1971 recap

Coach Bob Padgett lead the 1971 Mighty Panthers to a perfect 10-0 season and a state championship, the Blue & Gray’s ninth in school history.

The team featured six all-state players, two of whom have been inducted into the Reitz Football Hall of Fame.

While the complete individual statistics have been lost to time, we do know that Larry Johnson won the city scoring title with 102 points (16 touchdowns and three conversions). Additionally, the Courier or Press listed Johnson’s rushing yardage for nine of the 10 games, giving him at least 1,170 yards rushing for the season, likely putting him as one of the Top 25 rushers in school history.

As this was before the IHSAA initiated a postseason playoff, the Panthers won the state title via their selection as No. 1 team in each poll.

Final Associated Press Top 20 (11/17/1971)
Rk Team (W/L/T)                   Pts FPV
 1. Evansville Reitz (10-0)       240  16
 2. Bloomington (10-0)            191
 3. Elkhart (10-0)                190
    Indianapolis Chatard (9-1)    190
 5. South Bend St. Joseph's (8-2) 166
 6. Mishawaka Marian (9-1)        158
 7. Hammond Morton (9-1)          122
 8. Gary West (8-1)               104
 9. Vincennes Lincoln (9-1)       100
10. Indianapolis Washington (9-1)  85
11. Hammond (8-2)                  68
12. Fort Wayne Luers (9-0-1)       64
13. Evansville Harrison (8-2)      38
14. LaPorte (7-3)                  34
15. Indianapolis Shortridge (9-1)  27
16. South Bend Adams (5-2-1)       23
17. West Vigo (9-1)                18
18. Munster (9-1)                  16
    Southmont (10-0)               16
20. Terre Haute Schulte (8-1)      15

Final UPI Top 10 (11/17/1971)
Rk Team (W/L/T)                   Pts FPV
 1. Evansville Reitz (10-0)       104  7
 2. Bloomington (10-0)            100  3
 3. Elkhart (10-0)                 89  1
 4. Indianapolis Chatard (9-1)     67
 5. Hammond Morton (9-1)           47
 6. Mishawaka Marian (9-1)         41
 7. Indianapolis Washington (9-1)  37
 8. Hammond (8-2)                  26.5
 9. South Bend St. Joseph's (8-2)  22
10. Fort Wayne Luers (9-0-1)       16