Bio

Tony and Henry Citarella, a father and son, are this year’s recipients of the President’s Award, which recognizes years of service to the College and its student-athletes. For 60 years, the father and son duo have been the official timekeepers during Tiger football games. Father, Tony, was a graduate of Riverside City College, Class of ’47, and a former football player himself. After graduating from RCC, he went on to USC,eventually becoming a teacher, principal, and an administrator for Riverside UnifiedSchool District

Tony, a member of the SPORT Foundation’s Hall of Fame Wall of Distinction, became the Tigers’ game clock operator in 1951,making $2 a game. He missed the 1961 season after suffering a back injury due to an accident with a drunk driver; otherwise, he never missed a home football game. He held the position for 40 years, passing away in 1991.

That year, his son, Henry, 55, took control of the timepiece . He already had a long  tradition with Tiger football, starting at the age of five as a Tiger ball boy. Henry has been at the helm of the scoreboard for the last twenty years, giving the family a 60-year run as the keeper of time at RCC football games.