This is the second article in the series of 11, honoring the state championships won by various Albert Lea High School teams. This is the story of the 1970 Albert Lea High School football state championship team. It was two years before the high school league started the playoff tournament we have today. At that time there were two polls, the St. Paul Pioneer Press, WCCO radio poll and the Minneapolis Star Tribune poll.

There was an enthusiasm and expectation of this team because the past few years Albert Lea football set such a high standard for itself, having won the state title in 1967 and 1968.

The ‘70 team’s tri-captains were Mike Pappas, Dave Bonnerup, and Kirk Nolander-Foley.

This team really put Albert Lea back on the winning track, going undefeated, 9-0, and setting a number of school and conference records.

One of the interesting facts from this season was the first televised high school game between second-ranked Austin and fourth-ranked Albert Lea. The season before Austin stopped Albert Lea’s 27-game winning streak so it was time for payback.

KAAL-TV Austin knew it would be a sellout and taped the game and replayed it at 10 p.m. that evening.

Two and a half hours before the game Austin’s Westcott Field was filled with fans. The police had to make an opening in the crowd for the Albert Lea team bus to get to the stadium. As a player it was electrifying.

The game lived up to the excitement, but Albert Lea beat Austin 20-0 and gained the top ranking in the state. That was the only real test for the team that year. A number of the games the first team was pulled because of lopsided scores at halftime.

Every game but one was won by 20 points or more and this was a time when there was only one Mankato high school and Rochester split into two in 1967.

The team set a Big Nine Conference scoring record of 326 points and only allowing the opposition 48 points for the entire season.

Head coach Jim Gustafson and his assistant coach Paul Erhardt really did an excellent job of preparing the team that year. At the season-ending banquet the “team” was named most valuable player. Mike Pappas set a school rushing record of 1,129 yards. Dave Bonnerup, Kirk Nolander-Foley, Mike Pappas, Craig Dahl, Mark Hultgren and Henry Komoszewski made the Big Nine all-conference team. Dahl and Pappas were named to the Minneapolis Tribune all-state team. Seventeen of the starters went on to play college football, with five of them receiving scholarships. It was truly an exciting time to be a part of the Albert Lea football program.

Albert Lea had one more undefeated season the following year. It would be great to get some of that feeling back and with the establishment of the Albert Lea High School Athletic Hall of Fame and through it’s fundraising we hope to reduce the participation fees for student athletes and encourage more boys and girls to get involved in the ALHS athletic program. It is the last time for most to compete in organized sports at a high level, unless you are lucky enough to compete in college. You do build friendships for a lifetime and learn a lot about competing in life.

The Hall of Fame will be inducting 10 athletes and the 11 state championship teams at a banquet July 9 at Wedgewood Cove Golf Club. Tickets will be $35 and a silent auction with a number of sports memorabilia and tickets will be offered.

Former Tigers standout Vinny Cerrato will be the guest speaker, along with the induction of 10 individuals and the 11 teams.

It will be a great evening.

The following day there will be a golf outing at Wedgewood Cove Golf Club, so get your teams together and dust off your glory years stories and join us with your foursome. Banquet and golf registrations must be in by June 25.