Del State: "A Legacy Like No Other"

[Lehigh Football Nation]

Thought this was a good piece on CSTV.com, quite long and thorough:

http://www.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/stories/103006aaw.html


In 1980, Delaware State University's football program had hit such a low, that they lost to Portland State 105-0 and became a national joke. A few months later, the athletic director of the predominantly black school, Nelson Townsend, hired a brash, young, white 33-year old, Joe Purzycki, to become the first white head coach of any black college football team in the country. Despite the opposition from the community--and death threats--Purzycki and the players (who didn't quit) formed a unique bond that led to the resurrection of the Delaware State program and a national ranking within three years. Sports Illustrated, The New York Times and many other publications wrote features on the historic hiring and turnaround. This is a remarkable story about courage, adversity, prejudice and football.

I thought it was really great - very interesting. Purzycki ended up as head coach at JMU.

[ChickenMan]

I thought it was really great - very interesting. Purzycki ended up as head coach at JMU.

most UD fans thought at that time that Joe Purzycki was the heir apparent to Tubby at UD... but Tubby decided to stick around another 20+ years.

[BlueHen86]

Great article, thanks for posting it. Brings back a lot of memories. I lived in Dover when they lost 105-0, Neil Lomax was the QB for Portland St.

[andy7171]

Nice article!

[AggieFinn]

Great, great story. This would make an interesting film I think. Films like Wildcats and Glory Road come to mine.

[TSU84returntoglory]

I remember watching John Taylor and the Hornets vs Towson in Dover - circa '82? I believe we won.

[AggieFinn]

I remember watching John Taylor and the Hornets vs Towson in Dover - circa '82? I believe we won.

I wasn't even aware that John Taylor went to Delaware State. The more you know...

[Go Lehigh TU Owl]

I wasn't even aware that John Taylor went to Delaware State. The more you know...

According to wikipedia, John Taylor currently drives trucks for a trucking company.

[catbob]

Who can blame them for losing that bad to Portland State, that was the Neil Lomax squad.

[Go Lehigh TU Owl]

Who can blame them for losing that bad to Portland State, that was the Neil Lomax squad.

I don't care if it was Joe Montana, 105-0?? How the heck did Portland State and Delaware St. cross paths in 1980? There were very little intersectional games back then.

[catbob]

By the end of Lomax's career, he held 90 NCAA records.

Against Delaware State, he threw 7 TDS in ONE QUARTER. LOL

He threw for 4095 yards and 37 TDs (5 INTS) that year, was MVP of the Senior Bowl and finished 7th in the Heisman voting.

They also beat Cal Poly 93-7, Weber State 78-0, and EWU 54-21.

* Most Completions - 938
* Most Yards Passing - 13,220
* Most Yards Total Offense - 13,345
* Most Touchdown Passes - 119
* Most Touchdowns Passing and Running - 119
* Most 400-Yard Games - 12
* Most 300-Yard Games - 28
* Most 200-Yard Games in a Row - 28

[BlueHen86]

I don't care if it was Joe Montana, 105-0?? How the heck did Portland State and Delaware St. cross paths in 1980? There were very little intersectional games back then.
I don't know how Del St. got involved in this game either. Travel 3000 miles for that beating. As I recall Lomax played most of the game and Del St couldn't do anything to stop them.
Del St. made national news the following week as well when they won against Central State (If my facts are wrong please correct me, I'm going by memory and it was 26 years ago.)

[BlueHen86]

According to wikipedia, John Taylor currently drives trucks for a trucking company.
Yeah he's really good at it. Whenever he's in traffic he finds a quick way out and then gets to the destination faster than everyone else.
Oh wait, I'm thinking of his 49er days.

[Dallas Demon]

I remember that 105-0 thrashing well. Two weeks before that, Portland St. beat Cal Poly Panoma 93-7. A week before that, Portland St. came to Northwestern St. and they had a terrific offense with Lomax and a great receiver (Clint Didier/Redskins/Packers) but the Demons were way too much for them defensively/offensively and won 40-21 on a very cold evening. Joe Delaney of Northwestern took over the game with 252 yards rushing. Northwestern had loads of talent with Delaney (KC Chiefs/NFL AFC Rookie of Year), Mark "Super" Duper (Dolphins), Bobby Hebert (Saints/Falcons), and Victor Oatis (Colts). The next week Portland St. played Delaware St., and now you know the rest of the story.

[BlueHen86]

I remember Joe Delaney, he drowned trying to save some children in a quarry pond, even though he couldn't swim. I believe he saved one of the children.
A true hero/athlete.

[Dallas Demon]

I remember Joe Delaney, he drowned trying to save some children in a quarry pond, even though he couldn't swim. I believe he saved one of the children.
A true hero/athlete.

His last act epitomized everything he stood for. As great as he was, you would never know he was a famous athlete if you didn't know better.

Just this past weekend Northwestern inducted the 1981 4x100 meter relay team into the equivalent of the Northwestern HOF. You may or may not remember this, but the foursome (all local runners) of Victor Oatis, Joe Delaney, Mario Johnson, and Mark Duper (headed up by Coach Jerry Dyes) won the NCAA Division I 4x100 Relay. That was when track was big-time, and the teams they beat was Georgia (with Herschel Walker and Mel Lattany), Tennessee (Willie Gault), Arizona State (Olympic Gold Medalist Ron Brown), San Jose State (another famous runner I can't recall now), Florida State, Arizona, Oklahoma State, and Baylor. I believe Houston (with Carl Lewis) lost out in the semifinals.

Delaney's leg was absolutely incredible, the guy could fly. He smoked Mel Lattany and everyone else on the second leg. That was probably the single biggest achievement in Northwestern sports history (even bigger than the Iowa win in last year's NCAA tournament) and still remains the only NCAA Division I track relay win by a team residing in Division I-AA, men or women.

One other thing about Delaney on the football field. At Northwestern he had one game where he rushed for 297 yards. Another couple in the 250s. While playing for the KC Chiefs in his rookie season (against Houston I think), Delaney ran for a 80+ yard TD on a spectacular play. Unfortunately, it was called back for a penalty. On the very next play, he made an even more incredible run for a 90 or so yard TD. The guy was something else both on and off the field.

http://www.kcchiefs.com/hall_of_fame/joe_delaney/

[BlueHen86]

Thanks Dallas Demon

[PIRATETIZED1]

VERY nice!

Thanks for sharing!!!!

PIRATETIZED :cool:
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