Penn High School - Bittersweet Yearbook (Mishawaka, IN)

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Kingsmen ranked no. 1 in final AP poll What can be said about the 1975 foot- ball Kingsmen? That they had the first 10- 0 season in Penn's history? That they held the number one position in the state of Indiana?. . . Alot more Three years ago, after too m any disap- pointing seasons, Penn desperately looked for a coach who could turn their football program around. They chose from Ohio Chris Geesman, a man who asked that he be given just three years to make a winner out of Penn. He did. Geesman’s first season came out 5-5 His second year proved a winning season with a record of 8-2 As has been said before, the 1975 sea- son did not start in July when the team reported for practice. It began when the '74 season ended. The Kingsmen worked hard all winter. What they lacked in size they made up for in heart. When the 1975 season started, no one worried much about the Kingsmen. They weren't ranked, But they were ready The season opened against Misha- waka, a cross-city rival, and then ranked number 5 in the state. The Cavemen took the first taste of Penn's tenacious defense, The Kingsmen took them by surprise, 27-0, holding the Cavemen to a meager 58 yards total offense, a record. After shutting out their next three rivals, the Kingsmen took on LaFayette Harri- son, unranked, but not to be taken lightly It was a hard hitting, defensive game, and with just a little more than a minute left, Harrison led 7-0. But the Kingsmen wer- en't ready to give up. On a bomb from junior quarterback Dennis Groning, Jim Bregenzer took it all the way to lead the game into overtime. Penn took the ball first, and Mike Sharpe scored. Again it was Penn's defense that had the job to do. They held the line, and on fourth down, Mark Bock’s interception in the end zone insured the victory They surmounted LaSalle, and played Elkhart Central for the first time. Again, Penn's defense proved impenetrable Monday morning, Penn was in an uproar. The Kingsmen were rated num- ber one for the first time ever. When “'the Geeser’’ was asked how it felt to be the coach of the number one team in the state, he said, ‘'!’m glad for the nymber one ranking, more for the players than me, because they worked hard for it. But also quite a bit more pressure has been added, because people expect quite a bit more out of a team. And the Kingsmen gave more. With a number one ranking behind them, they took on St. Joe, perhaps their most important contest. On homecoming night, with 7,000 fans in the stands and lining the field, the ''Gees-men’’ proved themselves number one by defeating the Indians 14-12. Penn led 7-0 until the fourth quarter when St. Joe scored, but the extra point was blocked. Penn and St Joe took turns scoring, and St. Joe missed a two-point conversion to wrap it up. After dropping Muncie North 13-0, the Kingsmen faced what Geesman called “a must game’ against one of Indiana's largest schools, Indianapolis North Cen- At stake was Penn's number one tral. ranking, a perfect 9-0 record, and most important, a state playoff spot. “The Wild Bunch,” a well-earned nick- name for Penn's strong defense, were wild on Halloween night, as they denied the Panthers more than six points, a touchdown which came on a long bomb. The offense controlled the ball most of the game, and the jubilant Kingsmen made a first in Penn history, with a per- fect 10-0 season record. They had eared a place in the 1975 state playoffs. Penn now faced Valparaiso, number 4, and with an offense which was the only one of its kind in the state. Several costly errors in the first quarter let the Vikings jump ahead, 21-0. After the half, with the score at 24-0, the Kingsmen came alive and scored 19 straight points. The Vikings disappointed Penn with a TD that probably clinched the game. A pass from Groning for a touchdown would have made it 31-26, but a penalty against Penn nullified the score. The Kingsme n held their heads high. Other than being Penn's first number one team and capturing their first perfect sea- son record, they set numerous other records, virtually rewriting the book defensively. Senior linebackers Bob Nickel and Randy Patterson had a sea- ‘son total of 226 tackle points each, a first Senior Bill Holowatuk had nine intercep- tions and earned a unanimous All State, first team title. The Wild Bunch’’ held their opponents for a season total of 39. points, and had four shutouts in a row.