He was the familiar man with the camera.

For 21 years, Al Zuzic roamed the Catasauqua football sidelines, capturing countless, impressive shots of the Rough Rides in action for the Catasauqua Press. Zuzic often also covered away games.

This fall, Zuzic won’t be at his usual spots. He has decided not to make the trek from Norristown like he had in recent years. However, he may return for the Thanksgiving Day game and possibly some other ones.

Not seeing Zuzic at an athletic event won’t be the same. During his 21-year span, he became part of the athletic fabric.

Zuzic always gave you a heartfelt greeting, and you could honestly tell he was glad to see you. You always had a great conversion with him, as Zuzic had the pulse of the program, both good and bad. At the end of quarters, there often was a small crowd around him, listening to what he had to offer.

But you could always tell in his voice that he cared. His Catty roots were grounded deep.

“I grew up watching them every week, was happy to have played there,” said Zuzic. “I guess I felt part of the Catty family. I really enjoyed shooting them, but I moved. The distance made it impractical.”

Zuzic was a 1984 grad who played football for Ed Csencsits’ 1983 undefeated season and wrestled for Jim Angeline.

Following his low-key style, Zuzic downplayed his own playing days, calling himself, “a lineman, mainly defensive, and a very average player,” and stressing, “there were a lot of guys like me.”

For Zuzic, it was about the whole and not the part.

“We had great coaches, and they put us in the right spots to graduate,” reflected Zuzic. “I was part of an undefeated senior season, and I am still very proud to be part of it.”

Angeline hit home with him.

“I loved him,” stated Zuzic. “He had a way of making the brutal nature of that sport fun. Unless he was on you on a particular day, you just took it.”

Zuzic got involved with photography as a way back into his passion.

“In the 90s, I made friends with some really talented newspaper photographers,” remembered Zuzic. “They kind of taught me how to do it. I enjoy sports and shooting it is challenging, so I found my way into it.”

Zuzic has shot non-sports related gigs like the Juried Galley shows, and some of his shots are on museum walls. His most memorable Catty game was the 2013 Thanksgiving Day snowy battle with Northampton at Muhlenberg College. That was the Roughies’ district-winning season.

“It was a unique setting,” stated Zuzic. “During that whole season, I was determined to up my game to document a very special team.”

Zuzic also shot Whitehall’s boys’ basketball team. Assistant coach Corey Frantz was moved by Zuzic on and off the court.

“He’d always share thumb drives of individual players’ shots, which was greatly appreciated,” offered Frantz. “While he was taking shots, he was certainly supporting our guys as well, which we loved.”

As the years passed, the familiar coaches and sideline faces were gone, and the players from the generational Catty families had run its course. Zuzic took it as a sign.

“I kind of looked around, and I really didn’t know anyone anymore,” deadpanned Zuzic. “It was time to hand it off to someone else.”

“It was so nice to know Al was going to take photos every week at the football game, home or away,” said Catty Press sports editor Scott Pagel. “He and Linda Rothrock always made my job easier making sure there were plenty of photos of Catasauqua players for every edition. This isn’t a get-rich job, and I’m fortunate to have writers and photographers who love to be on the sidelines and involved in the community, and Al is certainly on that list. I hope he changes his mind!”

It won’t be the same without that familiar man with the camera.