West Chicago quarterback Scott Hall eludes a Mt. Carmel, Ill. defender during the 1974 Class 3A state title game.
Courtesy of Henry Antes
As the buses approached West Chicago High School on a cold November night, folks converged from all directions to greet their champions.
At that moment in 1974, West Chicago was the center of the football universe.
Just hours earlier, the Wildcats won a state title in Normal. The drive home gradually became more quiet while the players and coaches reflected on the accomplishment.
Finally approaching home, it truly sank in.
“We showered up and got on the bus before the next game even began,” said Scott Hall, the team’s quarterback. “That final gathering with all the fans and coaches and players, the unanimity of the community was just so incredible.”
An impromptu pep rally followed in the gymnasium, packed so tight the players could only get in one at a time through a narrow path cleared by the swarm of fans.
“It was remarkable,” said Henry Antes, a 1,000-yard rusher and linebacker on the team. “We had no idea the impact we had. It was dark and it was icy cold, but everyone came out.
“That was one of the greatest experiences,” he said.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the IHSA football playoffs, the Daily Herald is looking back at some of the most memorable teams from our coverage area.
This chapter takes us back to the beginning when the 1974 West Chicago Wildcats were among five schools to win the first state football titles awarded by the IHSA.
“We had some really good players, and a bunch of average ones like me,” said Mike Alden, a junior linebacker on the team who became athletic director at the University of Missouri for 17 years. “We just kind of gelled together and the town rallied around it all.”
West Chicago’s football program was in the midst of a heyday. In three previous seasons, an era defined by local legend and future NFL player Scott Dierking, the Wildcats posted a combined record of 19-6.
Before 1974, though, every campaign ended with the regular-season finale. When players returning from the 1973 team heard about state champions being decided for the first time the next season, a fire was lit.
“The thought that there was going to be a state champion crowned, that was all the motivation we needed,” Hall said. “We had a really young team the year before, so there were a bunch of us ready for that challenge.”
Former West Chicago football coach Paul Unruh, left, and his assistants celebrate a 3-0 win over Geneseo in the second round of the 1974 Class 3A playoffs.
Courtesy of Scott Hall
Led by head coach Paul Unruh, who died in 2009, the Wildcats were a united group. Hall and Antes credit many of the players’ involvement with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in forming an unbreakable bond.
With only 16 teams in each of the five playoff classes — compared to 32 in eight classes now — qualifying back then wasn’t easy. Unless you were a conference champion or maybe had one loss, you weren’t getting in.
Two regular-season games especially stood out for West Chicago in 1974. A victory over Wheaton North in the opener was a clash of titans. The Wildcats also secured a rare win over Sycamore.
With the stands full at every home game, fans stood five deep behind the fences just for a glimpse at the best team in the area.
“High school football was a community event,” Antes said. “Everybody in town would come out to the game. The community supported us, and we went out in the community to speak to different groups. It had a lasting impact.”
West Chicago finished 13-0 with a defense that notched eight shutouts and kept every opponent in single-digit scoring except for Wheaton North and the opening-round playoff game against Wauconda.
Included was a tense 3-0 second-round victory at Geneseo behind a Bill Dettmann field goal. A 32-0 win over Mt. Carmel, Ill. in the title game at Illinois State University capped the campaign.
When the game ended, players lifted Unruh onto their shoulders and began the celebration.
“We came into that season with high expectations,” Hall said. “Beating Wheaton North with the reputation they had kind of solidified our feelings that we could win a state title.”
From Antes, Hall and Alden to Dettmann, Jerry Stockton, Larry Fry, Gary Tredup and so many others, there was no shortage of stars on that team.
Antes went on to play at Kansas State and Arkansas while Hall played at Wheaton College and Alden at Evansville. Many others played at least a year of college ball.
Just after the conclusion of the first year of the IHSA football playoffs, West Chicago’s Class 3A championship trophy sits in a trophy case at the school.
Courtesy of Scott Hall
West Chicago fielded solid teams in the following years, but didn’t reach the playoffs again until 1978. It wasn’t until 2002 the Wildcats next reached the playoffs, with Hall’s son at quarterback, and another 21 years before they qualified again last season.
West Chicago is currently 3-1 and trying to become the first team in program history to reach the playoffs in consecutive seasons.
The players from the 1974 team — old enough to be grandfathers to this season’s players — will be honored Oct. 18 at West Chicago’s Homecoming game as the town rekindles the glory days.
Though they’re scattered around the country, the hometown heroes will converge one more time.
“We were a blue-collar team from a blue-collar town,” Alden said. “It’s an honor to be part of something that’s still around 50 years later. We put West Chicago on the map.”