Detroit Catholic Central High School

1990 FOOTBALL STATE CHAMPIONS

The First ever AA State Champs, a title well deserved by the 1990 football team which avenged two (2) season defeats by defensively dominating their last eight (8) games, and outscoring opponents by an average of 21 points.

With a 3-2 record halfway through the season, the playoff possibilities for the Shamrocks looked out of reach. The team refocused on ball control and a stingy defense. The turnaround started in te Boys' Bowl game whee the Shamrocks recorded a dominant 32-0 win over Brother Rice, the largest margin of victory in Boys' Bowl history. The defense shut down Rice forcing several turnovers and not letting the warriors cross the 50-yard line until the second half.

After a pair of Catholic Central (CC) victories, CC headed to the Silverdome to face DePorres for the Catholic High School League (CHSL) title. With a 6-2 record entering the last game of the regular season, it was do or die time for the Shamrocks. CC proved revenge is sweet with a 31-0 victory over DePorres. The "brick wall" defense turned in a spectacular performance, shutting down DePorres' running game and now allowing a single pass completion.

CC defeated Ypsilanti 17-6 and Canton 35-33 for the Regional Title. The Shamrocks semi-final opponent was heavily favored Saginaw and its vanted offense. The "brick wall" defense shut then out and Shamrock offense rolled to a 21-0 win. In a nearly perfectly executed State Championship game against undefeated Detroit King, the Shamrocks won the first ever Division AA title avenging both early season losses and defeating two (2) other state champion teams in the process. 


First Row (L to R): Matt Roney • Stephen Sucher • Allen Barbarich • Jeff Tibaldi • Russ Curcuru • Gary Gurgold • Jack Davidson • Brian Chancy • Karl Kowalyk • Kerry Zavagnin • Mario Vassallo • Frank Yoakam • Stan Targosz
Second Row (L to R): Jonathon Brand • Jason Carr • Mike Wakenell • Jeff Rees • Blaise Krol • Jon Barbara • Mike Thomas • Eric Wiklendt • Dan Gusoff • Mitch MacDonald • Steven Leiger
Third Row (L to R): Dan Suhajda • Andy Kronk • Gary Stegall • David Dominick • John Ivezic • Bill Cilluffo II • Bob Edwards • Matt Goebel • Dan Kelly • Brett Walter • Dan Cretu
Fourth Row (L to R): Steve Paciorka • Kevin Malkiewicz • John Green • Brent Jenkins • Rob Sylvester • Brian Brewer • Dave Bruhowzki • Mike Grimes • Ar'Shon Stewart • Jim Buda • Eric Starkweather
Fifth Row (L to R): Assistant Coaches: Dan Fortune • Dave Lewis • Brian Tressler • Jim Ryan • Head Coach: Tom Mach • Assistant Head Coach: Rick Coratti • Assistant Coaches: Kevin Tulley • George Kunec • Curtis Sieczkowski

ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME