The Football Tradition for the Prep League in
1938:
After the Catholic Eucharistic Congress paid for the installation of lights in City Park Stadium for their big event in October, Holy Cross and Behrman earned the honor of competing in the very first night game ever played in that august setting. The Tigers won it by 20-6. The first of just how many in all? One wonders. Just like having been the first high school team ever to play in the stadium the year before, that distinction can never be taken away from Holy Cross.
On Thanksgiving Day Holy
Cross played Bogalusa in a game that will never be beaten in the statistics
department. Although the Tigers won
with relative ease by a score of 20-6, there was not a single first down
credited to either team in the entire game.
Now, for the official
article on the game played on Sunday, Oct. 16, 1938
Copyright (c) 1938 The Times-Picayune Publishing Co.
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JESUIT DEFEATS HOLY CROSS FOR THIRD STRAIGHT WIN
By
N. Charles Wicker
Continuing to show plenty of offensive strength, the Jesuit Blue Jays scored their third straight intraprep victory of the season Sunday afternoon when they defeated the fighting Holy Cross Tigers 19-6 at Loyola Stadium.
Nearly 7,000 fans saw the Jays’ goal line crossed for the first time by the Tigers who, although behind, never gave up fighting. Showing a “never say die” attitude, the Tigers crossed the Blue and White goal line in the last three minutes of play. The setback was the third for Ray Sheuering’s boys, who were previously defeated by Catholic High and Fortier.
Pershing Cashen, Captain Phil Bruno, O. J. Key and Tony DiBartolo provided the Jays’ offensive power. The forward wall continued to show a fine defense in holding the Holy Cross backs for a few big gains.
Enno Cardinale, Sandy McCall and Jerome Daly stood out for the Tigers.
It was not until the fourth quarter that the feature runs of the game were made. Holy Cross’ Jerome Daly turned in the first spectacular jaunt when he took a Jesuit punt on the Jesuit 31 and raced over the Jesuit goal line standing up.
Pershing Cashen followed Daly with the best run of the game when he streaked 44 yards off tackle for the score.
Tony DiBartolo, sensational Jay freshman, who broke into the starting lineup for the first time, led the Jays to their first and what proved to be the winning score in the first quarter. He intercepted Chet Robin’s pass on the Jays’ 27-yard line and seemed headed for a touchdown, but Robin, covering up the pass, was able to run Tony out of bounds on the Holy Cross 27-ytard line. From here the Jays marched to a score, but only after a tough struggle.
After the Jays came within scoring distance, the Tigers, battling hard threw Cashen for a 10-yard loss on the first play from scrimmage as Al Suberville broke through to drop Cashen. After two passes fell incomplete, the Tigers were penalized five yards and, on fourth down, O. J. Key shot a pass to Phil Bruno for first down on the Tiger 15.
Bruno and DiBartolo alternated and on two plays advanced the ball eight yards to the Tiger seven, from where Bruno took it over for a score.
The extra point try failed.
Holy Cross showed little offensive power during the first two periods. In fact, they were on defense almost all of the time. They chalked up two first downs to six for the Jays. It was not until the closing minutes of the half that they showed any aggressiveness.
Taking the ball on the opening kickoff of the second half, the Jays marched down the field 61 yards and, in a little over 10 minutes, scored the second touchdown with Erwin Robichaux going over on a reverse at left tackle for one yard and the score.
Jake Ballatin kicked the extra point from placement.
Only on the goal line did the Jays receive any trouble. It took them three downs to make the score as the Tiger forward wall battled valiantly.
In the fourth period the Jays decided to stay on the defense and the Tigers, playing for a break, didn’t take any chances. Nearly every time the Jays would kick, the Tigers would retaliate. Finally the Jays were deep in their own territory.
With about four minutes to play, Jerome Daly took O. J. Key’s punt on the Jays’ 31 and raced over for the score behind beautiful blocking.
The kick failed.
Fighting mad, Jesuit came back and scored its third touchdown with two minutes to play when Cashen raced 44 yards for the score.
The Jays gained 272 yards running and passing to 72 made by the Tigers. In the first quarter, the Jays gained 37 yards and lost 12. Holy Cross advanced the ball 17 yards but was set back 15. The Blue Jays picked up 32 yards in the second quarter while the Tigers net gain was 13 yards. Gernon Brown’s boys did all the gaining on passes in the first half. They completed two passes for 37 yards.
The Tigers failed to gain any yardage in the third period, as they had the ball for only a few seconds. During the time they had the ball they tried two passes and received a first down on a penalty. Jesuits gained 61 yards, the distance of their touchdown drive.
In the fourth quarter the Tigers picked up 22 yards net while the Jays, who carried the ball six times, picked up 47. Cashen’s 44-yard run was the only big gain for the team.
The Lineups:
Jesuit (19)
Holy Cross (6)
Miller
L.E.
Suberville
Frickey
L.T.
McCall
Scofield
L.G.
Young
Kirsch
C
Schultz
Rooney
R.G.
McKenna
Wilken
R.T.
Cuccia
Tortorich
R.E.
Loflin
Cashen
Q.B.
Pardo
DiBartolo
R.H.
Robin
Key
L.H.
Daly
Bruno
F.B
Cardinale
Substitutes:
Holy Cross: Davy, Roques, Bondio, Callahan.
Jesuit: Robichaux, Ballatin, Torme, West, Brennan, Armstrong, Farrell,
Key, Graff, Glues, Piazza, Seller, Quinn, Vitrano, Cureau, Hatrell, O’Leary,
Schulte.
First Downs: Jesuit 11, Holy Cross 5.
Penalties: Jesuit 70 yards, Holy Cross 5 yards.
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There must have been some sort of error, since Cashen was Jesuit’s quarterback in 1938. The previous article had him transferring from Fortier for a fifth football year in 1937; now it appears that it was 1938.
Cumulative record, Jesuit leads the series 13-2-2
1936 Season Record: Jesuit:
Behrman
6-0
St. Aloysius
21-0
Holy Cross
19-6
Bogalusa
12-6
Baton Rouge
7-3
Bolton
46-6
Peters
0-0*
Warren Easton (L)
7-12
St. Stanislaus
6-6
Season Record: (6-1-2)
* The S. J. Peters game counted as a win for Jesuit in the league due to first downs scored.
Sorry we do not have the entire Holy Cross wins and losses for 1938.
