With pro golfer Hale Irwin and Gary Glick, the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft in 1956, Jerry Callahan is historically well connected in football.
His connection reaches back 60 years, but as he looks back from his home in Yuma, Callahan’s name-droppings can trace a big part of the state’s sports history.
When he goes back to his playing days as quarterback at Fort Collins High School in the late 1940s, he talks of coach Ray French. The Lambkins in those days were a powerhouse, ruling in the glory days of the Northern Conference.
Callahan’s senior football season in 1950 was special. He directed Fort Collins to one of its five state championships from 1941-53 and that team of 57 years ago still has a unique place in the school’s history.
“That was the last untied and unbeaten football team in Fort Collins,” Callahan said. “We lost in the state championship game (27-6) to Denver East in 1949 and came back to beat Denver East in 1950 (14-6) for the title.”
When Callahan played at Fort Collins there weren’t many top division high schools in the state. The Northern Conference presented a rugged run through Englewood, Boulder, Longmont, Loveland, Fort Collins, Greeley, Sterling and Fort Morgan, and the team that survived was ready to take on the rest of the state.
Fort Collins also won consecutive state titles from 1952-53. But the 1950 team with Callahan, Bill Tavner, Bob Weber and Rolland Moore was the last one to do it undefeated. French compiled one of the top records among Colorado’s high school coaches along with Pat Panek of Denver East. While the Northern Conference was in its heyday, French’s Fort Collins team had monumental battles with Longmont and coach Gil Everly.
It probably was natural for Callahan to move from Fort Collins High School to Colorado A&M a few blocks away.
“I remembered in my high school days of following the football over there,” Callahan said. “Everyone knew about Fum McGraw, Jack Christiansen and coach Bob Davis.”
Callahan would play for Davis and later work for McGraw in CSU’s athletic department when McGraw became athletic director.
“Jim David was a senior my freshman year,” Callahan said. “McGraw, Christiansen and David went on to outstanding careers in the NFL.”
After playing in 1951 and 1952, Callahan’s college career was interrupted for two years by military duty. He came back in 1955, and Glick was among his teammates.
As with his high school playing days, Callahan’s days at Colorado A&M also were a different time. The Rams and the University of Denver were traditional Thanksgiving Day rivals, sometimes playing at the old DU Stadium that has disappeared under the wrecking ball. One of Callahan’s prized college football memories is a 10-0 victory over Colorado in 1955.
“We weren’t a match for them in most seasons, but we beat them that year,” Callahan said.
Callahan went to Yuma in 1958 to coach the school’s football team. The Indians won state championships in 1960 and 1962, beating Nucla and storied halfback Bill Symons in 1960 and Paonia in 1962.
In 1963, Callahan coached the North team in the annual All-State Game against the South. His quarterbacks were Bernie McCall of Yuma and Irwin of Boulder. The North won by a touchdown.
Callahan left coaching for a time between 1975-80, but returned to Yuma from 1982-87.
After retiring, he stayed close to the football program as a radio analyst covering the games.
“I’ve stayed in Yuma,” Callahan said. “I have some horses and I do some different stuff to keep busy. I like it here. There only are three stoplights in town.”
Jerry Callahan bio
Born: Oct. 10, 1933, Akron
High school: Fort Collins, 1948-51
College: Colorado A&M 1951-52, 1955-57
Coaching stops: Yuma, Sterling
Awards: Honored by former players, Sept. 13, 2007
Irv Moss: 303 954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
