Got word this morning that Bob Stem passed away yesterday. Coach Stem had been battling illness.
Bob Stem will go down as the greatest coach in Lehigh Valley football and one of the best the state has produced in the last 50 years. Stem went 285-96-5, including a 19 season run at Bethlehem Catholic where he went 173-53-1 with eight D11 titles, six conference championships, and PIAA championships in 1988 and 1990. Stem also won four New Jersey sectional championships as the head coach at Phillipsburg, his alma mater. He is the winningest coach in the history of both programs.
Stem was an All State offensive lineman at Phillipsburg, which earned him a scholarship to Syracuse, where he started three years at center and linebacker, blocked for Heisman winner Ernie Davis and was a two-way starter on the 1959 National Champions. He played briefly for the Boston Patriots before coming back to Phillipsburg to coach.
He took over at Bethlehem Catholic in 1983 after the War Hawks had fallen on hard times following Rich Mazza’s jump to the college ranks. Stem jump started Becahi into a regional, then state power - winning the inaugural D11 tournament in 1985, then blitzed their way to the first 2A state title in 1988, out scoring their opponents 380-97 despite not playing another 2A school until the state playoff. They waxed Mount Carmel 35-14 for the D11 title, then shut out West York in the semis and raced out to an 18-0 lead in a 26-11 state final win over Wilmington. Stem, to the end of his career, said the 1988 team was the best he ever coached.
Stem took Bethlehem Catholic back to the state playoff in 1989, falling in semis to Momtoursville. In 1990, Bethlehem Catholic moved up to the 3A classsiciation. After an 8-2 regular season, Becahi crushed Whitehall for a D11 3A title, setting up the first state playoff meeting between teams with a championship - Becahi and Berwick, with sensational quarterback Ron Powlus and legendary coach George Curry. In his greatest triumph, Stem’s defense, headline by Parade All American Justin Morabito, held Berwick without a touchdown, and Spike Johnson threw a 48 yard touchdown with 1:14 left in the game to beat the Dawgs 7-3. Becahi would rout Seton-LaSalle 43-7 for the state championship the following week. Running back Erik Marsh, the only starter on both state title teams, went on to a record setting career at Lafayette, then played for the New York Jets.
The early 1990s were both successful and frustrating for Stem. He had the blessing few coaches get - the #1 overall recruit in the class of 1995 and USA Today National Player of the Year in quarterback Dan Kendra III. But Becahi could not get past arch rival Allentown Central Catholic in a series dubbed “the Holy War” which saw ACC beat Becahi for D11 titles and carry the mantle in D11’s rivalry with Berwick.
Stem was not without controversy. As the board is familiar with, he faced constant accusations around recruiting and transfers, and liked to run up the score to make a point. Animus towards Stem led to the dissolution of the original East Penn Conference, with six schools leaving the league and refusing to play Bethlehem Catholic. Stem’s response was two-fold - the Hawks nationalized their schedule, adding St. Ignatius (Ohio), Archbishop Moeller (Ohio), Brooklyn Poly Prep, Mullen Prep (Colorado) and Glen Mills. More importantly, they declared up to 4A, where all the departing schools would now have to see the Hawks in the D11 playoffs.
These years, from 1997-2001, were some of the finest of Stem’s career as Becahi found themselves in the national rankings, and had a nearly four year winning streak over local opponents. They won three consecutive D11 titles from 1999-2001, often in dominant fashion (the 65-0 rout of Easton in 2000 is one of the more breathtaking performances we’ve seen around here). In playing up, Stem probably cost himself another state title or two, as it put his teams squarely in the crosshairs of Mike Pettine’s CB West dynasty. The Bucks and Hawks had wars - the 26-14 punt return game in 1999 goes down as one of the best playoff games in state history and still the highest attended - but three disappointing PIAA losses ended what may have been championship runs in 3A or 2A. But he proved his point that Bethlehem Catholic was a force to be reckoned with.
Headed into 2002, the East Penn Conference reformed - without Becahi, as even Allentown Central Catholic got the invite and accepted. Stem, in an act of selflessness, stepped down as Bethlehem Catholic’s head football coach to remove controversy from his program, and the Hawks joined the newly formed Lehigh Valley Conference. With his players and system, Becahi spent most of the year ranked first in the state in 4A, before a 14-11 D11 finals loss to eventual state champ Parkland
Stem came out of retirement for a second stint at Phillipsburg, where he won four sectional titles and turned the Stateliners into one of the best public school programs in New Jersey. His final game on the sidelines was a 3-0 win over lifetime arch rival Easton, ruining the season for the state playoff bound Rovers in the only overtime game in rivalry history. Overall, in his two stints at P’Burg in the late ‘70s and late 2000s, he was 112-43-4.
Stem coached a mountain of great players in his career. He sent multiple players to the NFL - Jim Molinaro having the longest career, and to a bevy of major college programs, including Florida State, Notre Dame, Stanford, Penn State, NC State, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Pittsburgh, BYU, and countless FCS and lower level programs.
Despite his reputation as a fiery competitor, there are few coaches I’ve ever heard with such a deep love coming from his players. A long time elementary school teacher in Phillipsburg, he was a warm man at heart and really grew to be an ambassador of the game locally in his old age. He certainly brought in this current era of football - whether it be his early embrace of spread offense concepts in the late 1990s or the public/private debates that scream out today. He’s probably the most important figure in local football since the formation of the East Penn Conference in 1976. He’s a legend and he will be missed.
Bob Stem will go down as the greatest coach in Lehigh Valley football and one of the best the state has produced in the last 50 years. Stem went 285-96-5, including a 19 season run at Bethlehem Catholic where he went 173-53-1 with eight D11 titles, six conference championships, and PIAA championships in 1988 and 1990. Stem also won four New Jersey sectional championships as the head coach at Phillipsburg, his alma mater. He is the winningest coach in the history of both programs.
Stem was an All State offensive lineman at Phillipsburg, which earned him a scholarship to Syracuse, where he started three years at center and linebacker, blocked for Heisman winner Ernie Davis and was a two-way starter on the 1959 National Champions. He played briefly for the Boston Patriots before coming back to Phillipsburg to coach.
He took over at Bethlehem Catholic in 1983 after the War Hawks had fallen on hard times following Rich Mazza’s jump to the college ranks. Stem jump started Becahi into a regional, then state power - winning the inaugural D11 tournament in 1985, then blitzed their way to the first 2A state title in 1988, out scoring their opponents 380-97 despite not playing another 2A school until the state playoff. They waxed Mount Carmel 35-14 for the D11 title, then shut out West York in the semis and raced out to an 18-0 lead in a 26-11 state final win over Wilmington. Stem, to the end of his career, said the 1988 team was the best he ever coached.
Stem took Bethlehem Catholic back to the state playoff in 1989, falling in semis to Momtoursville. In 1990, Bethlehem Catholic moved up to the 3A classsiciation. After an 8-2 regular season, Becahi crushed Whitehall for a D11 3A title, setting up the first state playoff meeting between teams with a championship - Becahi and Berwick, with sensational quarterback Ron Powlus and legendary coach George Curry. In his greatest triumph, Stem’s defense, headline by Parade All American Justin Morabito, held Berwick without a touchdown, and Spike Johnson threw a 48 yard touchdown with 1:14 left in the game to beat the Dawgs 7-3. Becahi would rout Seton-LaSalle 43-7 for the state championship the following week. Running back Erik Marsh, the only starter on both state title teams, went on to a record setting career at Lafayette, then played for the New York Jets.
The early 1990s were both successful and frustrating for Stem. He had the blessing few coaches get - the #1 overall recruit in the class of 1995 and USA Today National Player of the Year in quarterback Dan Kendra III. But Becahi could not get past arch rival Allentown Central Catholic in a series dubbed “the Holy War” which saw ACC beat Becahi for D11 titles and carry the mantle in D11’s rivalry with Berwick.
Stem was not without controversy. As the board is familiar with, he faced constant accusations around recruiting and transfers, and liked to run up the score to make a point. Animus towards Stem led to the dissolution of the original East Penn Conference, with six schools leaving the league and refusing to play Bethlehem Catholic. Stem’s response was two-fold - the Hawks nationalized their schedule, adding St. Ignatius (Ohio), Archbishop Moeller (Ohio), Brooklyn Poly Prep, Mullen Prep (Colorado) and Glen Mills. More importantly, they declared up to 4A, where all the departing schools would now have to see the Hawks in the D11 playoffs.
These years, from 1997-2001, were some of the finest of Stem’s career as Becahi found themselves in the national rankings, and had a nearly four year winning streak over local opponents. They won three consecutive D11 titles from 1999-2001, often in dominant fashion (the 65-0 rout of Easton in 2000 is one of the more breathtaking performances we’ve seen around here). In playing up, Stem probably cost himself another state title or two, as it put his teams squarely in the crosshairs of Mike Pettine’s CB West dynasty. The Bucks and Hawks had wars - the 26-14 punt return game in 1999 goes down as one of the best playoff games in state history and still the highest attended - but three disappointing PIAA losses ended what may have been championship runs in 3A or 2A. But he proved his point that Bethlehem Catholic was a force to be reckoned with.
Headed into 2002, the East Penn Conference reformed - without Becahi, as even Allentown Central Catholic got the invite and accepted. Stem, in an act of selflessness, stepped down as Bethlehem Catholic’s head football coach to remove controversy from his program, and the Hawks joined the newly formed Lehigh Valley Conference. With his players and system, Becahi spent most of the year ranked first in the state in 4A, before a 14-11 D11 finals loss to eventual state champ Parkland
Stem came out of retirement for a second stint at Phillipsburg, where he won four sectional titles and turned the Stateliners into one of the best public school programs in New Jersey. His final game on the sidelines was a 3-0 win over lifetime arch rival Easton, ruining the season for the state playoff bound Rovers in the only overtime game in rivalry history. Overall, in his two stints at P’Burg in the late ‘70s and late 2000s, he was 112-43-4.
Stem coached a mountain of great players in his career. He sent multiple players to the NFL - Jim Molinaro having the longest career, and to a bevy of major college programs, including Florida State, Notre Dame, Stanford, Penn State, NC State, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Pittsburgh, BYU, and countless FCS and lower level programs.
Despite his reputation as a fiery competitor, there are few coaches I’ve ever heard with such a deep love coming from his players. A long time elementary school teacher in Phillipsburg, he was a warm man at heart and really grew to be an ambassador of the game locally in his old age. He certainly brought in this current era of football - whether it be his early embrace of spread offense concepts in the late 1990s or the public/private debates that scream out today. He’s probably the most important figure in local football since the formation of the East Penn Conference in 1976. He’s a legend and he will be missed.
