Cass Twp. gridders undefeated, untied and unscored upon in 1957

On D-Day, Dec. 7, 1957, the Cass Township High School football team made history.

With 15 seconds to go, Cass capitalized on a blocked punt to win the Eastern Conference Southern Schuylkill Division championship by a score of 2-0 over Shamokin High School in a rain-soaked Veterans Memorial Stadium in Pottsville.

“The championship, the first in the Condors’ history, closed the books on a miracle season which produced an undefeated, untied and unscored-upon season,” sportswriter Art Follett reported in the Pottsville Republican. “It is an achievement unparalleled in Schuylkill County scholastic football.”

Unwittingly, Follett provided the title for a book about the fabled team – “Undefeated, Untied and Unscored Upon: The Perfect Season: The Story of Pennsylvania’s 1957 Cass Football Team” by Jim Droskinis.

A retired Army Lieutenant Colonel, the author is the son of the Condors’ legendary coach, Pat Droskinis. He wrote the book in 2017.

Droskinis, who lives in Georgia, will discuss his book at 7 p.m. April 23 at Valley Road Venue, formerly Duncott Hose Company, at 1332 Valley Road, Pottsville. He will show a rare film of the historic game, and give a free signed copy of the book to the first 25 people in attendance.

The event is part of the Minersville Area Historical Society’s America250 Speaker Series.

The book is a tribute to Coach Droskinis and the twenty members of the 1957 Cass team, which was so small that the members played both offense and defense.

It traces the progress of the team, game by game, victory by victory against incredible odds. It also discusses the individual players, their talents and challenges and their later lives.

The 2,500 fans at the championship game were sitting on the edge of their seats in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, when the teams battled to a 0-0 score.

The Condors had driven to the Greyhound’s six-yard line, when a fumble was recovered by Shamokin’s Eddie Appolo.

With 30 seconds remaining, Shamokin attempted to run out the clock but was forced to punt on fourth down.

“Cass’ 205-pound tackle, Joe Hydock, crashed through to block the pigskin as it came off the kicker’s foot,” Follett wrote.

As the football slipped into the end zone, referee Steve Martinec signaled a safety, giving Cass a 2-0 victory.

Droskinis opens his 23-chapter book with a compelling account of his father’s 1999 death-bed reunion with some of the players of Cass’ championship season.

Battling cancer, lucid moments were rare, and the 83-year-old Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame coach knew the end was near, his son wrote.

“Suddenly, some familiar voices and noises startled him,” Droskinis wrote. “He opened his eyes, and gathered at his bedside were members of the legendary Cass Township championship football team he coached back in the 1950s.”

Droskinis’ book is a kind of window into the coal region of the 1950s.

Before school district jointures, Cass Township had only 55 seniors in its graduating class and 20 players on its varsity squad in 1957.

Games were played on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and even an occasional Monday.

Going into the championship game, Cass has a 9-0 record, compared to Shamokin’s 10-2 season.

“It was a cold, rainy Saturday afternoon and the field was a giant sea of mud,” Droskinis wrote. “Two great coal region football teams were about to face off.”

Pat Droskinis worked 10 years in the mines before putting in 25 years in Cass Township’s classrooms and athletic fields.

The book’s appendix includes the names, positions and numbers of the championship team’s players.

Jim Droskinis graduated from Minersville Area High School in 1971, and earned a BS in Law Enforcement and Corrections from Penn State University in 1975. He holds a master’s degree from Central Michigan University.

During a 23-year military career, he rose to the rank of Colonel and was honored with a Legion of Merit award for meritorious conduct.

A musician, race car driver and published author, his books reflect an interest in history and sport.

For more information, contact The Minersville Area Historical Society by phone at (570) 399-5037 or (610) 329-3328, email mahistsoc@gmail.com or visit www.minershistory.org .