The passage of 47 years has not clouded the memories of the Old Rochester Regional High School Class of 1965 football team. The undefeated champions only had 16 points scored against them the entire season – and even today team players can recall individual plays, names of adversaries, and game scores with no hesitation.
“I remember it as clear as a bell,” said Steve Heath – a freshman player on the team – of the championship game against Falmouth. “The crowd was five to six feet deep around the perimeter. There were at least 3,000 people there.”
John Guilherme, another freshman player at the time, recalled the outstanding defense of the team. In a game against Dighton-Rehoboth, 380-lb. Hudson Bowley made it all the way to the one-yard line but ORR defenders blocked him from reaching to the end zone.
“Four times he tried to score, but they all tackled this guy. He never gained an inch,” Guilherme recalled.
That season running back Francis Cabral scored a 96-yard touchdown on the first play of a game against Dartmouth – and it was only this year that this record was broken by D.J. MacDonald, according to Guilherme.
These memories resurfaced when the ORR reunited and honored the team as part of its second annual Old Rochester Athletic Hall of Fame.
Last weekend, Old Rochester inducted the football team into the Hall of Fame, as well as athletes Jeffrey Pina, Tricia Bradley, Margaret Liljedahl and Joao Rodriquez
According to Athletic Director Bill Tilden, more than 150 people turned out for the Hall of Fame induction ceremony and dinner on Saturday, June 9.
“We’ve been ecstatic,” said Tilden of the event’s increasing support.
“It’s growing in popularity, people recognize [the Hall of Fame] more. For everything you start new, it takes times to build interest,” said ORR coach Bob Hohne, who helped organize the event.
On Sunday, June 10 – Hall of Fame supporters as well as some of the undefeated champions of 1965 – played golf at the second annual Old Rochester Athletic Hall of Fame Golf Tournament at the Acushnet River Valley Golf Course.
Guilherme, Heath and Cabral all attended, and shared football stories of old glory days.
“It’s a fantastic group. They talk about each game like it was yesterday,” said Tilden.
Hohne said he expects the Hall of Fame tradition to continue to flourish, especially now that part of ORR Athletic Director’s official duties is chairing the Hall of Fame committee.
“It is included in the job description, hopefully that will help it continue,” he said. “Hopefully we are planting a seed.”
He said with so many esteemed athletes in ORR’s 50-year history, it’ll take time to acknowledge them over the next few years. “We tell people, ‘we’ll get there, we’ll get there,’” when asked to acknowledge a specific athlete.
Proceeds from the golf tournament help fund the event, as well as the Legacy Fund, which supports athletes of today.
“We are looking forward to the future while recognizing the past,” Hohne said.
By Laura Fedak Pedulli
