13th of a Series...

When Tony Chiacchiero took over as the head football coach at his alma mater, Ashtabula High School, one of the tasks he committed to in rebuilding the Panthers to their glory days was building strong line play.

From his time as a standout player for legendary coach George “Chic” Guarnieri, then as a student of Sid Gillman, a member of the College and Professional Football Hall of Fame, at Miami of Ohio, Chiacchiero learned that winning the battle of the trenches was the path to success. So he concentrated on developing players who could triumph in trench warfare.

Chiacchiero’s record speaks for itself. It took a couple of years after he assumed the reins at Ashtabula in 1958 to get what he wanted, but by 1960, it was beginning to pay dividends. Over the next 10 seasons, Chiacchiero’s teams would even eclipse the accomplishments of Guarnieri’s squads, compiling 11 consecutive winning seasons, earning at least a share of eight Northeastern Conference championships and compiling undefeated records in 1962 and 1965.

Over that period, Chiacchiero, who made working with the linemen his main pursuit as head coach, produced a string of great linemen who made his teams go. One of those linemen — future Edgewood coach Mike Kaydo — has already attained Hall of Fame status.

Now a second member of that list — 1963 graduate Larry Featsent — is joining Kaydo in that elite group. He is one of two Ashtabula players who will be inducted on Monday at 6 p.m. into the Ashtabula County Football Hall of Fame during ceremonies at the 39th annual Ashtabula County Touchdown Club Awards Banquet at Mount Carmel Community Center.

Unfortunately, Featsent will not be there to enjoy his moment in the sun. He was claimed by cancer on May 24, 1990 at just 45 years old.

Featsent was a part of a team that compiled a record of 26-3-1 in its three varsity seasons. In the last two years, the Panthers were 19-1.

It is left for his coach, his teammates and his siblings to speak for Featsent. Actually, they feel he would shrink from such recognition, although he would be extremely proud of his distinction.

“Larry didn’t like recognition,” his second brother, Rick, said. “He felt he didn’t deserve it.”

“But he would really have been touched by this,” his first brother, Doug, who was a teammate of Larry’s before his own graduation from Ashtabula in 1965, said.

In Chiacchiero’s eyes, Featsent would have protested too much.

“Larry was a great player,” the coach said. “He was very coachable and a very good teammate.

“He wasn’t very outgoing, but he was very serious about his job. He led by example. He was not real outspoken. He was always respectful of his teammates, coaches and teachers.”