“One of the things that I remember about the State Championship season is the summer before the season Kevin Amin-Griffin (starting quarterback) and I were best friends and co-captains of the team. We spent 90 percent of that summer together. I ran routes and we practiced the freeze option non-stop,” said Hart. “We also engaged in some brutal training sessions that included jogs from Homewood to the North Side of Pittsburgh. Once the season started, we were in world-class shape. That was our strength—nobody was in better cardio vascular shape then we were.”
Perry High was an underdog entering the 1989 season and the team had been on a decline. Brashear, led by Jimy Lincoln and Parade All-American Michael Booth won the City in 1987 and 1988 and the pride of the North Side would be lucky to finish in the top 5.
“We flew under the radar because we had a lot of first year starters, Mike Coates, Maurice Turner and myself,” said Darnell “Pepsi” Farrow. “Plus, 1989 was one of the greatest years for city teams. Allderdice had Curtis Martin and Tyrone Jay, Peabody had Lamont Coleman, Oliver had Ray Zellars, Westinghouse had Sean Barnes, so nobody rated us very high. Coach Gus Cantanese planted a seed in our heads after the 1st game against Langley and he told us we could win state. After that we were looking for a fight! Looking for that knockout hit and all 11 guys on defense wanted that big hit.”
It was normal for someone to be so emotional that they would be brought to tears before the game—that was symbolic of the type of intensity that Perry played with. It didn’t matter if they were playing the worst team in the league or the very best team in the league—the goal was to absolutely destroy every opponent.
As a result, only two teams to score on them all season and nobody scored on them until the 4th game of the year. The Schenley Spartans celebrated like they won the championship and Perry responded like it was the end of the world—even though they beat them 40-6. No other team score on them until the City League Championship game.
After winning the City League championship, Perry shutout Greensburg Salem, 23-0, in the PIAA state semifinals.
“Once we got to the playoffs, the WPIAL teams thought we were a joke. They mocked us in the local newspapers and questioned our ability to be competitive with the supposedly “mighty AAA” WPIAL teams. This was the absolute worst thing in the world that they could have done,” said Hart. “I recall Coach Catanese crying in his pep talk to us about how we were being disrespected by the local media as we headed into our first WPIAL playoff appearance. We responded by absolutely pounding Greensburg Salem 23 – 0. Many people were shocked after the game—except our fans, coaches, and team. After each hit we could see Greensburg Salem losing some of their spirit. To be honest, some of the hits were downright brutal.”
December 7, 1989 was a day that will always be remembered as the day the City League won its first and only PIAA title. Perry upset national powerhouse Berwick, 20-8, at Hershey Park Stadium.
Perry, under Coach Gus Catanese, is still the only City League team to win a PIAA title. It was a game that ended with a dagger when linebacker “Pepsi” returning an interception 100 yards for a touchdown. Perry had a tremendous defense, nicknamed “Blue Steel.” The Commodores gave up only three touchdowns all season.
Berwick was the defending state champion, beating Sean Gilbert led Aliquippa the previous year. Berwick was 14-0 and ranked No. 4 in the country by USA Today and All-American quarterback named Joe Kelchner, who had more than 50 college scholarship offers. The team, riding a 33-game winning streak, was considered unbeatable.
“As we watched the film, we noticed that Berwick weren’t nearly as physical as we were. We had a way of accelerating through our opponents and exploding upon contact—there wasn’t a team that we watched that came close to the type of hits that we put on our opponents,” said Hart. “We also had a way of intimidating our opponents before and after devastating hits. We would let them know that they would be hit hard before the game and we would deliver on that promise during the game. We entered the game overconfident.”
Berwick led, 8-0, at halftime, and by 8-6 after three quarters. But with 2:50 left in the game, Perry’s Mike Coates recovered a fumble at the Berwick 7, and Hart scored on a 2-yard run two plays later. Amin hit Kevin Woods with the 2-point conversion pass to take a 14-8 lead.
On the final play of the game star quarterback Kelchner threw a pass into the end zone that was intercepted by Linebacker Darnell “Pepsi” Farrow who raced 100 yards for a touchdown and into the history books.
My fondest memories of playing football were at Perry Traditional Academy. We finished ranked #8 in the USA Today even though we beat the #4 team in the USA Today in the State Championship 20-8,” said Hart. “Our games were like college football highlight films. We had the meanest players, the hardest hitters, and we played with complete trust of the guy next to us. Every person on the team was valued and loved—even if they were freshmen.
Perry went to Hershey in 1989 without a single star player and a plan to ferociously outwork its opponents. Below are some of the members of the “no name offense” and the “blue steel” defense.
Maurice Turner, Chad Skorocki, Joe Woods, Shongo Raines, Michael Coates, Darnell “Pepsi” Farrow, Ted Carter, Kevin Amin Griffin (QB), Lou Clark, Ramon Waldon, Odis Townsend, Dennis Martin, Harry Jackson, and Hart.
Perry achieved the impossible dream in 1989 by winning the State Championship and proved that defense wins championships. Nobody wanted to face “The Steel Curtain,” “The Purple People Eaters,” “The Legion of Boom,” “The Fearsome Foursome” or “The Blue Steel”just ask Berwick.
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