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in that first season, being declared county champions
by the Kutztown Patriot after a 10-4 win over Reading
High School late in the year. Wins were also turned in
against Pottstown (twice), Allentown and Hockendauqua.
By the early 1900s, familiar colleges began to pop up on
the schedule.Today’s traditional conference opponents –
Millersville and East Stroudsburg – were on the schedule
as far back as 1903 and 1904, respectively.
The late Lee Graver, former Kutztown professor and
author of
Beacon on the Hill,
published for Kutztown’s
centennial in 1966, notes “apparently there was general
agreement on the value of football as a school activity”
in the early days.
Strict travel rules, limited funding and
informal coaching at irregular times were
major hurdles, before the school’s first
full-time coach, George B. Ely, was hired
in 1905. Ely, who was a standout player
and coach for all Keystone men’s teams,
led football to a 6-3 record in his first season.
The momentum Ely established was
short-lived. Football was dropped by
Keystone prior to the 1906 season after
two players suffered life-threatening
injuries the previous year.The injury issue
was part of a larger national dilemma, as
74 football players died from in-game
injuries between 1900 and 1905.
Graver writes,“Dr.Amos C.Rothermel
(Keystone principal) was warned that
the dropping of football would result in a decreased
enrollment, but in spite of vigorous protest, he made the
decision stick. Football remained outlawed as a ‘brutal
jungle sport’ until 1923.”
While Graver’s words may be a bit exaggerated,
the rules and equipment of the time did not lend
themselves to the safety of the players.The preferred
formation of the day was the flying wedge, in which the
ball carrier would be surrounded by his teammates in
a triangular formation.The wedge would try to grind
the offense down the field, colliding with the defensive
players, who would often try to “pile on.”
Major rule changes to open up the game and protect the
players would be enforced long before the Normal school
would again field a team in 1923. In the meantime, baseball,
the school’s oldest sport, and men’s basketball, established in
1902, would serve as an outlet for the campus community.
The second era of Kutztown football began when the
program was reinstated in 1923. Under captain Harold
Runyeon, Keystone finished 5-3 that year against mostly
high school and club teams. After not fielding a program
in 1926, the following decade and a half would include a
name transition from Keystone to Kutztown State Teachers
College in 1928, and a full schedule against college op-
ponents, including many of today’s Pennsylvania State
Athletic Conference (PSAC) rivals.
Kutztown posted five winning seasons on the gridiron
during that time, highlighted by four straight under
coach Jim McGovern from
1936 through 1939.The newly
tabbed, depression-era “Golden
Avalanche” were led by the
program’s first true superstar,
Fiorindo “Beauty”DeMatteo.
Kutztown’s initial first team
Associated Press Little All-
American, DeMatteo passed,
ran, punted and kicked while
leading his teams to a 16-8-4
record during his tenure. Kutztown also began to play
in a new stadium in 1936, when University Field was
constructed.
As was the case with many college programs, KSTC
football was put on hiatus from 1943–45 as many of the
Kutztown men proudly served their country during World
War II. A year after play began again, coach Joe Patton
was selected to lead the Golden Avalanche program.
From 1947–59, Patton would post the program’s best
winning percentage of the century, leading his teams to
four winning seasons.The most notable player during the
Patton-era was running back Gene Blue, who
finished as the school’s all-time leading
rusher. Blue was also honored all
four years by the newly formed
PSAC.
A dual name change to
the Kutztown State Col-
lege Golden Bears would
launch the coach Bud
Heilman era in 1960.
Conference win-loss
records also appeared
that year for the first
time. Heilman posted
winning seasons in 1962
and 1964 before being suc-
ceeded by Bob Kinderman in
Above: The 1900 Team
Players hoist the
PSAC Conference
Championship trophy
in 2011