Valley’s ‘Most Spectacular’ Game Stirs Memories

Thirty years ago, the most hyped, most anticipated, most memorable high school football game involving San Fernando Valley teams took place.

More than 15,000 filled Birmingham High for the City championship game that featured unbeaten San Fernando High and quarterback Anthony Davis against once-beaten Granada Hills and quarterback Dana Potter.

“Granada Hills Defeats San Fernando, 38-28, Takes Los Angeles High School Championship” was the two-line banner headline across the front page of the old Van Nuys News and Valley Green Sheet on Dec. 13, 1970.

Sportswriter Wayne Wilson called it “the most spectacular City championship playoff game in history.”

Years have passed but Howard Marcus, former San Fernando coach, hasn’t forgotten the names of the three Granada Hills receivers who made his life miserable that day: Jim Snowden, Jim Mitchell and Tom Weinert.

“I remember their names like it was yesterday,” he said.

Potter, who accepted a scholarship to Nebraska, transferred to Cal State Northridge and became owner of a local real estate company, said the game was a defining moment in his athletic career.

“It’s something that never leaves you,” he said. “It’s more than being ecstatic and happy because that comes and goes. The warm feeling of accomplishment kind of always stays with you.”

On the opposite side, the game is a bitter reminder for San Fernando players that they lost to their rivals despite being heavy favorites.

San Fernando beat Granada Hills, 40-15, in the final Mid-Valley League game, when each team was 7-0, four weeks before the City final.

“They dominated in every aspect,” Potter said. “Davis was amazing. I really believed San Fernando peaked that night. What happened to us is we went back to square one and realized we had a lot of work to do.”

Marcus did not like playing a team twice in the same season and was torn on whether to use the same plays that worked in the previous game.

“I always remember talking with my coaching staff and saying, ‘What do we do now?’ ” he said. “Most of the things we tried worked, but they’re studying film like we are. Do we come up with a new game plan? Do we try to save some of the best that worked? They reacted very well to many of the things we did. It seemed like they anticipated a lot of the things we did.”

Dwight Chapman, a San Fernando fullback who became a teacher at the school, alleges there was a reason Granada Hills seemed to know the Tigers’ game plan. He insists people spied on the Tigers’ practice from atop a hill where the 118 freeway was being built.

“I look up there at Monday’s practice,” Chapman said. “There’s a truck there, the hood is open and there’s about seven or eight people but nobody is looking under the hood. I turned to Coach Marcus, ‘There’s a truck on the freeway.’ He says, ‘Pay attention.’

“Tuesday, there’s a van there. The hood is up and nobody is looking under. ‘Coach, there’s another truck.’ ‘Damn, Chapman, if you paid more attention to what’s going on the field, you’d be All-City.’

“Wednesday, there’s a station wagon up there. Five or six people. Nobody looking under the hood. ‘Coach Marcus, there’s another truck.’ ‘Damn, Chapman, pay attention, we’ve got a championship game.’ We play the championship game and they’re shutting us down.”

Snowden said he has heard Chapman’s story and rejects the spying accusation.

“It wasn’t the players,” Snowden said. “It might have been some alumni. I don’t think anything those guys saw on the uncompleted freeway did anything.”

The teams had contrasting offensive styles. San Fernando ran the single wing, the ball snapped directly to Davis, who was really a tailback.

Davis was the best athlete in the City. He would become City co-player of the year with Potter in football and City player of the year in baseball.

“I have not seen a better running back in high school football than Anthony,” Potter said. “It seemed like they had the Russian Army coming at you. He’d get through and be gone.”

Granada Hills, under coach Jack Neumeier, was running a run-and-shoot passing attack far ahead of its time.

“We didn’t know how it was going to work out, but it was sensational,” Neumeier said.

San Fernando led, 21-15, at halftime, but Granada Hills had gained confidence it could play with the Tigers.

“I was down,” Neumeier said. “But all the time, the players were saying, ‘Coach, we got them. We’re going to beat them.’ ”

Potter scored four touchdowns and completed 12 of 21 passes for 178 yards. Davis returned two punts for touchdowns.

The game was halted with 22 seconds left when a fight broke out on the field.

Thirty years later, it’s clear the game was a once-in-a-lifetime moment for the participants.

“That was one of the hardest defeats I’ve ever had,” said Marcus, a stockbroker living in Thousand Oaks.

“It meant everything,” said Snowden, a record executive living in Burbank. “It was a magical season to get to the San Fernando game.”

Chapman, who coached at San Fernando, said, “I’ll remember that game the rest of my life.”

Neumeier is 81 and living in Camarillo. He tutored John Elway at Granada Hills from 1976-78, but the 1970 City championship remains his greatest coaching achievement.

Potter became friends with Davis, who was runner-up to Ohio State’s Archie Griffin in the 1974 Heisman Trophy balloting while playing tailback for USC. Potter and Davis had an agreement never to discuss the Granada Hills-San Fernando championship game.

“I used to say to him, ‘You scored six touchdowns against Notre Dame on national television. You played in the Rose Bowl, you played professional football. Why would a silly high school game turn your stomach?’ ” Potter said. “He said, ‘I have so many bad memories from that game I don’t want to talk about it.’ ”

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Eric Sondheimer’s column appears Wednesday and Sunday. He can be reached at (818) 772-3422 or eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.