1982 FOOTBALL CHAMPIONS Strong defense carried Mooney to Div. II title

The postseason success masked the disappointment of losing the SVC crown.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- Cardinal Mooney coach Don Bucci entered the locker room following the Cardinals' final regular season game of the 1982 season with little to say.
Mooney had just lost to Fitch, 12-7, giving the Falcons their first Steel Valley Conference title since 1969, and the Cardinals were devastated.
"Winning the Steel Valley title was our main goal back then," Bucci said. "If you did that, the playoffs and the state titles would follow.
"We were really depressed."
Which left the Cardinals with a decision to make: End the season or accept a playoff bid.
Bucci wasn't sure.
"So I asked the players, 'Do we want to accept?' " he said. "They reluctantly said, 'Yeah, we might as well.' "
Good choice.
Road to the title
Led by their typically strong defense, the Cardinals edged Steubenville (13-2), Mentor Lake Catholic (10-7) and Toledo St. Francis (12-0) to win their second Division II state championship -- and third title overall.
An SVC title would have been nice, but the state title was better.
"But back then, it was sort of a toss-up," Bucci said. "Looking back, obviously you'd take the state title, but [the SVC] meant a lot back then."
Of Mooney's four championships, the 1982 title may have been the most surprising. The Cardinals graduated 11 first-team All-SVC players from the 1981 team, which nearly everyone thought would win a state title.
Mooney still had a lot of talent, but it also had a lot of question marks.
"I think what made that year such a great experience was that we weren't expected to do as well," said Rick Shepas, a senior tight end on that team. "The tough thing for us as seniors was that we were coming back without some of those great leaders from the year before.
"The coaching staff put the pressure on us to help us mold together as a team. Our senior class was a very cohesive group."
All-conference selection
Shepas, who played sparingly on the 1980 state title team, finished the season with 32 receptions for 596 yards. He was one of five players to make first team All-SVC.
"I just remember there being a great sense of accomplishment for overachieving as a football team," said Shepas, now the coach at Massillon Washington. "We weren't penciled in as big, dominating players, but we played like that during the course of the season.
"We truly loved being out on the field together."
Shepas went on to a stellar career at YSU, finishing with 150 receptions for 2,263 yards -- good enough for second on the Penguins' all-time yardage list.
Quarterback John Saadey became Bucci's third 1,000-yard passer, completing 75-of-143 passes for 1,077 yards and five touchdowns. (Jim Bengala and Jim Bertrando also topped 1,000 yards). Linebacker Carl Pelini was also first team All-SVC and was coach at Fitch the past three years before joining his brother, Bo, at Nebraska.
"When you look back 20 years removed and take a look at how successful everyone on the team is, it tells you what a great job the faculty and the coaching staff did," Shepas said. "They instilled a great work ethic and motivated us to overcome adversity and succeed in all situations.
"They made us better as people and as football players. I feel blessed to have been there."
scalzo@vindy.com