Centerville again faces Cincy power Moeller

Centerville-Moeller to be broadcast statewide

The series

Results from the Centerville-Moeller series, which continues tonight, Sept. 11, at Centerville Stadium:

CENTERVILLE — It was a converted Centerville High School halfback who broke away in the second half of that 1980 game, heading for the end zone and a possible giant-toppling victory.

Subbing for the starting quarterback who broke his leg in the first half against Cincinnati Moeller, he took an option keeper toward the open field when Mike Larkin, brother of Barry and a future Notre Dame linebacker himself, caught him by the shoelaces.

That trip-up preserved a 20-14 Moeller victory at Nippert Stadium in what was then an almost unthinkable nonconference football matchup. But the close defeat, coming in the days when many teams had a single nonconference slot to fill, also worked to advance the Miami Valley’s confidence in competing with Cincinnati big-school powers.

That first meeting set the tone for what would become a competitive Centerville-Moeller series, which will renew for the sixth time tonight, Sept. 11, when Moeller visits Centerville Stadium.

“That was probably one of the best games in the history of Centerville football,” said Ron Ullery, the Centerville coach who was an Elks assistant in 1980. “I think everybody was in shock that anyone would even give them a game.”

More competitive games would follow, including a 21-7 Centerville loss in 1981 and a 34-30 Centerville loss last season. But the game that is most memorable for Centerville fans is the 1984 first-round playoff matchup in which the Elks topped Moeller, the nation’s No. 1 team, 10-7.

Outsized by the seemingly giant Moeller lines, Centerville boasted a stout defense and an offensive line that included almost laughingly small guards of 165 and 185 pounds, a center of 190 pounds and a running back of 135 pounds.

But Ullery underlines that Centerville, like most upset-collecting underdogs, was confident.

“Work breeds tremendous confidence, so they went on the field believing they could beat Moeller,” Ullery said. “They didn’t have their fingers crossed. Our players were probably the only people in the stadium not shocked that we won.”