johnstonwrites.com

Today's thoughts

Category: Indiana University Hoosier (I.U) Sports (Page 31 of 31)

Indiana University Hoosier athletics

Old Sport Shorts: Just a game #132

June 10, 2017 / / 0 Comments

Baseball is just a game!  I have to remind myself of that today. as players that “mean something to me” have let me down.  I can handle it when the errors are made in the field, but it’s those made outside the game that leave the worst taste in my mouth.  I should know by now that the combustible combination of youth, success, status, and wealth often leads to disappointment, and it’s no different in baseball.  These players are human beings not Super Heroes!

I’ve been following the Oregon State Beavers this baseball season, and the success of their pitching staff.  My interest started in their very first game this year when they battled my Indiana Hoosiers to a 1-0 victory.  They went on to win 28 of their first 29 games and continue in the NCAA tournament with a current 20 game win streak.  Fans, including me, in this area were following the team’s success closely, and then the shocking news came out!   Their ace pitcher, Luke Heimlich, is a child molester, and I can’t get the disappointment out of my head.  How does this happen?

The reaction from Oregon State University officials remains non-existent.  How could a college athlete earn a scholarship with this on his record, and how can I even think about watching today’s game?   Is it the train wreck syndrome?  I hope for the sake of his teammates, they are able to overcome this blemish on their success, but the entire season is tainted by one player’s selfishness.  Maybe Vanderbilt will put us all out of our misery, and we won’t have to hear about this for the rest of the College Word Series?  Otherwise, we won’t know if the fans are booing or saying, “Luke?”  Or will it get worse when he’s called in to start in today’s game or a potential elimination game?  What if he even throws one pitch in a critical situation?  I found it ironic that Indiana University just recently led the college nation in adopting a policy banning athletes with a history of sexual or domestic violence, yet the team lost their first game of the season in-part against a pitcher with such a history.

Speaking of domestic violence, the Cubs’ Addison Russell was back in the line-up today after being accused on Social Media of abusing his wife.  Whether it is true or not, it also struck me as disappointing that his name was in the news for anything other than baseball.  I might have even cast-off the ugly accusations as not even possible if it weren’t for the Oregon State situation.  The combination of the two stories took away from my enjoyment of the games today.

It’s hard to understand how great athletes find themselves in troubling situations.  They were given a gift that is too many times taken for granted.  I will give Addison Russell the benefit of the doubt, but I have a much harder time in doing that for Luke Heimlich.  Was he a victim of abuse himself?  His coach, Pat Casey claims that he’ a “good kid.”  Regardless, he needs to distance himself from the team.  Several Major League teams have apparently already drawn the line when it comes to the draft.  If he does get an opportunity to play at the next level, we can only hope that he donates his time and money to supporting women’s, and little girls’ rights!

Baseball, under the grim circumstances, was not a friendly game today.  The underdogs, Sam Houston State and Davidson, fell apart late in their Super Regional games against Florida State and Texas A & M, respectively.  Also, the Cubs are off to a “rocky” start against an ugly Colorado sweep at home, dropping once again below .500 for the year.  They showed some championship-style in the sweep against the Cardinals last week, but their rivals have since proven that they are one of the worst teams in recent franchise history.  To make matters worse, the White Sox can’t get by the Indians in the standings, a team with Cubs’ revenge on their mind.  Off-field problems and poor play take the fun out of the game.  Yes, it’s just a game, but when the game isn’t going your way, it can be a nightmare!

Old Sport Shorts: The Mighty Schwarber #119

June 3, 2017 / / 0 Comments

Since his return to the Cubs for the 2016 World Series, Kyle Schwarber has taken advantage of spotlight moments.  Despite the leg injury that left him out of the line-up most of last season, he returned just in time for the Big Show, and produced beyond expectations (See post #64:Schwarber at the Bat- for a tribute poem).

In the midst of a slow start this season, he was last seen wearing a leisure suit, (See post #101) and got some Topps attention along with teammate, Anthony Rizzo.  Schwarber started the year for the Cubs in the coveted lead-off slot, but was soon demoted to #2 in favor of Ben Zobrist.  Quite frankly, he’s played like #2!; and has since dropped to the bottom of the line-up, batting ninth today.

In this afternoon’s big game  against the Cardinals, he once again proved his “Might.”  The Cubs were down 3-1 in the bottom of the 7th with two outs.  We had already seen one “miracle,” when John Lester actually threw out Tommy Pham as he pushed his lead-off at first.  Since joining the Cubs in 2015, Lester has been taunted about his reluctance to throw to first.  Pham took a huge lead and the temptation was too much for Lester.  He let it fly!  Out!  It was Lester’s first pick-off since 2015 when he was with the Red Sox.

As Schwarber took the plate against Mike Leake with the bases loaded and two outs, would we see a second “miracle” today?   Both managers briefly hesitated against making a move, and the Mighty Schwarber once again had a Casey-like opportunity.  He did not strike out. The ball traveled into the bleachers over 400 feet away, and gave the Cubs a two-run lead. Schwarber watched it clear the fence, overshadowing his .163 batting average.  The Mighty Schwarber gave the Cubs a “W” and hopefully gave himself a big boost of confidence.  It was his first Major League grand slam, and it couldn’t have come at a better time.

Meanwhile, the White Sox continue to struggle in Detroit, and the Brewers continue to dominate the Dodgers and the NL Central Division.  The Sox are close to dropping into the basement of the AL Central, while also failing to keep pace with their crosstown rivals for that ultimate rematch of 1906.  The Cubs victory gives them a half-game lead over the Cardinals, but still 2 games behind the Brewers.  Could we see a third “miracle” with a Cubs sweep tomorrow night behind Kyle Hendricks?

As a fellow I.U. alumni, Kyle Schwarber is being very, very good to me!

 

 

Old Sport Shorts: Big Klu #118

June 3, 2017 / / 0 Comments

A friend of my just gave me an Indiana University basketball program for a 1945 game against the Minnesota Golden Gophers.  It was six years before I was born, so to find something older than me is always rewarding.  The game itself took place in the war years, so players were lost from the starting line-up to serve our country.  The Hoosiers, were in fact coached by Harry Good, who replaced Branch McCracken on a interim basis the year before, allowing McCracken to serve his duties as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy.  Coach McCracken, who’s Hurryin’ Hoosiers won the National Championship in 1940, would return to lead the team in 1946.

The 1944-45 season was unremarkable.  The team finished 10-11, 3-9 in the Conference, and did not qualify for post-season action.  They lost eight of their last nine games, including that 48-56 game against the Golden Gophers, following leading scorer Gene Faris departure from the team for his call to military service.  The game program was dated February 3, 1945, my Dad’s 24th birthday, and was distributed to fans during that unfortunate losing streak. My father had graduated from I.U. in 1942 along with my mother who was one-day younger. They married January 5, 1946, two days after the Hoosiers beat Butler 58-47 as part of an eight game winning streak in the final year of Harry Good’s tenure as interim coach.

There wasn’t much documented about the 1944-45 Minnesota Golden Gophers.  They were coached for that single season by Weston Mitchell and finished the year at 8-13, including a loss to the Hurryin’ Hoosiers just prior to the long losing streak.  I.U.’s Ray Brandenburg hit a last-second shot for that 48-46 victory.  James Copeland, from my mom’s hometown of Elwood, Indiana, had 11 points to go with Brandenburg’s 10, and Gene Faris, in his last I.U. game until he returned from war duty in 1947, led the Hoosiers with 13 points.

In my opinion, the real story of the 1944-45 Hurryin’ Hoosiers was a bench player by the name of Ted Kluszewski.  He was a 6’2″ freshman that year from Argos, Illinois and only played in two games.  Kluszewski excelled in football and baseball at I.U.  He probably joined the basketball team as a result of the attrition of players due to the war.  The war affected his life in a positive way, as travel restrictions forced the Cincinnati Reds, who traditionally held spring training in Tampa, Florida, to train at Indiana from 1943-45.  Kluszewski’s batting power drew the attention of Reds’ groundskeeper Matty Schwab and eventually team scouts offered him a contract.  Kluszewski hit .443 for the I.U. baseball team in 1945 and was a football star on the 9-0-1 team, where he earned first-team Big Ten honors as an End. The team finished 4th in the final AP poll, just behind National Champion Army.  Football kept Ted at I.U. until his graduation in 1946.  By 1948, he was the Reds’ starting first baseman, where in a controversial move, he cut off the sleeves of his uniform to accommodate his massive shoulders and biceps.

“Big Klu” was a career .298 hitter with 279 home runs and 1,028 RBI in 1,718 games over 15 years.  In ten of those years, he walked more often than he struck out, and during the 1955 season he hit 47 home runs and only struck out 40 times, a feat no one has yet to duplicate. He left the Reds in 1957, then played 100 games for the Pittsburgh Pirates, and traded to the Chicago White Sox at the end of the 1959 season, who were in a close pennant race.

He joined the “Go-Go” Sox in August of 1959 and powered them to the American League crown.  In the first game of the World Series against the Dodgers, he hit two home runs and drove in five for an 11-0 White Sox rout.  He ended up hitting .391 in the series with 3 HR and 10 RBI, and earned three 1960 Ford Falcons from Jim Moran, a Chicago automobile dealer.  Kluszewski also achieved notoriety in having his name misspelled on the back of Bill Veek’s ground-breaking innovation to baseball jerseys.  When Major League Baseball expanded in 1960, he was left unprotected and traded to the Los Angeles Angels for his final season.  He died at age 63, after retiring as a Reds’ hitting coach.

The 1959 “Go-Go” Sox also featured my first baseball hero, Sherm Lollar.  Sherm had a home run in game 4 of the series, the only other White Sox victory.  Kluszewski’s third homer came in game 6, but the Dodgers prevailed to take the World Series.  The “Big Klu” and Sherm Lollar connection is what makes the I.U. basketball program a special part of my collection.  It also brings the two sports, basketball and football, together for a brief moment in history; and recognizes my dad’s birthday that he probably celebrated serving our country.

Old Sport Shorts: Headlines #60

April 29, 2017 / / 0 Comments

I lived in the past this morning, spending several hours reminiscing with vendors at a local baseball card and collectibles show.  I went with the sole intention of buying some Cub and White Sox baseball cards from the early 1900s, but walked away with what I consider to be a treasure. It jumped out at me as I walked by a display table, wondering what in the heck it was doing in Portland, Oregon?  There was booth after booth of Oregon Ducks and Oregon State Beavers memorabilia that I typically see at these shows around our area.  Occasionally, I’ll see Washington Huskies, Washington State  Cougars, or Gonzaga merchandise, maybe even some California team items.  It only makes sense that people in this area are going to be more interested in teams that are close by, and every good merchant knows about targeting their audience. I would have never have expected to see an item from my Alma Mater, Indiana University at a local show.   That’s why I had to buy it.

It was a framed Velox from the front page of the Indiana Daily Student, the University’s newspaper from Tuesday, March 31, 1987.  The day it was published I was in New Orleans watching Keith Smart hit a last second shot against Syracuse to claim Indiana’s 5th NCAA Basketball Championship.  It was a magical moment in my life that was the climax of an unforgettable week of travel to and from New Orleans, several sleepless nights on the floor of house that was surprisingly under construction and had no furniture,  and night after night of fan rallies, not to mention the excessive drinking and partying that New Orleans is famous for.  After all, I was 34 years young with a family and didn’t get out of town by myself very often.  Without a doubt, I overdid it, but would be happy to do it again!

Admittedly, I’m an I.U. Basketball geek!  There’s a photo of that winning shot in my home office that is called simply, “The Shot.”  I have a custom I.U. jewelry box that plays the final seconds of the actual radio broadcast of that shot when you open its lid.  I also have framed jerseys and photos from the 1976 and 1981 Championships that I was fortunate to enjoy.  By 1987 it was getting to be a habit for Bob Knight and his Indiana teams, so I always expected to go to another one.  Unfortunately, it hasn’t happened in 30 years.  As a result, I have to live in the past with these memory aids that adorn my walls.

The headline on the front page reads, “IU WINS IT ALL!”  The accompanying story focuses, as only a campus publication would, on the student celebration rather than the game itself.  It does have a box score of the game and a photo of Steve Alford, Todd Meier, and Daryl Thomas hoisting the Championship Trophy.  A copy of the paper would have set you back 25 cents, and the frame and red matting is worth more than what I paid for it this morning.  The man who sold it to me owned a moving company and got it from a Beaverton, Oregon home.  He was not sure why the owner did not want to move it again.  There was a strip of masking tape on the back that noted, “Office #11 Center Behind Lamp.”  There was also a sticker from the framing company in Mishawaka, Indiana, just about 10 miles from my home town.  I’ll never know how it ended up in Oregon, but I’m glad that I was able to give it another good home.   The other coincidence was that he just picked it up last week, so this was the first time it was offered for sale, and I happened to be there at the right time.

It was all as if it was meant to be! The framed piece and I came together, after moving across the country 2,193 miles. Oh, and one more thing! As I was loading into the trunk of my car, my jaw dropped as I took a minute to fully read the article.  In one of the paragraphs it stated: “This is what University life is all about! yelled junior Matt Gaston between swigs of beer.  I met Matt Gaston several years later in Indianapolis, so it will be a good reason to get back in touch with him.  I wonder if he ever saw the paper, or if he was too hungover to care.  Maybe it will renew our friendship, since I know from Facebook posts that he is a baseball fan and follows the Nats and our Hoosiers from his D.C. home?

Old Sport Shorts: It’s Miller Time! #35

April 1, 2017 / / 0 Comments

“March Madness” has just been that!  For me it started with some hope.  Indiana University beat Iowa in the first round of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament, but that bubble burst quickly.  It had been a frustrating season with the Hoosiers starting strong with victories over two eventual Number 1 tourney seeds, North Carolina and Kansas.  It looked like a certain invitation to the NCAA tournament and an exciting year for the team.  Then the wheels fell off, one at a time. Senior leader Colin Hartman out for the year, a shocking loss to Fort Wayne, a season ending injury to O.G. Anunoby, another James Blackman knee issue, and a team that led the nation in turnovers, of all things.  Every game was a nightmare with rumblings about the future of head coach, Tom Crean.

Tom Crean came to Indiana from Marquette, a team know for its reckless brand of fast-break basketball.  The quick pace lead to turnover after turnover, embarrassing to a Hoosier Nation comfortable with a Bob Knight philosophy that stressed fundamentals and defense.  However, circumstances following the Kelvin Sampson debacle required a complete rebuild of the program and Tom Crean accomplished that challenge, winning two Big Ten Championships in his nine-year tenure.  However, the program has been a roller coaster ride with discipline problems, injuries, and tourney short-falls.  Indiana fans were used to winning, and Tom Crean was not their man to do it!

The last Indiana national championship was in 1987, with the unbeatable coach and player duo of Bob Knight and Steve Alford.  That was 30 long years ago!  Since that time, Bob Knight has turned into a bitter old man, and Steve Alford has put together an outstanding UCLA team in the tradition of fellow-Hoosier legend, John Wooden.  The I.U. basketball team went from Big Ten Champions to N.I.T. (not in tournament).  To make matters worse, they mysteriously declined the home-court advantage in their NIT opener against Georgia Tech and lost.  Tom Crean was fired several days later.  I was frankly surprised that I.U. Athletic Director, Fred Glass, pulled the trigger.  I knew Crean was in trouble, but felt the injury situation might save his job and that we would suffer through another year of disappointment.  Suddenly, it was Miller Time!

Many names came to the forefront, once the decision was made to replace Crean.  Brad Stevens topped the list that included other NBA coaches, up-and-coming college coaches, and of course, Steve Alford, always a Hoosier favorite. Alford had been a candidate to replace Mike Davis, who after “replacing the irreplaceable” Bob Knight, promptly took the Hoosiers to the 2002 NCAA Championship game but lost to future Big Ten foe Maryland.  It would have been more difficult to replace him had they won that game, but many believe that history led to a decision between Kelvin Sampson and Steve Alford.  Unfortunately, Alford was  not the winner, and Indiana eventually faced the wrath of NCAA sanctions, and the beginning of the Tom Crean era.

Alford has lost another battle in the course of those 30 fruitless years of Indiana basketball.  Following his leadership in winning the National Championship, not to mention helping Team U.S.A. secure an Olympic Gold Medal in 1983, Alford was the favorite to be the top draft pick for the Indiana Pacers.  General manager, Donnie Walsh, went against Hoosier sentiment and selected Reggie Miller as their top pick in the 1987 NBA draft.  It was a decision that turned out to be a great one.  Even Steve Alford agrees.  However, that was not the only time he was out-Miller-ed!

Reggie Miller retired as a Pacer, and was inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.  Alford earned the 26th pick of the Dallas Maverick, played a  four-year stint in the NBA, but only started three games over his career.  He then went into coaching, starting with North Manchester University in Indiana.  By 1995, he had moved on to Missouri State, taking them to the Sweet 16, followed by Iowa and New Mexico head coaching positions.  The road eventually led to UCLA in 2013.  Along the way, I’m sure he was considered many times by his Indiana alma mater, but it has yet to happen.  Many hoped that he would jump at the chance when Crean was dismissed, but why leave behind a promising recruiting class that he had built at U.C.L.A.?  After all, he had just achieved the Sweet 16 once again, and seemed to be in great standing with the U.C.L.A. fan base.

As it turned out, Alford would once again lose favor to a Miller.  This time, instead of Reggie, it was Archie.  Alford’s Bruins lost to Kentucky, and Indiana announced that Archie Miller from Dayton would take over the Hoosier reins for 2018.  I’m excited for the change in leadership, but disappointed that the only “March Madness” headlines that Indiana made in 2017 was the coaching change.  Budweiser take a seat, because if you were a Spike Lee hater and a current Hoosier supporter you know that in Indiana, it’s “Miller Time” once again!

 

 

Newer posts »

Contact Us

© 2025 johnstonwrites.com

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑