Charles Rich
George Musacco, who has been hailed as the one of the greatest
football players in Glendale High's history, died Wednesday from
natural causes at his Glendale home. He was 75.
Musacco, who earned All-CIF honors at Glendale, later went on to
star at Loyola University (now Loyola Marymount University) where he
was named the most valuable player all four years on a team that
featured many players who went on to compete professionally.
He was drafted in the third round by the New York Yankees, who
switched cities and names several times before becoming the Baltimore
Colts.
The only thing that kept Musacco, who was named the area's 46th
top athlete of the 20th century by the Glendale News-Press, from
playing professionally was the fact that he was also drafted into the
Navy because of the Korean War. The Los Angeles-born Musacco, who
graduated from Glendale High in 1947, was inducted into LMU's Hall of
Fame in 1987.
Musacco, a fullback who was taken in the 1951 NFL draft, was a
teammate of such famous future NFL draftees and signees as Bob Boyd,
Gene Brito, Ernie Cheatham, Jack Dwyer, Neil Ferris, Skip
Giancanelli, Don Klosterman, Maury Nipp, Al Pollard and Fred Snyder.
With Musacco, Glendale captured the Foothill League championship
in 1945.
The Nitros advanced to the CIF Southern Section Major Division
semifinals, where they dropped a hard-fought 7-6 decision to
Alhambra.
The Nitros finished 7-2 in 1946 under Coach Lon Graf.
Musacco was one of several talented athletes from a family tree
that's included Lou Musacco, Chuck Arrobio and Michelle Greco.
Arrobio, who helped USC win a national championship in 1962 before
being drafted by the Minnesota Vikings, recalled watching his uncle
perform at LMU.
"I remember going to the (LMU) practices and games with my
grandfather when I was 6 or 7 years old," said Arrobio, who was a
tackle at USC and served as offensive line coach at St. Francis High
from 1992-2003. "Because of him, it was a goal of mine to play
football.
"We always got more support from him than advice when we played."
Greco, a 1998 graduate of Crescenta Valley High, was named the
Cal-Hi State Player of the Year all four years in high school.
She also played tennis at CV, winning four league titles. Greco,
whose grandmother is Musacco's sister, was selected the 45th greatest
athlete by the News-Press and helped the Seattle Storm win its first
WNBA title in October.
The 5-foot-9 Greco, Musacco's great-niece, holds the school record
