A memorial service for William (Birt) Slater, legendary Kearny High football coach, will be held in the Kearny gymnasium on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2013, at 1 p.m.
Slater, 89, passed away recently after a long illness.
Slater was head coach at Kearny from 1959-76, posting a record of 134 victories, 41 losses, and 9 ties for a .753 winning percentage. Â His teams made 15 playoff appearances, were in the San Diego Section finals five times, and won 3 championships.
Slater was an assistant football coach at San Diego High from 1953-57, a period in which the Cavers posted a 45-8-1 record. Â He also was coach of the 1957 San Diego track team that upset favored Compton Centennial to win the Southern California championship.
San Diego High’s 1955 team posted an 11-0-1 record, won the Southern California championship, and was declared national champion.
A more detailed account of Slater’s career can found in the article  “1959: “Birt, Are You Crazy?”
Please send me upcoming articles. I ran into you at the old Central Library, earlier in the year.
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