Steve Solonka was sports editor for the 1971 Coaldigger. He wrote this piece for the yearbook. Years later Steve revisited Gary Memorial Stadium. You can read his reflections in Looking Back From the Present.

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      it all began in early august. the dust swirled around figures running pass patterns and performing blocking exercises. a team was formed on a practice field and the first test was northfork, of whom they disposed by the score of 12 to 6. other opponents went down in the wake of the "big red machine"--bluefield, who for 13 long, miserable years had beaten us at home and away, fell by the exciting tally of 14-8; big creek came and went by the score of 40 to 0; and the huntington pony express arrived at gary and left with their heads bowed low by the 38-14 score. then the battle for the barrel was staged, and the coaldiggers buried the welch maroon wave 44 to 12.

      throughout the year our explosive offense sped over, around and through befuddled defenses for an average of 34.3 points per game. the leading scorers for this "machine of a team" were seniors eddie reeves and chad thomas, with 15 and 13 touchdowns respectively.

      our defense, nicknamed the "gravediggers" because of their tough, hard-nosed play, held some of the most potent offenses in the area to an average of 4.6 points per game. leading the way for the team was rick nogosky who was credited with more than 100 individual tackles.

      ...then came the big moment; a chance for a state championship. all the hopes, prayers, and dreams of every player centered on this game.

      no one expected oceana to give us any competition, but they did. the indians were a fine team, and played a brave, tough game. the game seemed within their reach until the gary offense, leading by a score of 14 to 0, moved out into the open as scatback reeves scampered and plowed his way for an 89-yeard touchdown. both fans and players could feel the tension--a tension of happy anticipation and excitement. all of their hopes had come true, all of the dedication had paid off and all of the long hours of practice were well worth it.

      then a very touching thing happened. it proved how much that trophy--only a chunk of wood and silver--really meant, and how much pride and spirit was centered around it. after eddie had scored, he walked slowly back to the bench, tired but elated. the partisan crowd from the ghs side of mitchell stadium gave him a rousing, standing ovation, and as he heard it he reached out and gently touched the shining trophy that would soon be theirs. it was an emotional moment, full of accomplishment, gratification and pride--pride in a school and in a team.

      ...and it was all really worth it.