|
The sporting world may have seen larger celebrations but never
one as colorful or as jubilant as staged by Katy High School students and fans
on the turf of Brownwood High Stadium last Saturday afternoon. The Fighting Katy Tiger subdued the favored
Sundown Roughnecks 16 – 6 to become State Champions. It was a sweet victory for a Tiger squad that has worked hard
since mid-August and a host of friends that have followed the Tigers for
fifteen in their quest for the coveted championship. It was a beautiful afternoon for this State Championship game and
the sun brought out the color of red hats, dresses, shirts, ties, and coats;
standard wearing apparel for Tiger fans, as they throng the field to
congratulate a tired but happy Tiger squad that had just won themselves a State
Championship over a west Texas powerhouse.
It gave the Tigers twenty straight wins, fifteen this season, and a
two-year mark of twenty-four wins of twenty-five games played. This championship battle was a terrific
climax to a season that saw the combined efforts of players, coaches, students
and fans reap rich dividends. To the
players it seemed almost to good to be true, and they could hardly realize the
full impact of their success until they rolled into Katy to find a banner
stretched across highway 90 that said “Welcome Home, Champs!”
A large number of former Tiger stars were on hand for this
title game to watch their former teammates reach the goal which they had helped
lay the groundwork in years past.
The game got off to a roaring start when McInturiff of Sundown
returned the opening kickoff to the Tiger 30 yard line before being pulled down
by Shafer. The Tiger defense dug in to
stop the Roughnecks on the seven from where they attempted a field goal which
was unsuccessful. The Tigers put the
ball in play on the 20 yard line and never gave up possession until Fussell
sent Jordan around the left end on a pitchout from the seven for the first score
of the game. The identical play gave
the Tigers two extra points and an 8-0 lead.
The Tigers dominated play in the first half as they intercepted one pass
and recovered two fumbles to keep the Roughnecks back against the wall. The lone Roughneck touchdown came late in
the second quarter on a sixty yard pass play.
The try for extra point was no
good and the half ended 8-6.
The big play of the game came on the second half kick off when
Shafer picked up the kickoff on the 18 yard line and threaded his way behind
good blocking for 82 yards and a touchdown.
Culpepper blasted off tackle for the extra points to put the Tigers up
front 16-6. Both teams threatened
during the remainder of the game but neither was able to push across a
score. The Tigers had the deepest
penetration by moving to the four yard line late in the third quarter but were
unable to score. The game ended with
Tigers in possession on their own forty yard line.
It was a great overall effort by the Tigers with particular
praise going to the defense lineup of McDonald, Culpepper, Wiesner, Sturm,
Smith, Peck, Wolters, Fussell, Carroll, Newman, Jordan, and Shafer. This defensive crew held the Roughnecks to
one touchdown, and that on a pass play, despite the fact the Roughnecks had
averaged better than forty points per game this season. Offensively Fussell, Voight and Steffens
moved in for Sturm, Wolters, and Newman.
This line up showed their ability by going 109 yards on the ground for
the first touch down against a tough
Roughneck defense. Others who saw
service in the game were Griffin, Madsen, Youngblood, and Gilbert. Seniors
playing their last game for the big red were: Center, Thad Smith, Gaurds,
Richard Fussell, Joe Carroll, and Vincent Perez, Tackle, Charles Peck and
Backs, Charlie Shafer, Bill Jordan, Farriel Culpepper and Dwayne Fussell. It was a great day for these Senior linemen
because they knew they had been part of a great Tiger line that again had
shackled an opponent and had carved out running room for a back field combination
of Fussell, Culpepper, Shafer and Jordan, perhaps the most balanced foursome in
the state, to roll up sixteen points in Katy’s first state championship.
|
The Katy Tiger Road to the 1959 Championship
|
|
|
|
| Katy |
36 |
Tomball |
6 |
| Katy |
48 |
Magnolia |
8 |
| Katy |
37 |
Cypress |
6 |
| Katy |
36 |
Dulles |
14 |
| Katy |
20 |
East Bernard |
8 |
| Katy |
57 |
Sealy |
12 |
| Katy |
65 |
Pearland |
0 |
| Katy |
8 |
Waller |
6 |
| Katy |
42 |
Hitchcock |
0 |
| Katy |
50 |
Eagle Lake |
6 |
| Katy |
38 |
Ganado |
14 |
| Katy |
30 |
Boerne |
0 |
| Katy |
28 |
Kenedy |
24 |
| Katy |
30 |
Madisonville |
6 |
| Katy |
16 |
Sundown |
6 |
|
Totals |
511 |
|
116 |
|
|
|
|
|
The Coaches |
Alfred Hluchan
Fred Ruland
Joe Bright
Gordon Brown (Head Coach) |
 |
|
|
1959 Katy Tigers
L to R, Front row: Bill Madsen,
Butch Polan, Bill Jordan, Dwayne Fussell, Farrel Culpepper, Charles
Shafer, Larry Newman, James Griffin, Ralph Myers. Second row: Doug
Gilbert, Tommy Wolters, Joe Carroll, Ross Spencer, Richard Fussell, Thad
Smith, Albert Voight, Paul Short, Vincent Perez. Top row: Warren
Walding, Lynn Sturm, Stanley McDonald, Charles Peck, Roy Wiesner, Jerry
Goynes, Alfred Peck, Lenny Steffans, Volan Youngblood.
|
