Memory Lane: Remembering Lou ‘Bimbo’ Cecconi
Western Pennsylvania sports fans were saddened by the passing of a legend from a bygone era when Lou “Bimbo” Cecconi died on Feb. 24 at Paramount Senior Living Care in Bethel Park at the age of 95.
In an era before SportsCenter and the internet Cecconi was a full-fledged star going back to his days at Donora High School. He helped Donora win back-to-back WPIAL titles in football in 1944 and 1945 as a junior and senior, and a WPIAL gold medal in 1945 for basketball. He also played for the baseball and track and field teams. He earned 11 out of a potential 12 letters in four years.
Quarterback Arnold “Pope” Galiffa led the 1944 Donora team as a senior, before going on to secure a record 11 athletic letters at West Point. Deacon Dan Towler was the ace ball carrier on those 9-0 teams in ’44 and ’45, sparkled at Washington & Jefferson College, then was an All-Pro fullback with the Los Angeles Rams.
The 1945 Dragons are considered one of the greatest football teams in WPIAL history. In the 1984 Pittsburgh Press, readers voted this team the best in WPIAL history.
Cecconi used to joke about his high school days. “I was on a team with a Deacon, a Pope and a Bimbo,” he said. Cecconi, who switched from running back to quarterback after Galiffa left, was good enough in the offensive and defensive backfields to get a shot at Pitt.
Cecconi, in an interview back in the day, downplayed how good he was.
“I came along with the best nucleus of athletes ever. And I mean anywhere,” Cecconi said. “I was born under a star and was nothing special. There were guys in Donora who were better.”
Cecconi became a star for the Panthers. He lettered in football and basketball for four years and in baseball for one. His nine letters are a university record shared by two others.
Former Pitt Panther and Pittsburgh Steeler Bill Priatko lamented the death of Cecconi. They were great friends.
“Bimbo has been a dear friend for many years,” Priatko stated. “He and I would always chat about our Pitt football memories and other sports stories. Bimbo was probably one of the finest men I’ve ever known in my life. He was so humble, sincere and genuine. A man of great faith. He loved his family, he loved his friends and Bimbo’s memory truly will be eternal.”
“He was a Pitt man through and through,” author and Pitt historian Sam Sciullo offered. “He was on two Pitt coaching staffs under John Michelosen and Carl DePasqua,and he told me ‘I was fired from Pitt twice. That’s like your father kicking you out of the house two different times.’
“He was a very proud individual,” Sciullo recalled. “The thing I liked about him, he was very poised and very confident and self-assured. His demeanor really never changed all that much. That was his approach in coaching, too. He wasn’t a yeller and a screamer, he had a very calm reassuring manner about himself. Fred Mazurek told me that, as did Dave Havern, and Billy Daniels spoke very highly of him.”
On the field, Cecconi was a terrific two-way football starter from ’46 through ’49, as a quarterback or running back on offense, and in the secondary on defense. “I never missed a college game. That’s a pretty good achievement. There were no major injuries. I was just lucky,” Cecconi said years later.
Only standing 5-foot-8 he led the team in rushing from 1947-49, passing in 1948 and 1949, receiving in 1947, interceptions in 1948, and scoring in 1946 and 1947. He also served as captain in 1949.
He had perhaps his best game at Pitt against arch rival Penn State in 1949. Cecconi set a program record of three interceptions while also throwing for a touchdown and rushing for two scores as well in a 19-0 win at Pitt Stadium.
Cecconi played basketball for Doc Carlson at Pitt. He appeared in 75 games for Pitt basketball, shooting 44.4% from the field, 55.5% from the foul line and averaged 5.2 points per game.
Perhaps the highlight of Cecconi’s assistant coaching stint at Pitt was as offensive coordinator against rival West Virginia in 1970, where he led Pitt back from a 35-8 deficit, running 97 plays to WVU’s 13 to win 36-35.
“Bimbo called the play to win the game,” Sciullo said. “I remember Havern telling me they were surprised by the play call. Havern thought it was going to be a pass to Steve Moyer and they threw a pass to Bill Pilconis who was wide open.”
Cecconi had a lengthy coaching career in the high school ranks. Cecconi coached all sports in the Sharpsburg School District from 1953-58 and then at Steel Valley for one year before he served as an administrator until he retired in the 1990s. He also spent time as an offensive coordinator at Indiana State from 1966-68,
Cecconi is a member of numerous Hall of Fames, including the WPIAL, Pennsylvania Sports, National Italian American Sports, Mid Mon Valley and Western Chapter. Pitt also has his name on their varsity walk.
I will leave the last word on Cecconi to his longtime friend, the late Steve Russell, general chairman of the Mid Mon Valley All Sports Hall of Fame who passed away November 16, 2023.
“Bimbo Cecconi is a remarkable sports icon of the Mon Valley,” said Russell.
George Von Benko’s “Memory Lane” column appears in the Sunday editions of the Herald-Standard. He also hosts a sports talk show on WMBS-AM radio from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.