Warde's Defense Posted Second Straight Shutout as Eagles Blanked Darien Blue Wave Gridders to Improve to 2-0 Fifty Years Ago This Week

The high-flying Crimson Eagles from Andrew Warde High School scored twice in the second period to nail down their second straight gridiron victory, 16-0, over previously untested Darien on September 26, 1959. The game, which was played at the Blue Wave field, marked the second shutout in a row for the Eagles.

A Darien fumble early in the second quarter led to the first Warde score. Co-captain Jack Flanagan, Al Bennett, and Larry Gill ground out yardage as the Fern Tetreau-coached Eagles pushed deep into Darien territory. Quarterback Joe Vige passed to left end Jack Schneider for the first touchdown of the game. Gill added the two extra points with a plunge over right tackle.

Later in the second quarter, Darien quarterback Bob Spangenberg attempted a pass deep in his own territory which was intercepted by Ronnie Toth, who ran 20 yards unmolested for the second touchdown. Gill again added two extra points with a run up the middle.

Second half play was marked by two unsuccessful Warde drives, one of which was stopped on the Darien one-foot line, and the other halted when the Crimson Eagles lost the ball on downs.

Darien had one scoring opportunity in the final quarter when Spangenberg tossed to Jim Green on a 45-yard pass play that put the Blue Wave deep in Warde territory. However, the clock ran out on coach Johnny Maher's home team.

This is the second of a nine-part series which will recap each of Warde's victories during the undefeated football season of 1959 on the exact date each game was played.

Paul

Please sign the AWHS Guest Book.

Visit the Andrew Warde High School Gift Shop.

Watch the AWHS 1976 vintage "film".

Warde "Walkers" Denied Bus Transportation by the Number of "Feet" They Lived from High School

I could never understand why bus transportation to Andrew Warde High School wasn't provided to those of us growing up in the Samp Mortar section of Fairfield. After all, the Merritt Parkway was only about a mile up Black Rock Turnpike, while Warde seemed as if it was on the other side of town. It took most of us at least a half-hour to walk to and from school every day.

We were told by the Fairfield Board of Education that we lived within the "official" two-mile distance to Warde. However, when our parents drove us to school, we certainly traveled more than the required two miles. The official measurements of the Fairfield school system never quite matched ours and must have been taken "as the crow flies."

According to a story which appeared in The Bridgeport Post 40 years ago today, parents of about 80 children living in the Brookside Drive area complained that the walking distance was too far for their children, and they demanded that an accurate measurement be made. The photo below shows Clifford Wells, the transportation supervisor for the Fairfield Board of Education, precisely measuring the walking distance from Brookside Drive to Andrew Warde High School.

The actual distance proved to be 9,370 feet, which was just under the 10,580-foot legal limit for walking. In past years, the children were transported by buses on a space-available basis. Walking with Mr. Wells in the photo were Mrs. Anthony Carrano and Mrs. Joseph Bochinski, both of whom lived on Brookside Drive.

How absurd! Denying children a seat on the school bus simply because they lived a few feet within the legal limit was ridiculous. I didn't live anywhere near Andrew Warde High School, yet I was denied transportation because we didn't live far enough from school. The board would have been wise to use common sense instead of a measuring stick.

We did beat the system, though, by sneaking on the bus at the corner of Tahmore Drive and Black Rock Turnpike. Do you have a similar story? Were you denied bus transportation simply because you didn't live more than two miles from school? I'd like to hear about it. I'm sure you found a creative solution like we did.

Paul

Please sign the AWHS Guest Book.

Visit the Andrew Warde High School Gift Shop.

Watch the AWHS 1976 vintage "film".

Andrew Warde's Crimson Eagle Gridders Blanked Bassick, 22-0, to Kick Off Undefeated State Championship Season 50 Years Ago Today

Fifty years ago today, the fourth edition of the Andrew Warde High School football team was about to embark on a magical season.

The Crimson Eagles, coached by former Roger Ludlowe High School skipper Fern Tetreau, first fielded a squad just three years earlier when the Melville Avenue school opened. The team was getting stronger every year, but little did the players or coaching staff know a state championship was on the horizon.

Tetreau, who still lives in Fairfield, told me that he was very uncertain as to how the season would play out a half-century ago today. "We had a very young ballclub," he admitted. "I did not know what we had (in terms of talent or potential.). I was hoping we would win half our ball games."

The Eagles coupled an effective ground offense with a strong defense to score an impressive 22-0 shutout victory over the Bassick Lions at the Warde field on Friday afternoon, September 18, 1959. Hard-running fullback Jack Flanagan was the outstanding all-around performer for the Eagles during the season-opening victory, leading the running attack and playing stellar defense.

Flanagan scampered 23 yards to register the first six points of the game for Warde on the first play of the second quarter. Right halfback Al Bennett, who played end a year earlier, rambled two yards to complete an impressive 75-yard drive in the second quarter, and halfback Larry Gill burst 19 yards on a crossback for Warde's third touchdown early in the third quarter.

Bennett provided two conversion points after Warde's first touchdown with a run around the left side of his line, and quarterback Howie Ratner, who Tetreau felt was one of his top players, rushed up the middle to add two points following the Eagles' third touchdown. Gill was stopped in an effort to circle his right end for a potential two-point conversion after Warde's second touchdown.

In addition to being the main spark of the Warde running attack, Flanagan set up the first and third touchdowns by recovering Bassick fumbles. The Warde fullback and tri-captain also had the longest run of the game, a 46-yard jaunt during the second touchdown drive. Outstanding line blocking enabled Flanagan to shake free on a delay, and he went all the way from the Eagles' 37 to the Lions' 17-yard line before he was brought down from behind by Francis Larkin of Bassick.

Two first period scoring opportunities for the Eagles were thwarted by the visitors. Bassick's defense stopped the Eagles at the Lions' one yard line after Bennett had recovered a fumble by Larkin on the first play of the game from scrimmage. Later, a Warde fumble was recovered by the Lions on their own three yard line.

Coach Herb Harrington's Bassick team, woefully lacking in depth, put up a stubborn fight throughout the contest and suffered a tough break when time expired in the first half with the Lions only inches away from paydirt and a third down coming up. The Lions' threat developed immediately after the kickoff which followed Warde's second touchdown, and was highlighted by the passing of sophomore quarterback Tom McManus.

McManus made a brilliant varsity debut immediately after being sent in to replace starting quarterback and co-captain Dave Borgman, who returned to last year's starring berth at end. He completed the first pass he threw in the game to Borgman for a 29-yard gain, and he followed that with a 22-yard pitch to Larkin. During his time in the game, McManus fired 10 passes and completed four for a total of 102 yards gained.

This is the first of a nine-part series which will recap each of Warde's victories during the undefeated football season of 1959 on the exact date each game was played.

Paul

Please sign the AWHS Guest Book.

Visit the Andrew Warde High School Gift Shop.

Watch the AWHS 1976 vintage "film".

Web Site to Mark 50th Anniversary of Andrew Warde High School's 1959 Undefeated State Champion Crimson Eagles' Football Team

This Fall marks the 50th anniversary of Andrew Warde High School's undefeated state championship football team. The Crimson Eagles' gridders completed a perfect 9-0 record under head coach Fern Tetreau in just their fourth season of play. The school opened three years earlier in September of 1956.

We'll pay tribute to that memorable season all year long. In fact, we'll take a trip back in time and turn the calendar back 50 years to recall each game on the exact date it was played a half-century later. I'll have interviews with former Eagles' players and a special feature with coach Tetreau, after whom the Warde field was named three years ago.

I'll have newspaper clippings about each game from the Bridgeport Telegram and Bridgeport Post available for download. In addition, special commemorative sweatshirts, t-shirts, and mugs marking the anniversary will be available in my Andrew Warde High School gift shop this month.

"We’d love to do something to recognize this team at a home game," wrote current Warde athletic director Chris Manfredonia. "It would be great to invite any former players still in the area back."

The Warde Eagles capped that remarkable season with a nailbiting victory over Central High School of Bridgeport for their ninth straight win. If you were a student at Warde in 1959 or played on that squad, I'd like to hear from you.

On a separate note, if you have old "film" of your days at Andrew Warde High School, I'd like to post it on this Web site. Vintage Images of Fairfield is working with me to convert old film into streaming video for the Web.

Paul

Please sign the AWHS Guest Book.

Visit the Andrew Warde High School Gift Shop.

Watch the AWHS 1976 vintage "film".