Hall of Fame
The 1959 Trenton State College football team enjoyed its most successful season in program history. The Lions gained momentum through the mid-late 1950s under Head Coach Bob Salois and put it all together in ’59.
Salois took over the TSC football program in 1957 and changed the culture on campus. The Lions were a combined 1-10-1 the previous two seasons. The program quickly improved, posting records of 5-2 and 4-3-1 in his first two years. Also on the coaching staff was Roy Van Ness, who would later become the first-ever director of athletics at Trenton State.
With the reputation of the program climbing, Salois had this to say entering the 1959 season. “We were a dark horse club last year and this year every club has us marked as the team to beat. We’re going to be in for a rough time.”
Coach Van Ness added, “We can be our own worst enemy by being over-confident or cocky. That causes sloppiness and sloppy ball-playing is the easiest way to lose any game.”
The season opener was a wake-up call for TSC. They dropped a hard-fought 13-7 to Millersville College. That would be the only occasion they would taste defeat that season. The Lions quickly righted the ship defeating Lincoln University 34-0. The following week, the staunch defense ceded the most points they would allow to any team during the season in a 48-14 victory over Kutztown.
TSC then easily defeated in-state rival Montclair with a 33-7 win. The defense was dominant in the Lions’ final four contests, posting three shutouts and allowing just eight points over that stretch. They downed Cheyney 21-0, New Britain 26-8, C.W. Post 14-0, and the National Aggies, 19-0.
For the season, TSC allowed the fewest rushing yards in the nation and finished third in overall defense. Outscoring their opponents 202-42, TSC captured the New York, New Jersey District 31 N.A.I.A. Championship.
The seven victories were a single- season program record that stood until 1980 (along with the 1963 squad that went 7-1). Combined with the opening game triumph at the start of the 1960 season, the Lions won eight straight games, a record that still stands today.
The roster was packed with talented athletes. Eight different players from the 1959 team were eventually inducted into the Hall of Fame. Bob Bornstein ’60, David Bryan ’60, Gary Frank ’60, Billy Wagner ’61, Ed ‘Speedy’ Morris ’61, John Beake ’61, Mike Curry ’63, and Steve Libro ’65 were all enshrined as individuals.
