Flashback: Cape High football turns 30
The wait is just about over.
High school football teams take the field Monday for the first official day of fall practice. A new season soon follows, bringing the usual allotment of intriguing battles to the gridiron.
This season ushers in a unique era as four Cape Coral schools – Cape High, Mariner, Ida Baker and Island Coast – all tangle in head-to-head matchups.
North Fort Myers plays each of the four Cape schools, adding to the unprecedented schedule of games within close boundaries.
“That’s something we tried to do,” said Mariner athletic director Vito Mennona, who has been at the school since it opened in 1987. “If you want to be good on the state level you have to be the toughest in your neighborhood first.”
That neighborhood has grown, and spread out considerably over the past 30 years.
At this time in 1979, administrators and teachers – including then-principal Ida S. Baker – were preparing for the opening of Cape High for the first semester. A new football era started, too.
Entering their first season, the Cape Seahawks were guided by coach Tom Stanley, along with defensive coordinator Mike Gorton, offensive coordinator Bob Hildebrand, and assistant coaches Tolley Bolles and Woody Wilson.
Spring practices were held at Caloosa Field and by the time September rolled around the Seahawks had 32 players on the varsity squad.
Most of the players were inexperienced at the varsity level, though there were a few that played at other area schools, like Jim and John Raimondo, and Steve King (from North Fort Myers), Calvin Church and Jimmy Hood (from Riverdale) and Steve Neumayer (from Bishop Verot).
“I guarantee we’ll show up every game,” coach Stanley declared in a Daily Breeze story, a day before the inaugural game at DeSoto County in Arcadia. “If they have the drive, determination, discipline, desire and dedication, we’ll be okay.”
He could’ve used defense, as well. The Seahawks leaned on that unit in their first two games – a 3-0 victory over DeSoto and another shutout win over Barron Collier the next week.
King, a quarterback/kicker, scored the first points with a 32-yard field goal in the win over DeSoto, and Harvey Chester, a 5-foot-7 running back, scored the first touchdown in the second game.
The Seahawks added one more victory that season – a 26-0 win over Bishop Verot in the first homecoming game. The Seahawks played their home games at Hancock Park that season since the current stadium was still under construction.
Cape built off its first season and became the surprise team of 1980. With Hildebrand at the helm as coach, the Seahawks went 9-2, won the 4A district title and advanced to the playoffs for the first time.
The biggest win came in late October when the Seahawks improved to 7-1 with a 14-0 win over Fort Myers.
Mennona was an assistant at Fort Myers at the time and said the game was decided by the special teams.
“Our kid tried to field a punt on the 5-yard line and fumbled, and they scored,” he said.
It gave Cape the lead in what had been a scoreless game. Cape punter Glenn McCombs launched the long punt inside the 5 and a big hit by David Hunter knocked the ball loose and led to the recovery in the end zone.
The Seahawks’ most significant season after that came in 1993 when they went 12-1 under coach James Hale. The season ended with a heartbreaking 12-10 loss to Deerfield Beach in the 4A state semifinals.
The Seahawks have enjoyed their greatest string of success in recent years, reaching the playoffs in three of the last four years, including a trip to the 5A Regional Finals in 2007.
Mariner
Cape remained the city’s lone high school and varsity football team until Mariner opened in 1987.
In game one, the Tritons lost 32-6 to Riverdale, getting the first touchdown on a 12-yard pass from quarterback Jim Magas to Alvin Ashley.
They dropped their first two games, but evolved quickly after a 28-0 victory over Estero in Week 3. That game saw sophomore quarterback Tony Squitieri toss three touchdown passes.
The Tritons went 7-3 that first season, under coach Junior Wren, and over their first 11 years, never finished under .500. Coach Joe Roles enjoyed the most success, compiling a 52-19 record from 1988-1994.
“We had no idea we could do as well as we did,” Mennona said of the Tritons’ early success. “We came out with a rag tag group of guys from Cape Coral and North Fort Myers. They were good kids and we had good coaches, and that was the right mix.”
The Cape Coral-Mariner rivalry, dubbed the Black ‘n Blue Bowl, began in 1987. The teams meet for the 23rd time on Sept. 4 in this year’s season opener.
The Tritons prevailed 48-6 in the first meeting and reeled off six straight until the Seahawks countered with a 41-10 victory in 1993. The Tritons maintain a 13-9 series edge, though the Seahawks have won the last four in a row.
The upcoming renewal on Sept. 4 takes on special significance since it comes almost exactly 20 years (on Sept. 5) after Mariner senior linebacker and captain, Tony McKenna, was struck by lightning on the practice field and died just three days before the Tritons and Seahawks were scheduled to play in the 1989 opener.
A memorial service was held that Friday instead, with players from both teams attending. The game was postponed to a later date.
A ceremony remembering McKenna is planned prior to this year’s game between the Seahawks and Tritons.
Ida Baker
The number of Cape schools (and teams) has doubled with varsity football beginning at Ida Baker in 2005 and Island Coast in 2008.
Baker competed against top opposition on the football field immediately and struggled to win games despite good participation numbers.
After going 0-20 their first two seasons, the Bulldogs began to see the results of their hard work, going 6-4 and 5-5, the next two years,
The Bulldogs, under coach Brian Conn, earned a significant win last season, knocking off eventual district champion Fort Myers. They competed for their first playoff berth until a Week 10 loss to North.
Island Coast
The Island Coast Gators are set to play their first 10-game varsity schedule this season after finishing 3-3 in six games last year.
Under coach Joe Bowen, the Gators move into District 2B-6. The schedule gets tougher with the addition of Cape Coral, Mariner and North.
Baker and Island Coast met for the first time last year in the season finale, won by the Bulldogs 31-15.
Schedule
Before the regular season, each team participates in a preseason classic scrimmage on Aug. 28.
Those games include Cape Coral at Riverdale; Mariner at Cypress Lake; Ida Baker at Estero; Island Coast at Port Charlotte and North Fort Myers at Dunbar.
Some key dates to remember during the 2009 regular season:
Sept. 4 – Cape Coral at Mariner; Island Coast at North Fort Myers
Sept. 11 – North Fort Myers at Ida Baker
Sept. 17 (Thursday) – Island Coast at Ida Baker; Cape Coral at North Fort Myers
Oct. 2 – Mariner at Island Coast
Oct. 16 – Cape Coral at Island Coast
Oct. 23 – North Fort Myers at Mariner
Nov. 6 – Ida Baker at Cape Coral
Nov. 13 – Mariner at Ida Baker