1925 squad were Bill O'Brien, Paul Johnson, Clifford Leitzel, Walter Angstadt, and Robert Krebs.