BE's 1967 football team honors coaching legend Jack Cantey

The 1967 Bishop England football team reunited last Saturday to celebrate a memorable season and to honor a great man who just might personify what Bishop England High School is all about.

The team gathered during a Bishops’ basketball game and was recognized for that memorable season that included a 10-0 regular season record and a Lower State championship game against St. Andrews that attracted as many as 21,000-22,000 fans at Johnson Hagood Stadium.

The players honored the coach of the team, Jack Cantey, with a scholarship in his name. The players presented a check for more than $10,000 to Cantey’s son, John, who is the current coach of the Bishops.

“It was awesome,” the younger Cantey said of the endowment. “Dad was not able to be there physically because of his health, but he was really excited to hear about it. This scholarship will go to students who attend Bishop England, and that’s what makes it special. Dad’s whole life was about Catholic education.”

Some of the players who attended the reunion included Raymond Nelson, who eventually coached with Jack Cantey and Billy Davey, who years later would be the Cantey’s next door neighbor.

Another member of the team was Tom McQueeney, who was a sophomore that season.

“The thing I remember most about Coach Cantey was that, as a coach, he had your best interest at heart,” McQueeney said. “There was no ego involved on his part. He just wanted you to be the best student and football player.”

Cantey was in his fourth year at the school in 1967, and McQueeney said nothing special was expected that autumn, but it turned out to be magical.

The team proved its mettle before the first game was even played.

“Our first game was at Myrtle Beach,” McQueeney recalled. “Our bus was a clankety old thing. We stopped in Georgetown to get gas and we had to get out and push it to get it started.”

The trip to the Grand Strand was worth it as the Bishops claimed a 13-6 victory. It was only the beginning as the Bishops continued to win. They recorded six shutouts that season and the defense was known as “The Dirty Dozen,” a spin on a World War II movie that was released in 1967.

The season culminated in the Lower State championship against St. Andrews. The game was played at Johnson Hagood Stadium and the attendance was announced at more than 14,000 fans. But McQueeney noted that the sidelines were jammed with fans, perhaps three or four deep, which pushed the actual attendance closer to 22,000.

However, the Bishop England starting quarterback was injured in the game, and the Rocks converted a turnover into the winning points in a 13-7 victory. It was the only time all season the Bishops allowed a team to score two touchdowns.

Coach Jack Cantey went on to coach 30 years at Bishop England and recorded 187 career victories, earning a spot in BE fans’ collective hearts and the state’s high school sports hall of fame. He served as a volunteer assistant for five years after retiring as head coach.