Days of yore tied in ’74

ROGER CARLSON

They had two returning All-Sunset League blue chips and a lot of

experience, so there wasn’t much doubt how the Sailors of 1974 felt

as Bill Pizzica took charge in the first of his five-year run as

Newport Harbor High’s football coach.

There had been changes in the Sunset League -- Edison, Fountain

Valley and Los Alamitos had replaced Anaheim, Santa Ana and

Huntington Beach, giving it super-power status and it was generally

considered the toughest league in Southern California.

The outlook was clearly optimistic despite the specter of

December’s tragedy when 17-year-old senior John Gust lost his life in

an auto accident near Lone Pine.

Gust was ticketed for Washington State before the tragedy cut him

down, putting him in a legendary status.

“People were laughing at him [as a sophomore and early in his

junior season],” recalled Vinnie Mulroy during a recent visit from

his Marin County home in Kentfield.

“He wasn’t much of an athlete at all, just sort of roly-poly.”

Obviously unhappy with his plight and surely prodded by his

coaches, Gust went to work like none other and before it was over as

a senior in 1973 he was named the varsity’s Most Improved Player.”

How improved? One varsity starter in that season of ’73 made the

mistake of mocking him (Bucko Shaw) and Gust decked him, breaking his

jaw. “I’m done with this,” was how Gust explained his reaction to the

taunt. In a nutshell he wasn’t taking any more from anyone, and he

was truly a central figure in the makeup of the Sailors, in his

senior year of ‘73, and for those who went on to play for the Sailors

in ’74.

“We drew on that,” said Mulroy, “and it was a rallying cry. [As a

team] we worked harder the next year.”

Sadly, a shooting star snuffed out all too soon.

That hard work was apparent early as the Sailors dominated Mater

Dei in a preseason scrimmage.

Harbor’s starting lineups for its season-opener with visiting

Fulllerton consisted of Mulroy, with All-CIF credentials, and Mark

Steverson at wide receiver and tight end, tackles Dave Helfrich and

Jeff Starr, guards Rick John and Marc Willsey, and center Scott Reid.

In the backfield were Gordon Adams at quarterback, fullback Steve

Foley, flanker Tom Bazacas and all-league returnee Brian Theriot at

tailback, who drove two sets of coaches crazy with his dancing,

white-shoes celebration after scoring touchdowns.

Defensively, Joe Castorena, Pete McGowen, Dan Stranja and Jimmy

Helfrich were up front, the linebackers were John Phipps and Steve

Richardson, and the secondary consisted of Foley, Phil West, Dave

Simmons, Ron Lamerton and Shaw.

Theriot’s 1-yard TD run on the Fullerton game’s first series set

the tone and in the fourth quarter the Sailors put it away with a

10-point run, highlighted by an Adams-to-Mulroy touchdown pass of 27

yards, and a 33-yard field goal by Art Sorce.

Field goals of 51, 37 and 25 yards by the USC-bound Sorce proved

decisive in the Sailors’ 16-6 victory over rival Corona del Mar in

the second nonleague game. Harbor’s only touchdown was by Theriot

from 4 yards out in the first quarter.

Again, a stunner in league play followed as 0-2 Westminster,

coached by Bill Boswell, opened the Sunset League derby with a 21-7

shocker over the Sailors.

A 33-yard TD pass from Adams to Mulroy had the game tied in the

first quarter at 7-7, but Westminster’s running game was too much to

handle.

So there they were with an upset loss and powerful Edison on the

horizon, very much like the situation a year ago with a loss to

Anaheim preceding the spectacular 20-17 victory over Loara.

A 71-yard march in the game’s final minutes reversed a 16-10

deficit and the Sailors, with a 6-yard pass from Adams to Steverson

with 36 seconds left. Sorce, who had kicked a 34-yard field goal in

the first half, hit his second PAT for the winning edge.

A 39-yard touchdown pass from Adams to Mulroy had cut Edison’s

lead to 13-10 before a third Edison field goal late in the fourth

quarter set up the final numbers.

Powerful Los Alamitos was next and the Griffins jumped to a 10-0

first-quarter lead.

Theriot rushed for 156 yards and a 10-yard touchdown run.

But it was the diminutive up-back, Bazacas, who turned the outcome

inside out with a 31-yard dash up the middlel, setting up Foley’s

2-yard scoring run to give the Sailors the winning margin with 6:08

left.

Mulroy caught a 23-yard scoring pass, Theriot and Bazacas scored

touchdowns and Sorce had a 42-yard field goal as the Sailors eased

past Marina, 24-6.

Foley’s 43-yard dash with 3:32 left extended a precarious 34-28

lead into a 41-28 victory over Fountain Valley in a game which the

Sailors jumped to a 27-6 halftime lead.

Theriot and Foley, with scoring runs of 59 and 25 yards,

spearheaded first-half fireworks.

Herb Hill and his Loara Saxons, always a problem, were next,

setting up one of the Sailors’ all-time moments as Shaw, out of his

“monster” position in the secondary, intercepted at the Newport

goal-line and rumbled untouched 100 yards to extend a two-touchdown

lead into a 21-0 halftime bulge at La Palma Stadium.

Lamerton’s three interceptions helped stave off the Saxons, who

eventually fell, 21-14.

The Sailors took advantage of five Western High fumbles and an

interception to claim a 19-7 victory in the league finale, and

coupled with Edison’s 10-8 victory over Westminster, provided the

Sailors with the undisputed league championship.

Co-champs with Anaheim a year earlier, it remains the only

back-to-back championship efforts in Newport Harbor varsity football

history.

Theriot went 16 yards for a TD, Steverson caught a 15-yard scoring

pass from Adams and Sorce booted home field goals of 48 and 32 yards.

Mulroy, McCowen, Shaw, Lamerton and Sorce were first-team

All-Sunset League choices as the Sailors tuned up for the CIF

Division 4-A playoffs. Helfrich, Theriot, Castorena and Richardson

were second-team choices by the Daily Pilot.

Sorce booted four field goals (25, 21, 31, 22) for a single-game

CIF record and it gave him 13 for the season (another CIF record) as

Long Beach Poly fell in the first round, 25-14, at Harbor.

Bazacas (27 yards) and Foley (5 yards) scored touchdowns as the

Sailors improved to 9-1.

Powerful St. Paul was next in line, but before the Swordsmen could

show their stuff, the CIF Southern Section booted them out of the

playoffs because three St. Paul coaches were caught spying on a

Pioneer High practice two days before St. Paul ripped Pioneer in the

first round, 44-8.

Cheating against lightly regarded Pioneer? What must have they

been up to the rest of the season?

Thus Pioneer got the dubious distinction of meeting Harbor in the

second round and was promptly eliminated, 37-0.

Sorce kicked three more field goals; McCowen and Dan Christy ran

for touchdowns and Adams found Steverson and Rich Harrison on scoring

passes. It was 24-0 at halftime and perhaps the Sailors’ easiest

victory of the year.

Injuries and illness caught up with the Sailors in the CIF

semifinal against West Torrance at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach.

With Mulroy hobbled by cracked ribs, McCowen out with torn

ligaments, Theriot and Foley both ill, West Torrance took advantage

to claim a 24-0 victory. It was 3-0 through three quarters.

There is the added twist to this memorable ’74 team in because of

the personalities -- many which resembled the cast of the 1978 movie

starring John Belushi, Animal House.

The late Bucko Shaw, who used to award “Bucko Points” for

outrageous acts, was, without a doubt, Belushi.

I’ll let you dream up the others in what was a madcap series of

mis-deeds.

The Sailors would not win another league title until 1983, in the

midst of the Mike Giddings era of ‘82-85.

* ROGER CARLSON is the former sports editor for the Daily Pilot.

He can be reached by e-mail at rogeranddorothea@msn.com.