OGLESBY — One of the best football teams to play at Illinois Valley Community College will be inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame on Saturday night.

The 1976 Apaches (as they were called then) certainly put IVCC football on the map. That season was the beginning of the golden age of IVCC football, proving the Apaches could compete with any team in the state. It was also the first team to generate strong local fan interest.

The 1976 football team finished 6-3, the best record since IVCC resumed football in 1970, and set the stage for IVCC becoming a national football power in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s with five Midwest Bowl appearances.

Coach Vince McMahon’s squad was made up primarily of in-district players from strong high school programs at La Salle-Peru, St. Bede, Ottawa, Mendota and Hall. Co-captain Dave Rucinski, a 1975 graduate of L-P, said the key to the team’s success was that everybody got along so well.

“The guys from St. Bede who you wanted to beat the living heck out of, here they’re your buddies,” Rucinski said. “Everybody got along. To do this very day, everybody I felt was like a brother. Some of the best memories I’ve had in my life were during that time period.”

The 1976 Apaches excelled on defense, holding the school record for fewest points allowed (92). They made the switch from a 5-man front to a 4-man front that season, Rucinski noted.

“We scored just enough points to win games,” Rucinski said. “We should have done better than we did. I think Wright we lost by one point. We went for a two-point conversion and didn’t get it.”

Their big win of the season was a 6-3 win over ranked Rock Valley, scoring in the final 10 seconds of the game.

In his mind, Rucinski said the 14-12 win over Triton in the season opener was perhaps their biggest win, having come off a 2-7 season.

The Apaches were led by first team All-State picks Kevin Murphy, a linebacker; fullback Lonnie Denton, who went on to start for 1978 Division II national champion Eastern Illinois, and defensive back Bill Pearson (eight interceptions).

Other standouts included punter Bill Manley; offensive linemen Kevin Wall, Joe Kolodziej, Otis Dungan and Art Zimmerman; tight end Bud Matthews; quarterback Tom Kimrey; wide receiver Pat Reeder; running backs Tim Dessing, Rob Baughman, Tom Samolinski and Mickey Venegas; center Kevin Savio; defensive backs Charlie Hyson, Gary Gahan and Steve Opsal; linebackers Scott Piecha and Bob Ochse; and defensive linemen Rucinski, John Fletcher, Paul Kasperski and Alvin Tingle.

Co-captains of the team were Murphy, Rucinski, Kasperski and Kolodziej.

The 1976 Apaches will be inducted into the IVCC Hall of Fame at 6 p.m. Saturday, in L-P’s Matthiessen Auditorium.

Football was last played at IVCC in 1996.

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