Bradford High School "Quick Facts"
Team Nickname: Panthers
School Colors: Black and Orange
School Closed: 2001
School Building Today: Vacant
School Gymnasium: Used for Grade School Home Games
School Fight Song: "Let Us Cheer for Bradford High"
So let us cheer for Bradford High School
The
very best school in the land.
Cheer
for the Panthers, let's show some spirit,
No
matter if they fall or stand.
RAH! RAH!
Cheer
for our players, they'll never fail us,
They'll
fight for all that we hold so dear.
Fight for the black and for the orange,
Let's go all out for Bradford High.
Donna Lee provided this bit of information regarding the Bradford HS Fight Song:
"This original fight song was written and adapted in 47-48 as the official School Song and served in that capacity
until the close of the school. Music was composed by Band Director David Hughes, and the lyrics were
written by English teacher, Mary Ida Parr."
Great Athletic Teams
Girls Basketball
The Panthers enjoyed great success in all sports during their existence. However,
as far as the state tournament is concerned the Panther Girls Basketball teams of the 1980's were the
cream of the crop. Below are listed the excellent Panther girls' teams and their records according to the IHSA web site
(www.ihsa.org):
Coach Ellie Hanning built an incredible basketball program in the 1980's. Her teams
won a total of SEVEN Regional Championships, FOUR Sectional Championships, THREE Super-Sectional
Championships, and ONE appearance in the IHSA Class 1A State Tournament Finals, falling to eventual State
Champion Elgin St. Edward 45-43 in the semi-finals!!
1979-80 19 - 3 IHSA Class 1A Elite Eight Finalist Coach
Ellie Hanning
Regional Champions
Sectional
Champions
Super-Sectional Champions
Beat Brimfield 56-49
Elite 8 Finalist
Lost to Carlinville 46-32
Carlinville finished 4th
1980-81 23 - 3 IHSA Class 1A Sweet
Sixteen Finalist Coach Ellie Hanning
Regional Champions
Sectional
Champions
Super-Sectional Finalist
Lost to Bloomington Cent. Cath. 40-37
1981-82 N.R.A. Regional Champs Coach
Ellie Hanning
1983-84 22 - 5 IHSA Class 1A Elite Eight Finalist
Coach Ellie Hanning
Regional Champions
Sectional
Champions
Super-Sectional Champions
Beat
Seneca 68-47
Elite 8 Finalist
Lost to Eldorado 73-43
Eldorado Finished 3rd
1984-85 27 - 3 IHSA Class 1A FOURTH Place Finalist!
Coach Ellie Hanning
Regional Champions
Sectional
Champions
Super-Sectional Champions
Beat Seneca 53-50
Elite 8 Finalist
Beat
Cambridge 38-32
Final Four Finalist
Lost to Elgin St. Edward 45-43
Elgin St. Edward won State Championship
Consolation Game Finalist
Lost
to Cairo 63-52
1985-86 N.R.A. Regional Champs
1989-90 N.R.A. Regional Champs
Panther Boys Basketball
You were always in for a great game when you traveled to the Panther gym in Bradford. Boys basketball also enjoyed
many great seasons. The best are listed below:
1946-47 District runner-up
1949-50 8 - 13
Coach Rex Sherman
1952-53 Blackhawk Conf.
Co-Champs
1953-54 Blackhawk Conf.
Champs
1957-58 4 - 19
Coach Bob Foutes
Team
members included: Efnor, Browning, Bowyer,
DeWeerth, Piper, Dison,
Bucher, Mowbray, Velde,
P. Gingerich, Code
1958-59
11 - 13
Coach Bob Foutes
The
basketball team of 1958-59 finished with a record of 11-13 overall, and a 9-9 record in the Blackhawk Conference, putting
them in 6th place in the conference standings. Bill Johnston
received Special Mention consideration in the all conference balloting. Brandon
Piper was on the Honorable Mention list. Bill Johnston
finished in 5th place on the conference scoring leaders list with an average of 18.5 points per game.
1959-60
14 - 12 Coach
Larry Odum
Larry
Odum was the new basketball coach. He was a graduate of Southeast
Missouri State. The Panthers finished the season with a 14-12 record and a fourth
place finish in the Blackhawk Conference race. Brandon Piper
was a first team All Conference selection. Leading scorers for the Panthers were
Brandon Piper (20.2 ppg), David Bucher (15.4 ppg), John Gingerich (12.9
ppg), and Pete Gingerich(10.3ppg).
The
Panthers reached the Regional Championship in 1959-60, losing to Kewanee 62-51 in the championship game. During the season the Panthers split games with Galva. Galva
won the first game, 69-64. The Panthers came back in the second game, winning
83-81. David Bucher scored 35 points and Brandon Piper,
19 points to lead the Panthers. Galva had a unanimous All Conference player in
Rich Falk. Falk went on to star at Northwestern
University and later with the Boston Celtics of the NBA.
1960-61 19
- 8 Coach
Larry Odum
Basketball
finished an outstanding season with a record of 19-8. Brandon Piper
was the leading scorer (20.4 ppg). The Panthers advanced to the Regional
Final for the second year in a row, losing to Kewanee by one point. Members
of the team included John Gingerich, Harvey Scott, Joe Mowbray, Pete Gingerich, Dennis Derick, David Bucher, Jim Laurenti
and Brandon Piper.
1969-70 22 - 5 District Champs
Coach Jim Hoover
Blackhawk Conf. Co-Champs
1972-73 26 - 2 Regional Champs Coach
Jim Hoover
Blackhawk Conf. Champs
1975-76 20 - 6 Regional Champs
Coach Jim Hoover
1985-86 N.R.A. Regional Champs
1992-93 N.R.A. Regional Champs
Jim Hoover would go on to coach at Dakota and accumulate 300+ wins in his career.
Panther Football
Dating back to the 1910's, the Panthers enjoyed great success on the gridiron. The earliest game
of note occured in 1915 when Bradford took a hard loss to Kewanee by the score of 47-0. However, great games have happened
since. One great coach in Bradford football history was Rick Odgers. Coach Odgers spent a portion of
his career in Bradford as well as two other schools in Illinois. During his tenure, Coach Odgers accumulated
115 wins, good for number 172 all-time in IHSA history!
This football "war story" (and a great one at that!) was shared with us by a former Panther player:
"I will never forget our first trip ever to the IHSA (football) playoffs. We had just won our
last regular season game in 1981 and someone needed to beat Buda Western for us to get in. We were waiting in the lockerroom to hear how the game turned out when we could hear the
thunder of the crowd in the school hallway above running to the lockerroom to give us the good news!
Like many schools, Bradford HS was a wonderful place to go to school. It gave otherwise average (athletes)
the opportunity in sports that larger schools may have kept us from (participating in). The high school was the
focal point of the community, there was an excitement in the air when teams were doing well. Though we were
the smallest school in the Elite 8 in girls' basketball, we had one of the largest crowds at Assembly
Hall! People would park their cars in the endzone early on Friday nights to ensure a prime location for (that
night's football) game. It was just definitely a better time and place."
Larry H. submitted February 03, 2005
One game not to forget in Bradford occured against Manlius in 1994. In that game, Bradford QB Mike Shipley
attempted 54 passes, with 13 successful connections to WR Ryan Morris.
Below are listed some of the more successful football teams in Bradford history:
1933-34 9 - 0
Coach Edgar Morrison
1934-35 7 - 0 - 1 Blackhawk Conf. Co-Champs
Coach Edgar Morrison
1939-40
Blackhawk Conf. Champions
1941-42 Blackhawk
Conf. Co-Champs
1954-55 6 - 1 Blackhawk Conf. Co-Champs
1957-58 5 - 2 3rd Place in Blackhawk Conf. Coach
Bob Foutes
Asst. Roy Modlinger
(Missing result of the Toulon game)
Results
Bradford
32
Tampico 6
Bradford
45
Elmwood 0
Bradford
14
Wyoming 0
Bradford
0
Princeville 7
Bradford
6
Galva 12
Bradford
19
Wethersfield 7
Bradford
19
Walnut 7
Members
of the Blackhawk Conference were: Toulon, Princeville, Bradford, Walnut, Galva, Wyoming, Wethersfield, and Elmwood.
Varsity
Cheerleaders: Judy Code, Marilyn Mowbray, Mary Taylor, Jeanette Hanchett
Homecoming
King/Queen: Bill Johnston and Judy Eble
1958-59 8 - 0 - 1 Blackhawk Conf. Champions
Coach Bob Foutes
A
total of 38 players reported for practice in 1958, with 10 key members of the 1957 team returning.
Blackhawk
Conference: Walnut, Wyoming, Bradford, Princeville, Galva, Elmwood, Toulon, Manlius,
Dunlap, and Wethersfield. Manlius and Dunlap are new members this year.
Results Final
Blackhawk Conference Standings
Bradford 30
Wethersfield 12
W L T TP OP
Bradford 6 Manlius 6 Bradford 8--0--1 288 50
Bradford 12
Princeville 6 Walnut 8--1--0 197
66
Bradford 46
Dunlap 7
Princeville 6--3--0
177 58
Bradford 12
Walnut 0 Wyoming 6--3--0 212 147
Bradford 47
Elmwood 6 Galva
5--4--0 198
172
Bradford 48
Toulon 7 Manlius 3--5--1
113 131
Bradford 47
Galva 0 Elmwood 2--6--1
94 197
Bradford 40
Wyoming 6 Wethersfield 2--7--0 85 230
Dunlap 1--6--2
71
254
Toulon 1--7--1
48 178
The
1958 Bradford Panthers football team won their first Blackhawk Conference Championship since 1938!
All Blackhawk Conference Players were: Dan Puffer (unanimous selection), Frank Waldinger
(1st team), Dick Stone (1st team), Dick Hanchett (1st team), Bill Johnston (2nd
team), Don Dison (Honorable Mention), Don Dietz (Honorable Mention).
Dan Puffer led the conference in scoring with 19 touchdowns and 11 points after touchdown.
Homecoming
Queen / King: Ms. Mary Ann Colgan and Frank Waldinger
Queen
attendants were Mary Ellen Johnston, Sandra Miller and Sandra Shaner.
1959-60 7
- 1 - 0 Blackhawk Conference Runner-up Coach Tom Biddle
Asst. Larry Odum
A
new football coach was hired. Tom Biddle, a graduate of Illinois
College. His assistant coach was Mr. Larry Odum, also new to
Bradford High School in 1959. The football team finished the season with a final
record of 7-1-0, good for second place in the Blackhawk Conference behind Walnut. Senior
Don Dison and Sophomore Gary Foley were named to the 2nd Team All Conference. Dave Walker received Honorable Mention honors.
1959
Blackhawk Conference Standings 1959 Blackhawk Conference Results
W-L-T Pts. For Pts. Against
Bradford 31 Wethersfield 13
Walnut 8-0-0 246
97 Bradford 33 Manlius
0
Bradford 7-1-0
143 65
Bradford 20 Princeville
6
Galva 6-2-0 197 100
Bradford 14 Dunlap
7
Wyoming 5-2-1 213 108
Bradford 7
Walnut
20
Dunlap 5-2-1 166
41 Bradford 12 Elmwood 7
Princeville 4-5-0 133 125
Bradford 19
Toulon
6
Elmwood 2-6-0 122 167
Bradford
7 Galva
6
Toulon 2-6-0 93 180
Wethersfield 1-7-0 84 244
Manlius 0-8-0 33 303
Homecoming
King/Queen: David Walker and Eloyce Anderson
Varsity
Cheerleaders: Sandra Foutch, Kay Driscoll, Sharon Reed,
and Sandy Shaner
Frosh/Soph
Cheerleaders: Sandra Wood, Janie Puffer, Nancy Scott and Sharon Pettit
1960-61 5 - 3 - 1 Coach
Tom Biddle
Asst. Larry Odum
Football
finished the season with a 5-3-1 record, good for 3rd place in the Blackhawk Conference.
Varsity
cheerleaders were: Sandra Shaner, Kay Driscoll, Sharon Reed, and Reva Ellis.
Football
Captains were: David Bucher and
Pat Johnston
Homecoming
King/Queen: Henry Waldinger / Sharon Reed
Prom
King/Queen: Harvey
Scott / Kay Browning
1964-65 9 - 0 Blackhawk
Conf. Champions Coach James Hayes
| Blackhawk Conference Champs - BHS Panthers 1964 |
|
| Courtesy of Harla Tumbleson |
The following Panther football teams reached the IHSA 1A playoffs:
1981-82 6 - 3 IHSA Class
1A Sweet 16 Finalist Coach Rick Odgers
Lost to Gridley 20-7
Indian Valley West Conf. Champs
1983-84 7 - 4 IHSA Class 1A Elite 8 Finalist
Coach Rick Odgers
Beat Minonk-Dana-Rutland 23-14
Lost to Maroa-Forsyth 27-0
Maroa-Forsyth Finished 2nd
Indian Valley West Conf. Champs
1984-85 8 - 2 IHSA Class 1A Sweet 16 Finalist
Coach Rick Odgers
Lost to Walnut 21-0
Indian Valley West Conf. Champs
1985-86 8 - 3 IHSA Class 1A Sweet 16 Finalist
Coach Rick Odgers
Beat Elmwood 28-6
Lost
to Atkinson 28-21
1987-88 9 - 2 IHSA
Class 1A Sweet 16 Finalist Coach John McKenzie
Beat Marseilles 22-19
Lost to Bloomington Cent. Cath. 35-0
BCC Won State Championship
1989-90 8 - 3 IHSA Class 1A Playoff Qualifier
Coach John McKenzie
Lost to Alexis 28-0
| Bradford Athletic Letter - 1966 |
|
| Submitted by Harla Tumbleson |
Football Memories:
From Harla Tumbleson (Class of 1966):
"As a 10-year old, I attended all of the Panther football games during their
1958 Blackhawk Championship season. That team was led by half-back Danny Puffer who often ran so hard he
would knock himself and the tacklers out. I distinctively remember him being held up unconscious by other players
in the locker room picture of the championship celebration. That team experienced a 6-6 tie with Manlius, a first year conference member from the Little 8, in a game that saw the Red Devils break Panther all-conference fullback,
Darryl 'Mutt' Efner's leg. The legend has it that as he was carried off the field, Efner
told the team, 'Well boys, there goes your conference title.' Coach Bob Foutes moved left tackle Don 'the Diesel'
Dietz to fullback, and he and Puffer lead the Panthers to seven consecutive victories and the
title. Walnut was the defending champ and a Blackhawk force in those days, and the Panthers 12-6 home victory over the Blue Raiders, was
at the time considered by many to be one of the best high school games in many years. Puffer earned a scholarship
to Western Illinois in Macomb, but never made it there, falling from the roof of a garage he was shingling and shattering
his knee cap that summer. Coach Foutes moved on after that season, returning to his native Missouri, where
he became a school administrator. Don ''the Diesel' Dietz liked fast cars and died in the sixties in a collision
with a concrete bridge on old Illinois 88 (now 40) a couple miles north of Bradford. It was one of the few things in his short
life that he didn't run over.
Bradford was one of the few grade schools in that part of the state that actually
had a football program. The Wildcats wore old gold and blue, and we actually wore leather helmets when I played
from 1958-1962. They were not the kind you folded and put into your pocket, but some of the original padded suspension
helmets that were made from hardened strips of leather sewed on top of each other. What I would give to have held on to one
of those! The Wildcat teams had a tough go of it, because they had to compete with much larger schools. I don't remember what
the conference was called, but members included Kewanee (which had three teams), Geneseo, Galva, Wethersfield and Kewanee
Visitation, a small catholic school. The big game typically was against Visitation, a school of comparable size,
because that was really the only chance we had for a victory. Bradford had a catholic grade school, but we didn't merge
for football until high school, which meant that we had to wait a bit for pay back on Galva and Wethersfield, who were
in the Blackhawk with us.
The 1964 Panther team is considered by many of the old timers to be the best ever,
going undefeated and amassing an average of over 350 yards rushing per game behind a punishing wishbone-style attack. Fullback
Harla Tumbleson became the first Panther on record rush for over 1,000 yards in the 9-game season; half-backs
Ed Foutch and Rob Dunlap went for over 700; and Quarterback Jerry Fuertges
over 500. Fuertges went down during game 6 with a knee injury and missed the rest of the season. Dunlap
moved under center and Pat Murphy to half-back, and the the Panters marched on. Probably the most
remakable aspect of this Panther team was its defense. Led by linebacker Joe Colgan, the '64
Panthers shut out 8 of 9 opponents and yielded but 6 points the entire season, while
putting up 269 of their own. This team started to jell late in the 1963 season, outscoring their final 3 opponents
by 117-0, and by the time their 13 game winning streak ended in 1965 had 12 shutouts and outscored opponents 405-6. Middle
linebacker Colgan was the captain and stalwart of the defense and offensive line (left tackle) and was
a unanimous Little All-State selection by the various print media outlets. Five Panthers were first team All-Blackhawk:
Colgan, Tumbleson, Foutch, guard Ron Schaad, and end Jim Hickey. Dunlap and
Fuertges were on second team and honorable mention respectively. Colgan was one tough hombre,
and went to Southern Illinois U on scholarship. He is now a succesful farmer outside of Bradford. Tumbleson
played another year for the Panthers, making first team all-Blackhawk and several Little All-State teams, and went on to become
team captain and an all-conference Division III player at Luther College in Iowa. Jim Hayes, coached
the Panthers for one more year, finishing his four-year tenure at Bradford with a 25-10-1 record, and moved on to coach at
Macomb High School. He later moved back to his hometown of Harrisburg, IL where he became a successful businessman. Assistant
Coach Ken Hartrich, whom Hayes identified as a key element of the Panther's success, left
after the '64 season to become the head coach at Oakwood High School in Fithian, IL. This was well before play-offs, but Larry
Wilcoxen, who officiated several state title games, says that this Panther group compared very favorably with small
school state championship teams he has seen.
The team the '64 Panthers were then compared with and argued
over was the 1932 Panther team, which also went undefeated and outscored opponents 313-13. Another connection with this team
was the fact that it had two fathers of '64 Panther players on the club. John Hickey, father of all-conference
end Jim Hickey, and Lee 'Belzy' Barnes, father of right tackle Michael Barnes,
a 1965 all-conference selection. Rob Dunlap's father, Bob, played against the those
Panthers as a Toulon Trojan. 'Belzy' Barnes was a force in those days, coming by his nickname for his bull-like power in carrying
the football. He earned a scholarship to Western Illinois, and later became a successful Bradford businessman. His son Michael
is currently a judge on the State Appeals Court in Indianapolis, IN.
Based upon your research on the
1933 and 1934 Panthers, it looks like Coach Morrison had three consecutive undefeated seasons.
We're
planning a '64 Panther '45th' reunion, the first, in the Fall of 2009. Let me know if you'd like to drop in."
Track and Field
The following Panther thinclads placed at the IHSA state track meet:
1923-24 Blake
High Jump 3rd Place
1935-36 Hopkins
Javelin 4th Place
1982-83 Janis Reese 800 Meter Run
7th Place
1983-84 Janis Reese 800 Meter Run
2nd Place
1990-91 Troy Waldinger High Jump
5th Place
In addition to individual accomplishments, the Bradford High School boys won a few Stark County
High School Track Meets over the years. The following information regarding this meet was provided to us by
John Ballentine:
"The Stark County track/field and declamatory meet was a major
event for decades. It was fiercely fought in order to win that particular year and claim county bragging rights.
Businesses and schools, even the grade schools, were closed early in order to attend the afternoon meet. Main streets
resembled ghost towns because a majority of the county's population was at the contest.
Records
were kept and trophies, plaques, ribbons, etc. were awarded. Yet, in 1990 the county meet could no longer be held.
Castleton High no longer existed, Toulon and LaFayette Highs were consolidated, and Bradford began co-opting with Tiskilwa to form a track team. Since Tiskilwa was not part of Stark County, this eliminated Bradford's participation leaving
only Toulon-LaFayette and Wyoming as the competitors from the original 5 schools. Therefore, the meet was permanently discontinued after 1989."
Bradford High School boys reigned as champions of this once annual event during the following spring seasons:
1909, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1924, 1929, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1935, 1936, 1947,
1948, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1985, 1988
For those of you who are counting, that is 29 Stark County Track Meet Championships won
by the Bradford High School boys track program!!
Music
Along with a great athletics tradition at Bradford High School, it was also a great place to learn about
the art of music and they were very successful in having one of the finest music programs in the area. In 1977 and
1978, Bradford won the Class D State Championship at the IHSA Music Sweepstakes. Pep bands and such of this caliber
made a Bradford home game a very exciting one.
Memories & Facts
**Donna Dally Lee (Class of 1949) added this information about the Bradford
music program:
"I was fortunate enough to be a four-year member of Bradford High School Girl's Ensemble who sang at
many school functions, as well as meetings and special programs held throughout the community. In 1948, with
our band and chorus instructor David Hughes, we, as well as the Girl's Chorus, competed in
the IHSA State Music Contest, held at Eastern Illinois University, in Charleston, Illinois, and were both awarded
a First Place medal. The following year, with our instructor Burton Bates, the Girls' Ensemble
returned to State Contest and again received a First Place award.
Some of my fondest memories occurred while I was a student at BHS and I surely hated to see it close
its doors."
**Former Bradford School principal Michael Stagliano started his educational career at
Bradford High School as well.
**From David Bucher (Class of 1961) - David Bucher also assisted
with write-ups in the football and basketball sections for the 1957-61 seasons:
BRADFORD HIGH SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS
1957-1961
1957--1958
High
school enrollment was 167 students--Freshman 49, Sophomores 47, Juniors 39, Seniors 32
Voters
passed a bond issue for an addition to the high school by a vote of 489 for,
416 against and 23 ballots spoiled. The new addition would provide for: agriculture
lab, agriculture class room and farm shop, band and music department, band storage, boys’ and girls’ showers,
lockers and dressing rooms, standard sized gym which will meet state requirements for physical education, kitchen and cafeteria,
additional toilet facilities, and a first aid room. Total cost would be $349,000.00.
At
the Athletic Banquet in 1958 famous track star Jesse Owens spoke to over 300 people.
Valedictorian: Don Browning Salutatorian: Philip Hickey
1958-1959
Enrollment
for the school year is a record, with 191 registered students. Freshmen 55, Sophomores,
51, Juniors, 37 and Seniors, 48.
The
student council was made up of Tom Thompson, , Eldon DeWeerth, Mary Lee Hahn, Stanley Horack and
Danny Fuertges.
Class
officers: Mary Lee Hahn, President; Shirley Behrends, Vice President; Mary
Dewey, Secretary; Norma Rummell, Treasurer
1959-1960
Valedictorian: Janice Hall
Salutatorian:
Don Smith
1960-61
Principal Mr.
J. A. Jones
Faculty
Judy
Bandy Girls
Physical Education
Tom
Biddle Social
Studies and Physical Education
Dave
Clark Mathematics
and Physics
Lydia
Dietrich Home Economics
Lester
Gill
Music
Larry
Odum English
and Social Studies
Robert
Thomas English
Sallie
Vanzant Math and Latin
Linda
Webster Commercial Subjects
Ray
Wilson Music
Eldon
Witt
Vocational Agriculture
William
Wittmeyer Industrial Arts and Driver Education
Valedictorian: Sandra Shaner
Salutatorian: Madeleine Johnston
Senior
Class Officers: Cheryl Hall, Beverly Dunn, Sandra Shaner, and Dale
Rachel
Bradford High School Enrollment (Grades 9 -
12)
1954-55 169
1955-56 173
1956-57 164
1957-58 167
1958-59 191
If You Have Any Further Information Regarding Bradford High School
Please forward further information regarding Bradford High School to:
| Bradford Football |
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| Backside of School |
| Bradford Cinder Track |
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| The Home Stretch (Grade School in Background) |
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