Wednesday, May 26, 2010

One of the monuments to WPIAL's golden era of football ...

Every time I cover a game at Charleroi's downtown football stadium which sits atop the bank of the Monongahela River and was build in 1937, I feel like I've been transported into the past. That stadium is a link to the great era of WPIAL football when players like Myron Pottios and Mickey Bitsko dominated opponents and led the Cougars to prominence and WPIAL titles.

Just think about how many great players and teams rang that bell in the end zone near the home locker room.

Sadly, the 2010 football season will be the last played there before Charleroi moves into an on-campus stadium in Fallowfield Township.

It's definitely one of my favorite venues, probably at the top of my list just ahead of Parker Field in Jefferson.

5 comments:

KiPA - Kevin in PA said...

My favorite Charleroi Stadium memory is when I covered a playoff game there a few years ago and another reporter came into the press box wearing a personalized Colorado Avalanche jersey.

mike_kovak said...

I covered several games there but I remember one that was played in some heavy fog. With the river backdrop and a couple barges going by, it was a neat scene.

Was the reporter Ron Burgundy?

Anonymous said...

Mike, did you cover the Brownsville/Charleroi melee game in 1998??? It split the conference title between the two teams and several fans were arrested for fighting???

KiPA - Kevin in PA said...

Not quite, but oddly enough, he had the same initials.

mike_kovak said...

No, in 1998, I worked at the Beaver County Times.