A TALE OF TWO RIVERS…PART 3…THE TITLE YEARS

The success of the 1940’s unfortunately, did not continue after the work that coaches, Hall, O’Mealy and Wiersig had performed.  Ray Wiersig left coaching and teaching in 1952.  The 1951 season had gone 3-5-0. After having winning seasons in 1947 (5-2-0) and 1948 (7-1-0) things went south as The Raiders played an independent season in 1949 and then moved to a revamped NEW as they moved to the western division of the conference.  Things got tougher in the new part of the conference and the teams went 2-5-1 and 3-5-0.  Wiersig finished his stint at Two Rivers with an overall 21-17-2 record, winning the conference titles in 1947 and 1948.

After the Wiersig years the Raiders posted four winning seasons between 1952 and 1976.  Three of those records were 1967-69, including an undefeated 8-0 year in 1968.  The team had a 6-3 record in 1969.  Following a 34-7 victory over Shawano the team then had a 6-2 record at that point.   Against Shawano running back John Hoffman carried the ball 30-times for a school record 319-yards, three touchdowns on runs of 42, 60 and eight yards plus a 62-yarder that was called back.  The Milwaukee Pius Popes (7-1-1), on their way to the first WISAA playoffs, invaded Two Rivers on November 1, 1969, and shellacked the Raiders 28-0.  This loss was the start of a 27-game losing streak.  A reversal of their 29-game unbeaten streak from the 1940’s. 

A 22-7 victory over Milwaukee Custer on September 15, 1973, led to a 2-7 season and the losing streak ended.  Their next winning season was 1976 when the team posted a 5-4 record.  Over time led the school to many coaches taking the head position.  Russ Wirnsberger had coached the team to a 13-31 five-year record (1972-76).  Russ, who also was the school wrestling coach, stepped away on his own accord and in came Jerry Bonino. 

Manitowoc Herald-Times-Reporter April 19, 1977

Bonino was no stranger to the Two Rivers football program.  He began coaching as a varsity assistant at Appleton Xavier and then he moved to Iola-Scandinavia for four seasons and in 1965 he became the head varsity coach, directing the team to a 2-7 record.  He moved to Two Rivers and served as the junior varsity coach in his first two seasons at Two Rivers 1966-67 and then became the freshman coach from 1969-76 when his teams had a 33-7-4 record.  He also served as the varsity basketball coach from 1968-80.  Bonino applied for and got the position.  Jerry found himself coaching the smallest school in the Fox Valley Association with an attendance of 1,125 students.  Neenah, a former regular 1940’s opponent, had the largest league student population of 2,716 as city itself grew.  As it turned out in the 1977 season opener, it was Two Rivers vs. Neenah.  Despite losing 14-13, the Raiders felt confident that they could compete with the “big boys” of the FVA.  Neenah was to be the conference champion in 1977.

Following the Neenah game the “injury bug” hit the Raiders and lasted for two years. Because of the large number of crucial injuries Bonino’s first two seasons didn’t go well, going 3-6 in 1977 and 2-7 in 1978 but things were starting to move forward.  Two Rivers only spent two years in the FVA before the WIAA re-aligned them into the Eastern Wisconsin Conference.  By moving to the new conference, they were now the “big kids on the block” among the new group.  The team stayed healthy with 14 lettermen returning for 1979.  

Led by running back Jeff Gospodarek, who gained 1,379 yards and scored 22 touchdowns while gaining over 2,300 all-purpose yards in 1979.  Senior quarterback Todd Wojta passed for 777 yards and on defense intercepted five passes.  Gospodarek went on to play for UW-Eau Claire, tight end Todd Schweigert went to Northern Michigan University and lineman/kicker Wayne Meyer accepted a scholarship to Mankato State.  These were just some of the 1979 stars.

The season highlight was winning the conference title in a showdown against undefeated Plymouth by a 25-14 score.  Plymouth had won the WIAA Class B title in 1976 (11-0), by beating Iowa-Grant 42-12.  The school then lost in the first round of the playoffs in 1977 (9-1) to eventual champion Iowa-Grant 31-8 and came back to win the D-3 title in 1978 (11-0) by beating Prairie du Chien 34-14.  With a 8-1 record in 1979, the school had a 4-year 39-2 record.  The matchup between the two conference title contenders was a true battle.  The next week the opening round of the playoffs Two Rivers were stopped cold by a tough Edgerton defense.  The season closed but the school was primed for the future.

With a lot of experience gained in the 1979 season Two Rivers returned 18 lettermen and the 1980 team was primed to repeat as the EWC champion.  They blended together so well that the team went 11-0 and won the D-3 state title.  Many observers felt that the team was so strong that the Raiders could have won the FRV title if they were still a member of that conference.  They beat Plymouth again in the regular season final by a convincing manner, 20-0 and then battled their two playoff opponents in hard fought games.  Six players made the 1980 Herald-Times-Reporter All-Area team. 

So many seniors started in 1980 that when the next season rolled around there were no full-time returning starters.  Coach Bonino observed before the season that Sheboygan Falls returned a lot of starters and was the probable front runner for the conference title.  He was incorrect as the Raiders blew them out 39-0 in game four.  But in game two the Raiders faced a non-conference opponent that was a much more powerful squad. 

Despite being outgained 100-248 yards on the ground by the Marshfield Columbus, the Dons could eke out only a 10-6 win over Two Rivers.  Columbus had been the 1980 WISAA Class A champion and would end up with a 9-3 record and earned a second-place plaque in the 1981 WISSA championship.  The loss to Columbus ended a 12-game Two Rivers win streak.  It would take a lot for Bonino and his staff to shore up the defense as well as working to improve the offense and they would win 9 of the 10 remaining games.  However, a 22-0 loss to the Kiel Raiders, which put Two Rivers, with their first ever EWC loss put them into second place in the conference.  Two crucial fumbles and two interceptions stymied the offense but the defense was unable to hold Kiel back.

The 20-14 win over Plymouth was in two-overtime periods.  Kiel was upset 7-0 by Kewaskum that weekend and that loss pushed their conference record to 4-2 while Two Rivers was now 4-1 with one game to play.  The Raiders took the title the next week with a 27-20 defeat of Chilton.  TR was able to overcome Mishicot in the first round of the playoffs and then easily defeated Reedsburg in round two.  The Raiders had to overcome a 14-9 deficit in the title game to beat Baldwin-Woodville 23-14 for the title. 

Going into the 1982 season felt that he had to tighten the defense.  The previous season the opponents averaged 10 or 11 more plays on offense.  They also had to cut back on turnovers. With two non-conference games to start the season…Madison East, a school with 1,982 students and again, Marshfield Columbus, a much smaller school with strong WISAA playoff record and a winning tradition…Bonino hoped to minimize the injury bug as well.  One of the strong points on the offense was returning players like quarterback Jeff Peterson, who was 141-73-9-973-10.  Tight end Bruce Jacobs caught 24 passes for 367 yards.  Running back/linebacker Dan Laurent was All-Area who carried the ball 106 times for 466 yards and contributed with 11 receptions for 98 yards. On defense, Laurent posted 82 solo tackles, 39 assists, seven fumble recoveries and three interceptions.  Paul VanLaarhoven was a running back with 300+ yards and as a defensive back he had four interceptions.  Both place kicker Stu Fronk and punter Steve Zunker were All-Area members.

With 18 lettermen returning in 1982, but only three being defensive starters, the key again was to be the defense.  As a team Two Rivers allowed 177 points, and the offense put up 347 points. 

Considered by many to sweep to their third straight WIAA title the Raiders opened against Madison East.  Down 7-6 at halftime the team roared back against the bigger school to win 27-13.  Next was a return match against Marshfield Columbus and it would be a loss.  Yet, Jerry Bonino wasn’t totally disappointed with the team’s performance.  The Dons were now 3-0 after beating the Raiders and on their way to the WISAA Class A finals for the third consecutive year.  They would lose to a much bigger school, Milwaukee Marquette, 7-0.

Down 27-24 with 1:12 to go and facing a fourth and one on the Sheboygan Falls nine-yard line, Bonino elected to not kick a field goal to tie the game.  Instead, he had Jeff Peterson toss a slant over the middle to Bruce Jacobs for a six-yard gain and then Dan Laurent ran around the right side for the winning score.  Stu Fonk kicked the extra point and the game ended with a Raider 31-27 victory.  After this it was pretty much clear sailing for Two Rivers to take their third straight WIAA title, the first Wisconsin high school to do so. 

Bonino would earn his second consecutive All-Area Coach of the Year award.  Jeff Peterson would earn All-State honors with passing stats of 224-126-13-2,030-28.  Bruce Jacobs also earned All-State honors as he caught 48 passes for 841 yards.  Other offensive contributors were: Paul VanLaarhoven carried the ball 167 times for 994 yards to earn first team All-Area as an RB/DB and Kick Returner and Dan Laurent who gained 988 yards on 148 carries.  Seniors Frank Svacina, Larry Feest, Lenny Sleger, Bill Rehrauer, Steve Zunker, Stu Fonk and Tim Luckow were major players in the team’s success along with juniors Rick Peterson and Scott Kintopf.

From 1980-82 Two Rivers Won three consecutive state D-3 titles and three EWC titles.  Jerry Bonino would have a very good decade in the 1980’s.  He posted a 79-23 record, one of the best records by any coach during the period.  Two Rivers won six conference titles and made the playoffs three more times from 1983-89.  His team had only one losing season as well, that was a 4-5 record in 1985.  Jerry would spend 18 years as the school’s head coach ending with a 127-58 record and earn a spot in the WFCA Hall of Fame.