Editor’s Note: Below is a partial reproduction of a Saturday, Jan. 31, 1976, Bellefontaine Examiner story recalling Bellefontaine’s 94–43 rout of London, a win that kept the Chieftains perfect at 14–0.
Coach Will Collins and his “Boilerhouse Gang,” as the team was known at the time, were so dominant that the entire starting lineup was pulled early in the second quarter—prompting the London coach to say, “Have mercy!” Even in a blowout, longtime fans can probably still picture the late coach Collins pacing the sideline and stomping his feet over plays or calls he didn’t like.
The win came one week after Collins earned his 200th career victory with a 61–50 win over Lima Central Catholic. Before leading Bellefontaine to a 69–34 record, Collins posted a 23–2 mark at Lykens (now Wynford) and went 100–53 at Toledo Rogers.
This story also offers a little glimpse into how newspapers worked back then.
Then-Examiner photographer Byron Scott’s game photograph appeared in the Feb. 3, 1976, edition, several days after the game story.
In early 1976, the Examiner was still very much a “hot-metal” shop. Photos were shot on film, developed in darkrooms, and turned into halftones, while pages were built by hand with metal type and physical paste-up. Even though the photo was taken at a home game, a vertical photo taken on a Saturday night deadline—or any technical hiccup—often meant tearing a page back apart, and there simply wasn’t time before press deadlines.
Later that year, everything changed when the Examiner moved into its new building at 127 E. Chillicothe Ave. and fired up a Goss offset press, ushering in a faster, more flexible production process.
Today, photos can be shot, edited, and published in minutes.
Back in 1976, though, production limits — not editorial choice — at times dictated when a photo ran.
Chieftains Make 14-0 Look Easy With 94-43 Victory
Boilerhouse Gang Bursts London’s Bubble
By Russ Hall
Bellefontaine’s Chieftains Friday had an opportunity to peek under the lid of the “Boilerhouse Gang,” and what they saw was sizzling and awesome to say the least. The visiting London Red Raiders were not too thrilled about the revelation, though.
The explosive power of the Chiefs came to light in a Central Buckeye Conference clash in which the Chiefs outscored London 32-8 and 32-7 in the first two quarters for a 60-15 halftime score to slide to an eventual 94-43 victory.
The entire starting lineup for Bellefontaine was out of the game by late in the second quarter after the London coach had stood up and said, “Have mercy!” The starters again were sidelined for the entire fourth quarter as several Chieftain players gained valuable playing time as a still-stunned Red Raider squad attempted to work on a 55-point lead after the Chiefs led 80-25 at the end of three quarters.
A highly partisan Chieftain crowd packed the Bellefontaine gym as 6-2 senior Mike Gould pumped in 11 points in the first quarter and Dan Shumaker added eight and Larry Ratleff seven.
London revealed a keen emotional high in the early moments of the game expressed largely in poor ball handling. Full court presses by both teams resulted in turnovers for London and a fast break offense for Bellefontaine.
The crowd responded at least twice in the first quarter with a full standing ovation — once as London called time out with the score 18-4 with 2:50 to play in the first period, and again for Doug Short who went to the bench for a rest after holding All-CBC center Cecil Russell scoreless. With 25 seconds left in the first period, Russell made his first field goal and it was to be half of his total score for the evening.
The second quarter started out with an “Alley Oop” play. Larry Ratleff passed the ball to the basket from 35 feet out and Bellefontaine’s Gould just happened to be hanging around in the vicinity of the hoop to slip the ball home. The next play down, Shumaker took a similar pass from Jeff Martin and flipped it in.
Two quick Bellefontaine steals and layups intensified London’s defense, and a Red Raider player picked up a foul. When he re-entered the game in the third period he quickly picked up his fourth.
The Chiefs meanwhile tightened up the defensive pressure while adding more quick scoring, including another “Alley Oop” play, this time from Shumaker to Ratleff.
Shumaker had added five field goals to his game scoring in the second quarter and tacked eight more points in the third quarter to give him 13 field goals on the evening for 26 points to break his previous season scoring high. Considering that the varsity starters played only two-thirds of the game, that is additionally noteworthy.
At the start of the fourth quarter, Bellefontaine went with its entire starter squad seated and watching. London’s Marc Cox, an all-state football player for the Red Raiders this season, took advantage of the situation to score 12 points to give him 20 for the evening. Eight of Cox’s points came from free throws. London outscored Bellefontaine 18-14 in that final period.
Gould had 20 points for Bellefontaine and played his share of the game in spite of some pain from the scrimmage session during the week in practice. Gould hit eight of 13 shots from the field.
About Cox’s scoring effort, Collins said, “Some of it was due to the looseness of the game and much of his scoring was the result of his very competitive nature.”
Looking ahead to Friday’s game with Springfield Shawnee, Coach Collins stated, “We have accomplished some things tonight, but the upcoming game at Shawnee should be one of our toughest obstacles. If we are not prepared, we will be in for more serious problems than we would care to admit.”
