THE DREAM AND THE GLORY : 10 Years Ago, San Fernando Won Valley’s Last City Football Title With the Backfield That Was Unstoppable and Unrivaled

They were known as The Dream Backfield. Their high school football team was the defending City champion and had been ranked No. 1 in the nation in several preseason publications.

Featuring a future Heisman Trophy winner and the state 100-yard dash champion, the Tigers burned up more than 300 yards a game on the ground. College recruiters were on campus every day, trying not to slobber all over one another.

And yet, as Charles White, Kevin Williams, Kenny Moore, Raymond Williams and their San Fernando High teammates prepared to meet Gardena on Nov. 21, 1975, in the opening round of the City playoffs, a lot of people weren’t giving them much of a chance.

Sports Editor Frank Mazzeo predicted in the Valley News and Green Sheet that Gardena would win the game by 20 points.

The reason for the doom-saying was Gardena’s stunning 40-0 season-opening victory over the Tigers two months earlier.

But, after watching films of The Debacle at lunchtime every day in the week leading up to the rematch, and even before the game and during halftime in the locker room, San Fernando returned the favor by romping, 38-13, en route to its second straight City title.

Ten years later, the Tigers are still the last Valley team to win the City 4-A championship.

The talent of the players in their backfield was such that Coach Bill Marsh, hoping to get the most out of their abilities, used them in a wishbone formation so all could play at the same time.

Moore played quarterback, White was the fullback and the Williamses, who were not related, were the halfbacks.

“I had sleepless nights worrying about keeping these guys from being envious or jealous of one another,” Marsh said.

And opposing coaches had sleepless nights trying to figure out a way to slow them down.

They may have been a dream backfield for Marsh, but they were a nightmare for their opponents.

Speed was their greatest asset. In the 1976 state track meet, White and the Williamses formed three-fourths of the San Fernando teams that finished second in the 440-yard relay and fourth in the mile relay. White also won the 330-yard low hurdles.

And they were durable, too. All were two-way starters. They made up the defensive secondary.

All but White were three-year starters as the Tigers put together a three-year record of 32-5, including a semifinal loss to Gardena in the 1973 City playoffs. As juniors, they won their first City title, putting together a 12-game winning streak after losing their opener. Moore was the City Player of the Year and White and Kevin Williams were All-City selections.

Along with Raymond Williams and 11 other starters, they returned for the 1975 season, expecting to run over anybody and everybody who got in their way.

But their senior season, while spectacular at times, didn’t unfold exactly as they had expected.

Kevin Williams, the state 100-yard dash champion, led the City in rushing and scoring with 1,402 yards and 151 points, averaging more than 11 yards a carry and scoring 22 touchdowns.

White, who won the Heisman Trophy at USC four years later, rushed for 1,118 yards and 14 touchdowns, averaging 9.4 yards a carry. In one game, a 54-0 rout of Van Nuys in which the Tigers rushed for 441 yards, White ran for 213 yards and three touchdowns on only five carries.

Moore, less a passer than a runner, ran for 651 yards and threw for 697, averaging about five yards per carry and about 20 yards per completion. He finished his career with more than 4,000 yards in total offense.

The Citizen Savings Athletic Foundation, unable to choose between them, made White, Moore and Kevin Williams co-City Players of the Year. All three signed with USC.

Raymond Williams, the odd man out in an offense that featured the other three, nevertheless averaged more than six yards a carry as he rushed for 483 yards and scored seven touchdowns. He was named to the All-City team and signed with Washington State.

In all, the foursome accounted for more than 95% of San Fernando’s total yardage.

And talk about explosive . . .

In a 47-6 romp over Reseda, they rushed for 529 yards, with Kevin Williams getting 180 yards on nine carries, White 152 on eight, Raymond Williams 110 on seven and Moore 82 on nine.

They had a remarkable 47 runs of 40 or more yards, an average of almost four a game.

But, all the eye-catching statistics aside, their season really boiled down to two games, both of them against Gardena.

They took a vastly different approach to each game, and got vastly dissimilar results.

As the Tigers were warming up for their season opener at El Camino College on the evening of Sept. 19, two assistant coaches arrived with their new uniforms.

“They were hot off the press,” said Marsh, who left coaching after the 1979 season. “You could actually see the steam rising off them. And here we are, trying to prepare for a game, and these guys are saying, ‘Oh, wow, look at the uniforms.’ ”

Said White: “We had the brand new uniforms, we had oxygen tanks, trying to be Mr. Big Time. We were No. 1 in the country. . . . We got caught up in all of that.”

In other words, their minds weren’t exactly on the task at hand.

“We got too cocky,” White said.

Gardena brought them crashing back down to Earth.

By halftime, it was 33-0.

Marsh was furious.

“I remember in the locker room, we had all the sodas out there for the players and he came in and knocked them all on the floor,” White said.

San Fernando hadn’t been shut out in 10 years, and this was supposed to be a team for the ages.

It was embarrassing.

“We were getting so humiliated,” Kevin Williams said, “that we wanted to come out. We weren’t getting anything done, and we were wondering if our backups could come through with something. But Marsh said, ‘You guys got us in this predicament, you guys thought you were big shots, so you guys can stick with it.’ ”

When it was over, Gardena had piled up 395 total yards and a surprising 40-0 victory. The Mohicans limited San Fernando to 172 yards, including just 135 on the ground, less than the Tigers’ average per half that season.

“We dominated the whole game,” said former Gardena Coach Bob Sugino, who is now an administrative dean at Gage Junior High in South Gate.

“I’ve got to believe that they thought they could just walk on the field and beat us. But that particular night and that particular game, we were just superior to them.

“We played a really good game and they didn’t play up to their capabilities.

“But there was no way we were 40 points better than they were.”

Screamed a headline in the Valley News and Green Sheet:

Can You Believe This?

Gardena 40, Tigers 0!!

Marsh said The Dream Backfield got no sympathy from its teammates on the bus ride back to San Fernando after the game.

“They were being ribbed by all the ballplayers,” he said. “ ‘The All-World Trio. What happened? ‘ I just let it happen. I mean, they were being ribbed--Kevin, Charles, Kenny. ‘What happened to the World Trio?’ After awhile, I said, ‘All right, guys, knock it off. It’s a team effort. We lost it. Forget it.’ ”

But Marsh, of course, wouldn’t let them forget.

San Fernando didn’t exactly steamroll through the rest of its schedule, although it did put together some spectacular efforts.

But the Tigers were as inconsistent as they were electrifying.

A week after their rout of Reseda, they struggled to beat a mediocre Birmingham team, 14-6.

And a week after the romp over Van Nuys, they lost to Kennedy, 28-25, when Kennedy’s Tom Freni stepped in front of a Moore lateral late in the game and returned it for the game-winning touchdown.

Kennedy Coach Jim Babcock called the victory “the greatest thing in the history of the school.”

But when Kennedy was upset by Monroe in the last game of the season and San Fernando beat Granada Hills, the Tigers and Golden Cougars were Mid-Valley League co-champions.

San Fernando’s statistician walked into the locker room afterward and told Marsh and his players that Gardena also had won and that the Mohicans would be the Tigers’ opponent the next week in the first round of the playoffs.

The room fell silent.

Said Marsh: “I told them, ‘Gentlemen, we’ve got our work cut out now. We can avenge ourselves or show that we are not complete athletes and get our asses whipped again. Think about it over the weekend and be ready to go Monday.’ ”

In the week leading up to the game at Birmingham High, Marsh made the players sit silently and watch films of the Gardena game every day at lunchtime.

“I dreaded that,” Moore said. “By Friday, we were ready to kill. We got so sick of looking at our mistakes and being embarrassed.”

White said the players wore suits and ties to school every day to show their commitment.

“We were serious,” he said.

In the locker room before the game, Marsh turned out the lights and had all the players lie on the ground.

“He gave a speech, and all the guys still talk about it today,” White said. “It was something. . . . We were just laying on the ground and you could hear him walking back and forth, just talking. Oh, man. ‘Let us out of here, let us out of here.’ We were screaming.

“I get goose bumps just thinking about it.”

He raised his right arm for a reporter to prove his sincerity.

When the story was later related over the phone to Moore, the former quarterback said Marsh’s speech “had me in tears.”

Discussing it further, Moore said, “My eyes are watering now. . . .

“I don’t remember exactly what he said, but I remember him saying something like, ‘You don’t go out and practice all week like we have--and risk getting injured every day--to go out and lose on Friday night.’ And he was pacing back and forth in the dark. . . .

“I’ve only been pumped up that high for a game one other time--and that was for a USC game against Alabama in Birmingham.

“I’m kind of shaking now just thinking about it.”

San Fernando jumped out to a 20-0 lead, but Gardena had cut the deficit to 20-13 by halftime.

Marsh brought out the projector again in the locker room.

San Fernando dominated the second half to win, 38-13, as White rushed for 170 yards and two touchdowns. The Tigers wound up with 303 total yards, including 289 on the ground, and limited Gardena to just 120.

Said Moore: “Every time we touched the ball it was like it was the last game of our lives, and we wanted to make the most of it.”

Looking back 10 years later, Marsh said the opening-game loss was probably the best thing that could have happened to the Tigers.

“We were too cocky,” he said.

And Sugino said the lopsided victory may have ruined Gardena’s season.

“After that,” he said, “it was hard to talk to my kids. All of a sudden, after going against The Dream Backfield, the No. 1 team in the nation, and beating them, 40-0, my kids are feeling invincible.

“I don’t think they realized how much time, effort, energy and preparation they put into that one game. It was never duplicated the rest of the year.”

For San Fernando, it was a cruise to the championship after beating Gardena.

“Our confidence was back up,” Marsh said. “By the end of the season, we were thinking about taking on some junior colleges.”

The Tigers beat Canoga Park, 31-13, in the quarterfinals as they rushed for 321 yards, including 121 by White and 111 by Kevin Williams. In the semifinals, they beat Taft, 32-21, as Kevin Williams ran for 118 and Raymond Williams ran for 116.

Going into the final at the Coliseum, Banning Coach Chris Ferragamo said the Tigers’ backfield “has to be the best in the world. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a backfield so awesome and devastating.”

Banning had a good team, featuring tailback Freeman McNeil, but White said, “We knew we were going to beat them.”

San Fernando won easily, 20-8, holding Banning scoreless until the final minute.

White ran for 107 yards, Kevin Williams ran for 90 yards and Raymond Williams ran for 51 yards and caught a 33-yard touchdown pass from Moore, who completed 7 of 12 passes for 104 yards.

“They were overwhelming,” Ferragamo said.

And then, to the considerable relief of coaches around the City, they were gone, never to collectively wreak such havoc on a football field ever again.

The Dream Backfield: 1975 Highlights

Name Achievements

Raymond Williams Ran for 483 yards, averaged 6.3 yards per carry, scored 7 touchdowns. Gained 111 yards in semifinal. Ran for 53 yards and caught 33-yard touchdown pass in championship game. Signed with Washington State.

Kevin Williams Led City in rushing and scoring with 1,402 yards and 151 points, averaged 11.1 yards per carry and scored 22 touchdowns. Named co-City Player of the Year. Signed with USC.

Kenny Moore Ran for 651 yards, passed for 697 yards, averaged 4.7 yards per carry and 19.9 yards per completion. Scored nine touchdowns and passed for four. Named co-City Player of the Year. Signed with USC.

Charles White Ran for 1,118 yards, averaged 9.4 yards per carry, scored 14 touchdowns. Ran for 213 yards and three touchdowns on five carries against Van Nuys. Was named co-City Player of the Year. Signed with USC.

Also notable In 1975, the four accounted for more than 95% of the Tigers’ total yardage.

San Fernando rushed for 529 yards against Reseda.

The Tigers had 47 runs of 40 or more yards.

White and the Williamses formed three-fourths of teams that finished second in 440-yard relay and fourth in mile relay at 1976 state track meet.

TIGERS’ 1975 RECORD

TEAM SCORE Lost to Gardena 40-0 Defeated El Camino Real 35-14 Defeated Manual Arts 28-16 Defeated Reseda 47-6 Defeated Birmingham 14-6 Defeated Monroe 27-13 Defeated Van Nuys 54-0 Lost to Kennedy 28-25 Defeated Granada Hills 25-9 Defeated Gardena 35-14 Defeated Canoga Park 31-13 Defeated Taft 32-21 Defeated Banning 20-8