FLASHBack: Week 4: vs Mount Union, 1952
9/26/2020 10:00:00 AM | Football
KENT, OHIO- It is week four of our football FLASHBack series and this week we take a look at the Golden Flashes 26-7 victory over Mount Union on this day back in 1952.
The arrow was definitely trending upward on the Golden Flashes during the early 1950s. The Flashes were coming off winning seasons in 1950 and 1951. The 1952 campaign started strong as well with Kent State running out to a 20-0 week one lead in a win over Western Michigan.
Week two saw the Golden Flashes take the short trip to Alliance and take on a burgeoning Mount Union Purple Raider team. Kent State wasted little time taking the home crowd out of the game. An ill-timed fumble inside the Raiders' five-yard-line stopped the Flashes' first drive. The Flashes' defense set the tone early, forcing a punt that would set up a Bob Scott score. It would be the lone touchdown of the first half with the Flashes taking a 6-0 lead into the break.
The Kent State special teams would come through in the third quarter. With Mount Union pinned deep in their own territory, Mike Norcia blocked a Purple Raiders' punt and recovered it in the end zone to make it 13-0 Flashes. Halfback Don Pitts would then take over and put the game out of reach. Pitts would score a pair of second-half touchdowns, one on an 11-yard sweep and the second off a pass from team captain Paul Amodio. When Pitts was through, the Golden Flashes would be up 26-0.
That was more than enough for a stout Kent State defense. The Golden Flashes would give up a late garbage-time score from one-yard out, set up by a long 46-yard pass play, but that would be it. Kent State would go on to start the season 3-0 after a win over Case Western in week three. The 1952 squad would finish 5-4 on the year, part of a 10-year post World War II run that saw the Golden Flashes finish at .500 or better.
Next week, we will FLASHback to 1942 and take a look at the Kent State home contest against the Findlay Oilers.
