100 YEARS OF FUHS FOOTBALL

(In an email from Louise Phelps Shamblen, FUHS '57)

By BARBARA GIASONE
With information provided by John Macon
In the beginning – 1908 – there was no interest in pigskin play at Fullerton Union High School.
Finally, T. Howard Wilson recruited a squad that played two games in its first season: a victory over the South Pacific School of Telegraphy and a loss to Santa Ana High School, according to the school's yearbook.
The next year, the record improved with a 3-3-2. But for the next six years, there was no football at the school. Indeed, the school board didn't allow football to return to FUHS until the 1915 season when the Indians lost their first two preseason games to Pomona and Whittier High schools, but then rallied to win their league with a season-ending victory over Citrus High School.
By 1919, the student body was cheering the second straight Orange League Championship with a 41-0 win over Santa Ana High School. "Passing Wizard" Archie Hawkins and halfback Bud Smith, who "hit 'em hard and hit 'em low" were the stars.
1920s
The Indians entered the decade as the two-time defending Orange League Champions, and played their first game against Anaheim High School. Since then, the Colonists and Indians have met 47 times with Fullerton winning 26 games, including the first game by a score of 48-0. In 1921, the first four-year football letterman, George Osborne, graduated and FUHS beat Anaheim by 109-0.
The end of the decade brought Fullerton its last championship league title for 18 seasons.
1930s
The Indians changed leagues twice, going from Orange League to Foothill League and then to Sunset League. But their scoreboards during the decade didn't light any records.
One of the halfbacks, John Raitt, went on to star on the Broadway stage in such musicals as "Carousel" and "The Pajama Game.
1940s
Three new head coaches in four years arrived at FUHS, but none brought league titles.
One game in 1941 did bring national publicity when Fullerton played Jordan High School.
The visiting drill team put on quite a halftime show with fireworks. When the fireworks were going off, a fog bank moved in and covered the field. The lights were barely visible and it was decided the game would be delayed and the second half would be played the following Monday. Fullerton came back to win the game 15-7 in a match that became known as the four-day game.
1950s
With a team hailed as the greatest team ever to come out of Fullerton High, the Indians went all the way to the CIF finals. They then lost a hard battle to Compton.
Coach Gil Tucker became head coach in 1955, and kept the position until the end of the 1977 season. He holds the school record for coaching victories (120) and length of service (23 seasons). He also won six league championships including back-to-back titles in 1968-1969.
1960s
In 1964, Fullerton moved to the newly created Freeway League. The school's only defeat that season came in the first round of playoffs to San Marino, 20-0.
1970s
Following the 1974 league title led by future NFL players Keith Van Horne and Hoby Brenner, the team struggled through the remainder of the decade. Coach Tucker retired after the 1977 season, and the varsity won only six games during the next three seasons.
1980s
The hiring of Martin Luczaj as head coach for the 1981 season changed Fullerton's football fortune dramatically. Quarterback Mike Willes set a CIF record for passing yards in one game with 477 yards. In another contest, wide receiver Kevin Parry broke the county mark for receiving yardage in a game with 284 yards. And during his six years at the school, Luczaj's winning percentage was the second best in school history.
1990s
Julian Smilowitz came on the field as head coach in 1992. In 1994, Fullerton broke an 11-year losing streak and defeated arch-rival Sunny Hills 28-7.
2000 and beyond
The 2007 season was marked with local wildfires that caused league games to be cancelled.
Michael Allain's 2,294 yards of rushing and 26 touchdowns was a highlight – plus a defense that shut out opponents five times.
In the long history of FUHS football, more than 900 varsity football games have been played in several different leagues.
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/team-school-year-2209738-tucker-play
(Article about 100th year of football at FUHS and interview with Gil Tucker)