German’s Ward and Ford reunion
On Saturday Aug. 7, two of the great names in Fayette County football history were back in their old stomping grounds for a high school reunion. In July of 2007, I profiled former German Township grid star Jim “Happy” Ford in my Memory Lane column. At the time I wrote this: “In a recent column about former German Township High School star Robert “Buddy” Ward, I wrote that in sports sometimes two players become forever linked to each other, for instance Davis and Blanchard in football and Mantle and Maris in baseball. Former German Township High School football standouts Robert “Buddy” Ward and James “Happy” Ford will always be linked by their exploits together on the gridiron.”
The two old warhorses were back together again at a combined German Township High School reunion of the 1953, 1954 and 1955 classes. The two Uhlan stars were the highlight of the reunion, as they received a warm welcome from their classmates.
Time has not diminished the great gridiron exploits of the two former Uhlan stars, nor has it weakened the link between the two.
“We are the only two here from the class of 1953,” Ward stated. “When Happy Ford first walked in, he and I immediately started talking. It went on for a good half hour, and then we remembered that we had other people to see and talk to as well, but it was just great.”
Ford said the two backfield mates picked back up as though time had stood still.
“I came up here with the express purpose of seeing Buddy,” Ford said. “I haven’t seen the guy since we graduated, and when I did, it was so gratifying to see him. He was such a great guy. There was never any animosity between us. I told him last night, ‘All these years that we’ve been apart I’ve been trying to catch up with that half-step he used to beat me on.'”
Ward graduated from German in 1953, where he excelled in football, basketball, baseball and track and field.
“I think I got 13 or 14 varsity letters,” Ward explained.
“Our coaching staff encouraged all sports, which they never do today.”
The Uhlans football squad, under the guidance of head coach Lou Rozzi, was a power during Ward’s time. German captured the Fayette County Class A championship in 1950 and went 6-4 in 1951.
Ward and his backfield mate Ford ran wild in 1952, tallying 28 touchdowns between them while forging a ticket to the WPIAL Class A championship game against Midland.
Ford and Ward garnered All-County honors in 1951 and were unanimous choices to the 1952 squad, as Ward paced the county in scoring with 104 points, and Ford racked up 98 points. They were dubbed the “touchdown twins.”
“Buddy Ward’s first two steps were amazing,” Ford said of his old running mate. “Especially when he got ready to hit that line of scrimmage. When he hit the line of scrimmage, he was up in the hole. Automatically, he was going some place.”
Ward was lavish in his praise of Ford.
“What a fellow back to have on your side,” Ward opined. “Ford made the hole whether there was one there or not. He was a great blocker and just did a fantastic job. Neither one of us could care less about who was carrying the ball. I blocked for him, and he blocked for me — a little differently because he had a lot more size than I did, but what a great relationship. We were always inseparable.”
Both players had high praise for former German Township head football coach Lou Rozzi.
“He was a fantastic coach,” Ward stated. “Loyal to his players, loved his players, and we loved him as well. He never gave up on us. He was always on our side, but he was a taskmaster. He worked us hard, and he didn’t give Happy and I anything. We had to be an example, not someone that could slough off at anytime during a practice or anything else.
“He was a great tactician. Happy and I helped him to see that we had to get out of the old single wing. We went to the straight-T first, and then we ran a little slot, and a little winged-T.”
Ford, who got into coaching and athletic administration after college, had a great deal of admiration for Rozzi.
“I think that when you are a head coach you’ve got to be the best psychologist in the world,” Ford explained. “You’ve got so many kids to deal with and personalities and attitudes to deal with, and he was an expert. I remember, when I was a freshman, I wanted to play baseball. I told coach I want to play baseball, but my mother doesn’t want me to play. She wants me to run track. He said, ‘If you can’t run track, don’t come back out for next year.’ I said, ‘What are you talking about?’ He said, ‘You heard what I said. I’ll tell you what I’ll do – two days you practice baseball and three days you run track.’ All the baseball games were on the days that we had the track meets. He got me. I played one game of baseball.”
The Uhlans lost the WPIAL Championship game to Midland in a game played at Dormont, 14-6. Mike Karas’ 79-yard third-quarter punt return snapped a 6-6 deadlock and propelled Midland to victory.
The game wasn’t without controversy, as Ward gathered in a Midland punt on his own 28, reversed field twice and bolted 62 yards to the end zone. The play was nullified by a clipping penalty.
“I’ve gotten over it,” Ward said. “It took a long while. We remember the touchdown that got called back and a few other things, but it was just great to be there. I need to tell you, one of the great things was that Coach Rozzi had a great supporting cast, and he was the type of coach who wasn’t afraid to get their advice and follow it. He delegated with Adam Donnelly, Ray Rifenberg and Buck Johnson. They were just fantastic guys. The guys all loved them.”
“We never got play Uniontown,” Ford lamented. “I’ve thought about this for many years. If we had an opportunity to play them, I don’t think there would have been any doubt that score would have been really something. I was in the military with Frank Henderson, one of their running backs. He said we wouldn’t have had a chance. We also ended up on the track line, especially in the 100 — Buddy on one side, Henderson in the middle and me on the other side. It was a barnburner, and Buddy beat all of us by that half a step.”
When he graduated in 1953, Ward decided to accept a football scholarship to Notre Dame.
When he graduated Ford had a local offer from Waynesburg and Arizona State offered, but he decided to attend Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Mo.
When Ward graduated from Notre Dame in 1958 he decided to become a coach and educator. Ward, 75, is retired and lives in Indiana.
When he graduated from Lincoln, Ford was drafted into the Army. He wound up in St. Louis and entered the teaching profession. He was a long time coach and athletic director before retiring. Ford, 75, still resides in St. Louis.
“It was good to be home,” Ward stated. “You can take the boy out of the hometown, but you can’t take the hometown out of the boy.”
George Von Benko’s “Memory Lane” columns appear 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.