R-T File Photo
Dewey Combs, right, stands on the sideline during Trenton’s 27-10 victory over Chillicothe on Nov. 11, 1966. The win capped off a 10-0 season that saw Trenton named the Missouri Class M state champions. It was the final game Combs ever coached at Trenton, where he finished with a record of 40-27-6 in eight seasons.
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On Sunday, Combs passed away. He was 87 years old.
When Combs took over the Bulldog program, it was 1959 and Trenton was coming off a winless 0-9 season. The turnaround wouldn’t happen overnight, however, and Trenton again stumbled to an 0-9 finish for a second-straight year.
After two years hovering around .500, Combs propelled Trenton to an undefeated season in 1962. The Bulldogs won eight games and tied another, finishing 8-0-1. It was the school’s first undefeated football season since 1946.
Combs would stick around Trenton for four more years, culminating his run as the Trenton playcaller with the school’s first and only football state championship to date. Trenton went 10-0 in 1966, capturing the Missouri Class M state championship in a season where the Bulldogs dominated the opposition. Trenton averaged 41.5 points per game in 1966, which still remains the school record to this day. Trenton collected 3,935 yards of total offense that season, which still ranks third all-time at THS.
The Bulldogs’ defense yielded just 3.6 points per game that season, a mark that still stands as the fourth-best defensive mark in school history.
“If you grew up in Trenton and were a high school football player in the 60’s, 70’s or even the 80’s, you undoubtedly have memories of, or heard stories about, Coach Dewey Combs,” Trenton athletic director Wes Croy said. “He led Trenton to great success on the football field, culminating with the 1966 state championship. Throughout his hall-of-fame career he certainly impacted many lives. We here at Trenton High School are sorry to hear of his passing and send condolences to his family.”
Following Trenton, Combs moved to Joplin, where he coached football for 19 more years. When his illustrious career came to an end he had collected 213 victories and four state championships. The athletic complex in Joplin is named for him.
Combs was enshrined in the Missouri High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1985 and in 2010 he was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.
Combs had a record of 40-27-6 in his eight years guiding the Bulldogs. At Trenton he ranks fourth all-time in coaching victories behind only C.F. Russell (71), Croy (56) and Ray Ricono (42).