Whiteford Bobcat Football History - BlogsMonroe.com

The history of Whiteford Bobcat
football is full of fantastic finishes,
fourth-quarter comebacks and
game-winning drives. Some lategame
heroics have led to conference
championships and some to
playoff berths.
The following account is a gameby-game
recap of Whiteford’s
“fourth-quarter” wins:
1957
Whiteford 6, Sand Creek 0
Score after 3 qtrs: 0-0
Winning play: Ray Armistead 2 yard run.
How they did it: 40-yard reverse by Wayne
Goetz set up the winning TD.
Footnote: Tom Creque had kicked a field
goal early in the fourth quarter but it was nullified
by a penalty.
Whiteford 20, Cement City 13
Score after 3 qtrs: 13-13
Winning play: Wayne Goetz 3 yard run.
How they did it: Goetz scored with 1:40 left
in the game, breaking the tie.
Footnote: Game played at Bedford High
School on Saturday afternoon.
1958
Whiteford 12, Camden Frontier 6
Score after 3 qtrs: 6-6
Winning play: Aaron Daniels 31 pass
from Tom Creque
How they did it: Bobcats drove 74 yards in
the final period. The pass was a short one to
Daniels, who ran the rest of the way.
Footnote: Camden scored in the first quarter.
Whiteford 32, Airport 20
Score after 3 qtrs: Airport 14-13
Winning play: Tom Creque 30 yard run.
How they did it: Trailing 14-13, the Bobcats
scored three touchdowns in fourth quarter.
Eugene Perry made it 19-14 on a 1-yard run
early in the period. After the Bobcats took
over on downs, quarterback Creque scored
on a 30-yard run to make it 25-14. Airport
got the ball back. On fourth down, Creque
intercepted a pass and returned it to the Jet
Whiteford Bobcat Football History
A closer look at Whiteford’s fourth-quarter comeback victories
5-yard line. After a penalty, Ray Armistead
scored on a 17-yard run and Robert Iott
added the kick. Airport scored on the ensuing
kickoff, with 1:15 remaining.
Footnote: It was a Dad’s Night game for
Whiteford but it was played in Carleton due to
wet conditions on the Whiteford home field.
1960
Whiteford 18, Sand Creek 12
Score after 3 qtrs: 12-12
Winning play: Pat Iott 2 run.
How they did it: Iott scored halfway through
the final period, climaxing a 52-yard drive.
1962
Whiteford 10, Summerfield 6
Score after 3 qtrs: Summerfield, 6-3
Winning play: Bob Butz 1 run.
Tom Creque was Whiteford’s first quarterback
How they did it: The Bobcat drive started
in the third quarter and ended when Butz
scored in the fourth.
Footnote: Butz did all the scoring, including
a 25-yard field goal in the second quarter and
added the extra point after his fourth quarter
TD.
1963
Whiteford 20,
Deerfield 13
Score after 3
qtrs: Deerfield,
14-13
Winning
play: Barry Kiefer
1 run.
How they did it:
Whiteford scored
late. Deerfield had
Robert Butz

a final drive but came up empty.
Footnote: Kiefer also threw a TD pass early
in the game.
1965
Whiteford 7, Erie Mason 0
Score after 3 qtrs: 0-0
Winning play: Rod Simpson 3 run.
How they did it: After a short Mason punt,
the Bobcats took the ball and marched down
the field with Simpson scoring with 3:15
remaining.
Footnote: It was the 14th straight win for the
Bobcats.
Whiteford 21, Addison 12
Score after 3 qtrs: Addison, 12-7
Winning play: John Hooker 3 run.
How they did it: Hooker blocked a punt at
the end of the third quarter and the Bobcats
got the ball at the Panther 12. On the first
play of the fourth quarter, Hooker carried the
ball from his fullback position over the final
three yards.
Footnote: Hooker had one of the greatest
defensive performances in Whiteford history.
He blocked three punts and intercepted a
pass. He fell on one of his blocked punts for
a touchdown in the second period.
Whiteford 14, Adrian CC 13
Score after 3 qtrs: ACC, 13-7
Winning play: John Hooker 36 pass from
Rod Simpson with :09 left in game. Ken Crots
added the extra point, providing the difference.
How they did it: Whiteford got the ball with
1:19 left in the game at its own 11 yard line
and no timeouts. Quarterback Simpson engineered
the winning drive, which included a
42-yard pass to Rich Koppelman. After throwing
a pass out of bounds to stop the clock,
he hit Hooker at the 10-yard line. The senior
fullback did the rest. “Hooker caught the
ball, juggled it momentarily as he sought a
path to the goal line and then bolted into the
end zone carrying an Adrian defender with
him,” The Monroe Evening News reported. It
was perhaps the greatest late-quarter drive in
Whiteford history.
Footnote: Crots added the extra point and
gave the Bobcats a second straight undefeated
season and a River Raisin Conference
championship.
Whiteford Bobcat Football History
ROD SIMPSON
DAn Keller
Jesse strAhAn
1966
Whiteford 13, Boysville 6
Score after 3 qtrs: 0-0
Winning play: Rich Koppelman 3 run (Jerry
Comeback wins • page 2
Butz kick).
How they did it: On the first play of the
fourth quarter quarterback Jerry Butz and
Rich Koppelman hooked up on an 82-yard
pass play for a touchdown. Koppelman
scored later in the period after a short
Boysville punt gave the Bobcats the ball on
the Knight 30. Boysville scored with 5 minutes
left in the game.
Footnote: Boysville had outscored its
opponets 137-0 in its first four games of the
season. ... The Butz-to-Koppelman pass
remains the longest pass play TD in Bobcat
history.
Whiteford 25, Deerfield 12
Score after 3 qtrs: 12-12
Winning play: Dave Knaggs 86 yard interception
return.
How they did it: The Bobcats scored twice
in the final period, including Knaggs’ TD and
a run by Rich Koppelman.
1967
Whiteford 7, Ida 6
Score after 3 qtrs: Ida, 6-0
Winning play: Dan Keller 8 run (Leo Bischoff
kick).
How they did it: The winning drive was set
up after and Ida fumble gave the Bobcats
the ballon the Blue Streak 25. The key
play in the drive was a fourth-and-four play
from the 19. Quarterback Jerry Butz hit
Delbert Norman for the first down. After
Norman gained a yard on first down, Keller
took it over from the 8 with 6:34 remaining.
Bischoff missed his first opportunity at the
extra point, but got a second chance when
the Blue Streaks were called for an off-side
penalty. Bischoff’s next attempt was good.
Footnote: Bischoff intercepted a pass on the
following Ida drive to secure the Bobcat win
against the heavily-favored Blue Streaks.
1970
Whiteford 13, Britton 8
Score after 3 qtrs: Britton, 8-6
Winning play: Virgil Crots 1 run (Crots kick).
How they did it: Crots scored the gamewinner
with 1:39 remaining on a quarterback
sneak. The winning play was set up after
Mike Luck passed to Jeff Riedel for 28 yards
on a fourth-and-15 situation.

Whiteford 9, Waldron 8
Score after 3 qtrs: Waldron 8-7.
Winning play: Safety (Jesse Strahan
blocked punt out of end zone).
How they did it: With 3:45 remaining in the
game, Waldron was forced to punt from its
own 20. Strahan broke through the line and
blocked the punt, which caused it to sail out
of the end zone and giving the Bobcats the
lead.
1976
Whiteford 7, Madison 6
Score after 3 qtrs: Madison, 6-0
Winning play: Jeff Stark 9 run (Marvin
Briskey kick).
How they did it: The Bobcat TD came with
only 1:30 left to play and ended a 40-yard
drive. Briskey’s extra point was the difference
-- his first attempt of his career.
Footnote: Briskey kicked three extra points
and one field goal on the season.
1978
Whiteford 12, Deerfield 6
Score after 3 qtrs: Deerfield 6-0
Winning play: Scott Stone 6 run.
How they did it: Stone scored with a little
more than a minute left in the game to lift the
Bobcats.
Footnote: Stone scored both fourth quarter
touchdowns for the Bobcats, the first coming
on a 18-yard pass from Tim Whalen.
1979
Whiteford 13, Blissfield 7
Score after 3 qtrs: 7-7
Winning play: Todd Hardin 14 pass
from Tim Whalen.
How they did it: Whiteford recovered a
fumble on the Royal 35-yard line in the fourth
quarter. Five plays later, Whalen hit Hardin
the corner of the end zone.
Whiteford 15, Lincoln-Alcona 14
(overtime)
Score after 3 qtrs: Whiteford led 8-0
Winning play: Scott Stone 3 run (DuPree
kick)
How they did it: Alcona tied the score 8-8
with five minutes left in regulation. Whiteford
won the coin toss and gave Alcona the ball
first in the OT. They scored on the third play,
but missed the point-after attempt when
Todd Hardin stopped the Alcona ball-carrier
less than two-feet from the goal line. Stone
Whiteford Bobcat Football History
scored on a fourth-and-three situation in OT
and DuPree’s kick provided the difference.
Footnote: It was the first overtime game in
Whiteford history. ... Stone carried the ball on
all four Bobcat downs in overtime.
1981
Whiteford 14, Sand Creek 13
Score after 3 qtrs: SC, 13-0
Winning play: Tony DuPree 5 run (Dean
Lennard pass from Tony DuPree for 2-point
conversion).
How they did it: Down 13-0, the Bobcats
scored twice in the final five minutes to stun
the Aggies.
Footnote: Coaches Jack Luettke and Tom
Shafer told The Evening News that it was
the players who decided to go for the 2-point
conversion -- and the victory -- rather than
play for a tie.
Whiteford 14, Madison 8
Score after 3 qtrs: 8-8
Winning play: Tony DuPree 71 run.
How they did it: It looked like overtime when
the Bobcats got the ball back but DuPree
ended things quickly with this 71-yard run.
Footnote: The winning touchdown was made
with about 2:30 left in the game. Madison got
the ball back but Rich Stone intercepted a
pass to end the Trojan threat.
1986
Whiteford 14, Camden Frontier 6
Score after 3 qtrs: Whiteford 6-0
The comeback: Camden tied the score on
its opening possession of the fourth quarter
before the Bobcats launched its comeback.
Winning play: Joe Butz 2 run (Butz pass
from Scottie DuPree).
How they did it: A 10-minute, 20-play drive
across 65 yards led the Bobcats to its winning
touchdown with less than two minutes
left in the game.
Footnote: Besides the winning touchdown,
Butz had a great game defensively, too. He
was in on 17 tackles and made an interception.
1987
Whiteford 25, Morenci 22
Score after 3 qtrs: Whiteford, 22-14
The comeback: Morenci tied the score
Comeback wins • page 3
ChArlIe BUtZ
22-22 with 2 minutes remaining.
Winning play: Don Long 25 field goal.
How they did it: After its touchdown,
Morenci tried an onside kick. Whiteford
recovered on the Morenci 47-yard line. The
final drive was directed by quarterback Joe
Butz. Butz carried the ball four times for 40
yards to get into field goal range for Long,
who was attempting his first career field goal.
Footnote: The win earned the Bobcats its
first playoff berth in school history.
1993
Whiteford 3, Summerfield 0
(overtime)
Score after 4 qtrs: 0-0
Winning play: Fred Kutzke 20 field goal.
How they did it: Summerfield got the ball
first in overtime but its drive stalled on a
Charlie Butz interception. The Bobcats had
three running plays, then Kutzke’s field goal
ended it.
Whiteford 24 Morenci 10
Score after 3 qtrs: Morenci, 10-3
Winning play: Charlie Butz 1 run.
How they did it: The Bobcats tied the game
early in the final period on a Corey Simpson
20 yard run. Butz scored on a 1-yard run
behind a Tony Napierala block to put
the Bobcats ahead with 3:01 left. Fred Kutzke

eturned an interception 53 yards 36 seconds
later to ice the game.
1994
Whiteford 14, Blissfield 13
Score after 3 qtrs: 7-7
The comeback: Whiteford led 7-0 until
Blissfield scored in the third quarter with :20
left on the clock and in the fourth with 2:30
remaining.
Winning play: Charlie Butz 1 run (Fred
Kutkze kick).
How they did it: Quarterback Butz scored
with :41 seconds left and Fred Kutzke’s extra
point gave the Bobcats the dramatic win. The
55-yard winning drive included big passing
plays from Butz to Kutzke (38 yards) and
Mike Scott (25 yards).
Whiteford 10, Morenci 7
Score after 3 qtrs: Whiteford 7-0
The comeback: Morenci tied the game 7-7.
Winning play: Fred Kutzke 30 field goal.
How they did it: This might be one of the
most unlikely last-second wins in Whiteford
history. Charlie Butz (LB-QB) intercepted
a Morenci pass with 40 seconds left in the
game to set up Kutzke’s field goal chance
to win the game. Kutzke actually missed a
45-yard field goal but Morenci was penalized
for roughing the kicker. The ball was moved
15 yards closer with no time left on the game
clock. Butz, the holder, scooped a bad snap
off the ground and got it onto the tee and
Kutzke nailed the 30-yard field goal for the
victory.
2000
Whiteford 20, Camden Frontier 6
Score after 3 qtrs: 6-6
Winning play: Tom Reynolds 1 run.
How they did it: A Joe Gust fumble recovery
set up the winning score with 4:08 left in the
game. The Bobcats added a score with 2:43
remaining to seal the win.
Footnote: Whiteford didn’t score until 32
minutes into the game, then scored 20
straight points.
Whiteford 14, Whitmore Lake 12
(overtime)
Score after 4 qtrs: 6-6
Winning play: Curt Ovall 5 run (Curt Ovall
run)
Whiteford Bobcat Football History
How they did it: Whiteford got the ball first
in overtime and scored on Ovall’s run and
2-point conversion to take a 14-6 lead. The
Trojans scored but couldn’t convert the conversion.
Footnote: Ovall carried the ball 33 times for
259 yards and all 14 Bobcat points.
2001
Whiteford 26, Sand Creek 22
Score after 3 qtrs: Whiteford 20-14
The comeback: Sand Creek took the lead
22-20 with 8:23 left in the game.
Winning play: Nick Wohlfarth 1 run
How they did it: After Sand Creek scored,
Brandon Ybarra returned the kickoff to the
Aggie 35. Wohlfarth finished the Bobcat drive
with 4:02 remaining.
Whiteford 14, Blissfield 12
Score after 3 qtrs: 6-6
Winning play: Joe Roberts 5 run (Joe Gust
pass from Roberts)
How they did it: The Bobcats got the ball
back at its own 40 with 1:30 remaining in the
game. Roberts marched the Bobcats down
the field, including a long pass to Ryan Stack
that set up the score. On third down, Roberts
scored from the 5-yard line with :23 left in the
game.
Footnote: Roberts led the Bobcats in rushing
(68 yards) and passing (136).
2004
Whiteford 20, Parma Jackson County
Western 14
Score after 3 qtrs: Whiteford 12-6
The comeback: Western took a 14-12 lead
early in the final quarter.
Winning play: Jed Bunge 24 run.
How they did it: Bunge led the Bobcats on
its 80-yard final drive and scored the winning
touchdown 3:50 left. The drive was kept alive
by a fake punt on a fourth-down by George
Flanner.
2006
Whiteford 48, Pittsford 34
Score after 3 qtrs: Whiteford 28, Pittsford 26
The comeback: Pittsford led 26-0 before
the Bobcats came back to take a 28-26 lead.
Comeback wins • page 4
Pittsford tied the game with 11:01 remaining
in the fourth quarter before the Bobcats
scored two touchdowns to put the game out
of reach.
Winning play: George Flanner 3 run.
How they did it: Flanner scored six touchdowns
and was successful on three 2-point
conversions. The Bobcats didn’t score until
5:05 was left in the first half. All 419 yards
gained by the Bobcats was on the ground as
the team was 0-4 through the air.
2009
Whiteford 46, Madison 43
Score after 3 qtrs: Madison 36, Whiteford
34
The comeback: Madison went up 43-34
with 3:45 remaining in th game. Whiteford
scored on a 2-yard pass from Travis Pant
to Brandon Albright, recovered an onside
kick and scored again on the last play of the
game.
Winning play: Cody Donnelly caught a
19-yard pass from Pant with :00 left on the
clock.
How they did it: The Bobcats scored with
a few seconds left on the clock, but the play
was brought back due to a penalty and had
one play left when Pant found Donnelly in the
end zone. Pant threw for 263 yards and four
TDs.
2010
Whiteford 15, Sand Creek 14
Score after 3 qtrs: Sand Creek 8, Whiteford
0
The comeback: The Bobcats tied the game
on the first play of the fourth quarter on a
Cody Donnelly run and Gabe LaRoy-to-Grant
Track 2-point conversion. Kody Baker recovered
a fumble and Donnelly capped off a
short scoring drive two minutes later.
Winning play: Cody Donnelly ran in from
one-yard out and Austin Bischoff kicked the
extra point with 9:44 left in the game.
How they did it: The Aggies scored a TD
with 2:37 to go in the game, but the defense
-- led by George Vergote -- denied the twopoint
attempt.