Given what I wrote yesterday, in reality, I guess I was only quasi rather
than semi recruited by Carolina, but I was definitely semi recruited to play
football by Wake Forest. East Meck head coach, Don Hipps, SS teacher at St
John’s Baptist and prodigious as well as prolific purveyor of extremely
creative profanity and vulgarity, as, when chastising Martin Brackett for
sluggish performance at Monday morning pre-season practice, Coach inquired
as to whether he’d spent the weekend sitting around playing with his
colorfully characterized male member, had played blocking back in the
single-wing at Wake, maybe under Peahead Walker. I don’t know whether Hipps
put in a good word for me at Wake or not (if he did, he didn’t tell me), but
an assistant coach invited me up for their opening game of the ’63 season
against Va Tech.
The Demon Deacons had going the longest losing streak in major college
football, 19 in a row. I guess I drove Mom’s Mercury Meteor, or was it the
black Mercury Comet, Mercury’s answer to the Ford Falcon, up to Winston to
see the game. I don’t remember anything about seeing or talking with the
coach or players. All I remember is that when the final whistle blew, Wake
was 0-20. I suppose I remember 2 things, the other being that Dickie Kelly
play wingback for VPI. Dickie was 3 yrs older than me and a terrific
football and baseball player. He went to jr hi at McClintock, just down Rama
Rd from us, and I saw him pitch a game when he was in the 9th grade. He was
a southpaw. It was the bottom of the last inning, the Fighting Scots were up
by 1, there were 2 out and the bases were loaded. He worked the count to 3
and 2. The crowd, 25-30 of us, was going crazy. The opposing coach called
time and went out to give the batter his words of wisdom. Then Coach Tom
Ligon went out to impart his wisdom on Dickie. The next pitch was out of the
strike zone but the batter, like Casey, took a mighty cut and missed. But,
unlike in Mudville, there was much joy on Rama Rd that day, ca. 1957. Dickie
went to Garinger after McClintock where I’m sure he was a nemesis to the
Eagles on the gridiron and the diamond, and where he was coached by Don
Hipps, then an assistant at Garinger before becoming East’s head coach my
junior year.
The Deacons still hadn’t broken their losing streak when I was invited up to
their homecoming game against South Carolina. I asked the coach if I could
bring along our quarterback who, though not being recruited, was thinking
about walking on, so Bill Carr, not only not our QB but as far as I know,
one who had never put on the pads, went with me. Bill was mentioned in my
story about Grandma Dora, but I’ll tell you a little more about him, the
accuracy of which he can dispute as he’s an emailee hereof.
The Right Reverend Dr and Colonel William Bryant Carr, Jr and I became
almost life long friends when his dad, Bryant came from Durham to be pastor
of Matthews Baptist Church in Matthews, NC, a 1, or at that time, probably
no stoplight crossroads in southern Mecklenburg Co, site of Matthews School,
grades 1-12, from which my dad graduated as valedictorian in a class of
probably 25 or less from the then 11 years of school in 1924 or 5 (he was
born February 27, 1908, the last of his 11 siblings, twins Dot&Don were born
on his 22nd birthday, and I was born on his 38th birthday) and my mother the
year after. The Carrs came when Bill and I were in the 4th or 5th grade if I
recall correctly. Bill went thru the 9th grade at Matthews and we joined
forces at East in the 10th, where he was president of our class all 3 years.
Being a good Baptist, and, I guess, entitled to some financial assistance as
a PK, he went to Mars Hill College for 2 yrs where he and our friend, Chris
Pappas, MH student body president, learned to drink Blue Ribbon and
pontificate, yea, even preach on a stump in the woods, not the Bridges, of
Madison Co. Maybe feeling he was predestined to do so and also maybe
realizing that the earnings that could result from a Davidson College
diploma would way more than atone for the lost $ aid at MH, he joined me at
Davidson his junior year. We started UNC law school together but after his
first year, Bill decided the law wasn’t calling loud enough, so he fulfilled
his ROTC commitment by serving in the Army medical corps in Viet Nam. Then,
fulfilling his predestiny, he went to Columbia Presby Cemetary, oops,
Seminary in Atlanta and became a Presby purveyor of the Word, getting his Dr
at McCormick in Chicago. He’s served churches in Arkansas, SC and several in
Atlanta and now lives with his wife, Jan, on Lake Lanier, where, when he’s
not singing in his church choir, playing trumpet in his geezers brass
ensemble, fly fishing for trout in the Ga mtns or bottom fishing for salmon
in Alaska, or attending veterans functions as a retired Colonel in the Army
chaplaincy corps, he’s on the tractor or feeding his cows at his gentleman
farm outside Gainesville, Ga. I was best man at Bill’s marriage to Joyce
and, as I previously mentioned, he was at mine to Janet. When his marriage
ended, I told him all I could think of as the cause was that I’d had a
better best man than he did.
So, Bill and I go up to Wake on Friday afternoon where I introduced him to
the assistant coach as the walk-on QB prospect I’d told him about. He’d
gotten us a room at a fraternity house, which were part of the dorms, and
meal tickets for supper and Saturday breakfast and lunch. I don’t remember
what we did that nite. We didn’t know anybody in the frat or elsewhere at
Wake that I recall, but I do remember it was loud, very loud, very late.
The next morning the assistant coach showed us around the football
facilities and then took me, I guess Bill felt like Corne, Brackett and I
did at Carolina, left waiting in the hall, in to meet the head coach, Billy
Hilldebrand. The only thing I remember from the meeting was Hilldebrand
saying that he’d told his players at the pre-game meal that they had a good
chance to break their losing streak today against SC because they had
Clemson next week and they didn’t have a prayer against the Tigers. That’s
all I needed to hear about Wake Forest football. I wouldn’t have played for
Hilldebrand if he’d offered me 2 scholarships, a new Mustang, and an
apartment with the head cheerleader as a roommate, none of which he offered.
I don’t remember whether he told me I was a prospect or not, because I don’t
think I heard a word after the comment about his teams’ prospects.
Wake ended its drought against the Gamecocks. Their star was running back
Brian Piccolo of the movie Brian’s Song fame. I think he set a school
rushing record in the game. Their winning streak ended at 1 when yes, as
predicted, Clemson kicked the crap out of them the following Saturday.
The next time I was on the Wake Forest campus was spring ’67 when, after
applying to its law school, Bill and I came up for the required personal
interview with law school Dean Carroll Weathers. A tall, distinguished
looking at least sexa and probably septugenarian, Dean Weathers had to
satisfy himself of the character of anyone wanting in his law school and
ultimately in his bar. He had a copy of my transcript and was impressed that
I was taking a Greek course my final semester. I didn’t tell him the course
consisted solely of reading and discussing with octogenarian Davidson
classics professor James Bailey Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey in English. He
then asked such softball questions as whether I wanted to become a lawyer to
make money or help humanity. I didn’t stumble over that one. Dean Weathers,
wherever you are, looking back over my 37 years practicing law, I’m not sure
i did much of either. He ended the interview by saying he knew I would make
a good addition to the law school and pointed me to the married student
housing office. When I reminded him that either I hadn’t yet taken or hadn’t
yet gotten the results of the LSAT, I don’t remember which, he said he was
sure that I would do fine, and admitted me on the spot. That may have been
the first time I actually witnessed a door opened to me by a Davidson
diploma.
I was admitted to and attended UNC law school, a better and much cheaper
school.
Janet and I drove thru the WF campus when we were in WS this spring for a
medical appointment at Bowman Gray for her. I wasn’t particularly impressed
with its campus in ’63 or ’67 as it was still fairly new and the trees and
shrubs were small and the ivy young, but now it’s beautiful, flowering,
leafy, very impressive, particularly to parents who are trying to decide
whether it’s worth $60k to send their kids to. Pretty sure none of my
progeny, Emma (13) or Anna (11), son Tom,Jr (UNC ’90) and wife, Kim’s
daughters, or Sam (17) or Sophie (13), son Tim (Davidson ’95) and wife,
Sara’s kids, will be going there or to any other educational institution
which is a financial sinkhole.
Last nite, after hearing about Simone Biles unbelievable first ever
gymnastic stunts, I googled her and found she turned down a scholarship at
UCLA and is enrolled in the University of the People. I googled it. It’s
amazing and tuition free. No need of Morehead or athletic scholarships. Its
motto is The Education Revolution. It has 20,000 undergrads and 5,000
postgrads, including an MBA program. Probably won’t be long before it has a
law and maybe even med school. Wikipedia doesn’t say if it has a mascot, but
I’ll recommend one; Go Bernies!
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