Canton CC coaching succession, W-L-T records, and win % and other facts:
Del Halpin, 1945-1947, 26 games coached, 5 wins, 20 losses, 1 tie (.212). Halpin was a Massillon and Miami U. teammate of Paul Brown and kicked a FG that stood as a Massillon record for 50 years. Canton CC opted to split the head football and basketball coaching duties in 1948, and Halpin opted for the basketball job which he held into the mid-1950s. Halpin would later coach and teach at Northwest HS for many years. Halpin served in the Army during WWII.
Vincent "Rocky" Snyder, 1948-1951, 33 games coached, 13 wins, 19 losses, 1 tie (.409). Snyder played at Massillon and Purdue. He also coached at Portsmouth and Struthers. He resigned 5 games into the 1951 season citing "too many hands in the pot." He went on to have a career in education, coached junior high football in Massillon, eventually served on Massillon City Council, and once ran for mayor. Snyder served in the Navy during WWII.
Anthony "Jiggs" Fabiano, 1951-1954, 35 games coached, 20 wins, 13 losses, 2 ties (.600). Fabiano resigned following the 1954 season due to a lack of support. He also coached baseball at Canton CC. Fabiano was coached by Woody Hayes at New Philadelphia HS and played college baseball at Memphis State. Fabiano took a job with an insurance company but eventually served as Canton's Safety Service Director. It is likely but unknown if Fabiano served in WWII.
Les Zorge, 1955-1956, 18 games coached, 7 wins, 11 losses (.389). Zorge was hired after Cleveland Cathedral Latin head coach Dan Mormile backed out of a handshake agreement to become the head coach. He graduated from Cleveland East HS, and it took him 6 years to graduate from KSU because he was pitching in the minor leagues for the White Sox organization while attending college. Because of his pro career, he was ineligible to play collegiately. Zorge previously coached at Norwalk St. Paul and Lorain St. Mary. He utilized the single wing offense while all previous coaches preferred the "T." He founded the wrestling program in 1956 but immediately got on everyone's bad side when he banned onlookers from attending his football practices (a la Norman Dale in Hoosiers). He left Canton CC after 2 years to take a more lucrative coaching job at Westfield HS in New Jersey. Zorge served in the Navy during WWII.
John McVay, 1957-1961, 50 games coached, 41 wins, 7 losses, 2 ties (.840). McVay was another Massillon and Miami U. graduate. Prior to Canton CC, he served on the staff at Lancaster HS and was head coach at Franklin HS. McVay reverted to the "T" formation. He put the program on the map with an 8-0 upset of previously #1 ranked Warren Harding on Oct. 17, 1958. He left Canton CC to join the staff at Michigan State. He then became head coach at Dayton for 10 years and then to the WFL where he coached the Toronto Northmen/Memphis Southmen (franchise moved before ever playing a game in Toronto). He then coached w/ the NY Giants before joining the 49ers' front office where he was named NFL Executive of the year in 1989. Canton CC presents an award each year in his name to honor the most outstanding athlete(s) in the senior class. McVay is also indirectly responsible for the creation of the "victory formation." It was on his watch as interim HC of the Giants, when the Giant QB and RB fumbled an exchange while trying to run out the clock that was returned for a TD by Eagles CB and former Jets, Chiefs, and current Arizona State HC Herman Edwards.
Joe Eaglowski, 1962-1964, 30 games coached, 14 wins, 10 losses, 6 ties (.567). Eaglowski was a Massillon grad and played for Chuck Mather at Kansas before ultimately graduating from Heidelberg. He served as a Heidelberg assistant before joining the staff at Canton CC. As a former lineman, he abandoned the "T" in favor of a more power running game. He left Canton CC to rejoin McVay at Dayton and followed him to the WFL. He returned to Dayton to serve as manager of Hara Arena and was inducted into Dayton's athletic HoF in 1996.
Rey Dempsey, 1965-1970, 60 games coached, 33 wins, 25 losses, 2 ties (.567). Dempsey graduated from Pitcairn HS (PA) and Geneva College. He served as head coach at East Palestine HS prior to being hired at Canton CC. Dempsey preferred the "T," and his 1970 team went 8-2 but only gave up 13 points, 502 rushing yards and a 20% pass completion rate (18 out of 90) for the entire season! In rapid succession, he coached O-line at BGSU, head coach at YSU, and special teams with the Detroit Lions. He then became head coach at Southern Illinois and won the DI-AA national title in 1983 and was inducted into the Salukis' athletic HoF in 1996. He was hired as head coach at Memphis State but only lasted 2 years due to losses and player accusations related to his religious fervor. Dempsey spent 1991-2002 as Senior Pastor of Christ the King Church in Powell. Beginning in 2000, Dempsey worked alongside former college coach and ESPN college football color analyst Mike Gottfried in the Team Focus program which is a leadership camp for fatherless boys. Dempsey serves as the camp pastor and director of spiritual development.
Joel Spiker, 1971-1972, 20 games coached, 17 wins, 3 losses (.850). Spiker graduated from Dover St. Joseph HS (part of present-day Tusky CC HS) and Ohio Northern U. Spiker ran the "T" with a few revisions. Spiker also served as head golf coach from 1965 to 1970 and led the golfers to a district championship in 1968. He coined the name of the Hall of Fame Conference which Canton CC competed in alongside Canton Lincoln, Canton Lehman, Canton Timken, and St. Thomas Aquinas from 1972-1975. The conference folded in 1976 following the Canton City School District’s decision to close Lincoln and Lehman. Spiker left CCHS following the 1972 season to accept a position on Dempsey’s staff at YSU. In the summer of 1974, Spiker accepted a position as the AD at the soon-to-be-opening Lely HS near Naples, Florida. Spiker rejoined Dempsey in 1976 as RB coach at Southern Illinois University. After 1 season with the Salukis, Spiker returned to the Naples area.
Lowell Klinefelter, 1973-2013, 435 games coached, 257 wins, 172 losses, 6 ties (.598). Klinefelter graduated from Claridon HS (part of present day Caledonia River Valley HS) and Ohio St. Klinefelter served Canton CC for 48 years as a math and chemistry teacher as well as a coach and AD. In his 41 seasons at the helm, Klinefelter's teams compiled 11 playoff appearances, 3 regional championships, and 2 state championships. When he had superb talent, he won big. When he had less talent, he still fielded competitive teams that would challenge the toughest opponents. He has won more games than any other coach in Stark County HS football history, but his wife would be the first person to remind us that he has also lost more games than any other coach in Stark County HS football history. Klinefelter was inducted into the OHSFCA Hall of Fame in 2013. While many revel in his gridiron successes, Klinefelter arguably takes greater pride in his students' accomplishments within the classroom. Many don't know that Klinefelter was head basketball coach prior to being named AD and head football coach.
Jeff Lindesmith, 2014-present, 74 games coached, 49 wins, 25 losses (.662). Lindesmith is a graduate of Canton Timken HS and Wilmington College. Lindesmith began his career at Canton CC as an industrial arts teacher before assuming his role as a longtime guidance counselor at the school. Lindesmith served as an assistant on Klinefelter’s staff for 28 seasons. Additionally, Lindesmith had a highly successful tenure as Doug Miller’s assistant baseball coach which produced 2 state championships. Lindesmith is a past winner of the award given to the state’s top HS assistant baseball coach. In 2014, Lindesmith led Canton CC to its first ever undefeated regular season, first ever AP Poll championship, and a Division V state runner-up finish in the playoffs. He was also named 2014 Division V AP Coach of the Year. He followed up his highly successful rookie campaign with another Division V state runner-up finish in 2015 and the Division V state championship in 2016.