Football Programs

     Nesquehoning High School's first football team was fielded in the Fall of 1923. Coached by John Dietrich, it comprised such athletes as Bill Griffith, Harold Welsh, Bill McGeehan, Tom Ronemus, Dominic Greco, Bill Eckert, George Roscoe, Bob Taney, Francie McGorry, Mike Guida, Vic Skakandy, Winfield Morgan, James Treweek, Leroy Bock, Vince York and Bill James. Eckert served as the team's captain. The team lost six games, tied one and scored only 12 points all season.
     Earl Smull was the principal and faculty manager at that time.
     Dietrich, a Reading product, coached only one year. "Windy" Smith took over the reins in 1924 and held the post until 1927. Hen Bouck, who starred with the famous Coaldale Big Greens, handled the job in 1928, then Jake Wolfersberger stepped in and held command for four seasons. Wolfersberger produced three Carbon-Schuylkill League champions-1929, 1930 and 1931.
     The players who comprised the first title-winning team were Alvin Williams, John Malatak, Mike Hudicka, Stephen Pancoe, James Tout, Gabriel Wasas, Steve Kusko, George Greco, Pete Charnak, John Grainger, John Mashishock, Bill Bincarowsky, John Hotsko, Johnny Kusko, Joe Macaluso, John Runtack, John Quashnock, Bob Brooks, John Shimshick, Lou Beneck, Tom Mulligan, Harry Griffith, Herbert Large, Nick Brunda, John Kuzma, James Kishbaugh, Mike Marcin and Eddie Speshock.
     Hudicka furthered his education at East Stroudsburg and was named a first-string tackle on the All-State team in his senior year. Kusko won All-America mention at Temple and later played with the Philadelphia Eagles. Ferko also saw service with the same team.
     Tony Mezza, who started as a blocker for the great Clark Hinkle at Bucknell University arrived on the scene in 1932. Mezza's 1932 edition tied Summit Hill for the Carbon-Schuylkill League title and his 1933 team won the crown. The 1933 eleven holds the scoring record, having racked up a total of 242 points, ten more than the great 1947 club which "blew" the Southern Division title by losing to Hazle Township.
     The 1946 boys had the distinction of winning the Southern Division crown. However, they were defeated by Scranton Tech, Northern Division titleholder, in the playoff for the Eastern Conference banner at Scranton. The 1945 team finished runner-up to Kulpmont.
     One of the first Nesquehoning players to gain statewide recognition was Bobby Lazorchick, who received honorable mention as a center on the 1942 All-State team. In 1945, Metro Yurchak was honored as an end on the All-State second team. His teammates, Mike Kurash and Bobby Drigan, received honorable mention.
     Vic Mikovich, speedy backfield star, made the All-State team in 1946. Lou Higgins and Billy Feddock received honorable mention that year. The next season, 1947, Higgins was honored with a spot on the first team. Mike Feddock and George Macinko gained honorable mention. Gene Watto, a guard, made the 1948 All-State second team.
     Yurchak went on to Lock Haven Teachers College, Mikovich and Drigan to Penn, the Feddock boys to Temple, Higgins to Duke, Watto to Fordham and Macinko to Idaho.
     Higgins established the scoring record for the school, chalking up 119 points in 1947.
    In 1957 Coach Mezza finished his 25th year of coaching at Nesquehoning High School as the Warriors defeated their arch rival Lansford 53 to 6. Eddie Kocha broke the Panther Valley scoring record by scoring four touchdowns to raise his seasonal total to 140 points. He also broke the school scoring record set by All-State Lou Higgins in 1947.
     The worst defeat suffered by a Nesquehoning team came during the 1928 season when Tamaqua posted a 75-0 decision. Nesquehoning's most overwhelming triumph, 72-0, was registered at the expense of Freeland in 1933.
     As we glance over this revered record, we find one name is outstanding - Anthony J. Mezza. For twenty-nine years Mr. Mezza was the astute head football coach of Nesquehoning High School. This highly-respected coach came to Nesquehoning from Bucknell University, where he had received statewide acclaim and recognition in New York State during his high school career at Rome Free Academy, Rome, New York, where he was a 4-letter man in athletics and was named to the All-State football team for three straight years. Mr. Mezza also gained New York All-State recognition in throwing the shot put. An advocate of the single-wing formation, Mr. Mezza's teams have an impressive record of victories. He knew football rules and regulations down to the smallest detail. When he argued a point with an official, he knew what he was talking about. He believed in long, rugged practice session to whip his boys into shape, and as a result his team injuries were remarkably few. Mr. Mezza was strict and precise in his guidance and demanded obedience from all. His precise and well-drilled teams looked good even in defeat. He never coached a team that quit or relaxed on the field. He encouraged a fierce, competitive spirit; above all, his boys respected and admired him. We will always remember those hard-fought, exciting games. No one will ever forget his famous and always popular "offside play," when his entire line shifted before the ball was passed to draw his opponents offsides to gain that much needed five yards. The crowds loved this, but many opposing players down the years will remember how frustrated they felt as five yard penalty was paced off against them. To win a hard-fought victory against a Mezza coached team was considered an achievement. Mr. Mezza also coached the highly rated Nesquehoning Hurricanes, a semi-professional team of 1946-47-48, which won 32 games against a single loss. When Coach Mezza's name is mentioned it revives many memories - a memory of those famous half-time pep talks - a memory of Mr. Mezza, resplendent in a well-tailored suit and startling cravat, elegant from his broad shoulders right down to his well-shined shoes striding out on the field to fight for his players.
     The last 3 years (1962,1963,1964) of Football at Nesquehoning were coached by Edward Wojciechowski.

     Nesquehoning beats Mt. Carmel, 34-0. Mikovich scores three times as mates win 6th. Vic Mikovich, the Black Hills Express, had the throttle wide open again Saturday as his Nesquehoning High School grid mates overpowered a game but outmanned and outclassed the Mt. Carmel eleven, 34-0, in an Eastern Conference engagement before some 2,500 spectators on the Nesquehoning turf.
     The 155 pound speed merchant with the crazy legs and hula hips scored three of his team's touchdowns, caught a pass for an extra point, and did just about everything one man could possibly do on a gridiron in one afternoon. His blinding speed and quicksilver elusiveness made the Mt. Carmel boys look utterly helpless.
     The victory was Nesquehoning's sixth straight in conference competition and it gave them undisputed possession of first place in the Southern Division.
     Mikovich, rated one of the sweetest halfbacks in this neck of the woods, was all over the place on Saturday. He scored his touchdowns on 9, 14, and 28 yard sprints and amassed a total of 156 yards on eleven attempts. The Township boys couldn't hold him and when he left the field with some ten minutes remaining in the final quarter everyone in the stadium rose and accorded him a thunderous ovation.
     The Maroons, as usual, wasted no time getting started. For the fifth time this season, they grabbed the opening kickoff and marched down the field to score. this time they went 72 yards in ten plays, Mike Feddock climaxing the drive with a plunge from the 4 yard line.
     Lou Higgins, the Maroons' injured fullback who was used only in a placekicking role on Saturday, came in to boot the extra point and the Nesquer kids were off to a 7-0 start before most of the customers were relaxed in their seats.
     The visitors received a break near the close of the opening quarter when Billy Feddock fumbled on the Nesquehoning 18, but the Maroon front wall braced and checked the Townshippers' drive on the 4. Then the Nesquers turned around and marched 96 yards to record their second score.
Mikovich tore off 54 yards on a nifty sprint. Billy Feddock hit Jim McCann with a pass and the latter flipped a lateral to Mike Feddock, who went all the way to the Township 9. Mikovich crashed over from there to make it 13-0. Higgins missed the extra point.
     Shortly before the half expired, the Maroons were knocking again, going all the way to the 18 on a 64 yard march. However, time ran out before they could shove it over.
     Mikovich tallied the Maroons' third touchdown early in the third quarter, going over from the 14 yard line after his mates drove 64 yards in 10 running plays. Billy Feddock passed to Mikovich for the extra point and the score stood at 20-0.
     Early in the fourth period, the Nesquers staged another long drive, going 66 yards to put it across. Mikovich grabbed a reverse on the Mt. Carmel 28, broke away with a sudden burst of speed and didn't stop running until he was over the last stripe. Johnny Kulick kicked the extra point. Coach Mezza blanketed Mikovich at this point with the Nesquers out front, 27-0.
     The visitors, stopped on the ground by the aggressive front wall of the Maroons, took to the air lanes in the last ten minutes of the game, but to no avail. Francy Krajcir, Hauto boy, pulled one of the passes out of the atmosphere and brought it back to the Mt. Carmel 36. In six plays, the Maroons had another touchdown, Johnny Kulick bucking his way over from the one. Higgins placekicked the extra point to make it 34-0 and that's how it ended. The Nesquehoning reserves finished the game.
     Statistically and otherwise, the Maroons had it all over the Mt. Carmel gridders. They rolled up 18 first downs to Mt. Carmel's 3 and got 374 yards from scrimmage to the visitors 38.
     The Nesquehoning front line, from end to end, played another magnificent game with Mikovich, the two Feddock boys and Canzoneri carrying on nobly in the backfield.

     Lansford, Nesquehoning in Scoreless Tie Before 7,000 Fans. Record shattering crowd watched the rival schoolboy teams fight it out in the "battle of the century". The football stalwarts of Lansford and Nesquehoning clashed Saturday in the 24th renewal of their series, but when the echoes of the titanic battle had faded and the deeds of that gray November afternoon had been written into the record books neither team had much reason to rejoice. The game ended in a 0-0 stalemate.
     Upwards of 7,000 chilled spectators - representing the largest crowd that ever witnessed a struggle between these two teams - jammed every corner of the Lansford stadium to watch the bitterly-contested issue.
     Steals the Show. No athletic event would be complete without the personal appearance of "FROGGY" ZABA, and the roar that went up from the stands right before the teams took the field was meant for on one else but the bearded specimen from Nesquehoning...."FROGGY" came togged out in a white fur-lined job and someone in the back tow remarked he looked like a fugitive from Admiral Byrd's expedition.
     Several bids for scores were made by both squads but formidable defensives and good kicking by Lansford's Paul Vitek and Nesquehoning's Low Higgins were instrumental in averting touchdowns.
     Taking the opening kickoff on their own 26, the Nesquers drove to Lansford's 47 where they were forced to kick to the Panthers nine. With Bobby Marouchoc and Vitek driving hard, Lansford then marched 71 yards to Nesquehoning's 20-yard line where two passes and two line smashes failed as the Maroon defense bolstered.
     The Panthers again started into Nesquehoning territory, taking a Maroon kick on the midfield stripe in the same period. Alert Low Higgins stymied Lansford's hopes two plays later when he intercepted a Panther pass on his own 32 returning to the Maroon 46. Vic Mikovich, Nesquer halfback, skirted end for six yards to place the Nesquers on Lansford's 48. on the next play, Julius Wolfe, Panther back, intercepted a Nesquehoning pass on Lansford's 40 as the first period ended.
     Neither team was able to make much headway in the second period. With less than a minute remaining in the half, Lou Higgins pounced on a Lansford fumble on the Panthers 39. Marouchoc intercepted Higgins' pass on the 20 on the next play as the half ended.
     No threats in third. Both teams fought back and forth in the midfield area during the third period with neither squad getting past the 50 yard stripe. The Nesquers provided their most serious scoring threat of the game early in the fourth period driving 51 yards from their own 31 to Lansford's 18 yard line with Bill Feddock and Lou Higgins carrying. Lansford's quick kick after taking the ball over on downs forced the Nesquers back to their own 26.
     The Panthers line, holding strong forced the Nesquers to kick with Vitek returning to the Maroons 37. Vitek and Marouchoc alternating, drove to the Nesquehoning 28 where the Maroons took over on downs.
     Following the exchange of kicks, Nesquehoning took over on their own 14. The game ended two plays later with the Maroons on their own 19. Paul Vitek and Bob Marouchoc carried the mail for Lansford during most of the game with Bill Feddock and Lou Higgins toting for the Maroons. The Panther defense bottled up fleet footed Vic Mikovich, who took over most of the blocking chores in the second half.

     Nesquehoning High School's chances of capturing the championship of the Southern Division in the Eastern Conference zoomed skyward last night as the gritty Maroon footballers, playing their hearts out to the finish, jolted highly touted Shenandoah, 7-6, in a bristling engagement on the Shenandoah greensward.
     Upwards of 6,000 shivering spectators-representing one of the largest crowds in many seasons-saw Nesquehoning boys, outweighed from ten to twenty pounds per man, strike back with a touchdown and an extra point in the final period and thereby bring down the curtain on one of the most successful seasons in the history of the school.
     It was the Maroons' eighth conference triumph and it marked the first time that a Nesquehoning team defeated a Shenandoah eleven in the five-year series between the rival clubs. The victory was sure to boost the Nesquers to the top of the class in the Southern Division scramble, though the official standings will not be available until Monday.
     Nesquers Steal Show. The Nesquers, powered by dynamic Lou Higgins and Billy Feddock, hard-running backfield stars, and inspired by a rock-ribbed forward wall that played the full forty-eight minutes without a letdown, carried the fight all the way and there was no doubt as to which was the better team on the field.
     It was Feddock, a shifty 150-pound junior, who scampered across with the tying six-pointer in the final quarter and it was little Vic Mikovich, speedy right halfback, who snagged the pass for the extra point that decided the issue in favor of the Maroon clad warriors.
     Feddock's touchdown came in the early minutes of the final session, culminating an advance of 30 yards. He scored from the five yard line after taking a lateral from Mikovich.
     The Blue Devils, outcharged, outfought and thoroughly out classed, scored their touchdown on a blocked kick early in the third period. Big Bill Burns, 190 pound left guard and co-captain    of the team, rushed in with two other teammates to block Higgins' punt as the latter attempted to get it away in his own territory.
     Burns, the first to break through, scooped up the ball after the block and galloped 32 yards to score. He went into the end zone standing up with two of his own men charging in behind him.
     Burns' attempted placekick for the conversion was short and to the left of the uprights-and that spelled the difference in the final outcome.
     Both teams missed scoring chances earlier in the game.
     The Blue Devils got their first opportunity before the battle was a minute old in the first period when Billy Feddock, playing safety for the Maroons, fumbled a kick and Shenandoah recovered on the Nesquehoning 30-yard stripe. In something like six plays the Shens advanced the ball to the Nesquers' 6 yard line, but the Maroon wall gallantly rose to the occasion and repulsed the march without yielding another inch.
     Inspired by that stubborn goal line stand, the Maroons turned right around and marched 90 yards straight down the field only to lose possession when they hit the Shenandoah 4. The Blue Devils' line dug in and took over on downs shortly after the second period started.
     Maliniak Recovers. Joe Maliniak, a quiet, hard working 182-pound junior tackle who was easily one of the outstanding performers on the Maroon line last night, pounced on an enemy fumble late in the second period to put the Maroons in scoring position, but time ran out before they could do any damage. Maliniak's recovery took place on the Shenandoah 33 and the Maroons desperately took to the air in an effort to score.
     Higgins came close to doing it when he flipped a bull's-eye shot to big George Macinko, but the latter, running at top speed inside the five-yard line, let the ball slip through his anxious fingers. The half ended with the Nesquers trying to connect from the enemy 30.
     The Maroons registered a total of five first downs and gained 87 yards rushing in the first two periods. Shenandoah recorded three first downs and covered 52 yards on the ground.
     Shenandoah's touchdown at the outset of the third period stunned the vast throng because it came without warning.
     Higgins was standing back in punt formation on his own 35 when the three blue shirted figures broke through the Maroon line. Burns, leading the charge, hurled his beefy frame through the air, quickly recovered his balance, scooped up the loose pigskin and qas off for touchdown land before the Nesquehoning boys knew what happened. Higgins was in no position to take up chase and Burns went over the final stripe with no one but two of his buddies for company. But if Nesquehoning fans thought the boys in Maroon were going to allow that bit of hard luck dampen their spirits, they were badly mistaken. Because less than a minute later they were back in the thick of things.
     Joe Does It Again. Maliniak, a real Johnny on the spot last night, recovered a Shenandoah fumble on the Blue Devils' 15 and that bit of alertness opened the gates for the Maroons. The Shenandoah boys found themselves with their backs to the wall from that point on, and they couldn't strike back.
     They did succeed in stalling the Maroons on the half-foot mark after Maliniak recovered the fumble, but two minutes later the Nesquehoning gridders struck for keeps.
     After being repulsed on the goal line, the Maroons got possession following Shenandoah's kick and with a determination that couldn't be denied drove over from 30 yards out.
     The third period closed with the Maroons in charge on the Shenandoah 30. On the first play of the final session, Higgins passed to Alex Utsick, substitute end, but it was knocked down. Mikovich ripped off three yards to put the ball on the 27. A Higgins to Mikovich to Feddock lateral play was good for fifteen yards and a first down on the Shenandoah 12.
     And then, with the Nesquehoning partisans screaming themselves hoarse. Higgins took the ball from center, shot into the right side of the line, stopped and flipped the ball to Mikovich, who was running to his right, and the latter tossed it to Feddock, who swept wide around the right side and slammed his way into the end zone for a touchdown. The roar from the Nesquehoning side was deafening as the referee's outstretched arms shot into the air to signify that the Nesquers had tied the score.
     Feddock's teammates surrounded him in the end zone and hugged him with joy as the officials moved the ball out for the conversion.
     And then came the payoff play.
     Mikovich Snares It. Johnny Kulick, starting quarterback, was rushed into the game to attempt the conversion, Higgins was going to hold.
     Then, while some 5,000 fans sucked in their breath, it happened. Higgins, in a position to hold the ball for Kulick, took the pass from center, straightened up to look over the field and then promptly flipped a pass to Mikovich, who was running far to his right in the end zone. Mikovich went high into the air to catch the ball and he didn't let his mates down. He plucked the pigskin out of the atmosphere with a beautiful running catch and that was it.
     The remainder of the period was spent in Shenandoah's territory and , with something like two minutes left to play, the Maroons found themselves knocking again. However, time ran out before they could ram over another score. The game ended with the Nesquers in possession of the Blue Devils' 10-yard line.
     Higgins and Feddock shared the offensive spotlight for the Nesquers, both boys tearing off terrific yardage during the fray. Higgins was a real powerhouse as he bulled through the middle of the wall and Feddock made most of his gains circling the ends.
     Mikovich, the smallest ball toter on the field last night, wasn't able to break loose on any of his long jaunts, but he contributed several nice gains during the battle and he played an outstanding defensive game. His tackling was hard and deadly and several times he rocked the rugged Shenandoah backs on their heels with his vicious efforts. Higgins and Feddock also came through with come nice tackles behind the Maroon line.
     Joe Conzoneri and Johnny Kulick shared the quarterbacking and both contributed much to the success of the team's attack.
     The Nesquehoning front wall-from end to end-distinguished itself again with Joe Maliniak, regular right tackle; Joe Span, scrappy little left guard, and George Macinko, varsity right end, standing out conspicuously throughout the entire struggle. The Nesquers used only two substitutes.
     Real evidence of the superiority of the Maroons last night is indicated in the fact that they rolled up ten first downs and a total of 201 yards on the ground, while the Blue Devils got only five first downs and were held to 73 yards rushing. Both teams gained 27 yards through the air lanes.
     Nesquehoning fans were on hand in large numbers last night and the efforts of the high school band, the majorettes and the cheerleaders did much toward bringing home the victory. Many fans from other Valley towns also were spotted in the huge throng.
     This was Nesquehoning's final game on the regular season schedule and everybody in the community settled back to await the week-end developments. There is a possibility that last night's triumph meant the Southern Division title for the Maroons but the official facts will not be known until Secretary Bob Dawson, of Scranton, unscrambles the tangle over the week-end.

     Nesquehoning High School's dream of an Eastern Conference championship was rudely shattered Saturday as a wide-awake Scranton Tech eleven, taking advantage of every break, fought back in the final period to defeat the wearers of the maroon, 13-6, in the playoff for the 1946 title.
     Some 7,000 spectators sat in ideal weather in Scranton's specious Athletic Park to watch the conference rivals fight it out.
     The Maroons, Southern Division standard bearers, collapsed in defeat with less than three minutes to go in the final quarter.
     Capitalize On Breaks. The Scranton boys, who carried the Northern Division banner into battle, capitalized on a series of breaks to push across their first touchdown in the second period and cashed in again before the curtain dropped in the final session. Bill Weiss, a 134-pound package of grid dynamite, scored both touchdowns for the Scranton team.
     Nesquehoning first to tally, struck for its touchdown shortly after the second quarter got underway. Halfback Billy Feddock circling his right end on a buck lateral from the 3-yard line. Feddock's touchdown sprint culminated a brilliant 84-yard drive down the field. Low Higgins' pass to Jimmy McCann for the extra point fell incomplete.
     Seven Fumbles. The Nesquehoning gridders, suffering badly from their three weeks' layoff, virtually handed the victory and the title to the Scranton club. They fumbled no fewer than seven times during the fray, most of them occurring in vital territory and two, especially, when they couldn't afford it.
     The Scrantonians cashed their first opportunity about a minute before the first half ended.
     Vic Mikovich fumbled as he tried to skirt his left end and Weiss recovered on the Nesquehoning 16. On the very nest play, the little left halfback with the big No. 28 on his jersey, slipped through a big gap in the right side of his line and never stopped chugging until he crossed the last stripe. Nobody laid a hand on him. Vitcavage, the big reserve fullback, attempted to placekick the extra point, but his try was wide and the score remained at 6-0.
     Shortly before Weiss recovered Mikovich's fumble to set the stage for the score, the Scranton boys had an opportunity to tally when Higgins fumbled on the 19. However, the Maroon front wall rose and stopped the charge on the 15.
     Scranton's second touchdown came as a big blow to the Nesquehoning boys and their followers.
    There were less than three minutes left to play in the last period. The score was tied at 6-6. The Maroons had the ball on their own 20-yard stripe. It was second down, six to go for a first.
     The Nesquehoning team spread out. Higgins was back. The ball was passed to him. He juggled it momentarily, then, before he realized what happened, a guy named McCutcheon sprang out of the Scranton forward wall, grabbed hold of the loose pigskin and it was Scranton's ball on the 9-yard line. Nesquehoning took a timeout and drew a five-yard penalty, advancing the ball to the 4-yard stripe. As play resumed, Weiss cracked off the right side of the Scranton line and went over for a touchdown. Dalykas, regular left tackle, came out of the line to attempt a placekick, but instead whipped a pass to halfback Ken Rozelle, who caught it in the end zone. And that was it.
     Edge In First Downs. Nesquehoning, powered by Low Higgins, who was by far the best performer in the Maroon backfield, had the edge in first downs, 9 to 6, and they featured a better passing attack, completing 5 out of 14 for a net gain of 62 yards, but the Scranton boys had the better of the argument on the ground.
     With Weiss and Big Art Slowey, sophomore fullback, doing most of the carrying, the winners piled up a total of 154 yards against 143 for the Maroons. The Nesquers recovered three fumbles during the game, while the home club pounced on eight. Each club had two passes intercepted.
     Nesquehoning drew only two five-yard penalties in the game. Scranton was penalized a total of 30 yards.
     Higgins Leads Maroons. Higgins, the big pile-driver from Hauto, stole the thunder for the Maroons, for it was his consistent ground gaining that led to the touchdown in the second quarter and kept his mates in the battle right down to the wire. Higgins was substituted only once in the game, being taken out briefly in the second period. Mike Feddock replaced him for one play. Coach Tony Mezza used only two substitutes in the entire game.
     Mikovich, speedy right halfback, several times broke loose past the line of scrimmage and seemed headed for pay dirt, but the alert Scranton secondary throttled his ambitions. Billy Feddock, starting left half, came through with several appreciable gains, while Joey Conzoneri, who filled the quarterback slot in the absence of Johnny Kulick, who has been hospitalized for the past week,, played his usual good game and was a key man in the Maroons' only touchdown of the afternoon.
     McCann, Span Star. Jimmy McCann, hard working left end, and Joe Span, aggressive left guard, were the big figures on the Maroon front wall. Both boys played the game to the hilt and both were in on most of the tackles behind the big Scranton line. Big George Macinko, right end, came through with another of his topnotch offensive performances, snaring two passes that gave the Maroons a nice hike in yardage.
     How It Happened. The Game In Detail.
     Scranton won the toss and elected to receive. Higgins kicked to Scranton's 15 and Slowey brought it out to the 25. Rozelle, Weiss and Slowey failed to gain the required yardage in three tries and Weiss had to kick. Higgins, down under the punt, attempted to run the ball back but he fumbled and Nardelli, Scranton's alert right end, recovered on the Nesquehoning 31 for the first break of the game.
     Weiss powered his way to the 28. Slowey picked up two yards through center. Rozelle lost one and Slowey got only three on last down and the Nesquers took over on the 22.
     Billy Feddock failed to gain on his first try from scrimmage and Higgins quick-kicked to Scranton's 41. Slowey's pass in the flat was grounded and Weiss, on the next play, picked up 4 yards through the right side.
     Nesquehoning got a break on the next play when Slowey fumbled and Mikovich recovered on Scranton's 49.
     Mikovich was hurled for a three-yard loss on the first play. Higgins passed to Mikovich, but it was grounded. Then he tried one to Macinko and it was knocked down. Higgins then kicked, the ball rolling out of bounds on Scranton's 9-yard line.
     With Weiss, Rozelle and Vitcavage doing the toting, the Scranton boys picked up and drove all the way to Nesquehoning's 45-yard line before the Maroons stopped them. Feature of the drive was Rozelle's 21 yard sprint around right end. But for Mikovich, who knocked him out of bounds on the 50-yard line, Rozelle would have been off for touchdown land. He was in the clear when Mikovich shoved him out. Just before the first period expired, Weiss kicked to the Nesquehoning 15-yard line and from there the Maroons went all the way down.
     Higgins, the big powerhouse started it by faking a reverse to Mikovich and going for 13 yards to the 36 as the second quarter got under way. Higgins again faked and picked up two yards. Then he hit straight down the middle for nine yards and a first down on the Nesquehoning 47.
     Mikovich, aided nicely by Higgins' bone-rattling block, swept off his left end and went all the way to the Scranton 37 before Weiss, the safety man, hauled him down. Billy Feddock went off right tackle to the 34. Higgins passed over the line to Macinko, who hauled it in on a beautiful catch and went to the 22 for a first down. Scranton, rocked on its heels by the hard plunging Maroon backs, called time out in an effort to halt the drive.
     But as play resumed, Higgins kept things moving by smacking the middle for three yards. Billy Feddock was stopped as he tried the right side, but on the next play Higgins hit Feddock with a pass that was good for a first down on the nine-yard line.
     Then, as the 2,000 Nesquehoning fans howled with joy, Feddock crashed through tackle for four yards. Higgins hit the same spot and went to the 3-yard line. And on the next play, Higgins took the ball from center, whipped it over to Conzoneri, who ran wide to his right, and the latter in turn flipped it across to Feddock, who swept around the far side to tally. It was a well executed scoring play and the spectators on the Nesquehoning side of the field roared their approval.
     Higgins, as related before, passed to McCann in an attempt for the extra point, but the ball sailed deep into the end zone and the score stood at 6-0.
     Scranton received its second scoring opportunity shortly after the Nesquers tallied their touchdown. Weiss, forced to kick after three successive cracks at the line failed, booted one to Mikovich on Nesquehoning's 19-yard line. Higgins, on the first play from scrimmage, fumbled as he hit the center of the line and Slowey, the big fullback, pounced on it to give Scranton possession on the 19.
     Slowey hit the line twice and picked up only four yards. His pass to Weiss was knocked down and Weiss' pass to Nardelli in the end zone fell incomplete. Nesquehoning took over on the 15. But not for long.
     Mikovich, scampering around left end on the first play, fumbled the ball and Weiss made the recovery on the 16. And before the echoes of the Scranton cheers had faded, Weiss took the fall from center, smashed into the right side of the line and went 16 yards into the end zone without anyone putting a hand on him. Mikovich, standing back on the final stripe, had a chance to bring him down, but the shifty little 134-pounder cleverly eluded him and went in with plenty to spare. That made it 6-6.
     Vitcavage's placekick attempt for the extra point was wide and the figures remained the same.
     That was all the scoring until the Scrantonians pushed over their winning 6-pointer in the final period.
     Scranton threatened to score early in the third period when Billy Feddock fumbled the kickoff and Weiss recovered on the Nesquehoning 31.
     Weiss went to the 23 on an off tackle smash. Rozelle was dumped for a 7-yard loss on the next play, but Slowey made it up by hitting Weiss with a pass good for a first down on the Nesquehoning 13. Feddock made the tackle. Rozelle lost three yards on the next one, Span breaking through to spill him.
     Slowey picked up two yards thru the middle, advancing the ball to the 14, but that's the farthest the Scranton boys went, Slowey passed to Weiss on the next play and as the latter tried to lateral the ball Conzoneri, the Nesquers' Johnny-on-the-spot quarterback, intercepted and ran it down to the Nesquehoning 36 before he was brought down.
     The Nesquers then proceeded to march down to the Scranton 41, where the home club rallied its defensive forces and took over on downs. After that followed a midfield struggle with neither side yielding an inch.
     It wasn't until late in the third period that the Maroons displayed signs of moving.
     In possession at midfield, Higgins fed a reverse to Billy Feddock and the latter hit around right end for five yards. Conzoneri ripped off four yards through center. Higgins bucked again and went all the way to the Scranton 35 for a first down. Mikovich fumbled and recovered but the Maroons lost eight yards on the play. Higgins' pass to McCann hit the ground.
     On the next play, Higgins, faking a kick, slipped the ball to Mikovich and the little speed merchant, traveling with the throttle wide open, tore around the left side and went all the way to the Scranton 29 before he was knocked out of bounds.
     The Maroons still lacked a few yards for a first down, however, and on the next play a Higgins-to-Conzoneri-to-Feddock pass failed to click and the Scranton team took over.
     The ball changed hands several times on pass interceptions in the final period, but neither side made a serious threat until the Nesquers fumbled so disastrously in the final moments.
     Scranton had possession on the Nesquehoning 40-yard line when the officials flashed the five minute sign. Two line thrusts and a pass failed then Weiss kicked to Nesquehoning's 16 yard stripe.
     Higgins, running from scrimmage, brought it up to the 20 and that's where the damage took place.
     The next play was to be run from the spread formation, Higgins in the tailback position. But as the ball was snapped back Higgins allowed it to get away from him for a split second and in that time McCutcheon, Scranton's fast charging right guard, smashed through, wrapped his anxious hands around the oval and gave his mates possession on the 9-yard stripe.
     A Nesquehoning timeout resulted in a five yard penalty, advancing the ball to the 4-yard line. And from there Weiss cracked over for the touchdown that decided the championship of the Eastern Conference.
     Rozelle caught the extra point pass lying down in the end zone. And that was all there was to it.
     Nesquehoning went into the air as the final seconds ticked off, gut to no avail. And as the final whistle sounded Scranton had possession on its own 43-yard mark.
     Though defeated, Nesquehoning followers planned to accord the Maroon grid warriors a big welcome in the community tonight. A big bonfire will be lit and the students and townspeople will parade thru the streets in a mass celebration.