Kearny High became the second school (after Grossmont in 1971-72) in the 14-season history of the San Diego Section to win football and basketball championships in the same school year.
The Komets took the Grossmont accomplishment a giant step further. They were undefeated in both sports, football, 12-0-1, basketball, 32-0.
No team has come close since.
Tying it together was Mark Hoaglin, a 6-foot, 8-inch, 230-pound tight end in football and a husky presence in basketball, the only Birt Slater-coached gridder to also be a regular starter for hoops coach Wayne Colborne.
How the Komets won 32 straight:
1—Kearny 74, Oceanside 46. Poway transfer Rick Taylor, the son of Komets baseball coach Jack Taylor, scored 17 points. The balanced Komets also received 19 from Alan Rhodes, 13 from Donald Page, and 10 from Greg Ashbaugh.
2—Page, with 20, and Taylor, with 18, were joined by seven others who scored in a 74-47 victory over a second Avocado League foe, Vista.
3—The Komets continued their run through the Avocado League, racing to a 40-14 halftime lead and easing to a 74-38 win over Orange Glen.
4—Hoaglin still was involved in football (he caught a pass for 25 yards and punted 4 times for 36 yards in Kearny’s 34-0 playoff victory over Sweetwater, reversing a 6-6 tie in the first game) and Grossmont, which would mount a championship bid in the Grossmont League, did not take advantage, never out of it but never really in it as Kearny moved on, 69-57.
5—Perennially tough Helix couldn’t penetrate a tough defense, which guided the Komets to a 53-28 victory.
6—Poway, which would win 21 games, tested the Komets’ resolve, leading, 37-35, into the fourth quarter before the Linda Vistans put together a 20-8 final eight minutes to win a 27th annual Kiwanis Tournament opening game, 55-44.
7—Hoaglin, after celebrating the football championship, made his debut and matched Donald Page’s 19 points in a 73-45 win over San Dieguito.
8—The Komets flexed some muscle against Madison, their former Western League antagonist, scoring the first 16 points and cruising, 74-61.
9—Morse was 8-1, fresh from a 69-52 win over Helix, but the Tigers were run off the floor, 82-54, and trailed by 36 points at the end of three quarters. Hoaglin scored 18 and three other starters, Alan Rhodes, Rick Taylor, and Donald Page scored at least 13.
10—Matchup of the year brought two teams together with a combined 18-0 record for the Kiwanis Tournament Unlimited Division title. Patrick Henry was defending San Diego Section champion and had won 25 in a row, including 64-53 over Kearny in the 1972-73 championship game.
The Patriots socked the Komets with a 14-0 run that erased a 39-30 Kearny advantage and put Henry in front, 44-39, with four minutes left in the game.
Staggered, Kearny regrouped, taking back the lead and separating with two free throws by reserve Phil Thompson with 55 seconds left in 52-48 barnburner.
The last of the County’s unbeaten teams, the Komets were rewarded with a week off before the New Year. They led the CIF, averaging 68 points on offense and holding opponents to 46.8.
11—January began with Page scoring 17, Rhodes 16, and Hoaglin 15 in a 74-52 victory over St. Augustine in the University Tournament.
12—Santana came with a deliberate offense, the polite term for a semi stall. Kearny eased, 45-29.
13—Alan Rhodes’ 18, Rick Taylor’s 16, Donald Page’s 12, and Mark Hoaglin’s 11 were enough keep Hoover at a distance, 64-56.
14—A Kiwanis Tournament championship game encore, this time the Komets administering the big punch. Trailing, 29-26 at halftime, Kearny whacked Patrick Henry with a 10-0 blitz at the start of the third quarter and they pulled away to lead, 43-32, before going into a slowdown.
Henry never got closer than 4 points in the last period, although they scored with 13 seconds left to make the final 49-47.
15—Coach Wayne Colborne’s club was living dangerously. They opened Western League play with a 63-60, overtime victory at 13-3 San Diego, which moved to the West this season after 13 years in the Eastern loop.
Kearny trailed, 38-29, in the third quarter before jumping in front, 41-40. They trailed again, 48-47, with 4:34 left but tied the Cavers, 56-56, at the end of regulation. Rick Taylor’s seven free throws during the extra session pulled out the win.
Taylor was 9×10 from the charity stripe and Kearny shot 49 per cent from the field. Alan Rhodes led the second-half comeback and had 23 points.
16—Nine players, led by Taylor’s 18, scored in a 75-39 rout of Madison.
17—Morse didn’t give up without a struggle, staying close almost all the way before bowing, 66-58, as Taylor scored 21 and Page 20.
18—It wasn’t getting easier. Kearny finished with a 21-8 fourth quarter to shake the pesky University Dons, 51-38. Uni held the Komets to four points in the third quarter and defended strongly, forcing a number of off-balance shots.
19—Kearny shot 56 per cent from the floor, Point Loma 28 per cent. The Pointers fell, 60-32. Page led with 16 and backup Ed Simpson had 14.
20—Hoaglin (23), Page (22), and Taylor (22) combined for 67 points and Clairemont was left behind, 86-64.
Kearny might have approached the school record of 97, set in 1968-69 versus Granite Hills, but the Komets just maintained in a 19-19 fourth quarter as reserves got some minutes.
21—A 25-6 first quarter was all that was needed in an 85-47 romp over St. Augustine.
22—Mark Hoaglin scored 21 points and pulled down 13 rebounds, the Komets’ shot 55 per cent from the floor, and dominated the rematch with San Diego, 80-55, before a capacity crowd of 1,000 in the Komets’ gym. Kearny’s 1-3-1 zone defense swarmed the Cavers, who shot 38 per cent from the field.
“We’re coming on,” said Colborne.
San Diego coach Gary Todd: “To fast break you have to get some defensive rebounds. There weren’t any rebounds. Everything they shot was going in. Then, when we came down against their zone, we couldn’t move fast enough to get good shots.”
Kearny made 28 free throws to the Cavers’ four.
23—67-57, Hoover. The Cardinals were behind by four points with 1:30 left in the game and had the ball, having run off eight points in a row to close to 60-56. A 16-6 run had brought the Cardinals back after they lagged, 54-40, after three quarters.
Rick Taylor scored 14 points, including six of the last seven; Donald Page had 17 and Alan Rhodes 21.
24—72-60 over Madison, which scored the last 11 points against reserves. The Warhawks officially stepped down from the Western League throne, on which they sat for seven straight seasons.
25—The third game, matching No. 1 and No. 2, brought no charm for Henry. Mark Fitzner’s late, 20-foot looper forced an overtime, but the Komets prevailed, 59-55. Donald Page’s three-point play got separation for Kearny
26—Taylor’s 20, Hoaglin’s 18, and Page’s 16 were the difference in an 81-62 victory over University. The Dons wilted under a 22-10, third quarter run.
27—77-45, Point Loma. Ten players scored for Kearny, which was assessed only 5 personal fouls in 32 minutes. The Pointers were only slightly more aggressive, being whistled for 11 infractions.
28—A perfect, 10-0 Western League season concluded with a 58-45 victory against Clairemont. The Linda Vistans led, 48-25, after three.
Kearny became the fifth team in County history to end the regular season undefeated, joining Hoover (25-0) in 1959-60, La Jolla (26-0), 1963-64, Mount Miguel (28-0), 1967-68, and Helix (29-0), 1969-70.
29—Chula Vista (16-14) trailed, 40-35, at halftime of the first-round playoff. The Spartans then affected a stall strategy for the first four minutes of the third quarter. The stall led to a turnover, which Kearny turned into an 8-0 spurt, and the Komets put away the Spartans, 69-45.
Chula Vista took three shots in the third quarter and was blanked, 6-0, for the period. Rick Taylor led the winners with 29 points.
30—Shooting 58 per cent from the field to Vista’s 37 per cent, the result was a 76-47 victory over the Panthers (17-11). The Big Four, Hoaglin (17), Rhodes (16), Taylor (14), and Page (12) were in sync.
31—One more time and Happy Trails, Patrick Henry.
It is rare to beat the same opponent 4 times in one season, especially one with a 25-8 record, but Kearny again measured the Patriots, 73-57, in the playoff semifinal before 3,630 at the Sports Arena, Taylor had 24 points and Page 22.
32—Beating the same opponent three times in a season isn’t easy either. Hoover, which finished 24-8, had more wins than any Cardinals team since the 24-3 club of 1960-61.
After defeating Hoover by 8 and 10 points in previous meetings, Kearny pulled away before 5,143 persons in the Sports Arena to a 71-50, championship game victory.
“They were much more aggressive on defense than when we played them before,” Cardinals coach Hal Mitrovich said to Will Watson of The San Diego Union.
“We had hoped to stay close…and then go to the press in the second half and make a run at them, but they just wouldn’t let us do it.”
Kearny led, 39-24, at the half.
Colborne didn’t play a we-were-disrespected card, but he may have been thinking along those lines. “I don’t know if we made believers of people or not,” he said in answer to a question. “It seemed that all we heard most of the season was that somebody could beat us.”
Colborne wouldn’t be drawn into any what-ifs. His team had made its statement. The Komets were balanced and consistent to the end. They led the County with a 68.1 average on offense and their 49-point defense average was third.
I like say “a special thank you too Mr Lincoln Hayes a good friend and better man” Those might know him as Linc Kearnys equipment manager who contributed to the success of those CIF Championship (RIP)
Kearny emerged when Birt Slater arrived there in 1959 and became a force in all sports. It was a great run and a great time to be a Komet. Thanks for writing, Kenny.
CIF 73 Champions Kearny High School football team is
a special Team.I was proud too wear the Marron and White Stripes!!Outstanding Players.Some of us played together since POP Warner. Great coaching staff.Walking from Kearny to Mesa ! Great community support! Friday nights lights! Shout out too Montgomery Jr high and Taft Jr High amazing athletes that help us on a amazing run!! Shout out too the student body and the cheerleaders! I believe the track team won CIF in the same year.who can not forget that awesome 32-0 Kearny basketball team!! What a dynasty Kearny Komets.God bless everyone involved to make this reunion possible!! GO Komets!!
On Friday September 22, 2023, at the homecoming game, Kearny will be honoring the 50th anniversary of the CIF championship team of 1973. That team is still rated #4 all time in SDCIF history. Former players attending will be introduced at halftime. They include: Vince Bolden, John Carter, Laymon Davis, Fred Ellis, Mark Hoaglin, Mike Longtin, Phil Martinez, Bill Miles, Jon Perpich, Rick Simmons, Ken Johnson, Frank Klemaske, Don Norcross and Lucious Smith. A legendary team and a legendary senior year as Ellis and Hoaglin also led Kearny’s basketball team to an undefeated CIF championship as well. The only school in history to accomplish undefeated championship teams in the same year.
I spoke with Norkie this morning. He is quite proud of his contribution to Birt’s great team. Congratulations also to you. Sad that coach Slater won’t be there.
I was on the 19 73-74 football team that won the CIF. We had a great run with great players.
Thanks for writing, Craig. It was a great era for the Komets.
I was honored then to play with such great young men . We accomplished perfection! More honored to know and love all my 32-0 team mates as men and fathers . Truly a DREAM TEAM! Go Komets.
Nice comment, Phillip. Thanks for writing.
Rick,
I still have the program from round one CIF playoffs ’74 CV vs Komets. Let me know if you want me to email it to you. Also have ’71-’73 Kiwanis tournament programs
Thx,
Mel
I could use them. Thank you. Rick Smith, 10423 Avenida Magnific, San Diego, CA 92131.
Philip,
I was on the Chula Vista Spartan team. You guys showed us the door in round one. Still was fun times, good experience. Our Coach from that era Mike Collins just passed away in Jan. Take Care. Mel
Mel, I remember that game. I sprained my ankle the previous week and had it taped. You had a husky guy at center. I don’t remember his name. He was pretty mobile for a big guy. You guys were competitive. Sorry to hear about Mike Collins. May he rest in peace. Donald Page from our Kearny team passed away this week.
Mike Collins was a tight end on Don Coryell’s 1964 Aztecs team. He won almost 500 games as a basketball coach at Chula Vista High, his alma mater. Mike died from Lewy Body Disease. Terrible infliction.
I’m sorry to hear that, Rick. I had a friend who died of the same disease. It was a horrible way to go.
I’m not sure if Mike was the last, but he was as you described, big, rangy guy.
From what I heard Coach Collins was that last football player to go both ways for Coach Coryell at SDSU. He was a stud.
Thx
Mel
Mark,
Man sorry to hear about Donald he was heck of a baller. Lot of skills. RIP Donald. Gone too soon. The husky guy on our team is my best friend for over 50 years. Alan Disharoon. He had lot of D one football offers UCLA, I think Stanford where you ended up, but he ended up playing couple years of basketball at Southwestern College instead. We talk every couple weeks. Great guy. We were only behind at the half to you guys by 5 points. Then the four corners stall. That didn’t work out very well. Taylor pick our pocket , couple quick buckets, Spartans were toast.
Thx
Mel
Thanks, Mel. Yes, I remember Alan. Great competitor. Please give him my best when you speak to him. Donald Page was also a great competitor and will be missed. Thanks for the memories. Those were some fun times in my life…
I played at El Capitan that season and we played the Komets in Summer League at Muni Gym. I know that there have been a lot of great teams in San Diego history but I would say that this team was one of the deepest squads ever. They were big, strong, athletic and talented. It was a wonderful time to be playing basketball in our county.
I played at Chula Vista that season and also played the Komets in Summer League at Balboa Muni gym. We were also victim #1 in the first round of CIF playoffs. Unbelievable basketball team! Like you pointed out Don they were strong, deep in size & talent, but also well coached, and to a man had a very high basketball IQ.
I remember Mark walking into muni gym before our summer league defeat and thinking how much trouble we were going to be in. We could not match up. Allan Rhodes was super valuable role player with all that talent. He was like a Kirk Rambis type of player, doing his part to make the machine work. Thanks Mark & Don, painful loses for the Spartans, but good memories of a great time.
Mel
Fun times. Hard to believe how much time has passed since then. Summer League at Muni Gym was always a great experience.
People talk about the great individual players in San Diego prep history. We rarely hear about the great teams. I don’t believe people appreciate what we accomplished in winning CIF in football and basketball that one year. Thanks for the memories and the recognition.
You guys had a great run, Mark. Thanks for writing and I’ll take a couple mments to think of your dad, the stadium manager. John Hoaglin was a good man and a pleasure to work with.
Thanks, Rick. I appreciate you remembering my dad. He was my biggest fan in addition to being a great dad. I remember helping him cover the Stadium baseball field late at night a few times. He loved that job.
I had the honor of being a cheerleader for the Komets 1973-1974 school year. The athletes were amazing on and off the field and court. Many cherished memories back then!
You were part of a great era at Kearny, Ms. Harris. No sad tears when singing the alma mater after games. Thank you for writing.
Great work, Rick, as always. I would’ve chimed in sooner but for the fact that I was vacationing in Australia for the past 7 days.
Trust you’re over the jet lag from Down Under, Matt, and thanks for writing. I’ll have a sidebar story to the 1973-74 season later today or tomorrow.
Hi, who is Allan Rhodes? don’t you mean Alan Trammel (yes of Detroit Tigers).
Allan (should have been one l in his first name) was a vital contributor to that 32-0 season. Alan Trammell told me about a year ago that he was on JV that season, as a sophomore, and was called up to the varsity late in the season but didn’t play much. Thanks for writing and I apologize for not getting back to you sooner.
Tram was a JV player. Heck Jim Jollett transferred to Grossmont, Jerry Williams transferred to Madison, several other did as well. We were deep.
It was the era of the Komets. Thanks for writing, Steve.
Alan Rhodes, my friend since elementary school, was a terrific all-around athlete and contributed mightily to our 1973 CIF Championship Season. Had he not suffered a broken leg our sophomore year he would have been on the championship football team as well.