LOOKING BACK

 The Corbin Redhounds have run into a little turbulence near the mid-point of the high school basketball season. The schedule has been demanding with a mounting number of bumps, bruises and nagging injuries, and with other distractions have taken their toll.

I have every confidence that under the direction of Coach Tony Pietrowski and his staff the bumps in the road will smooth out and this team will be a top contender for the 13^th regional championship.

That being said, certainly I want to congratulate Coach Patrick Robinson and the Williamsburg Yellow Jackets on their win over the Redhounds Friday night. The enthusiastic followers of the Yellow Jackets cheered on their bright young coach and their smooth shooting guard Jarod Barton as they battled the Redhounds tooth and nail and came out victorious in a big district game.

In the mid-seventies I was almost totally immersed in softball, as I played and coached a team that played around 80 games a year with a group of guys that became like family.

There was Danny Reasor, Jerry Cassidy, Bruce Bundy, Ralph Centers, Billy Rose, the Lankster brothers, Jim, Jerry and Branson, Pete Yates, J. W. Carmen, Hugh Cossmine and a new guy who came into town the summer of ’74 named Glenn Maguet.

Glen was a good player and became a good friend.

It was particularly pleasing to me to see on Friday during the Williamsburg game Glen’s grandson, Caleb Maguet, take the floor for the Redhounds and demonstrate excellent court awareness, ball handing ability and a sweet shooting touch. Like his grandfather Glen did for our softball team nearly forty years ago maybe Caleb can give the Redhounds a boost?

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I ran into Bill Jones after the Redhound game Friday and he told me his son, Taylor was attending the Naval Academy and doing fine, and I also ran into Brody Freeman who is readying himself to play on Western Kentucky University’s tennis team. You can bet Brody will be competitive.

Isaac Wilson and his Alice Lloyd Eagles will play at Berea Thursday. Currently Isaac leads the team in scoring and assists. These are three fine young men that Corbin High School should be proud to have represented them.

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High school basketball in the state of Kentucky lost one of its most ardent fans with the passing of Corbin resident Larry Root. Larry was a season ticket holder for the Corbin Redhound games and attended the boys state tournament for over 60 years in a row before failing health stopped his streak two years ago. Mr. Root was 88 years old. When I think of Larry, he will be wearing his light blue cardigan sweater and enjoying a round of golf, or sitting court side at Rupp Arena.

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The Kentucky Wildcats continue to roll, as they picked up their first SEC win by downing South Carolina Saturday at Rupp Arena. It appears Terrance Jones has come out of his coma, as he scored 29 points against the Gamecocks.

The ‘Cats are now going to be tested severely as they hit the road in the SEC, first against a rather hapless Auburn team before going to Knoxville to take on a Tennessee team fresh off an upset of Florida.

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When I was a boy, we played whatever sport that was in season, As time went by a few of my buddies decided to concentrate their efforts in one direction whether it be basketball, football or baseball. In several situations, most often in basketball, this total dedication has paid off in scholarships. That is the upside.

There is a risk, however as in many times when a youngster begins playing at an early age and devotes himself to year around involvement, he can burnout, most often mentally,

You have to have a real love for the game to reach your full potential without crossing the line.

Jerry Smith, class of 1959 Corbin Redhound, was the most dedicated, hard working, young men I ever knew. Jerry worked on his basketball game year around before it was fashionable to do so.

There was no summer AAU ball in those days, but Jerry labored under the hot summer sun on the outdoor court of the YMCA on Third Street in Corbin.

Jerry earned a scholarship to Furman University where he became an All-American and later was drafted by the Detroit Pistons of the NBA.