Editor’s note: This is part two of a two-part series highlighting local baseball players who live in the publishing area of Valley Community Newspapers. Read the first part of this story at www.valcomnews.com.

The Noah’s Bagels Baseball Gang, as described in part one of this series, meets weekly at Noah’s Bagels in Town and Country Village and features a variety of local baseball players of the past.

Below are the names and memories of some of these former players.

Walt Fitzpatrick: “I grew up in Napa and I went to California Concordia College (in Oakland), which is really a combination of high school and college. I played baseball there from 1949 to 1953. My mom (Elsie Fitzpatrick) moved (to Sacramento) in 1949 and I played here in the summers of 1949, 1950 and 1951 in the 100-pound league. That’s when I met most of these guys (in the group). I wanted to play for Southside Legion, but I didn’t go to Christian Brothers (High School). I played on the Bill Irwin team down in Oakland and the Sacramento Solons Rookies in 1952 through 1954. I played in the County League, Rural League and the Tri-County (League). I played a total of 10 years of semi-pro ball, and also in the Army.”

Joe Sheehan: “When I was a kid, I was born and raised down by McKinley Park and (the notable local baseball family) the McNamaras lived right around the corner from me, and we played on all the youth teams at McKinley Park. I played third base. I played (baseball) for Christian Brothers High School, Southside Legion, Sacramento (Junior) College, and after college, I played in the Army in 1955 and 1956. The best team I ever played on was the Sacramento (Junior) College team. We were state champions in 1952. I played on the team with some of these guys (in the group), including Cuno Barragan.”

Mike Lateano: “I was an Oak Park boy and I graduated from Sac High in June 1950 and I played football, basketball and baseball at Sac High. I was all-city in football, but baseball was actually my first choice as far as what I really liked. And when I went to Sacramento Junior College, I played football, basketball and baseball there. I was drafted during the Korean War and went overseas and played service ball. When I came out to Sacramento State, we won a championship there in about 1957 or 1958. I also played bush baseball, the county league and the Rural League, and played for the Solons Rookies and such.”

Gary Mason: “From 7 or 8 years old, most of us started playing the sand lot ball. If there was a vacant lot on the corner, we made a baseball diamond out of it. We used to play in Oak Park at McClatchy Field, Land Park, 21st and C (streets), McKinley. We played at all the places. I played until about 14 or 15 and then I got out of it and went into other things. Growing up, I really liked (Joe) Dimaggio and later on, (Mickey) Mantle. A good friend of mine was Harry Bright, who played for the (New York) Yankees, then came out here and managed the Solons.”

Tony Latino: “I grew up in Oak Park. I played on a lot of teams and I could play anywhere. I caught, played shortstop, I pitched. Whatever they needed, I did. I had an uncle who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers. After I played sports, I got into fast-pitch softball and coached for years. In the old times, things were tough, we were all together, we all knew each other. It was a lot of fun. I really like being a part of the (Noah’s Bagels) group. There are a lot of good stories, a lot of good memories.”

Jim Barudoni said that he briefly played baseball for the Sacramento Solons and enjoyed his greatest success in baseball as a member of the national champion University of Southern California team of 1958 and the following year’s team, both of which were led by the legendary coach, Rod Dedeaux.

Jim Westlake: “I grew up at 2331 P St. Probably my favorite player growing up was my cousin, Wally (Westake). He was in the majors (from 1947 to 1956). He spent most of his years with Pittsburgh and then he played in the 1954 World Series with the Cleveland Indians against the New York Giants. I played high school baseball (at Christian Brothers High School) and then I played on the junior college team in 1952 and 1953 and in 1953, we won the state championship and Nick Capachi (another member of the “baseball gang”) was on that team. And the year before that, I played with Cuno (Barragan of the “baseball gang”) for Sacramento Junior College. I played a lot of bush (league) baseball around town in all the leagues. I met a lot of great guys. I think that’s the real joy, the real benefit at any level in baseball is the guys who you meet. You form lifelong relationships.”

Rick Costello: “I pitched at Chico State in 1953 and I played softball in the service and we got in this tournament (in Alaska) and then I came out (of the Army) and played one more year at Chico State and after graduation, I went down to Southern California and played for the El Monte Indians. It was kind of like semi-pro. I had a tryout with the L.A. Angels of the Pacific Coast League. It was a three-day tryout and I made it all the way to the third day. In 1965, I came to Sacramento and I played in the Mexican league. We (were sponsored by) the C and C Club (at 326 15th St.).”

Bill Werry: “I grew up in Oak Park playing in the youth leagues and city league and I played (American) Legion ball for Post 61 for three years and I played high school ball at McClatchy High for three years. (While with Post 61), we played the state championship finals at Edmonds Field (at Riverside Boulevard and Broadway) against a team from Los Angeles called Crenshaw Post and they had some pretty good players, who went up to (play) Major League ball. Over the course of two seasons (at McClatchy High), we won 41 or 43 straight ball games. I made all-city as a catcher for three years and when I got out of high school, I signed with the Dodgers organization, which at that time was the Brooklyn Dodgers. It was a minor league contract and I played three years of minor league ball. My first year was in 1955 with Bakersfield in the California state League.”

Good times as a group

Fitzpatrick said that reliving baseball memories is an enjoyable experience for members of the group, which also includes Bob Alejo, Pete Campos and Ron Pyle.

“The common denominator is baseball and this goes back 60 years and we all kind of grew up together,” Fitzpatrick said. “It’s always a good time (meeting with the group).”

Agreeing with Fitzpatrick, Lateano added, “We have a lot in common – not just baseball – because we grew up in this town. We like to reminisce. Hopefully we can continue this (group) for several more years.”

lance@valcomnews.com

Editor’s note: This is part one of a two-part series highlighting local baseball players who live in the publishing area of Valley Community Newspapers.

For a group of mostly Sacramento natives who grew up playing baseball in this very rich baseball city and a few other places, a tradition was born about five years ago.

It was around this time that a group of seniors calling themselves the Noah’s Bagels Baseball Gang began meeting once a week at Noah’s Bagels in Town and Country Village.

Continuing their weekly gatherings since this time, this social group has grown to include 18 members.

The very first members of the group were Jim Westlake, Dick Alejo and the late Danny Mooradian, who are considered the founders of the group.

In speaking about the formation of the group, Dick said, “We just felt like every time we would go out and see some guy, we would say, ‘Hey, we meet here for coffee. Why don’t you join us.’ Pretty soon, here we are (as a large group).”

Joe Duarte, one of the earliest members to join the group, said that there are various ways that one can be eligible to become a member of the group.

“(To join the group, one should) know somebody, played ball with somebody (or) went to school with them and played ball with them,” Duarte said. “Some of these guys played minor league baseball. Only one – Cuno Barragan – played in the big leagues. He caught for the (Chicago) Cubs for (three) years. Almost all of them, except for two or three, played high school baseball. I never played high school baseball, because I went in the merchant Marines in 1944, when I was 15 years old.”

Duarte said that he eventually became a baker, but chuckled when asked about bagels, saying (back then, in the 1940s), I’d never heard of them.”

During one of the group’s recent gatherings, the following members of the group in attendance shared information about their connections to baseball.

Barragan: “I was born (on June 20, 1932) and raised in Sacramento. I graduated from Sacramento High School in January 1950, and I played football and baseball at Sacramento Junior College. I signed a contract with the Sacramento Solons in 1952, and I played my first year of professional baseball in 1953 for Idaho Falls and then came back and went in the service in 1954 and 1955. I did two years of active duty in the Navy. I went to spring training with the Solons in 1956, was optioned to Amarillo, Texas, Western League, and had a reasonably good year there, and played with the Sacramento Solons in 1957.”

Barragan added that after a brief retirement in 1958, he eventually was drafted from the Solons by the Chicago Cubs in 1961.

“My first at bat was (at Wrigley Field on) Sept. 1 against the San Francisco Giants and I hit a home run off of Dick LeMay on the first pitch. It was pretty exciting.”

Dick Alejo: “I was born in 1936. My professional career was not that big. I just went down to Mexico and played for a team, called Puebla, with Cuno Barragan and Sparky Anderson (who later played and managed in Major League Baseball). Besides that, I played for the American Legion Post 61, McClatchy High School and in the Winter League and at Sacramento Junior College. I did well, but I’m not going to (the National Baseball Hall of Fame in) Cooperstown!”

Nick Capachi: “I played on all the city leagues growing up – the 125-pound, 75-pound leagues – then I played for (American) Legion, high school, county leagues, the Placer-Nevada League and the KFBK all-star team,” said Capachi, who turned 77 last April. “I also played on the (Sacramento Junior) College team. We won the state championship in 1953. We beat Long Beach for the state championship right here at (William) Land Park. I also played in the Army, while I was stationed in the Presidio (in San Francisco).”

Augie Amorena: “I went to Sacramento High School and graduated in 1948. My parents (Amelia and Augustine Amorena) were immigrants from Spain. I started playing baseball when I was about 14. I played Summer League in the different weight divisions. I played (American) Legion, Sac JC and local Winter League, Spring League. We had a team in the Winter League, Julius Style Shop, and Joe Freitas was the manager. We were all young kids, just out of high school. The enthusiasm, the fun, we could hardly wait until Sunday to play ball. We did okay. We won a championship one year. And I played minor league baseball four years (including his time in the International League with the Edmonton Eskimos). I also played in the service for the Army team (in Hawaii).”

Mike Bakarich: “I was born on Mother’s Day, 1944, at Sacramento County Hospital. When we were younger, there was no Little League. You played in the 100-pound league, got weighed.  I grew up in West Sacramento and I had to take the Gibson bus and the streetcar to go to McClatchy Park to play baseball. They couldn’t remember my name, so they called me ‘the kid from across the river.’ I played with these guys since I was in the 7th grade, probably. I went to Grant Tech (College, which was located across the street from Grant High School) and I played all three sports there. Then I played baseball in the Winter League, in the National Division, played in the County League and the Rural League and I quit playing hard ball in 1960 or 1961, because I like to play fast-pitch softball. We were playing maybe 75 or 80 ball games a summer, and trying to play baseball and softball was kind of tough. With the fast-pitch softball, I’ve been to two world tournaments and two national tournaments. I played all over the United States. I’m in the fast-pitch hall of fame and the baseball hall of fame in Sacramento.”

But the road to reaching this notable anniversary has not always been easy for the center, which is dedicated to its mission of “bringing awareness of the beauty and diversity of the natural world to children, families and the community through education initiatives that foster appreciation, enjoyment and stewardship of the unique natural and cultural resources of the Sacramento region.”

The most difficult of these times occurred last July, when this award-winning environmental and cultural education center, which is part of a 77-acre nature preserve, was informed that it would be losing its county funding, because the county could no longer afford to operate the center.

But fortunately for the center, it has survived through the assistance of a non-profit organization, the American River Natural History Association, which obtained a temporary lease of the building from the county and presently operates the center.

Considering the challenges that the center faced last year, which included having its entire staff laid off, Betty Cooper, the center’s development director, said that it is especially gratifying for the center to celebrate its 35th anniversary.

“In spite of the ups and downs and the incredible odds that we were facing last year, here we are like a phoenix, kind of rising from the flames of the budget devastation as an independent, non-profit and we’re really proud of that,” Cooper said. “We’re going to be here to stay. It’s a very important asset to the community to have our nature center here and we’re going to make sure that it keeps going in perpetuity.”

Through the recent work of the aforementioned association, which began providing assistance to the center in a lesser but nonetheless very essential role in 1981, the center has achieved much success during its transition.

Cooper said that the progress that has been made at the center has been accomplished with the labor of a dedicated “skeleton crew” of eight staff members, who have worked for lower wages and no benefits. In contrast, at its greatest strength, the center maintained a staff of 20 workers.

She added that the current staff is working to overcome one of its biggest obstacles.

“We’re fighting a bit of a public relations problem,” Cooper said. “A lot of people think that the nature center has been closed, so the teachers haven’t been booking their programs as much as they have in the past. So, we’re working on that. We’re doing big outreaches to the schools. We’re going to be offering some two-for-one-type programs to get the word out that we are open and thriving and we’re working really hard to keep the nature center and its wonderful mission going for the community.”

In recognizing the center’s 35-year-history, it is important to focus in on the name of the center itself.

The name Effie Yeaw has a strong legacy in the Sacramento region, whether one thinks of the popular nature center which bears this name or whether one thinks of the late educator and naturalist Effie Yeaw, who was thought so highly of that her name was memorialized as part of the name of the nature center.

Born Effie Mae Cummings in Chico on May 15, 1900, Yeaw, who was the daughter of schoolteachers Galen and Ella Cummings, later moved to Wheatland, then to Lincoln and eventually to Sacramento, where she attended Sacramento High School – where she served as president of the Biological Honor Society – and Sacramento Junior College (today’s Sacramento City College).

After receiving a bachelor’s degree in social studies from the University of California, Berkeley in 1922, Yeaw taught at Harkness Grammar School and Sutter Junior High School in Sacramento before moving to Hawaii, where she continued to teach, while earning her master’s degree in social studies from the University of Hawaii in 1932.

Yeaw later returned to the Sacramento area and resumed her teaching, this time as an elementary school teacher in the Carmichael School District, which was later a part of the San Juan Unified School District.

Yeaw worked to instill a love for nature in her students through the Carmichael Conservation Center, which included birds, squirrels, raccoons and a fawn.

Although the center closed in 1955, this closure caused Yeaw to turn her attention to an area along the American River, known as Deterding Woods, where she began to lead her students on nature tours.

In a creative fashion, Yeaw presented tales of animals with human names and various facts about these creatures of the wild and their environment to children of various ages.

Carmichael resident Sylvia Bringas fondly remembers participating in one of Yeaw’s tours at Deterding Woods, which would later become the site of the Effie Yeaw Nature Center.

“Those of us who got to meet (Yeaw) were very lucky,” said Bringas, who attended the local Marvin Marshall, Deterding and Carmichael elementary schools at separate times during the 1950s. “She was a teacher at heart trying to impart to us an appreciation of nature and the animals around us. She would take time to explain about each animal and then have us touch each one. I think she really was looking to the future and the preservation of what was around her. You felt her excitement and it made you want to pay attention to what she had to say. As you know we can be very antsy at eight years old. It takes a special person to keep the interest of children. I feel honored to have known her.”

Louis Heinrich, Jr., a member of the Effie Yeaw Nature Center’s associate board of directors, said that he participated in Yeaw’s tours from 1960 to 1965.

“I really remember Effie Yeaw as just this really kind person,” said Heinrich, Jr., who attended Marvin Marshall School at 5309 Kenneth Ave. in Carmichael. “(Yeaw’s tours) sparked an interest in the natural world that is outside your back door. A lot of people go to national parks and state parks to experience nature, but it’s right here (in Carmichael). That’s one of the things that Effie Yeaw helped develop in me as a young person is just look around and you’ll see (nature) everywhere. We are surrounded by it.”

Louis Heinrich, Jr.’s father, Louis Heinrich, Sr., a former biology teacher at Grant Technical College and later at American River College, which opened in 1955, said that he organized the Deterding Woods tours with Yeaw and another local resident, Mike Weber.

The eldest Heinrich said that in addition to these tours, Yeaw had a dream of having a nature center located in Deterding Woods.

“Another reason why we had these field trips into the Deterding Woods was that (Yeaw) was hoping that the Carmichael School District would obtain some kind of a concession there that they could have it as a nature center,” Heinrich, Sr. said. “She was already planning a nature center in that area.”

Although Yeaw, who passed away at the age of 69 in 1970, never saw her dream of having a nature center at the Deterding Woods site become a reality, her legacy remains strong through both the name and mission of the Effie Yeaw Nature Center and the people in the community who she influenced through her love of nature.

For more information regarding the Effie Yeaw Nature Center and its activities, including possible 35th anniversary-related events, call (916) 489-4918 or visit www.sacnaturecenter.net.

lance@valcomnews.com

Among the many entertainment venues of the capital city, few can boast such a profound history like Land Park’s Hughes Stadium.

From football and baseball games and motor sport competitions to boxing, graduations and concerts, the stadium, which was originally known as Sacramento Stadium, has been home to many memorable local events.

Although the stadium is certainly not the major entertainment venue that it once was, as its formerly golden reputation and popularity has considerably faded in more recent years, its legacy undoubtedly continues to shine.

The story of the stadium dates back to the 1920s when efforts were being made for the selection of a site and the construction of the venue, which would become the only one of its kind in Superior California.

Prior to the decision to build the stadium on the campus of Sacramento Junior College – today’s Sacramento City College – an earlier proposal to construct the stadium in William Land Park had received considerable attention.

On April 2, 1926, The Sacramento Bee reported that efforts to build a stadium in the park had been abandoned.

With this decision, which was made upon the advice of several attorneys, including City Attorney Robert L. Shinn, City Manager H.C. Bottorff began to investigate alternative stadium sites.

 

Founding and funding

Following his eight-month search, Bottorff presented his findings to a group of local citizens and various officials at the annual Sacramento Service Club Forum banquet.

During the Dec. 7, 1926 gathering, Bottorff said that he felt that the new stadium, which he added should include a quarter-mile track and an accompanying, nearby parking lot, should be constructed on at least a 14-acre area on the junior college property.

Estimating that a 15,000-seat stadium could be built for $75,000, Bottorff added that it should be paid for by script, the municipal budget and the school board.

Bottorff’s plan was well received at the meeting, but perhaps the most important endorsement of the idea came from Mayor A.E. Goddard, who attended the banquet and pledged his support for Bottorff’s proposal.

Also attending the gathering was Robert G. Sproul, controller of the University of California, Berkeley, who described the importance of the stadium.

“A stadium is a social asset to a city and will certainly promote sport,” Sproul said. “With one, a city may give pageants, use it for graduation exercises and it will be invaluable for the schools of this vicinity.”

Additionally, Sproul suggested that the stadium be constructed as a “horseshoe-shaped arena” with sufficient space “to expand it without too much cost.”

 

Constriction and building

As the efforts to have the stadium constructed at the junior college site continued, the Sacramento Stadium Commission was formed and by April 27, 1927, the commission issued a statement in The Bee declaring that the commission trusted that there would be no delay in its plans to bring a stadium to the people of Sacramento.

A major event in the stadium’s history occurred in February 1928, as ground was broken for the new, 23,000-seat stadium, which would eventually be built for about $200,000.

Six months later, the stadium, which was designed by Dean and Dean and constructed by George D. Hudnutt, Inc., was nearly completed.

Final details of the stadium were finished as the venue was readied for its dedication and inaugural day’s events, which were to be held on Saturday, Oct. 13, 1928.

To add to the public’s enthusiasm of the new stadium, a “Pack the Stadium” on opening day campaign was launched.

So great was the drive to fill the stadium on this historic day that even local businesses participated in special efforts to encourage Sacramentans to support the campaign.

Retail sporting goods supplier, the Kimball-Upson Co., for instance, ran a large advertisement in The Sacramento Union, which included the following words: “To pack the stadium on its opening day should be a pleasureful duty of every resident of Sacramento city and valley who can possibly arrange to attend the formal opening – another victory marker on the highway of progress and a magnet that will draw to this city its full quota of the important athletic activities of the valley.”

 

The opening day

This memorable day in Sacramento history finally arrived as the Sacramento High School band marched onto the field at 12:40 p.m.

Twenty minutes later, the crowd roared as a gridiron contest between Sacramento and Modesto high schools began.

Following the game, a dedication ceremony commenced at about 2:35 p.m., as high school and college bands entered the field and began playing, followed by a drum corps performance and the entrance of a dedication party.

At about 2:50 p.m., the stadium was officially dedicated during a 20-minute ceremony, which included speeches by Dr. Lester R. Daniels, president of the stadium commission, California Gov. C.C. Young and Murray Hulbert, president of the Amateur Athletic Union and a director of the international Olympic Games.

The ceremony was also attended by the new stadium’s manager, Edward S. Loder, who formerly served as the manager of operations of Stanford Stadium and was in charge of large events at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

The historic day’s activities ended with a second football game, a contest between Sacramento and Santa Rosa junior colleges, thus concluding the earliest beginnings of the community’s long relationship with its cherished stadium.

 

The whole nine yards

Following its Oct. 13, 1928 inaugural day event, which featured a pair of football games and a dedication ceremony, the horseshoe-shaped Sacramento Stadium – later known as Hughes Stadium – continued to prove its value as a community asset, as it attracted many fans of sports, live music and other events.

The Sacramento High football team returned to the stadium on Oct. 27, 1928 for a game against Lodi High after opening the long-awaited city venue with a 33-0 victory against Modesto High.

The first Thanksgiving Day football game at the stadium was played between the gridiron squad of San Mateo Junior College and the Sacramento Junior College (today’s Sacramento City College) team, which beat the Santa Rosa Junior College team 24-6 in the second game of the stadium’s opening day games.

A soccer game was first played at the stadium in about January 1929 and in May 1929, the Far West Conference Track Meet was held at the stadium. This latter event was perhaps the first of what would be many such events held at the stadium, including the National Junior Collegiate Track and Field Meet on May 27, 1939 and the 1968 U.S. Track and Field Championships.

On May 25, 1929, about 10,000 Sacramento schoolchildren participated in a historical pageant with “historical episodes of early California” and “many beautiful floats depicting early events of national fame.”

By 1931, speedway motorcycle racing made its way to the stadium and remained extremely popular until the late 1940s.

Midget racing, featuring small racecars with high power-to-weight ratios, were also introduced to the stadium’s track in the 1930s.

Tom Motter, author of Sacramento: Dirt Capital of the West, said that the stadium served as a very historically important motorsports venue.

“Hughes Stadium’s prominence in the whole auto racing scheme of things came about probably because it was the only venue in the city that had the space to accommodate that kind of racing,” Motter said. “Hughes Stadium, being the largest venue for any kind of event, drew a lot of large crowds for motor sports events. And its importance in midget racing can’t be minimized, because it was the birthplace of midget auto racing (on June 4, 1933) and as such, it will always be at the heart of what we now know as modern-day midget auto racing.”

Motorsport events, including track roadster racing, continued at the stadium until about the mid-1960s.

Other events held at the stadium during its earlier years included boxing, a circus, a religious event, a rodeo and high school and college commencements.

During World War II, SCC’s campus served as a place to both educate and house soldiers as part of the Army Special Training Program and pilots were housed in tents on playing fields and in the stadium.

 

Field of champions

One of the most popular and well-attended events at the stadium was the annual Turkey Day Game, a Thanksgiving holiday football matchup between Sacramento and McClatchy high schools, which was first held in 1937.

The 1945 game between these two schools marked the first time the stadium had been filled to its capacity.

The rivalry, which later became known as the Bell Game and was relocated to Hornet Field at Sacramento State, was discontinued after the 1975 game.

The two teams reunited for a special reunion Bell Game at Hughes Stadium on Nov. 10, 2006. The game was won by the Sacramento High Dragons squad 52-20 before a crowd of 5,500 spectators.

Among the most notable parts of the stadium’s history occurred from 1974 to 1976, as the venue was converted to host the home games of the new version of the Sacramento Solons Triple-A, minor league baseball team.

As a baseball venue, which drew 17,318 spectators for its inaugural game, the stadium was famous for its short, left field line, which allowed many normally routine fly ball outs to instead become home runs.

Like many of the Solons teams of the past, their fan support was often more impressive than their won-loss record.

The Solons, for instance, led the nation in minor league baseball attendance during the 1974 season, while finishing in last place.

Nonetheless, the fans enjoyed the highlights of their team, as well as a June 5, 1975 Solons-Milwaukee Brewers exhibition game, which featured a long home run by the legendary slugger Hank Aaron, who was playing for the Brewers at the time.

Unfortunately for the 1970s Solons, part of their time in Sacramento was plagued by the possibility that the historic stadium where they played their home games might be torn down and replaced with a new stadium, which would not accommodate the team’s games.

Fortunately, for those who fought against the demolition of the old stadium, which was determined to not meet the Field Act earthquake safety standards for schools, a secondary plan was approved, as the stadium instead underwent a major renovation, beginning in 1977.

Nonetheless, the Solons were not victors with this alternative plan and were evicted and relocated to San Jose.

 

Football frenzy

The renovation of the stadium, which is the oldest existing structure on the SCC campus, was timely in the sense that the venue was readied for its rededication ceremony at the same time that it was celebrating its 50th anniversary.

Midway through the Oct. 28, 1978 football game between Sacramento City College and Fresno City College, the rededication was held with Dr. Robert Lynch, the emcee and a member of the Board of Trustees, Greg Van Dusen, the stadium’s manager, and Harry Devine, Jr., the project’s architect.

The 1970s also brought the extremely popular Pig Bowl between the local police and sheriff’s departments to Hughes Stadium.

The first of these fundraising games, which was complimented with entertainment by the Capital Freelancers and marching bands from Kennedy and Elk Grove high schools, was held on Jan. 11, 1975 and drew only the third sellout crowd in the stadium’s then 46-year history.

The Sacramento Police Department won the game 18-17 with a strong effort by the game’s most valuable player Mike Schuering, who rushed for 148 yards. Schuering was also the MVP of Pig Bowls II, III, VI and VII.

Although the teams enjoyed competing for bragging rights between the departments, it was always considered that there were truly no losers in these games, since the games were played for charities.

Today, the game is no longer played at Hughes Stadium and since 2003, has been known as Guns and Hoses – a matchup between the local law enforcement Hogs and the local fire service Dogs.

Predating the Pig Bowl is the popular Holy Bowl football game, which celebrated a special anniversary with the 40th edition of the game last September.

Played annually at Hughes Stadium, the Holy Bowl pairs the local Catholic educational institutions, Christian Brothers and Jesuit high schools.

Although Christian Brothers won last year’s game 21-6 before a crowd of about 16,000 spectators, Jesuit leads the rivalry with 23 wins to Christian Brothers’ 15 wins. The teams have also tied twice.

Many other football games have been played at the stadium, including Sacramento Capitals games of a long ago disbanded league, the Camellia Bowl college football games (1961-75 and 1980), San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders NFL exhibition games and many prep and college games.

In 1991, Hughes Stadium was also home to the Sacramento Surge of the now defunct World League of American Football. The team won the league’s World Bowl while playing at Hornet Stadium the following year, which was also the league’s final year with American teams.

 

A venue like no other

Also a rich part of the stadium’s history is its former existence as a musical concert venue.

The stadium once drew big name rock and country acts such as Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, the Eagles, Jefferson Airplane, Rod Stewart, Linda Ronstadt, Heart and Sammy Hagar.

An article in the Jan. 14, 1976 edition of Sacramento City College’s newspaper, The Pony Express, noted that many people around the community had made complaints regarding extreme noise level disturbances and that under the then-present conditions, “it would be very inadvisable to hold future concerts at Hughes.”

Concerts at the stadium continued for more than a decade following the publishing of this article, however, with the last of which, a Pink Floyd concert, being held on April 20, 1988.

The decline of events at the stadium also includes less prep games. The Sacramento Bee reported in 2008 that due to increasing per game costs, for the first time in the stadium’s history, no high school team used Hughes Stadium as its home field.

Although it is no longer used as frequently as in years past, Hughes Stadium stands tall as one of the city’s premier historic landmarks, where many memories were made that will surely not fade away anytime soon.

 

E-mail Lance Armstrong at lance@valcomnews.com.