Category: OLD SPORT SHORTS (Page 13 of 68)
An old guy’s perspective on all sports
At the start of this week, I was looking forward to some good basketball, with BIG games on the horizon. The Golden Gophers were without leading scorer Dawson Garcia and backup forward Pharrel Payne when the Hoosiers came calling at “The Barn.” Regardless, the Hoosiers still couldn’t “hit the proverbial side,” shooting 41.1% from the field 4-14 from behind the arc, and 11-18 from the line. The home team was even worse at 34.4%, 5-25, and 8-14, but I.U. had twice as many turnovers, half of those in the first eight minutes of the game. It may have been one of the ugliest games I’ve ever witnessed.
The ”Rule of 60” was working against us at traditionally unfriendly Williams Arena as Minnesota took a 57-54 lead with 3:20 go in the game after Jamison Battle hit a contested 3-pointer and Taurus Samuels sank two free throws. The savior was once again Trayce Jackson-Davis with 25 points, and 21 rebounds, including a game winning tip-in off a free-throw miss my Race Thompson with 43-seconds remaining. It prevented Minnesota from reaching 60 first with the score tied at 57-57. You also have to credit the IU defense as Indiana would dominate the final 3:20 of the game, allowing no points while scoring seven of their own. The final score was 61-57 after a pair of Trey Galloway free throws with 8-seconds to go, getting the Hoosiers over that magical hump. Ta’Lon Cooper missed a 3-pointer on the next Minnesota possession and Miller Kopp grabbed a loose ball and called timeout with just over 20 seconds to go.
Regardless of the circumstances, a big, BIG road win was the result, in a setting that has never been kind to the Hoosiers. It was their fourth straight conference win, tying them with Illinois and Michigan State at 5-4. They are a half-game behind Michigan and Northwestern, one game behind Rutgers, and three behind Purdue. Mike Woodson did not travel with the team since he was recovering from Covid, so Associate head coach, Yasir Rosemond took the reins. Next up, Ohio State at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
With an 86-70 win over the Buckeyes, it meant five straight conference wins for the HOT Hoosiers for the first time since the 2015-2016 season. Two nights earlier, the IU Women’s team conquered the #2 ranked Ohio State ladies on the same floor. Both Hoosier teams used huge runs to breakaway to comfortable victories.
Freshman sensation Jalen Hood-Schifino had 17 of Indiana’s first 21 points, and finished the first half with 20, including 6- treys for a 46-30 Hoosier edge. In the end, JHS scored a game-high 24 points. Trayce Jackson-Davis continued his recent dominance with another double-double. He had 18 points and 10 rebounds in the victory while Malik Reneau, showing signs of shedding his freshman slump, added 15-points and 8 boards. Turnovers still seem to plague this team with nine compared to 8 for the visitors, but the Hoosiers shot 50% from field and 50% from three.
I.U. now sits at 15-6 and 6-4 in conference play, after a 1-4 start. The “magical moment” was a TJD dunk at 13:30, making it 60-43. Hopefully, this momentum will continue when they play at Maryland on Tuesday night, before hosting Purdue on Saturday. The Boilers have already won 21-games after revenging their only loss to Michigan State and claiming 4-straight since. The BIG Showdown is coming next weekend.
I was really confused on what day of the week it was today after a busy week. Our Sunday night Lunar New Year Party went well with 34 guests, but it seemed like more of a Friday or Saturday night affair. Confucious or Confusion? Monday was a traditional “Matinee” day, but we went to the movie “Plane” a bit earlier to get home for another party of neighbors planning a cruise, so dinner wasn’t even “Meatless.” Tuesday, I went to my first chair yoga class and stretched a few rarely used muscles. Temperatures have been cold, and therefore swimming has been more sporadic than normal, disrupting that routine. We had also strayed from the habit of having the kids over for Tuesday Eve dinner, getting that family tradition back on track.
Wednesday night, I watched I.U. men’s basketball barely edge Minnesota, but usually they play mid-week Thursdays, so that threw me off a bit. I was also up late for the game, fueled by adrenaline after a late tip-off. My wife and I ended up going chair shopping in Sarasota yesterday, our second visit there in the past week. We also gorged ourselves on Amish cooking at Der Dutchman and had no need for dinner, another unusual twist to the week. The night ended with an I.U. women’s basketball victory over #2 Ohio State.
In the middle of my run today, I suddenly realized it was Friday already. Jogging has at least been a consistent habit for me. That hasn’t changed in the last fourteen years, as “The Streak” now stands at 5,143 consecutive days. I also did not vary from my 3.1-mile course and was not rushed into a shorter distance. In addition, I’ve done a lot of writing this week, adding to the chapters in my Storyworth ramblings. Nothing much is planned for the weekend when traditional partying is done. We got it out of the way early this week, and that was the beginning of my retirement confusion.
This is a continuation of my last post where I listed my Top 10 Sports Moments (See Post #2257). However, there were just too many others that need to be mentioned. Because of my media connections and extensive travel opportunities, I’ve had the good fortune to attend 9 Final Fours (New Orleans 1982, Minneapolis 1992, Indianapolis 1991, 2000,2006, 2010, and Houston 2011) and 4 World Series, plus numerous auto races, games, championships, playoffs, tournaments, inaugural events, matches, stadiums and venues. To recall all of this was all a real test for my memory banks, aided greatly by diary mentions.
I grew up in Elkhart, Indiana, about 100 miles east of Chicago. There was little in the way of sports on TV when I was a kid, but on occasion my dad would take me to games in The Windy City. I wanted to see Mickey Mantle play, so we went to Comiskey Park, home of the White Sox. We also went to Wrigley Field and on one trip, he took me to lunch in the Prudential Building with Jim Coker, a catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies. I also had an uncle who coached football at the University of Notre Dame and a cousin, Denny Murphy, that was an Irish tight end. I remember meeting him at a game against Cal. In addition, he took me to a N.D. basketball game at the Athletic and Convocation Center (ACC) that looked like a giant bra. These were my first personal connections with top athletes. I went back to Notre Dame in 2017 for the stadium remodel, my boss, a N.D. grad, gave me front-row seats for the unveiling.
My dad would often take me to high school basketball games at nearby North Side Gym, one of the largest in Indiana. He knew John Longfellow, the coach for the Muncie Central Bearcats, one of the best teams in the state. I got to go into the locker room after the game, another brush with greatness. Other than the annual high school basketball tournament, this venue mainly hosted some concerts, professional wrestling with Dick the Bruiser, and Roller Derby matches when the Bay City Bombers would come to town. Before single-class basketball was eliminated, I watched a classic battle for high school supremacy from our Hoosier Dome suite that I could never had imagined when I first went to Hoosier Hysteria games with my dad. A national record 41,046 were in attendance in 1990 when future I.U. star Damon Bailey led Bedford North Lawrence to the title, upsetting top rated and undefeated Concord High School and future NBA star Shawn Kemp 63-60. Concord was only about 15 minutes south of my hometown. It would be the last of 61 consecutive IHSAA finals sell-outs.
By my 10th birthday, I had lost interest in the Yankees and took my dad’s suggestion of picking a team closer to home. As the White Sox played in the 1959 World Series, I was able to watch on black & white TV my catching idol, Sherm Lollar of the Sox play for the first time. We did go to a few games to see him in person, but I never got to meet the man. He and his teammates have become the main focus of my baseball card collection and lifelong allegiance to the Sox.
I wrestled in high school and ran some track, but sports surprisingly were not a priority. Elkhart High was a big school with over 1000 students in my graduating class. We were state champions in football, wrestling, cross-county, and track, but I remember only occasionally going to Blue Blazer games or meets. I chose Albion College in Michigan after actually considering Purdue and played some intramural flag football for East Hall and eventually my fraternity Sigma Chi. I probably also attended a homecoming football game to watch the Britons. My frat brothers were hot on hockey and talked me into a Red Wings game. I also went to Milwaukee in 1971 as a weekend getaway and ended up at my first NBA game to watch Lew Alcinder and the eventual champion Bucks’. Outside of Chicago baseball, these games were my initial foray into professional sports.
A year later, I transferred to Indiana University, rode for the Sigma Chi Little 500 team, and settled into an apartment with my high school classmate, Alan. I do not remember going to an I.U. game at the old fieldhouse, but I do recall a blowout win against Notre Dame at the new Assembly Hall. I met George McGinnis at a party and began to follow the Hoosiers. I must have come back to Indianapolis in 1971 from Bloomington to see my high school team compete for a state championship. I couldn’t get tickets for the game that was played at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse on the campus of Butler University where the movie Hoosiers was filmed. I ended up watching the game on TV at the Sigma Chi house across the street. The Blue Blazers topped New Castle, and future I.U. big man, Kent Benson 75-70 in 3-overtimes. Benson led the undefeated Hoosiers to an NCAA title in 1976, an accomplishment that hasn’t since been repeated. A loaded East Chicago Washington squad won the championship game 70-60, but without ticket connections, I must have gone back to Bloomington. Ironically, I would never have to want for a ticket ever again!
I do remember getting excited about I.U. basketball when they made it to the Final Four in 1973 but lost to UCLA. I had a flat tire that morning and badly cut my hand on a piece of glass trying to fix it. I still have the scar as a reminder. The next few years, despite marriage and the birth of Adam, I became obsessed with basketball for the first time since I played in grade school and went to basketball camp.
I began to follow sports even more once I got in the radio business and began to sell sponsorships for Blue Blazers basketball and football, plus Hoosier Hysteria, Notre Dame, Purdue, and I.U. games throughout the season. Eventually, our family moved to Ft. Wayne, another hockey town, anchored by the Comets on our 50,000-watt competitor and music became my major selling point. Free concert tickets and trade were job bonuses. Plus, working with our National rep I began to travel to New York City, Boston, Chicago, and Detroit. I went to Yankee Stadium, Fenway Park, and Tiger Stadium. I also worked a deal with the Chicago Sting and played against the Harlem Globetrotters. However, it wasn’t until I got the job at WIBC radio in Indianapolis that I truly found my calling. I now had the Indianapolis 500, Colts, Indians, and Pacers to promote.
As a newcomer to the Capital City, I was asked by station management to host our suite for the Coca-Cola Circle City Classic. It was more than a football game between two black universities, it was a halftime battle of the band’s extravaganza. Apparently, no one else wanted to do it! This was my first experience with entertaining at events and would become the key to seeing every major sporting event or concert that came to town. The station had suite and hospitality access at Market Square Arena, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Hoosier Dome, and Victory Field. I also made my own partnership deals for racing through The Machinists Union, BRG Sports, Blackburn Sports Marketing, and Indianapolis Raceway Park. Many of these deals transitioned with me when I moved to WISH-TV. In addition, CBS Sports had almost every major sporting event from the Masters to the Superbowl, along with baseball and the Olympics.
Beat The Pro was a promotion we sold at the insistence of my golf-loving boss. I had to spend most weekends on the golf course measuring distances to the pin. The only benefit for me was tickets to a White Sox suite, another memorable sports experience. I also earned a similar day at the park with the Wheel of Fortune syndicators. I was never in a suite at Wrigley, but they did have a club that served hot dogs on fancy Cubs’ china plates. They have since updated their facilities.
During my time in Indy, I attended and worked with the AAA Indians at Bush Stadium where we had both press box seats and season tickets. I once celebrated on the field with Randy Johnson after a league championship. In addition, I frequently took clients to Colts training camp and on the field. World Gymnastics once did an exhibition, the U.S. Track and Field Championships and NCAA Finals provided autograph sessions with Gayle Devers and Michael Johnson, the PGA Championship came to Crooked Stick Country Club, while John Daly was the upset winner. NCAA Swimming and Diving was another big draw for the city. I also had ringside seats for a gruesome light heavyweight bout won by Marvin Johnson. Finally, I sat many times on the floor to watch the Pacers and Reggie Miller, including the NBA Playoffs.
When I moved to Lafayette, it was all Purdue, but I.U. came to town at least once a year in basketball and every other year in football. I quickly learned that when Purdue won, business was better, so I put my Hoosier allegiance on hold. Plus, my mother-in-law was a big Boiler fan, so I presented her with front row seats for a game. I also had press passes, hospitality, and a beautiful stadium suite. I got close to the Purdue Athletic Director, along with Black & Gold Magazine and expanded our local coverage with the Joe Tiller and Gene Keady Shows. My wife was at WISH, so we continued to benefit from suite access to concerts and events. We saw Cathedral, where her girls went to school, win the state high school football title at the Dome. We also went with clients to the RCA Tennis Championships, with hospitality and great seats. During that timeframe, I played on the WISH softball team, as well as the traveling Pearson Group club, that appeared in the Media World Series held in Dallas, Phoenix, and Ft. Lauderdale. Add three more World Series to my list! I would eventually go to Omaha and the College World Series but only as a spectator.
Most of my attention was still focused on racing, like the Indy 500, but I tried to diversify with other speed events like the U.S. National Drags and the Carquest Sprint Series at Raceway Park. They were each a far cry from the New Paris Speedway dirt track and the side-show demolition derby that I went to back in high school. While still part of the Indy media, I once spent an entire IndyCar season as a weekend warrior, going from track to track around the country. I was on the pit crew at Mid-Ohio and worked with sponsors at Elkhart Lake, Michigan International, the Milwaukee Mile, PIR, Monterey, and Laguna Seca. I also got tickets for the inaugural Las Vegas 400 Nascar Race. This all started when we would supplement our broadcast media packages with show car appearances, suite hospitality, driver endorsements, and sponsorship logos. However, in the month of May I was usually at the track with my all-access Gold Badge every day working these partnerships.
Years later, the track expanded to include Nascar’s Brickyard 400, Formula One’s U.S. Grand Prix, an IROC Series, and the Brickyard Crossing PGA Championship. I was there for all four of these inaugural events and in the future secured tickets through my wife to the Daytona 500 and Austin’s Circuit of the Americas. We’ve also used her connections to see the Mariners and Seahawks in Seattle, the MLB All-Star Game/Home Run Derby in Miami, and several Portland Trail Blazer and Timbers MLS games, including a Playoff match. Most of the Blazer games were from the suite, but one was another unforgettable front-row seat.
It’s been a long time since I’ve been back to Bloomington, but I’ve still managed to keep up with I.U. sports. I’ve been to Ann Arbor, Champaign, West Lafayette as previously mentioned, and East Lansing for games and went to Seattle to watch the baseball team play Oregon State at T-Mobile Stadium. I drove to both the Liberty Bowl and Independence Bowl to experience Hoosier football, but never smelled the roses. My wife and I also traveled up to North Texas for an I.U. gridiron loss against the Mean Green. I’ve seen the Hoosiers win at Conseco and Lucas Oil Stadium and lose year after year in the Big Ten Tournament. They did not make the Big Dance when it was held exclusively in Indy, but I was there in the midst of the pandemic. Hoosier soccer fell short in the championship game I attended in Santa Barbara with a college friend. Twice, I’ve followed the Hoosiers to Hawaii for the Maui Classic. On the first occasion I met Bob Knight and got his autograph.
The Oregon Ducks became a favorite when we moved to Portland. I’ve been to both Autzen Stadium and Matthew Knight Arena. I’ve also seen them win in the Rose Quarter aka Moda Center for two Phil Knight events. Oregon State also played there. Plus, friends and I went to two Les Schwab Invitationals to watch several prospective college recruits impress the scouts. While living in central Illinois, we supported the Illini, so Assembly Hall was our new home for basketball and Memorial Stadium for football. I sat with retired Coach Lou Henson for a game.
On the NBA front, I’ve been to America West in Phoenix to watch the Suns, Orlando to see the Magic at Amway Center, and to San Antonio’s AT&T Center for the Spurs, long after that initial big-time-basketball exposure at Milwaukee County Stadium while I was still in college. The Pacers and Blazers were the result of station-owned season tickets. The Knicks were always the favorite team to visit, especially when Reggie and Spike Lee were at each other’s throats.
I’ve never been to the Olympics but have experienced the Olympic Track & Field Trials in Eugene after it was delayed a year due to Covid. I also sat and watched the Olympic Freestyle Championships in both Breckenridge, Colorado and Stowe, Vermont when I was there on ski trips. Speaking of games on ice, exposure to the game of hockey has been sadly limited to the Ft. Wayne Comets, Indianapolis Ice, the Detroit Redwings 50 years ago, and the Portland Winterhawks a few years ago at Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum.
Another of my bucket list goals, was a Super Bowl. We had access to tickets every year but never wanted to pay the price. It likely will never happen, but I certainly can’t complain about a lack of big tickets throughout my lifetime. I thought about going to Miami when the Colts played the Bears, but honestly couldn’t decide on which team to support. My first football love was Johnny Unitas and the Baltimore Colts, who conveniently moved to Indianapolis in the middle of the night. However, the ’85 Bears had pushed the needle once again to Chicago sports. I’ve been to Soldier Field and continue to follow the Bears after all these frustrating years. I’ve worked closely with the Colts players and coaches through the years and have been to several Playoff home games. Road games have been in Houston and Chicago. I saw the Bears play in Indy.
The one Chicago team that has had the most success is the Bulls. I was never a fan and actually picked a suite game the year after Michael Jordan retired. I tried to give them away, but no one was interested. The Pacers Market Square Arena suite was nothing more than a long couch in a closet positioned behind a glass panel. It was hardly fit for entertaining but came with extra tickets and a bartender. At the last minute, I ended up giving them to Adam and hours later M.J. announced his return. They were suddenly the hottest tickets in town and Adam reaped the benefit. His friends were even previously reluctant to go, but I remember his pager (prime technology at that time) buzzing like a hive of wasps on our coffee table just before game time. It was certainly one of his greatest sports moments. We probably could have made a fortune selling them, but scalping was illegal, and they were technically the station’s tickets. I just didn’t want to go through the hassle of unloading them because no one really knew I had somehow picked them at the beginning of the season.
Baseball has endured as a consistent favorite from early childhood throughout today. I’ve already shared my stories of Chicago and Detroit games growing up and the four World Series attended. I never went to a college baseball game in Bloomington but got into it when we lived in Austin and learning the phenomenal record of longtime coach Texas Longhorn coach, Augie Garrido, who won two College World Series in his tenure. It was really the first time that I sat down and watched the entire tournament, inspiring me to attend one day. While in Portland, I began to follow the Oregon State Beavers and went to a few of their games at Hillsboro Stadium, home of the Hops, and at Portland State.
I enjoy baseball but it’s often boring, too many times ideal for a nap. It’s easier to mention the Major League stadiums I haven’t been to: Milwaukee’s Miller Park, Minneapolis, San Diego, Philadelphia, Arlington’s Globe Life Field, Atlanta, Montreal, Arizona, and Oakland. Two stadiums, Coors Field and Progressive Park in Cleveland I’ve only just jogged around, while I saw the Texas Rangers play in their former Arlington home from a luxury suite. Our Dallas TV station carried their games, but Covid prohibited a planned visit to the new facility two years ago. I’ve also been to Minor League Stadiums in Round Rock, Texas to see The Express, Jupiter Beach for the Cardinals, Surprise AZ, Charlottesville FL, Hohocum Scottsdale, and Cool Today, our neighborhood Braves Spring Training facility. The other day I drove around the Baltimore Orioles’ Buck O’Neil complex in nearby Sarasota.
Visits to Cooperstown, the College Football Hall of Fame, and recently the NFL Hall of Fame rekindled many emotional sports memories. Recently, my wife and I went to see our local Venice High School Indians host a football playoff game, with thoughts of her two girls at the Hoosier Dome championship game we all went to before our marriage years ago. My dad gave me a love of sports at all levels, and we shared this passion throughout life. It continues with Adam and his favorite teams since childhood, the Dolphins and Cubs. What will be our next great moment?
I’ve certainly had my share of great stadium accommodations, including luxury suites for the Colts, Pacers, St. Louis Cardinals, Longhorns, Purdue, Texas Rangers, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Circuit of America, Portland Trailblazers, and Chicago White Sox, plus front-row seats for the Pacers, I.U., Trailblazers, Boilermakers, and Notre Dame. I’ve been on the field, in the pits, sat in the Press Box, celebrated on the court, and frequented numerous VIP sections and hospitality rooms watching a variety of sports from the Domes to the Velodromes. With this in mind, I’m challenged to pick my Top 10 Lifetime Greatest Sports Moments.
Although we didn’t have the usual great seats, we were fortunate to even secure tickets to Game 5 of the first World Series at Wrigley Field to see the Cubs win on Halloween Eve of 2016 (#3). The night before we were there for the loss against the Indians. (#4) Both games will forever be near the top of my list, but overall, I’ve been to four World Series in three cities, Chicago, St. Louis, and Cincinnati. The White Sox opening game win against the Astros at Cellular One in 2005 was the beginning of a four-game sweep. I had media passes for that game and rode with my WAND-TV camera crew. (#5).
Several other unforgettable events for me happened at Wrigley, including Sammy Sosa’s 61st and 62 homers on Sunday, September 13, 1998. (#6) My dad, son, and best friend were with me that day. The following year on Opening Day a special Tribute was held for announcer Harry Karay on April 3rd. He died February 18, 1998, and never got to watch that great season-ending showdown between Mark McGwire and Sosa. McGwire was the home-run king with 70, but both have failed to make the Hall of Fame after steroid suspicions. Adam, Gavyn, and I have a commemorative brick at the park thanks to my wife. The “3-generations” first got together for a game on September 10, 2007, and the Cubs won 12-3 over the rival Cardinals. (#7).
The top two moments on my list would have to be at the Louisiana Superdome in 1987 when I.U. Basketball won the National Championship. Keith Smart’s winning shot happened in front of my eyes on Monday, March 30, 1987, against Syracuse. (#1). Two days earlier, Steve Alford beat UNLV on the same court. (#2) It was an unbelievable road trip with Bill, Mark, and two close friends of Peter, who set the whole trip up but couldn’t go because his father passed.
The three final Top 10 sports moments were more about the transportation than the events themselves. A friend flew me to Bloomington on his private plane from Ft. Wayne for an I.U. basketball game. I don’t remember the date or game details, but this special V.I.P. treatment will always stand out in my mind. (#8). Similarly in 1998, I was whisked into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway by helicopter while entertaining our television station owner, Craig McCaw. A golf cart took us to the Hullman Suite to watch the race and the same chopper brought us back downtown, avoiding the massive crowds. (#9) Last but not least was the Chauferred, PINK limousine that took two close friends and I to a big Monday Night Colts Game at the Hoosier Dome. It was Halloween night, and we wore costumes that you had to see to believe. One buddy and I were dressed as George Dickel whisky bottles with a twist-off cap as headgear. The other pal was Colts running back star Eric Dickerson, but in this case, “Dickelson.” Each of us wore pink tights. On the back of our outfits, it read, “We’re Dickeled Pink to be here.” Never, have we attracted more attention, including a newspaper article with pictures. We, of course, celebrated the victory with shots of George Dickel. (#10).
I am a hardcore sports fan, but it’s rare when I don’t write about my favorite teams. There are too many times when I’ve wished I’d picked winners to support. I shunned Notre Dame growing up because their fans were obnoxious, spoiled winners. I was fortunate that Indiana University had so many good teams in numerous sports throughout the years.
On last year’s road trip, I stopped by Tuscaloosa, Alabama to see my half-sister, and she graciously took us on a tour of the campus where she works. The University of Alabama is far enough away that I don’t have to put up with their undoubtedly ugly fans. The campus is apparently haunted as the former site of an experimental psychiatric hospital. Plus, I’m sure the ghost of Paul “Bear” Bryant still has a presence, especially on game day. As a fan, my half-sister always ends her notes to me with, “Roll Tide,” so I wrote this poem for her:
Rock, and Roll Tide
In Tuscaloosa,
They’re on a roll.
And hope to rock you,
With the winning goal.
Their mascot,
Has a trunk.
Why is that?
I’ve often “thunk.”
Does it have,
A Red Neck?
Or say Y’ALL?
With due respect.
“Big AL” roams the sidelines,
And leads some cheers.
But he’s got wrinkles,
And Elephant ears.
The campus ghosts,
Come out to play.
And join Bear Bryant,
For each game day.
The fans are pumped,
The stands are packed.
Soon Twenty titles,
Could be a fact.
But Tigers and Bulldogs,
Get in the way.
Gators and Razorbacks,
Think they can play.
They’re led by a man,
Known as Saint Nick.
He’s won seven trophies,
With a temper that’s quick.
Volunteers and Rebels,
Try to compete.
Aggies and Wildcats,
Can’t take the heat.
The red wave is coming,
That will strike them all down.
And all these imposters,
Will be run out of town.
What’s a War Eagle?
Or a Commodore?
Gamecocks extinct,
And Rebels no more.
Bryant-Denny’s,
A special place.
A hundred thousand,
Party space.
Script “A” and Circle,
The logo to wear.
“Dixie’s Football Pride,”
Where losses are rare.
When you go into battle,
Be on the right side.
‘Bama forever,
Rock, and Roll Tide!
Copyright 2023 johnstonwrites.com
I have written on many occasions about the “Rule of 60” or the “Magic of 60” in following Indiana University basketball through the years. Looking back on the beginning of last season, I thought that the Bobby Knight magic might have been reincarnated with the hiring of Coach Mike Woodson. Defense was once again a priority as I reread Post #1950 and expectations were high. They have now sunk to a new low after Penn State’s record 18 3-pointers. Two more and they would have gotten sixty-points from solely beyond the arc.
The first to 60 usually wins, was my magical formula for victory, dating back to a McDonald’s promotion when I was in college. It was a simple challenge – hold the opponent under 60 and you win free food. This was before the 3-point shot was ever a factor, but I still find that 60 rules! It remains a magical mark in college basketball, but not of late for Indiana. It worked in their only Big Ten victory so far this season against Nebraska with the score 62-41 with 9:23 remaining in the game. It also took a historical triple-double from Trayce Jackson-Davis. Only Steve Downing in 1971 and Juwan Morgan in 2018 had achieved this feat.
The Hoosiers then almost pulled out a victory against Arizona after trailing by 19 early but narrowed the gap to only 59-56 before the bottom fell out. TJD was showing signs of back problems and did not play the next two games against Elon or Kennisaw State, but the worst was yet to come. Kansas easily got to 60 first, leading 60-42 at the 11:35 mark after the porous Hoosier defense gave up 44 in the first half. Xaviar Johnson suffered a broken foot in this 23-turnover disaster. Kennisaw State hit their first 5-3’s and surprisingly matched the short-staffed Hoosiers through the first half only to fall 69-55.
After the New Year, with Jackson-Davis back in the lineup against Iowa, Race Thompson went down with a knee injury while the Hoosiers raced to an impressive 21-point road lead. The Hawkeyes battled back to make it 59-58 with 12:40 remaining and took their first lead a minute later at 61-58. IU did get to 60 first but after squandering such a big lead the “Rule of 60” did not hold up and Iowa prevailed 91-89. Northwestern then easily beat us to 60 at home with 41-points in the first half and an 84-83 upset despite 33 from Jalen Hood-Schifino. That brings us up to the 85-66 debacle at Penn State, our largest loss margin against the Nittany Lions in history.
Here we stand at 1-4 in the BIG with pre-season expectations of a championship long unrealized. Wisconsin is next to come to Bloomington with a 5-game winning streak and 9-1 record over the hapless Hoosiers in recent matchups. It gets even worse if you go back to 2010 with the Badgers dominating 20-3. It does not look promising for the hobbled Cream and Crimson, especially after already proving that they are vulnerable even at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. It will take a lot of magic to win this game and right the sinking ship.
Giving up on average nearly 70-points a game, IU defense is far from magical. #1 Houston gives up only 52.9-ppg. Keeping your opponent under 60, among other factors, is what it takes to be a top contender. Sadly, at least so far, it’s the death of 60 for this year’s Hoosiers.
I was born on August 27,1951 and was officially adopted in late October. I have some basketball genes in my DNA thanks to a birthfather who apparently played high school ball for North Vernon. However, it was the man that I called “dad” who introduced me to the game as a fan. He must have taken me to several high school games when I was a kid, but one was particularly memorable when he embarrassed me by yelling loudly, “You Hamburger” after a referee’s questionable call.
I made the Rice Elementary grade school basketball team in fourth grade but was a better dribbler than shooter. I would practice in our basement in the winter months, maneuvering around chairs. The low ceilings would only accommodate a round Quaker Oats container with the bottom removed to serve as a basket, mounted on a cardboard backstop. The “ball” was a wad of tin foil formed in a round shape that would fit in my hand. This is how I would reenact the annual Indiana High School basketball tournament, alternating between dribbling the real ball and shooting with the fake one. Remember, there were no video games to keep me entertained back then. At the same time, I would listen to the game broadcasts on WTRC, the local radio station where I would eventually work. By the time spring came along, I could dribble with the best of them, but “couldn’t hit the side of a barn.”
My mom and dad did send me to a skills camp every year, but they also moved me to Beardsley School in the sixth grade, where the kids on the team were much taller. It was the end of my basketball career, although I still loved to watch. “Junior Basketball Camp at Taylor University, the biggest, bestest, camp of all, with plenty of versatility. Bounce the ball down the floor, in the hoop for a score,” were the words of the camp song to the best of my recollection. All my Rice Krispie teammates were there, along with the bigger Beardsley Bomber bullies. In fact, every kid in Indiana that had dreams of winning a high school state championship was a fellow camper. However, four years was apparently not enough for me to ever start a game.
March was a special time in Indiana growing up, but there was always still the threat of snow. The tourney usually started in late February, and I would make a bracket to hang on the wall, filling in the teams around the state that would win their respective Sectional. As time went on, the Peter Eckrich Company would print special posters of the bracket in limited quantities, and I would scheme to get one. The unique thing about this elimination tournament was that all schools were part of a single-class system of competition regardless of size. The Elkhart High School Sectional was played in my North Side Junior High gym, one of the largest in the state seating 7,373. It opened in 1954, the year that the movie Hoosiers took place and tiny Milan High won the big prize. Adding to my love of the game, when the tourney took place at our school, the classrooms were closed. It was even better than a “Snow Day.”
I’ve always wondered how my love of this game evolved. I can only guess that it started with my parents, who as Indiana University grads, cheered on the 1953 Hoosiers who won the NCAA Championship, now known as the “Big Dance.” It was the second time that they won all the marbles and I’m seen in baby pictures wearing an Indiana t-shirt. Maybe this is where it all started. I also have the same temperament as my dad when it comes to watching the game as a fan but have never called a referee a “Hamburger.”
Despite not living in Indiana for nearly three decades, I still follow the tourney every year and continue to dream of making that last second shot to win it all. My high school has never won this state championship, even after it’s now been divided into classes by size of the school. However, it’s still the David vs. Goliath matches of the past that command all the attention. With an enrollment of only 161, the 1954 Milan Indians beat the giant, Muncie Central, to claim the coveted trophy. In their drive to the title that year, Milan nearly lost in the “Sweet Sixteen” to a school with only 14 students, seven boys and seven girls, from Montezuma High, who didn’t even have a gym. The Aztecs practiced in a basement with a low ceiling just like I did as a kid, but I doubt they used foil. Milan proved to be impossible to beat when they went into their famous cat-and-mouse stall game, long before the shot-clock became a factor.
I love this kind of history when it comes to Indiana High School Basketball and tried to pass that on to my son. He was scared of the Blue Blazer that was my high school mascot and instead rooted for our opponent’s furry Tiger. His claim to fame with the sport was two runners-up team trophies in the local Gus Macker Basketball competition. He was also the unofficial barber for his future high school’s state championship team, the Lawrence North Wildcats of 1989. My eighth-grade son volunteered our bathroom for the head shaving ceremonial ritual and left a mess of hair and blood for us to clean up. It’s Tourney Time!
My resolutions have been updated and I’m ready for the New Year. The first big change will be the golf cart in the garage. Today, we did joint errands with our one remaining car, as I dropped my wife off for a pedicure. I picked up some medication, dropped off a license plate at the BMV, got the oil changed, and tried to get a car wash. They, of course, could find no record of my visit a few weeks ago when I was promised a month of free car washes. I thought they would route me through anyway but instead they went through the trouble of removing some barricades to allow me to exit. Chances are I won’t be going back there again.
I’m looking forward to the bowl games, even though Indiana football will once again not be participating. I feel like I made the wrong choice of schools and regret not going on for a Master’s degree so I’d have another team to support. I’ve tried to adopt the hometown schools where we lived through the years like Illinois, University of Texas, Oregon, and Oregon State but it’s just not the same as rooting for the Hoosiers – good or bad. I grew up in Elkhart, Indiana, so neighboring Notre Dame would have been a likely choice, but that didn’t work out either. I also partnered with Purdue University for years when I was with WLFI-TV in Lafayette, Indiana, but the home state Boilers are still too much of an I.U. rival to always find endearing.
I’ve made a lot of bad choices picking teams through the years. I’m sure the Atlanta Braves are worried that I’ve moved nearby their Spring Training facilities. I can hear them saying, “please don’t pick us.” The Cubs, White Sox, and Bears have already suffered enough with me as a fan. The Indiana Pacers and Portland Trailblazers have also found me to be undesirable. “Adopt the team where you live,” they’ve urged me as we’ve moved from market to market. I’ve now owned homes in six different states with little to show for it. Fantasy sports have proven to also be disastrous for the players I select. “Please don’t pick me to be on your team. I beg of you!”
You would think that I could have made a fortune gambling against all these teams but that has proven to backfire, as well. Ever since I went the wrong way on the basketball court as a kid, sports have become my frenemy. I enjoy watching but don’t dare risk picking a side. Only the 2016 Cubs have proven me wrong after years of frustration. Come to think of it, I never really claimed them as my team but followed them regularly so I could engage in conversations with my dad, son, and nephew, who were avid fans. I even saw them win a World Series game! By the same twist of fate, the White Sox had one good year in 2005, after I had stuck with them as my team for 46 years. I saw them win two World Series games that year, another highlight of my unrewarding sports history.
I hope that 2023 is a good sports year for me, but I won’t hold my breath. I doubt that I will make it to Wrigley Field or Guaranteed Rate Stadium, formerly Comiskey Park, this year, although I have great memories of attending games with family. We saw Mickey Mantle play at Sox Park and watched Sammy Sosa launch two homers at Wrigley to top Babe Ruth’s historical mark. There are too many father/son/daughter moments to recall, but win or lose, from generation-to-generation, baseball is always our greatest bond.
The evolution of professional baseball is a tough road to follow and many cities throughout the United States lay claim to the origin. Ft. Wayne, Indiana is one of those many roots of the sport, dating back to just after the Civil War when the National Association of Professional Baseball Players was established. The creation of the game itself is accredited to Abner Doubleday in 1839. Elihu Phinney’s Cooperstown, New York cow pasture was ruled to be the first place it was ever played. Ft. Wayne claims to be the sight of the first ever professional baseball game in 1871 and the very first night game in 1883.
The Ft. Wayne Kekiongas hosted the Cleveland Forest Citys on May 4, 1871, resulting in a 2-0 victory for the home team. It sparked citywide excitement that led to the building of a new stadium called the “Grand Dutchess.” Two months later the Kekiongas withdrew from the league with a 7-21 record and the stadium was later destroyed by fire. The game of Trivial Pursuit credits the Kekiongas as the future Los Angeles Dodgers, but this connection is more likely a result of their league dues paid by a Brooklyn team that eventually became the Dodgers, who were officially founded in 1884.
The Kekiongas name was reclaimed in 1953 by the former GTE Voltman semi-pro team, Indiana State Champions, who lost their GTE sponsorship and joined the newly formed Ft Wayne Civic Baseball League. According to the book, Baseball in Fort Wayne by author Chad Gramling, a 1953 exhibition game against the Chicago White Sox was played. I could not find a box score from that game, but the Sox lost and Sherm Lollar most likely was the Chicago catcher, wearing #10 for the first time in his career, according to the White Sox opening day roster posted by Baseball Almanac.
In 1952, Red Wilson wore #10 while Lollar donned #45, his first year with the White Sox. He came to Chicago in a trade that sent Joe DeMaestri, Gordon Goldsberry, Dick Littlefield, Gus Niarhos and Jim Rivera to the St. Louis Browns for Lollar, Al Widmar, and Tom Upton. After a season together, Red Wilson must have let his catcher have the lower number and took #26 instead. For Lollar, it had been jersey #9 with the 1949-1951 St. Louis Browns, and #29 in 1947 and 1948 with the Yankees. Back in 1946 with the Indians, he was #12.
“Sherm Lollar was one of the top catchers in the major leagues in the early post-World War II era. Though he played with the New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians and St. Louis Browns, Lollar spent the vast majority of his career (12 years) with the White Sox,” 11 of those years he wore #10.
“Lollar has 1,415 career hits, 155 home runs, 808 RBIs, and a lifetime .264 average. A solid defensive catcher, he maintained a .992 fielding percentage behind the plate and gunned down 47% of all runners attempting to steal, which is a very high average.”
“In total, Lollar was named to nine all-star teams, he won three gold glove awards and earned a World Series ring with the 1947 Yankees.”
The Lollar trade from St. Louis, reported above, has me confused because Manuel Joseph “Jim” Rivera was supposedly part of that deal, but like too many baseball stories there is conflicting information. Nonetheless, “Jungle Jim” was Sherm’s White Sox teammate from 1952-1961 before “Big Jim” was traded to the Kansas City Athletics and Lollar retired from the game in 1963. This next excerpt is from the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel November 17, 2017. “Jungle Jim” Rivera, an outfielder on the 1959 “Go-Go” White Sox pennant-winning team, died Monday in Fort Wayne. He was 96.“
By RICHARD BATTIN
“Did you know Babe Ruth played baseball in Fort Wayne?
His visit here 65 years ago this month is just part of the city’s rich and colorful baseball history.
It was a cloudy day in early May 1927, when Ruth and the rest of the New York Yankees arrived in Fort Wayne by train.
The Kekiongas played the Chicago White Stockings, later the White Sox, that summer. Chicago lost so badly that the fans threw rocks at the Kekiongas’ carriage, injuring many of the players.
The team was then named the Kekiongas, like the team from 1871. It was sponsored by the Capehart-Farnsworth Co., which made appliances.
In 1950, the team went to Wichita and won its fourth national title in a row. The team went on to Japan and won the world semi-pro baseball championship. It was the first world championship won by a city team.”