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Linda Weiner (Bennett)

Holy Name did indeed have grade school football and basketball for boys. I cannot remember much about either. We were very poor parish so not sure where funds came from. Our pastor was a tight wad so... Our star player in every sport, Mike Green, attended DeSales. I hear he was famous there. Dan Barford and Dave Roush were probably good but my memory is stretched to the max. I also need help with this. 

At HNS any girl could be cheerleader without try-outs. Nearly all of us were (small school). We were lousy and the other cheerleaders laughed at us, but I don't think it bothered us much. We were having fun.

Linda Weiner (Bennett)

 I must add a plug for Mark's book. I have to admit that I could not get into his music (sorry, Mark) but this Hat Fluffers book is just a riot (as we said in younger days). Give it a try. 

Mark Schweickart

Linda - Thanks for the plug, much appreciated.

Dave - I think your comment, "HUH?" is referring to Larry's comment about "padiddles." As I remember it, if when driving with a girl one saw an on-coming car with one headlight out, you shouted out "Padiddle," and the girl was obliged to give you a kiss. Both headlights out was a "Double Padiddle" which was supposedly worth more benefits. However, everytime I happen to see either a single or double Padiddle, I was invariably without female accompaniment, so those passing portents of potential playfulness were always less fun than intended.

David Mitchell

Okay, thanks Mark. I must have missed that part of my youth.

Dan raises an interesting point about the Watterson Hall of Fame. I don't follow that stuff much, but if those three (and Brad Nielson, and.......) are are not in it - why not?  

And I could nominate my oldest daughter Sara, and Sheila (Siedel) Graham's ("64) son Keith. They both came into Watterson in upper classes and both raised the level of the swim team's performance quite noticeably. But both were somewhat resented by the rest of their teammates who had been on the team since freshman and they all knew one another. It seemed my Sara, and Keith Graham's, dominance drew more resentment than encourageement (including a few parents). 

Sound familiar to any of you who transferred in in later years - sports or not? I know two ladies and at least one guy in our class who struggled with our "exclusivity" when they transferred in from Toledo and Dayton (and a local boys school). Teenagers can be hard on one another. 

Lawrence Foster

Sorry Dave that you missed out on the padiddle during youth.  Mark's memory of the  rules is the same as mine but there was a second part of the rules for the girls.  If they called out the padiddle first they had the option of either bestowing the kiss or giving a "firm pat" to the boy's cheek - or a firm slap depending on how the date was going.  

However, over the years the rules seemed to change and it was not a dating game.  When my son Eric was in 5th or 6th grade I was driving him and a friend  some place.  They were in the back seat when one of them called out padiddle on the other and then punched him on the arm.   When I heard them holler out padiddle I had to ask what was going on.  They said that it was a game where the first person to see it gets to punch the other person.  I told them how it used to be played when I was in high school.  They went dead silent for the rest of the ride and I never heard of it being played again.         

James Hamilton, M. D.

Back to grade school sports:

I remember well Saturday basketball games at Watterson's gym and our IC team playing against most of the other schools that were "feeder" parishes to BWHS.

Football games were played on our "home field" (Como Park) or at parks where other grade schools used fields. St. Andrew had their own field which was adjacent to the school/old church which, I believe, is still there (?Fred). We played other schools in football which were not feeder schools to Watterson including St. James the Less, St. Ladislas and even Lancaster St. Mary's. Lancaster was our first experience of playing outside of the city of Columbus and I recall a real "mud bowl" game against them when we were in 7th grade.

Baseball games and practices were played at a field in the lower part (closer to the Olentangy River and the building where they had those summer dances) of Whetstone Park. Our coach was one Jim Lawson (Kevin Cull: remember him?). I don't remember all the school teams we played but I know some of our "away" games were possibly in the dowtown/southern part of the city.

To those IC'ers who may have better memories than I, please correct me if you recall differently.

Jim

Mary Clare Hummer (Bauer)

Mary Clare Hummer (Bauer)

David Mitchell

Clare,

Love the photo. I can clearly pick out Stan (33 - front row) but struggling to recognize any others. I thougth I'd a least recognize Frank Strange.  

Jim,

I disitinctly remember pitching against you guys on a week night at one of the Whetstone diamonds way down in back closest to the river. First game of the season. I Posted this in deatial about a year ago (about my magic curve ball that eventually disappeared). I sort of remember your face, and Brad, and Bucky, Kevin and Brian, but not many others. It was my first start and as I mentioend, I either hit or walked so many batters we could hardly get through the first inning. So Kevin Ryan replaced me, (with no better control of his pitches) and finally Joe Royce replaced him. They had to call the game after an inning and a half for darkness. Score; I.C., 18 (mostly runs walked in) -- OLP, 0 !

Fred Clem

Dave,

I don't see Frank Strange's name on the list.  I think just John Strange is mentioned.  Is John his actual first name?

David Mitchell

No Fred, that's Frank's younger brother. 

Fred Clem

So Frank Strange wasn't on the team?

David Mitchell

Just or fun - I do a little driving for a car service as a backup job. Last week I picked up 6 people at Hilton Head's little airport on the "private" side - special people who travel on Net Jets. My passengers were OSU Coach Urban Meyer, Athletic Director Gene Smith, and four others - I guy I didn't know, and two wives and - (I believe) another female coach or athletic dept. employee. Dropped them at a very large house (an "Alum", I assume) on a golf fairway on the course at nearby Colleton River - where they once shot the golf scenes for "Legend of Bagger Vance" with Will Smith and Matt Damon.

I made them listen to my story about my dad's history (posted months ago) with the stadium from a boy playing in the construction of the "shoe" (including the bit about dropping the frogs from the top of the closed end), to head of a Med School Department, and my own luck of growing up with free tickets to everything - athletic and then some. They loved it!  

p.s. for those unfamiliar I should add - Hilton Head Island and now Bluffton are loaded with Ohioans, and one sees Ohio plates and Buckeye decals on about very fifth car. Also Michigan. There is an Ohio State pizza restaraunt on the Island and a Michigan bar.

(In case you visit here, the Ohio State place is Mangiamo's Pizza on "Main Street" (across form the north Harris Teeter grocery shopping center) near the northern end of the Island. Multiple TV screens with every OSU game - home or away. And I think, basketball also.)

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If you look online at USA Today's site there is an interesting picture article today about "Columbus Ohio's Craft Coffee Scene". (scroll down and see a green heading bar titled "EXPEREINCE" with photos below to click on.)

James Hamilton, M. D.

Lawrence Foster

Football Roster.

I remember, either from a conversation or from reading an earlier post, that when we reached 7th grade a weight limit rule had been made by the participating schools.  No boy over 120 pounds could play.  As I understand it IC had a lot of big fellows from earlier years and the teams were unfairly matched.  Perhaps there had been some injuries.  Brad Neilsen and others of a larger size had to play in a league at Whetsone Recreation Center.  My family had moved back to Columbus for 7th grade and I had played football at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas and wanted to play here.  But I was over 120 pounds and we did not learn about the Rec League until halfway through the season.   The weight limit would explain why Frank and others are not on the roster.

Ther are two #38 in the photo.  Standing in the back row to the left might be Tim MacCauley.  In the middle row on the far right side looks like Charlie Krueger to me.

Joseph Donahue

I think that I am sitting next to Stan in the front row. I can’t explain the lack of shoulder pads. As I recall, we did not win a game that year. I think we did tie Our Lady of Victory the last game of the year. 

I was not a very good player but did start. I remember trying to tackle Jesse Watson and either missing him entirely or hitting him and bouncing off. Whatever happened to Jesse?

Kathleen Wintering (Nagy)

I seem to remember Jesse Watson attending Upper Arlington High School ?? Kathy Wintering

John Maxwell

David Mitchell

Kathy,

I'm pretty sure Jesse did go to Arlington.

And Joe,

Although I didi not play football, I recall some games in high school of us non-football team members down at Whetsone. No pads but real tackle.K ind of insane but a lot of fun. I remember you and Stan and maybe Dan Brown, and Tommy Swain, but not too many others. And I layed a cross body block on you during a kickoff that had us both a bit shaken. Not too smart!

*** I am really insulted that none of you - after all this athletic talk - have even mentioned my illustriuous basketball career at Watterson. As some may recall, there was a tryout for freshamn basketball that only included the freshman football team and it was several nights of full scrimages. Apparently some parent(s) called the school office and voiced there anger at this, so a non-football tryout was arranged for the freshman basketball team. I beleive it was Pat Mannion, Ron Shay and (maybe?) Charlie Mentel that night in our gym. We were told to form a layup line and dribble in from the foul line and shoot layups. My turn came, I dribbled in and made my layup. As I continued on under the basket, Ron Shay was stationed there and spoke to each guy. He told me to "go over with that group" so I did. We learned about ten minutes later that we were the group that was cut. Pretty disappointing! 

So I was determined to make the JV team as a sophomore. And somehow I did. And I rode the bench all year with Tom Dodsworth. We always sat down at the end of the bench and Coach Mentel called on us so seldom we kind of got used to not playing. I think we combined for a total of 5 points between us for the season.   

I was the 5th guard and had to play behind Tom Litzinger (which I was okay with), Mike Hill (who had this sort of "jumper" that seemed so easy to block - but wasn't  - frustrating the heck out of me), little Mike Kaylor (one quick, tough little player), and Alan Morse (who drove me nuts with that low trajectory "jumper"). Note: Tom McKeon who had becme my best high school buddy was already on the Varsity as a sophomore, so I didn't have to contend with him (thank God!).

The reality was that I could shoot, but that is absolutely all I could do. I couldn't jump, couldn't dribble, and couldn't move my feet quick enough to play defense. When it hits you that you're really just not that good it's hard - especailly at 15. But when you are standing at the foul line in your own gym, pausing before you shoot, and you hear your own cheerleaders on the sideline - about to do their "Sink It Dave, Sink It" - and you hear them whipsering on the sidelines asking "What 's his first name?" - you kind of know you're basketball future isn't very promising.  

** Curious to know if anybody knows where Tom Dodsworth or Mike Kaylor have gone?

James Hamilton, M. D.

John Maxwell

David Mitchell

Uhhh Jack,

That sure looks like you in the front row third from left????

John Maxwell

Mark Schweickart

I remember that freshman basketball tryout, but a little differently. First, I did not know it was a special tryout for non-football players. That was interesting. I also do not remember it being at night. I thought it was just after school one day. I remember during the little warm up period we were all taking jump shots, and luckily  I happened to swish a couple, which I think got me noticed. Anyway, I made the team, but like the description of riding the bench all season and never playing--that was my experience as well. I was determined to do better the following year, so practiced like crazy during the summer. I even got my parents to spring for a my first pair of Converse All-Stars. But then the tryouts came, and some nobody, named Dave Mitchell, beat me out to take that enviable spot on the end of the bench. I wonder whatever happened to that guy? We never seem to hear from him.

Kathleen Wintering (Nagy)

 Happy 70th  Birthday, Dave! Kathy Wintering March 16,2018