Rosso

Don Cantrell

Coach Ray Rosso has had his life’s share of treasured days on and

off the football fields, but another giant day appears on the March 21

calendar coming up on Thursday - his 86th birthday.

And it is fair to say that no old time friend of the family in Turin,

Italy, in 1916 would believe that his travels would finally settle him in

Newport Beach, California.

Rosso served as the Orange Coast College grid chief from 1948 through

1955. His ’51 team won the Eastern Conference championship.

He and his ’51 players celebrated the occasion again last fall with a

50th reunion at OCC, which was handled in sterling fashion by Jeanette

Mahoney, OCC staff member.

Upon arrival in the U.S., Rosso said his family eventually turned west

and found the northern California region “like the Piedmont area in

Italy.” And it felt like home. So, the family took up residence in

Lafayette and Rosso subsequently found up attending Oakland schools.

Although he has had his share of medical setback in recent years, he

maintains a good sense of humor and a positive approach about facing each

day as it comes.

One surprised former Rosso player, Boyd Horrell of 1948-49, was once

astonished to find that his former coach was still riding a bicycle

around Lido Isle and Newport.

After his term as a Navy fighter pilot in World War I, Rosso won a bid

to coach the grid team at Chaffey College in Ontario. His superb days as

a Cal-Berkeley guard gave him the championship touch.

It became ovious after leading Chaffey to two football titles and one

visit and triumph at the new Junior Rose Bowl.

Under a coach he admired, Stub Allison, Rosso had a taste of the

collegiate Rose Bowl with the Bears. He had also had been selected to the

All-Pacific Coast mythical squad once.

Although Rosso finally chose to intrduce the T-formation to OCC, he

had grown up with the old short-punt formation under Allison. It was

timely since the old power formations were beginning to lose their

popularity.

He had been pleased and welcomed by Chaffey adminstrators, faculty and

athletes, but he and his lovely wife, Jean, had occasions to leave the

area most every weekend to take the family to Newport Beach. The beach

and ocean was long an influence.

After the second Chaffey grid season, Rosso was approached by a new

community college by the late Dr. Basil Peterson of Orange Coast, and

invited to become the grid chief at OCC in ’48.

It was like a treasured round of birthday gifts, which featured the

challenge of a new school and bringing the family to the beach area.

It was like Timbuktu initially since the OCC campus had been carved

out of the former Santa Ana Army Air Base.

In fact, OCC had to play its “home games” at either Newport Harbor or

Huntington Beach high schools in the early years. Nonetheless, Rosso

remained positive and sold his players on making the best out of a

challenging situation.

Interesting to note that the ’49 team, holding an impressive 8-2

record, was invited to OCC’s first-ever bowl game, though the ’51

championship team did not draw a bowl offer. The Bucs would have to wait

until the fall of ’56 to draw a bowl game.

While Rosso had a long list of highly regarded players over the years

at OCC, one that stood out across the nation was a chap named Cliff

Livingston of Montebello High, who finally came to settle in Newport

himself.

Livingston, brother to the noted Washington Redskin star, Howie, was

once showcased in Life Magazine with the great linebacker Sam Huff. The

line coach for the New York Giants was the late Tom Landry, later head

coach of the Dallas Cowboys.

In time, OCC chose to honor Livingston by retiring his jersey at the

college. Brother Howie went to Fullerton Junior College in the early

‘40s.

Hence, when Rosso reflects back now, he can tally up a long flow of

favorite people from yesteryear in the OCC region of sports memories.

And, for certain, he’s among the fond memories of those who crossed

his path.