San Dimas: 13 – Bonita: 2
Game Summary September 25, 1981 at Mt. Sac
San Dimas won back the smudge pot trophy in 1981 and it was mainly due to their good defense. They completely stopped Bonita’s offense winning the game 13-2 at Mt Sac Antonio College. San Dimas had intercepted 4 passes and recovered a fumble from Bonita. Bonita’s offense was limited to 99 yards and only got to the 23-yard line. Both of San Dimas’s touchdowns were scored in the second quarter due to defensive plays. Lineman Carl Giles intercepted Bonita’s QB Ronnie Millers’ pass and returned it for 30 yards with 7:37 left on the clock. But San Dimas kicker Mike Suchaneks extra point failed making it 6-0. With only a few seconds left on the clock Saints’ Paul Duenas stole another Miller’s pass and returned it to the Bearcat’s 28-yard line. Then on the last play of the half Saints QB, Marcus Glasgow passed 28 yards to wide receiver Suchanek scoring a touchdown. A successfully point after kick made it 13-0.
Bonita’s only points were from a safety with only 4:40 left in the game. This happened when a San Dimas running back, John Brown fumbled in the end zone. Bonita got the ball back but could not move it against the San Dimas defense. Bonita had opportunities slip away when linebacker Don Hernandez recovered a San Dimas fumble on the Saint’s 25-yard line in the first quarter. But the Bearcats could not advance against their defense. Their other chance was when Bonita blocked a punt and got it on the 32-yard line. However, San Dimas’ Suchanek intercepted a pass on the next play at the one yard-line. Two plays later Bonita got it’s safety but it wasn’t enough to make a difference.
San Dimas got 158 total yards on offense. The lead rushers for San Dimas were Kevin Kelley with 76 yards on 15 carries followed by Bill Cudney 23 yards on 8 rushes. Glasgow completed 3 out of 11 passes for 38 yards. For Bonita Jon Milhon led Bonita with 36 yards on 11 carries while quarter back Miller completed 8 of 25 passes for 69 yards. The turning points in the game were the 2 interceptions during the first half which gave San Dimas the momentum necessary to win the game.
Varsity Bearcats
Front: Q.J. Arnold, Craig Nagengast. Dave Creighton, Carl Buck, Jon Milhon. Darryl Dean. Rudy Rivas. Mike Whitney. Jim Ohigian.
Row 2: Mgr. Rick Nelson. Frank Castiglione, Mike Palmer, Eddie Zurtuche. Aram Barsamian, Jeff Thomas, Lance Davies, Scott Howell. Jeff Hall. Sean Caro. Kirk Johnson, Mike Disbrow, Steve Hillary. Mike Lambert, Mr. Drake
Row 3: Mr. Riggs, Mr. Young, Ronnie Miller, Gregg Wurst. Jim Bringhurst, Dave Brandt. Bruce Rosolack. Glen Brown, Vince Martinez, Scott Dulaney, Dave Whitney, Dan Dean, Russel Albert, Mr. Martinez. Mr. De Shane
Back: Don Hernandez, David Henry, Eric Knarr. Todd Prouty, Brian Irish, Steve Mineer, Gary Hart, Jim Sterling. Bo Solis, Mike Mc Cormick, Eric Ritner. Charlie Burton
The 1981 football season was a rewarding one, culminating with a CIF berth. The under- manned Bearcats, in most cases, proved to have the desire and dedication it takes to get into the playoffs. With a 5-5 record and 3-2 in league, the Bearcats finished second place in the Hacienda league. Despite some setbacks the Bearcats’ grid-ironmen overcame early season defeats to an over confident Ontario team and crushed the Chino Cowboys. Teamwork displayed its valued results with an end of the season two game win streak which carried Bonita into the play-offs, proving that the 1981 Bonita High football team was truly a team to be proud of.
–Echoes, 1982
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Varsity Saints
Front: Dwayne Koverly, Al Ochoa, Dan Ferguson, Kevin Kelley, Steve Caffrey, Darin Merry, Jeff Jetton, Jim Spallino, Jeff Thompson, Tom Cardona. R
Row 2: Darrell Cunningham, Ed Torres, Walter Andreatta, Tony Knight, Mike Suchanek, John Brown, Joey Ewens, Sam Gonzalez, Paul Duenas, Tony Criscione, Jerald Farrell.
Row 3: Doug Steele, Bob Baldwin, Aaron Anchondo, Robert Gonzalez, Eric Leavitt, Tom Morrison, Cary Cerbasi, Stan Strickland, Mark Wood, David Price, Mike Webb.
Back: Mike McKnight, Glen Morris, Pat Bates, Paul Miller, Ed Walker, Carl Giles, Marcus Glasgow, Craig VandenBossche, Bill Cudney, Al Gore, Tim Lilley, Scott Milton
Good things happened to the Saints. With an all around record of 7-3 this Saint team showed great pride in their school and in their teammates. The Saints finished the season with six straight wins, including winning the Smudge Pot back from Bonita with a final score of 13-2. “I felt good about the game,” commented Scott Milton. After the Bonita Game there was no stopping the Saints who went on to beat Charter Oak the following week with a final score of 14-6. The Saints’ defensive line was impenetrable with Tom Morrison, Craig Vanden-Bossche, and Al Gore, there was little scoring from the op- position. The Saints had an outstanding offense with combinations like Marcus Glasgow, Mike Suchanek, Kevin Kelley, and Bill Cudney who put points on the scoreboard for S.D. Daily practice, hard work, determination, and devotion earned the Saints a winning season.
Smudge Pot Tradition
In the twelve years since orange groves gave way to the campus, the smudge pot has been the symbol of football competition between San Dimas and Bonita and the bell from the original elementary school has become a part of the bell tower.
Since the beginning of S.D., spirit has been shown through sports, rallies and the traditional wearing of blue and gold on Fridays. With no exceptions, these traditions hold true today. The trophy case was so overloaded that trophies began appearing in the Media Center and the Smudge Pot that had been missing for two years, reappeared with a dramatic win over arch-rivals Bonita High School. New class t-shirts popped up all over and the making of spirit posters remained a weekly ritual. More so than ever before pride and spirit were shown through the Saint uni- form.
–El Santo, 1982
The Saints went to CIF! An excellent season ended 7-3, 5- 2 in Montview League for third place. In their first CIF game, the Saints destroyed Rosemead with a score of 35-7. Only ten seconds into the second quar- ter the score was already 21-0. Mark Glasgow was passing effectively and Mike Suchanek made four touchdowns. The second CIF game was played under much different conditions. After an entire day of heavy rain, the field was mud. The rain didn’t stop them. At the end of the first half the Saints led 7-0. The Ganesha Giants, howev- er, came back taking advantage of a series of fumbles for a 14-7 victory.
