Bob Kaithern ’75 was one of the most prolific receivers in the history of Franklin & Marshall College football, finishing his career with school records for touchdown receptions (21), total touchdowns (21), and career points (130), all of which still place him in the top five on F&M’s all-time lists. His 88 career receptions and 1,043 yards were the second highest of all time when he graduated and still rank in the top 20.
Kaithern was a two-time All-Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) choice, an Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) All-Star and, in his senior year in 1974, an All-America selection. He was a team captain in 1974, and he set a
school record with three touchdown receptions against Muhlenberg—a mark that still stands.
The 1974 team was enshrined in F&M’s Hall of Fame as a group last year. That team went 9-0, outscored its opponents 413-116 and averaged 45.1 points a game—all making the Diplomats the highest-scoring team at any level of college football that season. The team scored at least 40 points in seven games (with a high of 70 against Swarthmore), set or tied 33 school records.
In 1974, Kaithern caught 32 passes for 470 yards and nine touchdowns, with the touchdown number equaling the school single-season record he had set only one year earlier. He was also at his best in a dramatic 26-22 victory over Widener on Oct. 26, snagging three passes from quarterback Joe Coviello in a 68-yard drive in the closing minutes, leading to Coviello’s one-yard run for the decisive touchdown with 1:59 remaining.
In 1972, Kaithern emerged as a key contributor his sophomore season. Coach Bob Curtis pointed to a 27-7 victory over Dickinson on Oct. 18—a game in which Kaithern had eight grabs for 118 yards
—as the game in which the sophomore “came of age,” according to The
College Reporter.
The following week, the Diplomats rallied from a 14-0 deficit to beat Widener in a battle of undefeated MAC powers. Then on Nov. 8, F&M picked up a come-from-behind victory over Moravian with Kaithern hauling in two key passes on the final drive.
F&M closed out a 9-0 season one week later, with a 26-0 victory over Muhlenberg.
“I’d have to say that this season was the high point of my career,” Curtis said at the time. And of Kaithern, who contributed 33 receptions for 497 yards and three touchdowns, the coach said, “I always knew he would be a good one. He has good moves and is extremely fast.”
Kaithern added 21 catches his junior year but suffered a season-ending knee injury on the last of those, an 11-yarder in the second quarter of F&M’s seventh game, a 20-0 victory over Lebanon Valley College on Oct. 27. He was leading the MAC in receiving and scoring (56 points) at the time, and his receptions had accounted for 397 yards and nine touchdowns.
“Such an outstanding kid, having a good year,” Curtis told the Lancaster Sunday News. “The pro people had started to look at him. He’s a fine man.”
The Diplomats finished 8-1 that season, with their only loss to a Widener team featuring future NFL star Billy “White Shoes” Johnson. They did win the MAC South title for the third straight season, when Muhlenberg upset the Pioneers in the final week.
The Diplomats would win the conference again the following year, in dominating fashion. And Kaithern would raise his level of play to new heights, cementing his legacy as one of the top pass catchers in the history of the program.
Kaithern lists the Lambert Bowl Trophy and the undefeated 1974 season as his most memorable moments. After graduation, Kaithern moved back to New Jersey and opened his own business. He is the proud father of six children.
