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Tom Mullineaux coached Frankford High's football team for 16 seasons (1988-2003),
winning 145 games and four Public League championships. He won his first
crown in wicked mud in 1996 Here is that story . . .
By Ted
Silary
A
driving rainstorm can do more than turn a football field into a mud pit. It
also can wash away the burden felt by coaches at Frankford High.
Al Angelo could have told you in 1978. Tom Mullineaux can tell you now.
Though Angelo went on to win 184 games in 21 seasons, he lost five times
in the old City Title series, which matched the Public League and Catholic
League champions, before producing a winner in 1978.
Though Mullineaux has won 78 games in nine seasons, he failed to claim a
Public League title until Saturday.
For both men, the breakthrough triumph came in a deluge. It also came so
easily, both men had to be muttering to themselves: "Geez, all this time.
What was so hard about that?''
The score in 1978 at Kennedy Stadium was Frankford 27, Archbishop Wood 7.
The score in '96 at Northeast High was Frankford 28, Murrell Dobbins Tech 0.
Three cheers for aqua football.
``I must admit,'' Mullineaux said, "when I woke up this morning and saw all
the rain, I was thinking about Al's team in '78, and how he got that monkey
off his back. It was, `Maybe this is my good-luck sign, too.' ''
With a large boost from star halfback Eddie Gaskins, who rushed for 160
yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries, and a defense that limited Dobbins
to 4 yards of total offense and one first down, Frankford frolicked.
The entertaining freeze frames were numerous as the final minutes melted
away.
The players dousing Mullineaux with a bucket of water. Mullineaux picking
up mud and slinging it at the players. Starters trotting to the sideline and
then making headlong dives into the mud. Dirty players making sure that
clean players did not remain so. Cheerleaders being playfully threatened
with mud balls.
At the final whistle, everyone ran to the center of the field, where the
mud covered ankles, to flop around some more.
After making the short bus ride back to Frankford, the seniors took part
in a tradition that goes back decades - taking one final crack at the
blocking sled - and then everyone ran from the south end to the north end.
Some of the players increased their speed, extended their arms and dived
face-first into the mud.
Everyone then marched straight into the shower room, still in uniform.
With his voice raised so he could be heard over the incessant hooting and
hollering, Mullineaux stood in the equipment room and related his feelings.
His lowest moment, he said, came just last season, when Frankford - an
overwhelming preseason favorite - lost in the championship game to George
Washington, 21-0. Gaskins was unavailable because of a shoulder injury and
Michael Rothmaller, his replacement, got hurt on Frankford's first series.
continued right below . . .
SEASON
BY SEASON
Public League
1988: 3-2
1989: 4-1
1990: 4-1
1991: 4-1
1992: 2-3
1993: 4-1
1994: 5-0
1995: 5-0
1996: 5-0
1997: 4-1
1998: 3-2
1999: 5-0
2000: 4-1
2001: 3-2
2002: 5-0
2003: 5-0
Total: -65-15
---
Overall
1988: 7-3
1989: 8-2
1990:6-4
1991: 10-2
1992: 6-5
1993: 9-1-1
1994: 10-1
1995: 11-1
1996: 11-1
1997: 11-1
1998: 8-3
1999: 9-1
2000: 10-2
2001: 7-3
2002: 11-1
2003: 11-0
Total:
145-31-1
--
PUBLIC LEAGUE TITLES
1996
1997
2002
2003
--
TOP 15
RUSHERS
Yards
Year
Eddie Gaskins
2,061
'96
Eddie Gaskins
1,940
'97
Eddie Gaskins
1,466
'95
Herbert Sample
1,279
'97
Montik Goodwin
1,242
'89
Marcus Waddy
1,159
'00
Toney Snipes
1,095
'88
Damien Adams
1,044
'90
Damien Adams
969
'91
Rasheen Braddock
912
'92
Derrick Lanier
903
'93
Rasheen Braddock
882
'93
James Allen
858
'99
James Allen
837
'98
Jeremy Benson
834
'03
Theodore McNeil
817
'99
TOP 5
PASSERS
Yards
Year
Lamont Brown
979
'03
Darrell Turner
909
'02
Jim Nagle
816
'98
Steve Szydlik
750
'96
Steve Szydlik
723
'94
TOP 5
RECEIVERS
Yards
Year
Michael Washington
507
'03
Saleem Debnam
495
'94
Saleem Debnam
475
'94
William Minor
407
'92
Adam Hartman
388
'02
That
dark day, Mullineaux had flashed back to the '91 final, when his best
rusher, Damien Adams, was injured and
unavailable and the Pioneers were spanked by Washington, 34-0. And to the
'84 semifinals, when he was an assistant at West
Philadelphia. Franchise rusher Reggie Barnes sprinted for a 75-yard
touchdown on the game's third play, then injured his thigh.
West lost to Frankford, 42-14.
"I felt real bad after last year's championship game,'' Mullineaux said.
"You wonder, `Am I snakebit?' I wasn't sure we'd be
able to get it together again. Then I came around. 'We have some good skills
kids back. We have to find some linemen. ' This
is a good lesson for the kids. If you hang in there, good things happen
sometimes.''
Mullineaux mentioned how he had read in a neighborhood paper about the
fan abuse heaped on Archbishop Ryan coach Glen
Galeone during a Thanksgiving loss to Washington.
All Galeone did from 1990 to '94 was coach the Raiders to four titles and
a 45-0-2 mark against Catholic League opposition.
"Crazy,'' Mullineaux said. "The guy wins four championships and now he's
playing with young kids, and he's dumb? If people
are going to yell at a coach like that, they can say whatever they want
about me. I'll take it as a compliment.
"People don't know what goes on. Making the kids behave. Getting them
into school. Making them go to class. The easiest
thing is getting on the field and calling plays. There are 6 million other
things that most people don't have a clue about."
In this one, somehow, Frankford churned out 306 yards of total offense.
Gaskins provided a huge boost by trodding 57 yards
for a first-quarter touchdown. Dobbins, meanwhile, had nonstop difficulty
with snaps and handoffs.
"It was like we were on ice,'' coach Doug Macauley said.
"For us,'' Mullineaux said, "it was almost like the field was dry. We
pretty much ran our normal offense. It amazed me.''
Said Gaskins: "I've played on mud quite a few times, from the Frankford
Boys Club on up. Never been a problem. I was
looking forward to sloshing around.''
He also was looking forward to easing the pain felt by Mullineaux and, to
various degrees, all the players.
"If you lose at Frankford, you hear about it,'' Gaskins said. "But we
don't go out to impress the fans. We go out to win. We
did this for coach Mullineaux and for ourselves.
"I knew coach Mullineaux wanted his one bad. I could tell by the look in
his eyes.''
This story was written
in November 1997 after Frankford roared past North Catholic
for one of
Tom's 11 wins (16 chances) in the wonderful Thanksgiving series . . .
By Ted Silary
Think of the football positions that would be a good fit for a guy
nicknamed ``Pitter'' - as in the pitter-patter of little feet.
Wideout should quickly come to mind. And then maybe slotback and
defensive back and . . . now you're stuck.
We give you Herbert "Pitter'' Sample, of Frankford High, who is listed at
5-8, 155 pounds in the program.
Take off 2 inches, he says. Take off 10 pounds, he says. Now digest the
fact that at 5-6, 145 pounds, the position he plays
is fullback.
"My size? No problem,'' Sample said. "I'm so quick to the hole, those big
linemen never have a chance to mess with me."'
If it's true, it ain't boasting.
Sample yesterday rushed 15 times for 131 yards and one touchdown as
Frankford pounded archrival North Catholic,
4-14, before a roaring, standing-room-only crowd of 5,000-plus at windswept
Frankford Memorial Stadium.
North leads the series, 39-27-4.
Sample helped to author Pioneer history on his 61-yard, third-quarter
touchdown, which raised his season's total to
1,029 yards. He and franchise halfback Eddie Gaskins (1,734 yards) are the
first teammates in Frankford history to reach
1,000 yards in the same season, and the first in the Public League to do so
since Central's Jarrod Washington and
Sundiata Rush in 1988.
"One-thousand yards? I can't even tell you how I feel about that,'' an
overwhelmed Sample said.
Gaskins could.
"Herbie, that's my man,'' bubbled Gaskins, who finished with 202 yards
and three TDs on 18 carries. ``He's the people's
man. Everybody likes him. Teachers, fans, girls. He has a great personality.
He's a funny guy to be around. And the
players know how hard he works.''
But he's only 145 pounds.
"Doesn't matter,'' Gaskins said. "He has the heart of a lion.''
Early in the fourth quarter, meanwhile, Gaskins finally displayed the
heart of a hot dog and that wound up producing
some ugliness.
With Frankford leading, 47-8, Frankford coach Tom Mullineaux put his
first offense back on the field merely hoping,
he said, to melt the clock. Instead, Gaskins exploded for a 53-yard
touchdown and made a headlong dive into the end
zone even though the closest defender, Fred Weidenmiller, had no legitimate
shot at making a tackle.
"My brother and a couple old Frankford teammates were telling me, `You
never do anything [to show emotion] when
you score,' '' Gaskins said. "I figured I had to do something for them. It
was a one-time thing.''
On North's next play, Jim Miller caught a swing pass from Brian Kulb
(14-for-33, 123 yards) and headed for
Frankford's sideline. Miller roared across the sideline, banged into
Mullineaux, tossed the ball at him and muttered
something about Gaskins still being in the game.
"I couldn't believe it,'' Mullineaux said. "I thought, `This kid's aiming
right for me. ' What was his problem?''
Miller was not ejected, but coach Rich Betts did not play him thereafter.
"Evidently, Miller felt Frankford was running up the score, and he didn't
appreciate that,'' Betts said. ``We saw what
he did. We told him, `We don't do that here,' then we put him on the bench
and left him there.''
Of Gaskins's late-game presence on offense, Betts said, "Frankford has
[rolled up scores] all year, so it was nothing
I didn't expect.''
Incorrect. Mullineaux was guilty of leaving the first team offense on the
field too long in a 63-29 win over Murrell
Dobbins Tech last Saturday in a PL semifinal, but before that, he was quick
to pull Gaskins and his playmates
whenever a game became even remotely one-sided.
"I wouldn't try to run up the score,'' he said. ``I don't like those kind
of people."
The Falcons were so generous in the first half, they must have thought
the holiday was Christmas.
Frankford needed to drive only 20 yards for its first score, Jim Nagle's
6-yard pass to David Kenner, after Miller
fumbled a snap on a punt and was tackled by Doyya Johnson.
Danny Owens accidentally sent his kickoff only 13 yards downfield and
Michael Dolbow recovered for Frankford.
Gaskins scored from the 7 eight plays later. Frankford's third and fourth
scores capped drives of only 28 and 5 yards,
respectively, after a shanked punt and fumble (forced by Owens, recovered by
Carlton Calhoun).
"Our guys didn't come to play,'' Betts said. ``Turnovers hurt us early,
and special teams.''
Sample was a fan of Frankford football long before he became a player.
His brother, Clifford Waddy, was a fullback
in 1995 and his first cousin, Eugene Waddy, was a defensive end in '92.
Sample and Gaskins grew up around the corner from each other, but they
played for rival youth organizations -
Sample for Frankford Chargers, Gaskins for Frankford Boys Club. Though
Sample is a three-year varsity player, this
is his first season starting.
"I didn't have doubts about getting the spot,'' he said. "I'm not big,
but I can run. Give me a little opening, and I'm
gone. A team always needs speed. To me, this doesn't seem any different than
weight ball. Guys hit hard, sure, but
I've never had to come off the field because of an injury.''
He did have to yield, though, to the temptation to race against Gaskins.
"Early this season, we did a 50-yard dash,'' Sample said. "Who won? It
was a tie. A flat-out tie.''
Imagine that - Eddie Gaskins being tied in a race by a fullback.
This story was
written after Tom won his fourth Public League championship in
what turned out to be his final season . . .
By Ted Silary
THEY PAIRED UP, got a good running start and took headlong diiiiiiiives
right into the worse-than-soupy mud.
Almost en masse, they scrambled onto a 5-foot-high snowbank behind their
bench and joyously posed for
photographers.
All around, guys playfully pelted each other with mud and/or snowballs
and tossed one another to the ground.
They smeared mud all over their uniforms, as if that were necessary, at
least for the starters, and tried their best,
mostly unsuccessfully, to keep small chunks out of their mouths and eyes.
It's never not fun to win a championship and then go crazy in the moments
immediately after, as the reality sinks
in little by little. But it's hard to imagine any football team in city
history experienced more postgame ecstasy, in
more manners, than did the 2003 Frankford Pioneers last night at Northeast
High's Charlie Martin Memorial Stadium.
Frankford 12, George Washington 0.
That was the final score in the once-delayed Public League title game (it
had been postponed by snow last
Saturday) and it enabled the Pioneers to set a school record for shutouts
(eight).
The win gave coach Tom Mullineaux, who almost certainly will retire, his
fourth PL title in 16 seasons and an
overall record of 145-31-1.
The conditions were rather horrendous. The field was a mess even before
the action began, and it grew worse
as areas of hard slush also turned to mud, thanks to a rain that was
annoying throughout, and sometimes drenching.
Luckily, it wasn't too cold or windy.
(No one worked on the field until Monday, according to school district
personnel, because snow and ice first had
to be cleared from schools across the city. Eventually, 25 people, assorted
field caretakers and interns, worked at
Northeast to clear the field - well, mostly - and shovel out the stands.
There was a late problem with one full bank
of lights, but it was remedied shortly before game time.)
For Ervin Hook, the conditions seemed downright perfect.
Moonlit skies. Maybe 70 degrees. Not a hint of moisture on the playing
surface.
"I loved this. Didn't mind it at all," he said. "They always say that
Frankford plays its best football in the rain and
slop. Who's they? Our coaches. Our fans. All of us players, too. It's like
we know, when it's like this, we own the
game."
He smiled. "This was beautiful. I'll never forget how 'nice' it was
tonight."
Hook, a 6-2, 205-pound senior, spent this season playing end and outside
linebacker. In this finale, which left
Frankford with an 11-0 record, two consecutive championships and a 20-game
winning streak, Hook made two
huge plays. A weird one set up a touchdown. The other prevented one.
In the first quarter, with Frankford on offense, Hook picked up a blocked
punt just behind the line of scrimmage,
the GW 45, and motored to the 31, 9 more than necessary for a first down.
"Our coaches always tell us to play to the whistle," Hook said. "I didn't
see the block, but I heard the thump. I
turned around and saw the ball and decided to pick it up.
"I didn't know the rule. I thought, 'Can I do this? Well, I'll run
downfield and see what happens. When this is
over, it could be our ball, could be their ball. But at least I'll do what I
can.' "
Seven plays later, on the first play of the second quarter, right after
Michael Washington made a spectacular
diving catch of a pass from junior Lamont Brown to produce a 21-yard gain,
Arnold Mullins (13 carries, 67
yards) ran 5 yards for a score.
Hook's interception came late in the third quarter, with the score still
6-0, and ended Washington's best chance.
The whole series was vintage, actually.
It began when Mullins lost a fumble and Rich McFillin recovered at the
Frankford 12. In order, Andre Mungin
dropped halfback Marcus Banks for a 3-yard loss, Isaiah "Zeke" Thompson
registered a 5-yard sack on McFillin,
McFillin threw incomplete and Hook made the fourth-down pick at the 10,
adding a 29-yard return for good measure.
"That was all the pressure by my front four," Hook said. "Once they
applied such great pressure, catching the
ball was easy. I had to come down with it."
The Pioneers made it 12-0 two series later. Sophomore Brandon Norris
(8-80) zoomed 44 yards to the 27 and
Jeremy Benson (16-84) rumbled home from there.
Frankford's defense, coordinated by Bill Clausen, featured ends Thompson
and Benson, tackles Ray Williams
and Henry Smith, inside linebackers Joe Farina and Zaire Small, outside
linebackers Hook and Washington,
cornerbacks Mullins and Brandon Norris and the safety, Mungin.
The Pioneers yielded 66 points this season: 14 to Washington on Oct. 17,
then 52 total in back-to-back games
- a semi vs. Central (24) and Thanksgiving vs. North Catholic (28).
If their confidence was rocked, they won't admit it now.
"We knew we still had a good defense," said Hook, who is being eyed by
Division II schools and wants to work
in recreation. "We knew we were shutting down Washington."
It happened, too. The Eagles (10-2), who were averaging 29.5 points
entering the game, had to settle for 73
yards total offense and franchise rusher Jerry Butler, a junior who lives in
Frankford, was held to 37 yards on 15
carries. He did, however, emerge as the school's season rushing leader, with
1,247 yards. Reuben White had 1,228
in 1997.
"Jerry Butler's my boy," Thompson, who had two sacks, said, smiling. "But
I see him all the time around the way.
Couldn't let him get a title on us.
"Yeah, we gave up some points [to Central/North]. But we came in here
knowing what it was like to win a
championship. We also knew we were going home with another one. We shut them
down all night."
Below are the players who earned Coaches' All-Public honors during Tom
Mullineaux's 16 seasons
as the coach at Frankford.
Toney Snipes
B
1988
Eddie Gaskins
RB
1997
Paul Shipman
L
1988
Herbert "Pitter" Sample
RB
1997
Steve Irving
L
1988
Danny Owens
L-LB
1997
Robert Gallagher
L
1989
Michael Statham
DL
1997
John Zazulak
L
1989
Rasheed Muhammed
DB
1997
Nicky DeNofa
QB
1989
Terrance "Ted" Cook
L-DL
1998
Jerry Santa
LB
1989
David Kenner
Rec.-DL
1998
Montik Goodwin
DB
1989
Jim Nagle
QB
1998
Bill Thompson
L
1990
James Allen
DB
1999
Jim McCreesh
L
1990
Theodore McNeil
RB
1999
Rich Pyott
L
1990
Jesse Gregg
L
1999
Damien Adams
RB
1991
Victor Murray
DE
1999
Paul Gebeline
LB
1991
Doug Stanley
DE
1999
O.J. Thomas
RB
1991
Michael Dolbow
L
2000
Wayne Rice
Rec.
1991
Steve Domico
L
2000
Anthony D'Aloia
DL
1991
Lacey Lancaster
QB
2000
Chris Stathakopoulos
LB
1992
Jeff Nagle
TE
2000
William "Boo" Minor
Rec.
1992
Shawn Williams
LB
2000
Derrick "Wiggles" Lanier
RB-DB
1993
Tracy Williams
L
2001
Rasheen Braddock
RB
1993
Michael Robinson
LB
2001
Joe Stout
L-DL
1993
Marcus "Dink" Waddy
RB
2001
Robert Boyle
QB
1993
Adam Hartman
Rec.-DB
2002
Joe Smith
Rec.-DB
1994
Darrell "D.J." Turner
QB
2002
Robert Gebeline
LB
1994
Joselito Cruz
RB-LB
2002
C.J. Szydlik
DL
1994
Ricky Rolon
L
2002
Dennis Johnson
DL
1994
Joel Rodriguez
L
2002
Lovato Bowman
DB
1994
Phil Wood
L
2002
Tony Pace
L
1994
Arnold Mullins
RB
2003
Raymond Harris
L-LB
1995
Jeremy Benson
RB
2003
Jeffrey Mims
L-DL
1995
Michael Washington
Rec.
2003
Jim Bell
L
1995
Joe Farina
LB
2003
Robert Woolford
Rec.
1995
Isaiah "Zeke" Thompson
L
2003
Earl Murray
DB
1995
Ray Williams
DL
2003
Gene Waddy
RB
1995
Eddie Gaskins
RB
1996
Steve Szydlik
QB
1996
Saleem Debnam
Rec.
1996
Ron James
L-LB
1996
Chris Covington
RB-LB
1996
Michael Rothmaller
Rec.-DB
1996
--
Recaps of Wins in Public
League
Championship Games
1996
At Northeast
Frankford 28, Dobbins 0
Running through a driving rain on a bare field that was
reduced
to mud-pit status, Eddie Gaskins produced 160 yards and two TDs on 17
carries to give nine-year Frankford coach Tom Mullineaux his first
title. Gaskins became the second 2,000-yard, one-season rusher in city
history (2,061) and tied the one-season city mark for TDs (29, 28 on
rushes). Also, he raised his career rushing yardage total to 4,182, best
in city-leagues history. Steve Szydlik ran for one TD and passed to
James Clay for another. Frankford finished 11-1 (20-19 Thanksgiving loss
to North Catholic) and scored 417 points (34.8 average). Linebackers
Chris Covington and Danny Owens and lineman Ronald James helped to hold
Dobbins to one first down, 4 yards total offense and 27 plays.
1997
At Northeast
Frankford 31, Northeast 21
Capping the most productive career, by far, for a running
back
in city-leagues history, 5-10, 205-pound halfback Eddie Gaskins rushed
26 times for 206 yards and a game-record three touchdowns. Gaskins
finished the season with 200 carries for 1,940 yards and a record-tying
29 TDs. He tied the record for overall TDs (31) and broke the record for
points (195). In his career, Gaskins rushed 675 times for city-leagues
marks in yards (6,122) and TDs (84) while also claiming marks for total
TDs (87) and points (536). Nevertheless, Frankford's rushing leader was
145-pound fullback Herbert "Pitter" Sample, who produced a game-record
250 yards and two TDs on 24 carries. When Sample ran 19 yards for a late
TD, the Pioneers broke their own city-leagues record for points in a
season. They scored 457, averaging 38.1. They'd scored 454 in '87. Also
setting a game record was Northeast's Dante Poole, who ran 93 yards from
scrimmage -- longest run in PL postseason history -- for an early score.
Poole finished with 16 carries for 178 yards. In Gaskins' four seasons,
Frankford roared to a 43-4 overall record.
2002
At Northeast
Frankford 14, Washington 6
The game was postponed twice and was finally played Dec. 14
in mud and off-and-on drizzle. On the game's second series, Frankford
jumped to a 6-0 lead as freshman Brandon Norris (21-119) zoomed 48
yards. The Pioneers punted to end their next series and when the ball
bounced off the return man, Michael Washington recovered at the 25.
Darrell "D.J." Turner's TD toss to Adam Hartman followed. Washington
answered three plays later on Larry Turner's 26-yard TD. In the fourth
quarter, Washington saw drives end at Frankford's 28, 15 and 32. On the
game's final play, Sharif Nash and Hartman were present to make sure the
pass would fall incomplete.
2003
At Northeast
Frankford 12, Washington 0
The Pioneers (11-0) sent coach Tom Mullineaux into
expected retirement
by giving him a second consecutive title (four total)
and extending their
winning streak to 20 games. Also, they set a school record with
their eighth
shutout. Jeremy Benson (16-84) and Arnold Mullins (13-67) ran for
one TD
apiece while soph Brandon Norris added 80 yards on eight carries.
Ervin
Hook picked up a blocked punt and ran for first-down yardage,
setting up
Mullins' score. He also had an interception at the 10 to preserve
the
shutout. Andre Mungin also had a pick. Isaiah "Zeke" Thompson
posted
two sacks and Ray Williams recovered a fumble. For Washington,
junior
Jerry Butler (15-37) lifted his season rushing total to
a school record 1,247.
This game was postponed by snow, from a Saturday to the following
Wednesday night, and was played in the rain on a surface
that was muddy
even beforehand.
--
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