After the turnaround season in 1972, the Lions came out of the gate as NEC contenders, but history was not on Lisle’s side so everyone took a wait-and-see approach. The 1973 Lions erased a lot of doubts early and as the season progressed, it was obvious the Navy and White had found its groove after a couple of years running the wishbone. With an offense to match Lisle’s history of solid to dominating defense, The Streak had some legs and under the new North-South alignment in the NEC it was obvious the Lions were going to capture the North and be playing the South champs for all the marbles at the end of the season. Today we highlight Homecoming ’73 and a true “statement” game at Wilde Field.
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
Working the chain gang Uh Ah
Homecoming found the NEC leaders coming back to Wilde Field to play the team that last beat them in conference play. Lisle had bombed its way through the first part of the conference schedule beating NEC foes by a combined score of 139-0. Plano was in town to try and stop the express.
They didn’t come close.
The Navy and White dominated from the opening kickoff and cruised to another shutout, this one tallied 38-0. Jeff Payne got things underway when he took the opening kickoff 40 yards and gave QB John Jelinek and his crew excellent field position. Stalled at the nine yard line, Coach Nalley opted for a 26 yard field goal attempt and junior Ed Herout delivered, giving the Lions a quick 3-0 advantage. Both teams traded possessions and field position for a chunk of the first half without hitting pay dirt. Jelinek changed that when he found Bob Spokas with a perfect spiral and the senior end gathered it in and raced the remaining 63 yards to the endzone. Herout’s PAT was the final score of the half and Lisle went to the locker room up 10-0.
Payne and Mastandrea moved the sticks as they alternated runs on Lisle’s opening drive of the second half. Senior fullback Bob Bailiff pounded the ball into the end zone from one yard out and Herout converted for a 17-0 lead and some breathing room. The way the defense was playing that would certainly be enough. On the day, Plano finished with just 71 total yards on offense and wore out their punter. In the fourth quarter, the Lions blew things up, scoring 21 unanswered points and turned the close game into a rout. The fourth started with a terrific interception by Glenn Brooks which was followed quickly by a Jelinek to Mastandrea 25 yard pass for a touchdown. Jim Revelle, electrified the crowd with a nifty 41 yard scoring run in the fourth quarter to further salt the game away. The special teams ace and running back crossed the goal line for the third time in the two game span. The Lions added one more score late in the final stanza to seal the deal and finish the 38-0 whitewash.
Coach Nalley credited junior tackle Bob Andrezjewski, senior linemen Rex Giesler and Mike LaBianco, and fullback Bailiff as key performers in stopping a fast and aggressive Reapers defense, which finally wore down in the second half, thanks to a relentless beating by these Lions.
Once again the defense was incredibly stout and the offense continued to roll, blending the wishbone with some aerial heroics. Jelinek finished the day with 160 yards through the air, Rich Hampton accounting for 91 of them on the receiving end. The 71 total yards of offense allowed by the defense marked the third game where the opponent was held under 120 yards. In this contest, just 22 yards were surrendered in the final three quarters. Knowing the Navy and White was incredibly good against the run, the visitors tried to surprise them by going to the air.
That didn’t work.
Lisle allowed just 21 yards on 14 pass attempts. Coach Barney Neahaus credited his secondary and linebackers for adjusting early and clamping down on the Reapers surprise attack. Brian Montague, Spokas, Mastandrea, Brooks, and John Shamet were singled out as having exceptional games. Bob Vodicka, Rich Hampton, Kevin Maxwell and Tim Doerr harassed the Plano quarterback all afternoon forcing many of the passes to be rushed and poorly thrown.
The Lions were now on a roll and geared up to finish their quest for the title.
They didn’t come close.
The Navy and White dominated from the opening kickoff and cruised to another shutout, this one tallied 38-0. Jeff Payne got things underway when he took the opening kickoff 40 yards and gave QB John Jelinek and his crew excellent field position. Stalled at the nine yard line, Coach Nalley opted for a 26 yard field goal attempt and junior Ed Herout delivered, giving the Lions a quick 3-0 advantage. Both teams traded possessions and field position for a chunk of the first half without hitting pay dirt. Jelinek changed that when he found Bob Spokas with a perfect spiral and the senior end gathered it in and raced the remaining 63 yards to the endzone. Herout’s PAT was the final score of the half and Lisle went to the locker room up 10-0.
Payne and Mastandrea moved the sticks as they alternated runs on Lisle’s opening drive of the second half. Senior fullback Bob Bailiff pounded the ball into the end zone from one yard out and Herout converted for a 17-0 lead and some breathing room. The way the defense was playing that would certainly be enough. On the day, Plano finished with just 71 total yards on offense and wore out their punter. In the fourth quarter, the Lions blew things up, scoring 21 unanswered points and turned the close game into a rout. The fourth started with a terrific interception by Glenn Brooks which was followed quickly by a Jelinek to Mastandrea 25 yard pass for a touchdown. Jim Revelle, electrified the crowd with a nifty 41 yard scoring run in the fourth quarter to further salt the game away. The special teams ace and running back crossed the goal line for the third time in the two game span. The Lions added one more score late in the final stanza to seal the deal and finish the 38-0 whitewash.
Coach Nalley credited junior tackle Bob Andrezjewski, senior linemen Rex Giesler and Mike LaBianco, and fullback Bailiff as key performers in stopping a fast and aggressive Reapers defense, which finally wore down in the second half, thanks to a relentless beating by these Lions.
Once again the defense was incredibly stout and the offense continued to roll, blending the wishbone with some aerial heroics. Jelinek finished the day with 160 yards through the air, Rich Hampton accounting for 91 of them on the receiving end. The 71 total yards of offense allowed by the defense marked the third game where the opponent was held under 120 yards. In this contest, just 22 yards were surrendered in the final three quarters. Knowing the Navy and White was incredibly good against the run, the visitors tried to surprise them by going to the air.
That didn’t work.
Lisle allowed just 21 yards on 14 pass attempts. Coach Barney Neahaus credited his secondary and linebackers for adjusting early and clamping down on the Reapers surprise attack. Brian Montague, Spokas, Mastandrea, Brooks, and John Shamet were singled out as having exceptional games. Bob Vodicka, Rich Hampton, Kevin Maxwell and Tim Doerr harassed the Plano quarterback all afternoon forcing many of the passes to be rushed and poorly thrown.
The Lions were now on a roll and geared up to finish their quest for the title.
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