Ask any of the 1995 Bishop McDevitt Crusaders when their magical journey to the PIAA Class AA State Championship really began, and, to a man, they'll give the same answer.
For them, it didn't begin with the tough and determined season-opening victory over rival Middletown.
It didn't begin during the sticky, steamy dog days of training camp in August.
It didn't begin during a grueling spring regimen of weights, conditioning and agility drills.
That 15-0 season of a lifetime a monument of perfection that now shines as splendidly as their golden helmets truly began on a painful, bitter night in November 1994 with a stinging setback. Cocalico 15, Bishop McDevitt 14.
Getting their first taste of the District 3 playoffs in the Four Chapman Era, a favored McDevitt squad took a physical beating from the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 3 champions. The Crusaders didn't make the key plays late in the game when they needed to and dropped the one-point heartbreaker."We should have won that game," said quarterback/defensive back Jordan Scott. "I dropped a pick on the final drive of the game. [Linebacker] Kenny Borreli dropped a pick. We had an unsportsmanlike flag. And after the game, leaving the stadium we got chewed out by their fans. They were on us and they were talking about us coming from the Mid-Penn. That stuck with me for a long time…That made me hungry and made me want to get back."
For the 1995 Crusaders, the team regarded by many football fans as both the unstoppable force and the immovable object, a path to glory opened up with their collective, stark realization on a long bus ride home from Elco High School.
"We were really embarrassed after that Cocalico game," said offensive tackle Todd Rombach. "Man against man, we just got beat. No excuses. And that became the big motivating factor for us…pretty much it came down to us up front getting beat and that was all there was to it. And it was a matter of us coming together and saying we're not going to let that happen again."
The players made that vow to one another, and they couldn't wait to get started building themselves into champions. Just about any other football team would take some time off after achieving a District playoff berth.
"That next Monday we were in the weight room and started lifting and getting ready," said tailback Tommy Mealy, now a McDevitt assistant coach and the Crusaders' athletic director.
A 15-0 record compiled by running the table in arguably the toughest conference in the state is enough to guarantee a team its place in the pantheon of the all-time greatest high school teams in Pennsylvania.
The 1992 Cumberland Valley Eagles, led by Jon Ritchie, and the 1995 McDevitt Crusaders remain the only two teams to go a perfect 8-0 in Mid-Penn I (now Mid-Penn Commonwealth) and go on to finish 15-0 with a state title.
"My biggest thing then - and it still is now - is that we went undefeated in our conference. I think that was bigger in itself than actually winning the state title," said defensive tackle Corey Deibler. "Being able to go undefeated in the Mid-Penn Conference, in Mid-Penn I, with the likes of Cumberland Valley, Harrisburg, Cedar Cliff and those teams, the fact that we ran the table and accomplished that was awesome."
Discipline. Attitude. Teamwork.
It was crystal clear to anyone who watched this team play that the '95 McDevitt team was special. It wasn't just the amazing streak of victories. It was the way they won. The way they played the game. Their dominating style. Their passion. Their swagger. Their love of the big moments.
"The biggest thing about our team was that there were a lot of characters," said guard/defensive tackle Steve Spoljaric. "With our group of guys, as individuals we were all so different and yet we all came together and molded together so well."
Blending the personalities was charismatic head coach Four Chapman and a magnificent coaching staff, whose deep dedication and influence still touches many players, just as much now, 10 years later, as it did then.
"I really don't know what my passion would be like today, as a player, or now as a coach, if I didn't play for that group of coaches," linebacker Todd Mealy said. "I have so much respect for that staff, and the passion they put into it, and everything they did.
"With that coaching staff we had we were well-prepared for everybody. The staff was confident. And if the staff was confident then the kids playing for them were confident."
Over his first four years at the school, Chapman had steadily built McDevitt into a power and now his players fully understood the lessons he and his staff had been instilling in them.
"Chap and those guys made us mentally tough," Scott added.
For three previous seasons McDevitt's success and growing reputation was built on a high-octane aerial attack, complete with sophisticated multi-receiver sets and innovative schemes more likely to be seen in the Pac 10 than the Mid-Penn.
However, it was never a secret that those very good teams in 1992-1994, while compiling an impressive record of 24-9, were vulnerable at the point of attack.
Spurred on by their coaches, the players displayed an unmatched work ethic beginning just days after the '94 season ended. Through winter, spring and summer, the Crusaders worked in every way imaginable.
"No one would ever blow off weight training," said guard/defensive end Don Painter. "Every day in the summer time you could find everyone in the gym working out and lifting."
They hit the weights intensely. They conditioned themselves. They competed with one another and bonded in games of pick-up basketball. They ran the track at Susquehanna Twp. High School. They became bigger, stronger and faster. And they grew closer, developing a chemistry and love for one another that most teams could never dream of achieving.
"There were three main points that our coaching staff did a great job instilling in us that were the theme for our season - discipline, attitude and teamwork," said Tommy Mealy. "Those were the cornerstones for that year and we had great senior leadership that modeled those throughout the summer weight training and conditioning and throughout the season."
Size Hurts. Speed Kills.
While some in the midstate had an inkling that a monster of a team was about to be unleashed, it was still impossible to conceive how complete this team would be. But every McDevitt player and coach knew that 1995 was going to be different. For so many reasons.
As one of their signature t-shirt slogans read, "SIZE HURTS. SPEED KILLS." Yeah, you can say that again.
Offensively, the Crusaders boasted as dynamic a passing attack as ever, with Scott at the controls and All-State receiver Raki Nelson, as well as Dave McKenzie and Bryan Rohacek among others in McD's usual stable of fleet wideouts. Tommy Mealy and Ajani Walton formed an impressive tailback tandem. Chapman's offense remained the quick-strike juggernaut that area fans had become accustomed to. They would rack up 472 points in '95, an average of 31.5 a game.
But a big difference in '95 was the sledgehammer offensive line that rocked defenses back on their heels and allowed McDevitt to run the football against any team they faced. With the burning desire to become great and a terrific line coach in Brian Bullock to maximize their ability, this unit jelled.
"We were a very close group," Rombach said. "I think the additional year of experience helped us to become more cohesive. We felt we needed to let the coaches know that if it came down to a game where we had to run the ball, they could have confidence in us.
"Coach Bullock was a fantastic offensive line coach. His coaching just made us better, in addition to the experience and the cohesiveness of working together."
The linemen still talk about Bullock's grueling practice methods, all designed to help them dominate - even against the most physical defensive fronts.
"The biggest thing for me was Coach Bull's rope. I personally think that made us one of the best offensive lines in the state," Spoljaric said. "That stupid rope. We got our hands on that thing at the end of the season. We had a bet with him that if we went undefeated and we won the state championship we got the rope. We did get it. We cut it up. And we each got a piece of it."
"Whatever we did, we just wanted to push people around and manhandle the other team," Painter said.
This newfound physicality and the tough as nails mentality that accompanied it was, by no means, exclusive to the offensive side of the football.
The Crusader defense preyed on offenses all season like lions mauling a helpless antelope. Defensive coordinator Scott Feldman cooked up a flawless scheme, unleashing one of the most ferocious front fours ever seen in Pennsylvania high school football and dialing up blitzes carried out by a linebacking corps bent on destruction. Behind them in the secondary roamed an unflappable crew of ball hawks, daring opposing quarterbacks to test them.
They allowed just 107 points all season, a paltry 7.7. points per game, and posted 5 shutouts, including a downright scary demolition of Cedar Cliff in the 33-0 regular season finale.
In prior years, big, physical teams could gash the Crusader run defense and inflict lethal wounds. Those days were over, in large part because of tackles Deibler and Spoljaric and ends Don and Drew Painter and Kahlil Nash.
"When I first went to McDevitt, I remember Coach Feldman telling me that all that I had to do was stop the trap, the inside run," said Deibler, who transferred from Steel-High after his junior football season. "We had big guys who could run. That front four truly played as a front four. There was no one guy who had to make play after play because we all made plays. We would compete with each other to see who was going to make the big play."
Too Many Weapons
It didn't take long for the '95 Crusaders to demonstrate that they were not only better, but physically tougher than ever.
The Cumberland Valley Eagles, a longtime nemesis, came calling to McDevitt Field in week 2. McDevitt had not beaten CV since 1988 and the Crusaders wanted to make a statement. They opened up a 21-3 third quarter lead on a touchdown run by Tommy Mealy and two TD passes by Scott to Nelson and McKenzie. CV stormed back, rallying to within 21-18 before Scott connected with Rohacek for the kill shot, a 27-yard scoring strike to seal a 28-25 victory.
"That was the first time I ever beat Cumberland Valley in my life," Spoljaric said.
"I knew I was part of something special here even as a sophomore, but when we beat Cumberland Valley, that's when I really knew we had something going and we gained a lot of confidence for the rest of the year."
McDevitt rolled on through October and entered the '95 City Championship - most aptly described as the Market Street Brawl - unbeaten at 6-0, ready to face an unbelievably explosive Harrisburg squad. The 5-1 Cougars boasted as dangerous an offense as any in the state, with Kenny Watson and Quincy Wadley leading a dazzling cast.
The morning showers and ominous, overcast sky threatened to postpone the game that everyone in the area could no longer wait for. As the Crusaders went through their usual pregame routine down in the dark, damp weight room in the basement beneath Tracey Hall, they steeled themselves for the brutal battle ahead.
The drama reached its apex in the last five minutes of the game as the McDevitt offense needed a score to preserve its undefeated season. With a ferocious Cougar pass rush bearing down on him, Scott completed a
do-or-die fourth down and 9 when Nelson so perfectly broke off an improvised route and Scott delivered the football just as he was being hit.
"We drew that up in the dirt," Scott said. "It wasn't even a play.
"The drive had started out shaky. The nose tackle was giving me heat every single play. The line just gave me a second or two and I was able to find Raki and just threw it to an area where he should be. That was a huge play."
Then Nelson evoked memories of "The Catch" from '94 by rising up over Sherrod Wallace near the McD sideline to pull in another one. That was followed by the Scott to McKenzie connection on a 30-yard catch and run where McKenzie bounced off Watson and went inside the 10 to set up Scott's winning TD on a 2-yard veer keeper. McDevitt 12, Harrisburg 7.
"Near the end of the game after we scored, me, Corey Deibler and my brother Drew were running off the field and Deib looked up and he said 'dude, it doesn't get much better than this,'" Don Painter said.
"Beating Harrisburg was real special," Deibler said. "Afterward, seeing my mom on the field and hugging my mom, and I was crying like a baby. That game was unlike any other thing that I have been a part of in sports. We drove the length of the field to win that game, and for us to do that was a tremendous accomplishment."
As the weather turned colder and November arrived, there was just one more hurdle between the Crusaders and a perfect 10-0 regular season, not to mention the outright Mid-Penn I Championship. It was another traditional powerhouse, the Cedar Cliff Colts.
Calling upon all facets of their game, McDevitt put on one of the most dominating displays of football against a quality opponent that you may ever see and smashed Cedar Cliff 33-0.
Although the Crusaders had an unbeaten season at 8-0-2 in 1935, this marked the school's first unbeaten, untied regular campaign. The McD defense totally shut down Cedar Cliff's power running game. Tommy Mealy ripped off 91 yards and four touchdowns on just 13 carries to spark the offensive machine.
"The feeling after that game was absolutely phenomenal," Rombach said.
In the District 3-AA playoffs McDevitt rolled 49-10 over Trinity to set up the long-awaited rematch with the Cocalico Eagles. Ironically, the site for the District 3 championship showdown was the same as their previous match-up, Elco High School.
That was the only similarity between the '94 and '95 contests. McDevitt tasted sweet revenge, unleashing its fury in a 34-7 demolition. The Crusaders did the battering this time, amassing 292 yards rushing on 55 carries.
Altoona Is Beautiful in December
After an easy 40-6 whipping of Line Mountain in the opening round of the PIAA playoffs, McDevitt returned to Hersheypark Stadium for the Eastern Final against Lansdale Catholic. This wasn't going to be the cakewalk that many blue and gold faithful had anticipated.In one of their only missteps of the season - but one that could have cost them everything -19 McDevitt players failed to show up at a mandatory pre-game meal. Chapman's discipline was on full display as he held all 19 players out for the entire first quarter.
The ominous beginning set the tone for what would be a four-quarter struggle on a muddy, frozen field with conditions that thwarted nearly any attempt to throw the football.
Somehow though, it was fitting that with five minutes remaining in the season, there was only one way to the state finals. That was to line up and play smash mouth football. Unlike their bitter defeat the previous November, this time the Crusaders relished the opportunity to prove they were the physically superior team.
"This is it. If we want to do it, we have to do it now. I remember thinking, if we want to win the state championship we have to just run the ball right down their throats," Painter said.
Down 7-6, McDevitt began its final drive at its own 40-yard line. Tommy Mealy followed his massive blockers, toting the rock play after play, 10 straight times, and the Crusaders wore down Lansdale Catholic and chewed up yards and precious time. Then, on the only pass of the drive, Scott found a wide-open Nash in the back of the end zone for an 8-yard touchdown that sent McDevitt to Altoona for a shot at the state gold it had waited so long for.
"The Lansdale Catholic pre-game meal, that's the only thing I look back and regret from that season," Deibler said. "And it took me until nine years later, until I started coaching football, to really realize what we did that day, and what we almost lost because of that"
"My most memorable experience from that whole year was winning the Lansdale Catholic game. I remember looking up at Hershey Stadium and seeing the clock with 4:50 remaining and we were losing," Tommy Mealy said. "And remember thinking to myself 'this season could be over.' But then we started "The Drive" and we ran the ball down the field 16 straight times, and we went to play action and hit Khalil Nash in the back of the end zone for a touchdown to win the game."
On this night, the offensive line became heroes and gained a well-deserved measure of satisfaction.
"It was put up or shut up," Rombach said. "It was awesome to know that we were able to come through like we did."
All season long the McDevitt community had waited to see just how beautiful Altoona really was in December. On a bitter cold and snowy day, December 9, 1995, we all found out.
Fittingly for this team, McDevitt's first and only PIAA state championship appearance was a complete dismantling of the opposition. Burrell was powerless to stop it. The Bucs had no shot on this day. The only question was how large the margin would be.
The '95 Crusaders capped off this dream season with another masterpiece that featured it all - the defense, the running game, the passing game, special teams. Burrell managed just 92 yards of total offense. Tommy Mealy scored the first two touchdowns of the day, and Scott tossed TDs to Nelson and McKenzie.
McDevitt 29, Burrell 0. 1995 PIAA Class AA Champions.
Even with all the talent and brilliant displays of individual excellence, this team will be remembered as much, if not more so, for it's close knit bond, something that every player talks about with unmistakable emotion.
"We woke up every day and the first thing on our minds was we were going to go to practice, we were going to work and we were working with our best friends," Todd Mealy said. "And then on the weekend you knew you were going to war with your buddies and going to war with your best friends. That's what it was all about. It was the reason to wake up every day. It was about not letting your best friends down, and getting excited when your best friends did something on the field."
"We were close knit. It wasn't like the players were separate from the coaches. We were one unit," Deibler said. "We definitely had something special going on during that time. A lot of that, and probably most of that, is attributable to the coaching staff."
"It was a great group of guys and we just really enjoyed being around each other," Rombach added.
"At the time I don't think you really knew how much fun you were having," Painter said. "When I do think back, that's when playing football was fun. I remember wanting to go to practice. It was fun. I loved playing with those guys. It was a lot better than it was in college."
Most of us who watched the most special football season in the history of Bishop McDevitt High School realized it then, and everyone realizes it now. It will be a long, long time, before we ever see a team that can compare to this one. We may never see one.
"The one thing I'll cherish about that team - there might be another undefeated team at McDevitt and there might be a group of guys who does as well as us, but there will never be a team that can do better," Spoljaric said.
"The most special part of that season for me was winning with my brother on the team and having that for my family," Tommy Mealy said. "The reason why I'm here now with this job as athletic director and assistant football coach is because of that year. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about that season and the group of guys that I played with."
Perhaps it was Deibler who best described their legacy of domination and perfection.
"It's tough to beat a team you can't score on, and at the same time, one you can't stop," he said.