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Through all the successes of Moravian College in athletics and
in other aspects of the college, there is one name that is synonymous with those
triumphs: Rocco Calvo. The Bethlehem native served his town well through his long
and distinguished career at the helm of Moravian College athletics.
After achieving
the status of all-state in both football and basketball at Bethlehem’s Liberty
High School, Calvo enrolled at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Playing for the legendary coach,
George “Lefty” James, he was a member of the 1948 and 1948 Ivy League Championship squads.
He led the conference in pass completion percentage in 1950 and currently ranks 11th all-time in career
passing efficiency. Calvo still holds two passing records at Cornell: most yards gained per attempt in
a career and most yards gained per completion in a career. In addition, his 90-yard touchdown pass to
Stu Merz against Yale in 1951 is still recognized as one of the greatest plays in Ivy League history.
Upon
graduation from Cornell, Calvo enlisted in the military and achieved the rank of lieutenant. He served
in Korea from 1952 to 1953 and returned stateside to coach the backfield at Kutztown State College
(now Kutztown University) in 1954. A year later, at the age of twenty-five, Calvo
returned to his hometown as the new head football coach of the Greyhounds.
Calvo served
as head football coach from 1955 to 1976. Over the course of that time, his Greyhounds
achieved many winning seasons and clinched the Middle Atlantic Conference Southern Division championship
in 1970. As a result, Calvo was selected as the conference’s Coach of the Year. Two years after
starting to coach football at Moravian, Calvo began his career as the head basketball coach. He served
in that capacity until 1967 and had an overall mark of 118-86. In addition, he began coaching baseball
in 1974 and coached until 1982. His overall mark on the diamond was 89-85.
In 1975 Calvo began serving
as the college’s Athletic Director. He coached one more year of football
and retired after the 1976 season. Over the course of time as the athletic director, Calvo made some
landmark changes, including adding many of the current women’s sports to the fold. The number
of sports rose from seven to 16 in his tenure. He also started the college’s athletic Hall
of Fame and fought tirelessly for the advancement of Title IX and women’s athletics in general.
He brought a new respect to the Moravian athletic department and promoted the college and its programs
to the public.
In 1982, Calvo returned as head football coach of the Greyhounds and served in that
role again until 1986, when current head coach Scot Dapp took over. He was again selected as the
league’s Coach
of the Year in 1984. In all, Calvo coached and mentored 81 All-Conference Players in his combined
27 years as head football coach.
Calvo continued as the athletic director and chair of physical
education until 1992. In one of those final years, the Moravian women’s basketball team
hosted the 1991 Division III Final Four, which showed the progress his efforts achieved through
the advancement of women’s sports.
Calvo passed away in 1995. He was inducted into the Lehigh
Valley Chapter of the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Moravian College
Hall of Fame in 1988. He was also inducted posthumously into the Cornell University Hall of
Fame in 1997.
There is no question about the on the field successes of Rocco Calvo
at Moravian College. But his impact is still felt on this campus to this day. His
blend of strength and compassion had an impact on everyone he met. His inspiration
came from a love of sports, the exhilaration of competition and the camaraderie
of a team. He was the ideal coach and administrator for Moravian College and set
a standard of excellence for all future Greyhounds to aspire to become. |
