December 11
74-44 over Rhode Island. I expected a much tougher game. We dominated from the opening whistle. +18 RBs! 10 TOs. Fouls were 12-25. 10, 11, 3 for Rigs, 16, 4 for Hall, 15, 5, 4 for Bent, 12, 6 for Toby, 7, 10 for Vurn, 8, 2, 3 for Ross. This is about as well as we can play.
3-3 San Francisco is in this week. These guys could sneak up on us if we are not careful.
Loretta leaves for New York on Tuesday. She’ll be there for three days. Her grandmother is going with her.
December 18
74-63. 20,9, 3 for Rigs, 21 for Bent, 10, 4 for Toby. +15 RBs. We played really well again tonight.
One more pre-conference game, at 2-6 Loyola-Chicago. They’re having a tough time but they’ve played a difficult schedule, and they are from a much stronger conference than ours.
Loretta and her grandmother are back at home. She says the people evaluating the audition had some very complimentary things to say. She says she was nervous but felt that she had done well. We should know about both acceptance and financial aid before the end of the year.
December 25
63-58 at Loyola-Chicago. This was a struggle. We didn’t take the lead for good until 2:22 remained in the 2nd half. 63 is the lowest number of points we have scored this season. 17, 8 for Rigs, 10, 6, 2 for Daws. Bent fouled out but Ross did a very good job filling in. It is good to be tested, especially when we pass the test.
We end pre-conference play at 7-2, RPI #14. +7.1 PPG, +4.3 RBPG, +2.8 TOPG.
If we keep winning I think we may be ranked in the top 25. That would be wonderful!
We open conference play with 3-6 Alabama A & M here, then we travel to 4-5 Alcorn ST.
We had a nice holiday. We all had a chance to speak with Wallace. He is doing very well, averaging 10.3 and 8.6.He is definitely Cal’s best big man.
Loretta received a telegram at school. It said: “Juilliard proud to accept you as freshman fall 1960. Hope you will accept offer of full scholarship. Details to follow by mail.”
Ours was a very happy household! Callie and I are not certain how we feel about having a child on each coast; visiting will be difficult. But two children with full scholarships is wonderful.
Grambling Rose
Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Tue Nov 17, 2015 11:44 pm
- Wayne23
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Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Wed Nov 18, 2015 4:10 am
January 1, 1960
61-39 over Alabama A & M. 17, 4, 2, 2 for Bent, 13, 6 for Vurn. 8 TOs (+11). Second game where we don’t score well but the defense was terrific. We gave up 12 in the first half!
59-51 at Alcorn ST. I’m not sure where the offense went but we’re playing very good defense. 18, 5 for Rigs, 10, 5 for Vurn, 11 for Bent, but 7 TOs. The game was close for about 32 minutes.
This week we play MS Valley ST, 9-2, 1-1, here, then travel to 2-9, 0-2 Prairie View.
The letter from Juilliard arrived. Loretta is getting a completely full scholarship. She will work 15 hours per week in concert related activities but everything is paid- tuition, room, board, books and study materials, and she will receive $10 per week for spending money and incidental expenses.
This is a better deal than Wallace has at Cal. New York is an expensive city so we will try to send Loretta money when we can, but we certainly will not need to send a great deal.
January 8
76-74. We escaped, but barely. We never trailed after the first few minutes but MS Valley ST tied it three times late, and came within 2 points on several other occasions. At the end they missed a 15 footer, but it was well defended. 22, 5 for Rigs, 16, 7 for Hall, 11, 7, 3 for Vurn. We took 14 fewer shots, and that was a huge factor. Still, it is a win.
Bad news. Our sixth man, Don Toby, broke his wrist. He may be back for the post season, but it is too soon to say. Big loss; he’s been playing very well. Cory Barr will get his minutes.
43-60. Perhaps we were due for a game like this. We were awful, never in it. Rigs fouled out in 12 minutes, we shot poorly, 24 TOs, 4 fouls for each of our three top guards- nothing went well. At times the best thing to do about a night like this is to forget it and move on.
We are now in a four way tie for 1st place, but the season is young.
We host 7-6, 3-1 Ark-Pine Bluff, then go to 8-5, 3-1 Jackson ST, so we play two of the three teams tied with us for first place.
It seems that Ruth Ann has been exchanging letters with both Dr. and Mrs. King. She says she receives a letter from one or the other about once each month. I find this incredible and wonderful. I am amazed that these two very busy people would take the time to correspond with a 14 year old. Ruth Ann says they tell her that if she studies hard and does well in school that they will need her help when she graduates high school. They advise her to go to college, but she can work with them during summer vacations and school breaks. They also advise her to be very careful about the people she speaks with. They understand how dangerous things are for us here.
January 15
57-41. Good defense got us through again. Our starters all had between 8 and 13. 10 RBs for Vurn, 8 for Rigs, 7 for Cory Barr. 8 TOs (+8), +10 RBs. Reserve SF Ken Reis strained a knee. He’s out for a week. Ken doesn’t play much but we’re getting very thin.
56-46 over Jackson ST. Defense does it for us again. Great game for Rigs, 23 and 9.
Two at home this week. First it’s 5-10, 2-4 Southern, then 5-10, 2-4 Alabama ST.
Wallace continues to play well. He was named conference player of the week. He had 15 and 7, then his first double double, 11 and 14.
Callie’s father is not well. He has a weak heart, and he is very short of breath.
January 22
73-53 over Southern. 18, 5, 3, 3 for Pat Hall, 17 for Daws, 12, 5 for Rigs, 12, 3, 3 for Bent, 6, 7, 3 for Vurn. 8 TOs (+14). The offense was back tonight and we played very well.
77-47 over Alabama ST. 7 players had between 7 and 14 points. +11 RBs, 10 TOs.
We are alone in first, one ahead of Alcorn ST. But 6 of our last 10 are on the road. We’re at 14-3, 7-1. RPI is #24.
This week we’re at 7-10, 4-4 Texas Southern, and then at 6-11, 3-5 Alabama A & M.
January 29
69-53 at Texas Southern. 24 and 7 for Rigs, 20, 4, 2 for Hall. +7 TOs. We are playing extremely well since that terrible outing at Prairie View. Five straight wins, none of them close games.
We now hold a two game lead in conference.
65-58 at Alabama A & M. This was close until near the end. 22 lead changes, 10 ties. Then, after the last media time out we went on a 14-3 run. 20, 2, 5 for Daws, 14 each for Hall and Rigs. 14 RBs for Vurn. +8 RBs.
Second place Alcorn ST, 11-8, 7-3, is here; we won by 8 there. Then we go to 12-7, 4-6 MS Valley ST. We beat them by only 2 at our place.
As expected recruit Jeff Duke did not hit our SAT score. We’re looking at several more recruits.
Wallace continues to play well. He is averaging 11.9 and 9.0. If he continues it looks like he may make the conference all star team.
Wallace tells us he will major in biology, which makes his mother very happy.
Ruth Ann remains calm. She does a great deal of reading, books of all kinds, Negro magazines, and the three major news magazines.
Thankfully her school has a good library. The school has very few resources. The textbooks are so old they are falling apart. Classrooms have at least 30 students. There is no gym, and the lunch room, which does not serve food, doubles as the auditorium and stage. But the library is good. They do not have an extensive collection of books but they subscribe to about a dozen good magazines. I believe Ruth Ann reads all of them.
61-39 over Alabama A & M. 17, 4, 2, 2 for Bent, 13, 6 for Vurn. 8 TOs (+11). Second game where we don’t score well but the defense was terrific. We gave up 12 in the first half!
59-51 at Alcorn ST. I’m not sure where the offense went but we’re playing very good defense. 18, 5 for Rigs, 10, 5 for Vurn, 11 for Bent, but 7 TOs. The game was close for about 32 minutes.
This week we play MS Valley ST, 9-2, 1-1, here, then travel to 2-9, 0-2 Prairie View.
The letter from Juilliard arrived. Loretta is getting a completely full scholarship. She will work 15 hours per week in concert related activities but everything is paid- tuition, room, board, books and study materials, and she will receive $10 per week for spending money and incidental expenses.
This is a better deal than Wallace has at Cal. New York is an expensive city so we will try to send Loretta money when we can, but we certainly will not need to send a great deal.
January 8
76-74. We escaped, but barely. We never trailed after the first few minutes but MS Valley ST tied it three times late, and came within 2 points on several other occasions. At the end they missed a 15 footer, but it was well defended. 22, 5 for Rigs, 16, 7 for Hall, 11, 7, 3 for Vurn. We took 14 fewer shots, and that was a huge factor. Still, it is a win.
Bad news. Our sixth man, Don Toby, broke his wrist. He may be back for the post season, but it is too soon to say. Big loss; he’s been playing very well. Cory Barr will get his minutes.
43-60. Perhaps we were due for a game like this. We were awful, never in it. Rigs fouled out in 12 minutes, we shot poorly, 24 TOs, 4 fouls for each of our three top guards- nothing went well. At times the best thing to do about a night like this is to forget it and move on.
We are now in a four way tie for 1st place, but the season is young.
We host 7-6, 3-1 Ark-Pine Bluff, then go to 8-5, 3-1 Jackson ST, so we play two of the three teams tied with us for first place.
It seems that Ruth Ann has been exchanging letters with both Dr. and Mrs. King. She says she receives a letter from one or the other about once each month. I find this incredible and wonderful. I am amazed that these two very busy people would take the time to correspond with a 14 year old. Ruth Ann says they tell her that if she studies hard and does well in school that they will need her help when she graduates high school. They advise her to go to college, but she can work with them during summer vacations and school breaks. They also advise her to be very careful about the people she speaks with. They understand how dangerous things are for us here.
January 15
57-41. Good defense got us through again. Our starters all had between 8 and 13. 10 RBs for Vurn, 8 for Rigs, 7 for Cory Barr. 8 TOs (+8), +10 RBs. Reserve SF Ken Reis strained a knee. He’s out for a week. Ken doesn’t play much but we’re getting very thin.
56-46 over Jackson ST. Defense does it for us again. Great game for Rigs, 23 and 9.
Two at home this week. First it’s 5-10, 2-4 Southern, then 5-10, 2-4 Alabama ST.
Wallace continues to play well. He was named conference player of the week. He had 15 and 7, then his first double double, 11 and 14.
Callie’s father is not well. He has a weak heart, and he is very short of breath.
January 22
73-53 over Southern. 18, 5, 3, 3 for Pat Hall, 17 for Daws, 12, 5 for Rigs, 12, 3, 3 for Bent, 6, 7, 3 for Vurn. 8 TOs (+14). The offense was back tonight and we played very well.
77-47 over Alabama ST. 7 players had between 7 and 14 points. +11 RBs, 10 TOs.
We are alone in first, one ahead of Alcorn ST. But 6 of our last 10 are on the road. We’re at 14-3, 7-1. RPI is #24.
This week we’re at 7-10, 4-4 Texas Southern, and then at 6-11, 3-5 Alabama A & M.
January 29
69-53 at Texas Southern. 24 and 7 for Rigs, 20, 4, 2 for Hall. +7 TOs. We are playing extremely well since that terrible outing at Prairie View. Five straight wins, none of them close games.
We now hold a two game lead in conference.
65-58 at Alabama A & M. This was close until near the end. 22 lead changes, 10 ties. Then, after the last media time out we went on a 14-3 run. 20, 2, 5 for Daws, 14 each for Hall and Rigs. 14 RBs for Vurn. +8 RBs.
Second place Alcorn ST, 11-8, 7-3, is here; we won by 8 there. Then we go to 12-7, 4-6 MS Valley ST. We beat them by only 2 at our place.
As expected recruit Jeff Duke did not hit our SAT score. We’re looking at several more recruits.
Wallace continues to play well. He is averaging 11.9 and 9.0. If he continues it looks like he may make the conference all star team.
Wallace tells us he will major in biology, which makes his mother very happy.
Ruth Ann remains calm. She does a great deal of reading, books of all kinds, Negro magazines, and the three major news magazines.
Thankfully her school has a good library. The school has very few resources. The textbooks are so old they are falling apart. Classrooms have at least 30 students. There is no gym, and the lunch room, which does not serve food, doubles as the auditorium and stage. But the library is good. They do not have an extensive collection of books but they subscribe to about a dozen good magazines. I believe Ruth Ann reads all of them.
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Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Wed Nov 18, 2015 8:41 pm
February 5
48-57 at home to Alcorn ST. Just a terrible night. We didn’t make shots when we needed to. Our defense was awful, especially our outside defense. Bent fouled out and Daws, Ross, and Rigs wound up with 4 fouls each, had to play carefully throughout the second half.
We had 17 TOs. And to top it off, Pat Hall strained a knee and will be out for about a week and a half. That’s two key big guys who are out with injuries.
Hopefully we can rally over the next couple of games. It will not be easy.
66-81. 25-47 at the half. We played better in the second half. 23, 11 for Rigs, who really tried to make up for how thin we are up front. Vurn, Barr, and Ken Reis didn’t give us much. 20 for Bent and 10 for Daws but both were in foul trouble all night.
We’re in a two way tie with Alcorn St, 2 up on the rest of the field with 6 to play.
This week we host 6-15, 4-8 Prairie View. Then we go to 11-10, 7-5 Ark-Pine Bluff. Pat Hall should be back for the second game.
We offer to PG Tom Duke, #156.
Wallace twisted that weak ankle. He didn’t miss any time as it happened late in Cal’s 2nd game of the week. He is day to day.
Loretta is corresponding regularly with Juilliard. It is their practice to give incoming freshmen a mentor in their field. She is working with a classical pianist who gives her pieces to work on, and evaluates her classical compositions.
February 12
65-56. 18, 5 for Barr, 14, 6 for Rigs, 15, 3, 3 for Bent. 10 TOs (+7)
We retake sole possession of first place.
56-68 at Ark-Pine Bluff. 16, 3,2 for Bent. 12 for Rigs but he fouled out again. Pat Hall had 9 and 4 in his first game back. -6 RBs and poor defense, especially outside, hurt us.
Foul trouble remains an issue, especially on the road. Our starting guards had 4 fouls each again.
Alcorn ST lost so we remain alone in first, but now three teams are one game back of us.
This week 14-9, 9-5 Jackson ST, tied for 2nd place, is here. We won by 10 there. Then we go to 7-16, 4-10 Southern. We won by 20 here.
Wallace is still having ankle trouble. He played in both games this week, but only about 20 minutes in each.
We’ve never seen Loretta happier.
Ruth Ann continues to read, read, read. She is fiercely committed to change but the Kings have helped her to understand that these are complex issues and dangerous times, and that patience is important. For an eighth grader she is showing a great deal of maturity. Our children all did very well in school during the first semester. Wallace made Dean’s List again, and the girls both had nearly all A grades.
Callie and I discuss her future when we move- assuming we are fortunate enough to do so. She would love to find a way to pursue her Ph.D. in Biology. I fully support that. If Ruth Ann is able to get even a half scholarship when she reaches college age I think we may be able to find a way.
Callie’s father continues to be in ill health, not worsening, but not improving. Callie’s mother is in great health and she has tremendous energy. She does almost all of the cooking for the family, and along with Loretta and Ruth Ann, all of the housekeeping work as well. I don’t know what we would do without her.
February 19
69-60 over Jackson ST. Daws had 18, 3, 2, and Bent had 14, 6, 2. When our guards stay out of foul trouble they can do some damage. 16 for Pat Hall, 8 and 7 for Vurn. +11 RBs.
71-54 at Southern. 23 for Hall, 14, 5 for Rigs. Foul trouble for all three of our guards again but we overcame it with a 30-16 edge in points in the paint, and 17-6 in fast break points.
Only Ark-Pine Bluff is one game back of us. There are two games left in the regular season. First we travel to 10-15, 7-9 Alabama ST. We won by 30 at home. Then we finish at home with 9-16, 6-10 Texas Southern. We won by 16 there.
Don Toby isn’t ready to come back but he is back at practice.
February 26
42-57. We shot 33.3%, 20% in the 2nd half. Bent played 10 minutes due to fouls and Daws played 22 for the same reason. 20 TOs. Hall had 12 and 5 but no one else did much of anything.
We put the pressure on ourselves. We need to win our last game to finish first and host the tournament.
51-31. Lowest winning score all season. 21, 4, 3 for Rigs, 14, 5 for Hall, 16 for the entire rest of the team! 7 TOs helped (+18).
We win the regular season conference title, and Don Toby will be ready for the start of post season play.
We close regular season play at 20-7, 13-5. RPI is #32. +6.7 PPG, +3.8 RBPG, +2.3TOPG.
We will get a bye into the semifinals.
Wallace closed the regular season averaging 9.7 and 8.0. He played several games hurt, with limited minutes, which drove down the averages. Still, a great regular season.
Callie’s father is in the hospital. Of course our hospital is not very good being Negro only, but his doctor is a dedicated man.
48-57 at home to Alcorn ST. Just a terrible night. We didn’t make shots when we needed to. Our defense was awful, especially our outside defense. Bent fouled out and Daws, Ross, and Rigs wound up with 4 fouls each, had to play carefully throughout the second half.
We had 17 TOs. And to top it off, Pat Hall strained a knee and will be out for about a week and a half. That’s two key big guys who are out with injuries.
Hopefully we can rally over the next couple of games. It will not be easy.
66-81. 25-47 at the half. We played better in the second half. 23, 11 for Rigs, who really tried to make up for how thin we are up front. Vurn, Barr, and Ken Reis didn’t give us much. 20 for Bent and 10 for Daws but both were in foul trouble all night.
We’re in a two way tie with Alcorn St, 2 up on the rest of the field with 6 to play.
This week we host 6-15, 4-8 Prairie View. Then we go to 11-10, 7-5 Ark-Pine Bluff. Pat Hall should be back for the second game.
We offer to PG Tom Duke, #156.
Wallace twisted that weak ankle. He didn’t miss any time as it happened late in Cal’s 2nd game of the week. He is day to day.
Loretta is corresponding regularly with Juilliard. It is their practice to give incoming freshmen a mentor in their field. She is working with a classical pianist who gives her pieces to work on, and evaluates her classical compositions.
February 12
65-56. 18, 5 for Barr, 14, 6 for Rigs, 15, 3, 3 for Bent. 10 TOs (+7)
We retake sole possession of first place.
56-68 at Ark-Pine Bluff. 16, 3,2 for Bent. 12 for Rigs but he fouled out again. Pat Hall had 9 and 4 in his first game back. -6 RBs and poor defense, especially outside, hurt us.
Foul trouble remains an issue, especially on the road. Our starting guards had 4 fouls each again.
Alcorn ST lost so we remain alone in first, but now three teams are one game back of us.
This week 14-9, 9-5 Jackson ST, tied for 2nd place, is here. We won by 10 there. Then we go to 7-16, 4-10 Southern. We won by 20 here.
Wallace is still having ankle trouble. He played in both games this week, but only about 20 minutes in each.
We’ve never seen Loretta happier.
Ruth Ann continues to read, read, read. She is fiercely committed to change but the Kings have helped her to understand that these are complex issues and dangerous times, and that patience is important. For an eighth grader she is showing a great deal of maturity. Our children all did very well in school during the first semester. Wallace made Dean’s List again, and the girls both had nearly all A grades.
Callie and I discuss her future when we move- assuming we are fortunate enough to do so. She would love to find a way to pursue her Ph.D. in Biology. I fully support that. If Ruth Ann is able to get even a half scholarship when she reaches college age I think we may be able to find a way.
Callie’s father continues to be in ill health, not worsening, but not improving. Callie’s mother is in great health and she has tremendous energy. She does almost all of the cooking for the family, and along with Loretta and Ruth Ann, all of the housekeeping work as well. I don’t know what we would do without her.
February 19
69-60 over Jackson ST. Daws had 18, 3, 2, and Bent had 14, 6, 2. When our guards stay out of foul trouble they can do some damage. 16 for Pat Hall, 8 and 7 for Vurn. +11 RBs.
71-54 at Southern. 23 for Hall, 14, 5 for Rigs. Foul trouble for all three of our guards again but we overcame it with a 30-16 edge in points in the paint, and 17-6 in fast break points.
Only Ark-Pine Bluff is one game back of us. There are two games left in the regular season. First we travel to 10-15, 7-9 Alabama ST. We won by 30 at home. Then we finish at home with 9-16, 6-10 Texas Southern. We won by 16 there.
Don Toby isn’t ready to come back but he is back at practice.
February 26
42-57. We shot 33.3%, 20% in the 2nd half. Bent played 10 minutes due to fouls and Daws played 22 for the same reason. 20 TOs. Hall had 12 and 5 but no one else did much of anything.
We put the pressure on ourselves. We need to win our last game to finish first and host the tournament.
51-31. Lowest winning score all season. 21, 4, 3 for Rigs, 14, 5 for Hall, 16 for the entire rest of the team! 7 TOs helped (+18).
We win the regular season conference title, and Don Toby will be ready for the start of post season play.
We close regular season play at 20-7, 13-5. RPI is #32. +6.7 PPG, +3.8 RBPG, +2.3TOPG.
We will get a bye into the semifinals.
Wallace closed the regular season averaging 9.7 and 8.0. He played several games hurt, with limited minutes, which drove down the averages. Still, a great regular season.
Callie’s father is in the hospital. Of course our hospital is not very good being Negro only, but his doctor is a dedicated man.
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Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Thu Nov 19, 2015 2:15 am
March 3
#5 seed MS Valley ST upset #4 Jackson ST so we play them in the semifinals. This is a tough match up for us. We won by only 2 at home, and lost by 15 there; they scored 81, the most we’ve given up all season. The tourney is here at Grambling, and that will help. We need to stay out of foul trouble.
March 4
73-54 over MS Valley ST. 29, 8, 2, 4 for Rigs who was a huge factor. He held his opponent scoreless (3 RBs), and the backup had 2 and 2. 15, 6 for Hall, 9, 8, 5 for Vurn. +12 RBs. Points in the paint were 32-6. We won this one inside.
#2 seed Alcorn ST, 17-11, 12-6, won their game so we play them for the title. We won by 8 there, and lost by 9 here, so who knows.
March 5
60-50 and the title! Fouls almost did us in. Bent only played 13 minutes. Fortunately, Den Ross did a great job filling in. Our two inside players both had 4, but Don Toby was a giant from the bench, 18, 9, 3, 4, and the MOP.
22-7 going to selection day.
We should get a much better placement in the tournament this year. An 8 is probably unrealistic but a 9 or 10 seems possible with an RPI of 24.
Cal lost in their tourney semifinal.
March 12
Not in the East.
Not in the South.
#11 in the Midwest. Disappointing. We play #6 Minnesota, 18-10. Their SF is their best player and they’re a little deeper but we have a chance in this game.
Cal is #6 East.
March 16
Alcorn ST won, and Ark-Pine Bluff lost in the 1st round of the CHI.
March 17
64-63. Great win! Perhaps the biggest in program history. 19, 7, 3 for Rigs. 13, 7 for Vurn. 10, 6 for Hall. 10 for Daws. Daws and Bent were in foul trouble but played 31 and 34 minutes, respectively. We led most of the way, then Minnesota went on a 24-7 run late, and took a one point lead with 9 seconds left. I did not call a time out. We practice how to handle these situations and the last thing I want is for the other coach to have a chance to either steal an inbounds pass or set the perfect defense. We brought it down, passed to Daws, who sent a backdoor pass back to Bent, for whom we had set a screen. He made an uncontested layup with 1 second left. They threw up a 50 footer and it wasn’t anywhere near the basket. +6 RBs, +2 TOs.
Next is #3 seed, #11 ranked UConn, 27-5. They won their tourney. This is a very strong team, better than us at every position, very likely.
Cal was upset in the first round by Hofstra, by a single point. It was a lot like our game. Wallace had 12 and 10.
March 19
66-84. Now THAT’S a good team! I told my boys they had nothing to be ashamed of. They played hard. 16, 4, 2 for Toby, 14, 5, 6 for Hall. UConn’s center is a first team All American candidate (expected to win unanimously, perhaps be national POY). He had 33 and 10, and fouled Rigs out.
This was a great season. Now we wait to see if we get any offers good enough to allow us to move. We’d really like the West Coast but will take any good offer.
March 22
Alcorn ST lost in the 2nd round of the CHI so our conference is through for the season.
I will go to the final four again. It is at Madison Square Garden. Loretta will accompany me and we will take care of some business at Juilliard during the trip.
April 4
Ohio State beat Bradley for the title.
Awards: Jr. Vern Rigs was POY and 1st team. Soph Pat Hall was defensive POY and 2nd team (should have been 1st). Sr. Jon Vurn made 2nd team.
Wallace made conference 2nd team. That UConn Center was 1st team All America but not POY.
April 9
Here we go. The offers are coming in. Fewer than I had hoped. Idaho- No. Alcorn St- What would be the point? North Texas? Still redneck country. Hartford? We said no last year. Hopefully the phone will ring a few more times…
We’re staying. We aren’t particularly happy about it, but there really were no offers worth moving for. On the bright side, everyone is back except for Joe Vurn, and we have some good people coming in. I believe we have a chance of being good enough to be ranked, which would be a first for Grambling.
April 16
We signed Ben Weld, SG, #159. He’s a Juco.
April 23
We ask for money. We do not get it.
Our biggest concern is keeping Vern Rigs eligible. He is not a great student and he has been borderline for all three years he has been here.
23-8, conference champs, 2nd round of the NCAA tournament. Conference Coach of the Year. Overall, I am 62-28, .680. O-22, D-38, Recruit-55, Scout-72, Player Dev-35, Reputation-19.
#5 seed MS Valley ST upset #4 Jackson ST so we play them in the semifinals. This is a tough match up for us. We won by only 2 at home, and lost by 15 there; they scored 81, the most we’ve given up all season. The tourney is here at Grambling, and that will help. We need to stay out of foul trouble.
March 4
73-54 over MS Valley ST. 29, 8, 2, 4 for Rigs who was a huge factor. He held his opponent scoreless (3 RBs), and the backup had 2 and 2. 15, 6 for Hall, 9, 8, 5 for Vurn. +12 RBs. Points in the paint were 32-6. We won this one inside.
#2 seed Alcorn ST, 17-11, 12-6, won their game so we play them for the title. We won by 8 there, and lost by 9 here, so who knows.
March 5
60-50 and the title! Fouls almost did us in. Bent only played 13 minutes. Fortunately, Den Ross did a great job filling in. Our two inside players both had 4, but Don Toby was a giant from the bench, 18, 9, 3, 4, and the MOP.
22-7 going to selection day.
We should get a much better placement in the tournament this year. An 8 is probably unrealistic but a 9 or 10 seems possible with an RPI of 24.
Cal lost in their tourney semifinal.
March 12
Not in the East.
Not in the South.
#11 in the Midwest. Disappointing. We play #6 Minnesota, 18-10. Their SF is their best player and they’re a little deeper but we have a chance in this game.
Cal is #6 East.
March 16
Alcorn ST won, and Ark-Pine Bluff lost in the 1st round of the CHI.
March 17
64-63. Great win! Perhaps the biggest in program history. 19, 7, 3 for Rigs. 13, 7 for Vurn. 10, 6 for Hall. 10 for Daws. Daws and Bent were in foul trouble but played 31 and 34 minutes, respectively. We led most of the way, then Minnesota went on a 24-7 run late, and took a one point lead with 9 seconds left. I did not call a time out. We practice how to handle these situations and the last thing I want is for the other coach to have a chance to either steal an inbounds pass or set the perfect defense. We brought it down, passed to Daws, who sent a backdoor pass back to Bent, for whom we had set a screen. He made an uncontested layup with 1 second left. They threw up a 50 footer and it wasn’t anywhere near the basket. +6 RBs, +2 TOs.
Next is #3 seed, #11 ranked UConn, 27-5. They won their tourney. This is a very strong team, better than us at every position, very likely.
Cal was upset in the first round by Hofstra, by a single point. It was a lot like our game. Wallace had 12 and 10.
March 19
66-84. Now THAT’S a good team! I told my boys they had nothing to be ashamed of. They played hard. 16, 4, 2 for Toby, 14, 5, 6 for Hall. UConn’s center is a first team All American candidate (expected to win unanimously, perhaps be national POY). He had 33 and 10, and fouled Rigs out.
This was a great season. Now we wait to see if we get any offers good enough to allow us to move. We’d really like the West Coast but will take any good offer.
March 22
Alcorn ST lost in the 2nd round of the CHI so our conference is through for the season.
I will go to the final four again. It is at Madison Square Garden. Loretta will accompany me and we will take care of some business at Juilliard during the trip.
April 4
Ohio State beat Bradley for the title.
Awards: Jr. Vern Rigs was POY and 1st team. Soph Pat Hall was defensive POY and 2nd team (should have been 1st). Sr. Jon Vurn made 2nd team.
Wallace made conference 2nd team. That UConn Center was 1st team All America but not POY.
April 9
Here we go. The offers are coming in. Fewer than I had hoped. Idaho- No. Alcorn St- What would be the point? North Texas? Still redneck country. Hartford? We said no last year. Hopefully the phone will ring a few more times…
We’re staying. We aren’t particularly happy about it, but there really were no offers worth moving for. On the bright side, everyone is back except for Joe Vurn, and we have some good people coming in. I believe we have a chance of being good enough to be ranked, which would be a first for Grambling.
April 16
We signed Ben Weld, SG, #159. He’s a Juco.
April 23
We ask for money. We do not get it.
Our biggest concern is keeping Vern Rigs eligible. He is not a great student and he has been borderline for all three years he has been here.
23-8, conference champs, 2nd round of the NCAA tournament. Conference Coach of the Year. Overall, I am 62-28, .680. O-22, D-38, Recruit-55, Scout-72, Player Dev-35, Reputation-19.
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Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Thu Nov 19, 2015 11:22 pm
May 1
Rigs is eligible! He will go to summer school anyway. We want and need him for both semesters, and I’d like him to graduate.
We buy the usual scouting reports.
May 10
School is out. Loretta won all of the music awards at her graduation.
Wallace will stay in California again this summer.
June 5
One open spot for a transfer. No one we’re interested in.
June 26
7 scholarships. We need 4-5 bigs. We’re looking at 18, 11 bigs and 7 guards.
June 28
After a long, lingering illness Callie’s father died last night, here at home.
“He was a good man. We were married for 55 years. He never raised his voice or his hand to me… That story about his two friends who were tortured and lynched? He didn’t tell all of it. He was with them that night. They were talking and drinking beer. He left to go home because he had to work in the morning. He was still chopping cotton for ten cents an hour in those days. As he walked home he saw torch lights and heard voices down the way. He ran into the woods and hid. It was the Klan going for his friends. He always said that if he had stayed for one more beer they would have gotten him, too.”
Loretta is making plans. She is corresponding with her two roommates, and looking through the course catalog.
August 21
We offered to 4 bigs and 3 guards.
Loretta left for school today. Now we have two away from home full time. The bad news is that we miss them both terribly. The good news is that they are considerably safer now.
Callie, Ruth Ann, Loretta, and grandma visited Wallace in July. I was there during the season so I stayed home. I hope to play out there again this season.
September 18
Closing in on a few recruits.
We play two ranked teams back to back, both on the road, but otherwise the schedule is weak. We couldn’t get many good teams to play us.
Things have been quiet. With only one child in the house and with grandpa gone the house feels empty. Grandma is quiet. I’m sure this is difficult for her.
September 25
Got three, lost one. Commitments from: Ben More, PF, #180, Len Garr, C, #108, Ron Davy, PG, #91.
October 2
First day of practice. We look strong. I think it is reasonable to aspire to a better season than we had last year. We need our bigs to stay healthy; we are not deep inside. We have several very good guards.
We’re picked to win the conference again.
October 7
This is Callie Rose. My husband is dictating this as I type it. Please assume it is his voice telling the tale.
At 6 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 3, I was coming out of Kerby Lee’s General Store. Kerby and I had had a nice conversation and we were laughing as he locked the store. As we got to the street we saw them. At least a dozen men in Klan robes.
Kerby tends to talk too much when he is stressed so I whispered, “Be still, Kerby, whatever happens.”
“Come with us, boys.”
That was the voice of Jeb Lang, owner of a diner in the white town nearby. Robes and hoods don’t hide voices. I knew who most of these men were.
We were placed in different cars and driven to a spot way out in the swamp. It wasn't a long ride but it certainly felt like it was. Gators have been spotted in this area, especially after dark, and it was getting dark fast.
One of the men started a bonfire. Kerby and I had both had our hands tied behind our backs. We were placed next to each other fairly close to the fire.
“Now boys, you both gettin’ mighty big.”
I stepped on Kerby’s foot to shut him up.
“Well? I’m talkin’ ta you ni—ggers!”
“Stayin’ in our part a town, sir. Not doin’ nuthin’ anywhere near the white folks’ town.”
“Thas true, Rose, but you gettin’ big anyways. Ya got more than some whites.”
“Sir, jes’ livin’ in a little house what’s mebbe a hundred years old. We got a garden out back and animals, too.
Couldn’t make ends meet otherwise.”
“B*llsh*t. You gettin’ uppity.”
“Don’t never wanna conterdict you, sir, but if I am, sir, I ain’t meanin’ ta be. An’ Kerby, sir, he got a smaller house than mine, an’ five kids, an’ he got a garden an’ animals, too.”
“Shut up!... Now,’fore you two start given the other ni—ers ideas, we thought mebbe a little lesson might keep you, and the rest a the ni—ers in line.”
At that point they set upon Kerby. They beat him- with their fists, with clubs, with kicks. It lasted quite some time. When it was finished he was unconscious.
“Now, ‘MISTER ROSE!' (He bowed, mockingly.)... We done talked it over. We got ta be careful with you, bein’ a big time coach an’ all. We decided we cain’t be real obvious. Cain’t beat ya like we done ta Kerby. Leave too many bruises and marks and them Yankee newspaper and TV people would have it all over the country. We thought a killin’ ya but we couldn’t lynch ya without raisin’ holy h*ll so where’s the fun in that. Still, we gotta teach ya that lesson ‘bout getting’ uppity, so here’s what we come up with. Say what ya want when it's done with, but it was jes’ a accident. An’ if ya say otherwise you gonna have a dead wife, a dead kid, an’ a dead mother-in-law.”
With that they tied two ropes to my left wrist. At least four men held me up. Then two of the other men grabbed one rope, two grabbed the other. They started walking. Two to the left edge of the bonfire, two to the right. They then pulled my hand and wrist forward, toward, and then directly into the flame. I don’t know how long they held it over the flame but it seemed like an eternity; in reality it could not have been too long given the nature of the wounds- they were horrible, but still, I do have a hand a wrist, such as they are. I was held too tightly to do anything but scream, which, believe me, I did.
Then the men simply drove away, leaving Kerby and me at least a mile and a half from town. The pain was unbelievable, and I knew it was very dangerous. There was a real danger that I would lose the hand, the wrist, and part of the forearm, especially if I was unable to get help quickly.
Kerby, who could see only a very tiny bit from one eye due to the swelling, and who was certainly in great pain as well, said there was a stream nearby. We staggered to it and I stuck my arm in the cold water. That increased my pain, if such was possible, but I felt it would help. Whether it did or not I don’t know.
In what was very likely a lifesaving bit of luck for me, Caleb Reed, a neighbor, happened to be hunting rabbits. He had heard the Klan and what they were doing to us, and had wisely hidden himself. Now he came to us.
“Let me get my horse and wagon. I’ll be right back. Take a while to hitch the wagon to the horse but my boy will help. Stay by the stream, and Marcus, keep that arm in the water. I’ll have Lucretia go tell your wives. Marcus, Callie’s ma prob’ly better about that burn than any doctor who’ll help us. By the time I get you home she have whatever she need ready.”
The pain hadn’t decreased at all as far as I could tell, and it would not do so for a long time- a VERY long time.
It seemed like forever but Caleb returned; he brought a big bucket with him filled with cold water so that I could keep my arm cool. He brought me home first, and my mother-in-law looked at the burn. She turned away for a moment. When she turned back there were tears running down her face. It took her a moment before she was composed enough to speak. When she did I’m sure she was not as calm as she seemed.
“That’s a bad burn, Marcus. Real bad… Now the biggest danger is gangrene. If that happens you will lose your arm... Now I have some things I can do. They will help you to heal but they won’t do much for the pain. A bad burn is the worst for pain; I’m sorry. I will need to change the dressing, clean the wound- which will hurt terribly, and apply a poultice every six hours or so for a while- quite a while. If we can keep the wound clean, and if the herbs and other ingredients work, we have a chance. You can’t leave town for at least 6 to 8 weeks though. I’ll need you here so I can treat you. After that, if we are very lucky, we will only need to treat the wound 2-3 times a day.”
“Mother, can you teach Ruth Ann and me? That way, you’ll be able to get your rest and not need to be up night and day.”
“Well, I can try. I can teach you how to gather the herbs and other things we'll need, and how to make the poultice and apply it, how to clean the wound, but really, the vital part is looking at the wound and knowing what to look for.”
“Grandma, I can learn.”
“This will be a very ugly, and a very smelly thing to deal with, Ruth Ann, and it is important to know exactly what to look for...”
“He’s my daddy, grandma, I can do it for him. Please teach me.”
“All right, child, but you’re going to need to be patient, and pay real close attention.”
I hugged Ruth Ann with my good arm, and all of us were crying at that point.
“Now, your assistants will need to run the team for at least 2-3 weeks. You need to rest, regain some strength, and, I’m sorry, but the pain probably won’t allow you to do much of anything for some time.”
I really cannot describe how much pain I was in.
Rigs is eligible! He will go to summer school anyway. We want and need him for both semesters, and I’d like him to graduate.
We buy the usual scouting reports.
May 10
School is out. Loretta won all of the music awards at her graduation.
Wallace will stay in California again this summer.
June 5
One open spot for a transfer. No one we’re interested in.
June 26
7 scholarships. We need 4-5 bigs. We’re looking at 18, 11 bigs and 7 guards.
June 28
After a long, lingering illness Callie’s father died last night, here at home.
“He was a good man. We were married for 55 years. He never raised his voice or his hand to me… That story about his two friends who were tortured and lynched? He didn’t tell all of it. He was with them that night. They were talking and drinking beer. He left to go home because he had to work in the morning. He was still chopping cotton for ten cents an hour in those days. As he walked home he saw torch lights and heard voices down the way. He ran into the woods and hid. It was the Klan going for his friends. He always said that if he had stayed for one more beer they would have gotten him, too.”
Loretta is making plans. She is corresponding with her two roommates, and looking through the course catalog.
August 21
We offered to 4 bigs and 3 guards.
Loretta left for school today. Now we have two away from home full time. The bad news is that we miss them both terribly. The good news is that they are considerably safer now.
Callie, Ruth Ann, Loretta, and grandma visited Wallace in July. I was there during the season so I stayed home. I hope to play out there again this season.
September 18
Closing in on a few recruits.
We play two ranked teams back to back, both on the road, but otherwise the schedule is weak. We couldn’t get many good teams to play us.
Things have been quiet. With only one child in the house and with grandpa gone the house feels empty. Grandma is quiet. I’m sure this is difficult for her.
September 25
Got three, lost one. Commitments from: Ben More, PF, #180, Len Garr, C, #108, Ron Davy, PG, #91.
October 2
First day of practice. We look strong. I think it is reasonable to aspire to a better season than we had last year. We need our bigs to stay healthy; we are not deep inside. We have several very good guards.
We’re picked to win the conference again.
October 7
This is Callie Rose. My husband is dictating this as I type it. Please assume it is his voice telling the tale.
At 6 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 3, I was coming out of Kerby Lee’s General Store. Kerby and I had had a nice conversation and we were laughing as he locked the store. As we got to the street we saw them. At least a dozen men in Klan robes.
Kerby tends to talk too much when he is stressed so I whispered, “Be still, Kerby, whatever happens.”
“Come with us, boys.”
That was the voice of Jeb Lang, owner of a diner in the white town nearby. Robes and hoods don’t hide voices. I knew who most of these men were.
We were placed in different cars and driven to a spot way out in the swamp. It wasn't a long ride but it certainly felt like it was. Gators have been spotted in this area, especially after dark, and it was getting dark fast.
One of the men started a bonfire. Kerby and I had both had our hands tied behind our backs. We were placed next to each other fairly close to the fire.
“Now boys, you both gettin’ mighty big.”
I stepped on Kerby’s foot to shut him up.
“Well? I’m talkin’ ta you ni—ggers!”
“Stayin’ in our part a town, sir. Not doin’ nuthin’ anywhere near the white folks’ town.”
“Thas true, Rose, but you gettin’ big anyways. Ya got more than some whites.”
“Sir, jes’ livin’ in a little house what’s mebbe a hundred years old. We got a garden out back and animals, too.
Couldn’t make ends meet otherwise.”
“B*llsh*t. You gettin’ uppity.”
“Don’t never wanna conterdict you, sir, but if I am, sir, I ain’t meanin’ ta be. An’ Kerby, sir, he got a smaller house than mine, an’ five kids, an’ he got a garden an’ animals, too.”
“Shut up!... Now,’fore you two start given the other ni—ers ideas, we thought mebbe a little lesson might keep you, and the rest a the ni—ers in line.”
At that point they set upon Kerby. They beat him- with their fists, with clubs, with kicks. It lasted quite some time. When it was finished he was unconscious.
“Now, ‘MISTER ROSE!' (He bowed, mockingly.)... We done talked it over. We got ta be careful with you, bein’ a big time coach an’ all. We decided we cain’t be real obvious. Cain’t beat ya like we done ta Kerby. Leave too many bruises and marks and them Yankee newspaper and TV people would have it all over the country. We thought a killin’ ya but we couldn’t lynch ya without raisin’ holy h*ll so where’s the fun in that. Still, we gotta teach ya that lesson ‘bout getting’ uppity, so here’s what we come up with. Say what ya want when it's done with, but it was jes’ a accident. An’ if ya say otherwise you gonna have a dead wife, a dead kid, an’ a dead mother-in-law.”
With that they tied two ropes to my left wrist. At least four men held me up. Then two of the other men grabbed one rope, two grabbed the other. They started walking. Two to the left edge of the bonfire, two to the right. They then pulled my hand and wrist forward, toward, and then directly into the flame. I don’t know how long they held it over the flame but it seemed like an eternity; in reality it could not have been too long given the nature of the wounds- they were horrible, but still, I do have a hand a wrist, such as they are. I was held too tightly to do anything but scream, which, believe me, I did.
Then the men simply drove away, leaving Kerby and me at least a mile and a half from town. The pain was unbelievable, and I knew it was very dangerous. There was a real danger that I would lose the hand, the wrist, and part of the forearm, especially if I was unable to get help quickly.
Kerby, who could see only a very tiny bit from one eye due to the swelling, and who was certainly in great pain as well, said there was a stream nearby. We staggered to it and I stuck my arm in the cold water. That increased my pain, if such was possible, but I felt it would help. Whether it did or not I don’t know.
In what was very likely a lifesaving bit of luck for me, Caleb Reed, a neighbor, happened to be hunting rabbits. He had heard the Klan and what they were doing to us, and had wisely hidden himself. Now he came to us.
“Let me get my horse and wagon. I’ll be right back. Take a while to hitch the wagon to the horse but my boy will help. Stay by the stream, and Marcus, keep that arm in the water. I’ll have Lucretia go tell your wives. Marcus, Callie’s ma prob’ly better about that burn than any doctor who’ll help us. By the time I get you home she have whatever she need ready.”
The pain hadn’t decreased at all as far as I could tell, and it would not do so for a long time- a VERY long time.
It seemed like forever but Caleb returned; he brought a big bucket with him filled with cold water so that I could keep my arm cool. He brought me home first, and my mother-in-law looked at the burn. She turned away for a moment. When she turned back there were tears running down her face. It took her a moment before she was composed enough to speak. When she did I’m sure she was not as calm as she seemed.
“That’s a bad burn, Marcus. Real bad… Now the biggest danger is gangrene. If that happens you will lose your arm... Now I have some things I can do. They will help you to heal but they won’t do much for the pain. A bad burn is the worst for pain; I’m sorry. I will need to change the dressing, clean the wound- which will hurt terribly, and apply a poultice every six hours or so for a while- quite a while. If we can keep the wound clean, and if the herbs and other ingredients work, we have a chance. You can’t leave town for at least 6 to 8 weeks though. I’ll need you here so I can treat you. After that, if we are very lucky, we will only need to treat the wound 2-3 times a day.”
“Mother, can you teach Ruth Ann and me? That way, you’ll be able to get your rest and not need to be up night and day.”
“Well, I can try. I can teach you how to gather the herbs and other things we'll need, and how to make the poultice and apply it, how to clean the wound, but really, the vital part is looking at the wound and knowing what to look for.”
“Grandma, I can learn.”
“This will be a very ugly, and a very smelly thing to deal with, Ruth Ann, and it is important to know exactly what to look for...”
“He’s my daddy, grandma, I can do it for him. Please teach me.”
“All right, child, but you’re going to need to be patient, and pay real close attention.”
I hugged Ruth Ann with my good arm, and all of us were crying at that point.
“Now, your assistants will need to run the team for at least 2-3 weeks. You need to rest, regain some strength, and, I’m sorry, but the pain probably won’t allow you to do much of anything for some time.”
I really cannot describe how much pain I was in.
- Wayne23
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Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Fri Nov 20, 2015 3:37 pm
October 23
I was away from work for 19 days.
We told folks I had been badly burned falling into the fireplace, and that my hand had gotten caught in the grating so it took some time for me to pull it out of the fire. I’m sure no one believed me since everyone could see what had happened to Kerby, although neither he nor Caleb said a word.
My assistants were great. They ran practice and contacted recruits (We got a partial waver from the NCAA), and did all of the MANY things that needed to be done. Kebo, my bench coach, came to the house most every evening, sometimes very late, to give me an update, and to go over what needed to be done the following day. On some evenings I was helpful but on some the pain was so excruciating that I was unable to help at all.
Grandma changed the dressing and applied the poultice and dressing every six hours. Ruth Ann was with her whenever she was not in school, and Callie was with her when she could be. Ruth Ann eventually felt she could do the job. Grandma had her unwrap the wound (The stench was, and remains, unbelievable.), clean it, and inspect it. Then Ruth Ann said what she thought and grandma told her where she was right and where she was wrong, and how to tell.
Win Nell, PG, #197, committed during that time. I managed to call and thank him, but it was difficult to keep the pain out of my voice.
Then a little later we lost a recruit. Kebo and I made the decision as far as who to offer to.
So anyway, I’m back, part time. I can only stay for about 4-5 hours at a time, at most; I can’t drive so someone from the athletic department must transport me. I still need the dressing changed every six hours. Honestly, I rarely last four hours. The pain is only very slightly less intense than it was, and pain, along with everything else it is, is fatiguing.
A.D. Whit Brown has been wonderful, everyone at the university has been. Our President wanted to fly me to the burn clinic at the best burn hospital in the world, in Boston, but a specialist we were able to see (secretly, he’s white) said that grandma is doing as good a job as anyone else would.
“I’ve dealt with that hospital, and they are very good, but honestly, we don’t know a great deal about severe burns yet. Keep doing what you’re doing.”
The wound is clean, at least grandma says it is. The smell nauseates me so much I turn away, and frankly, I’ve never looked at the wound since the day it happened, and I do not wish to. There is a tiny bit of feeling, aside from pain, coming back, but there are some numb spots, lots of them; no way of knowing how much feeling I’ll have when (if?) this heals. Ruth Ann is really learning. Grandma gives her very little advice. I am concerned because grandma has not missed a single six hour check. Her sleep is interrupted, and she is 75 years old. But she insists she is fine, and says that she naps when she needs to. Every time I see her she is tending to me, or cooking, cleaning, working in the garden, tending the animals… Here too, Ruth Ann has been wonderful. She is doing all that she can to help.
Callie has not been able to help with wound care.
“I just cannot do it, Marcus. The few times I’ve looked at that wound it tears me apart; breaks my heart. I can’t. If mama and Ruth Ann weren’t doing it I would find the grit, but…"
A big concern is Vern Rigs’ grades, still. He is fine in two of his courses but in danger in the other two. We enforce study hours and tutoring, and he never misses, but honestly, he’s a wonderful young man, but he struggles. The academic world is not for him. He will leave here trained as a health care aide, and he is very good with people, so that’s good.
We just need to see that he gets his degree. If he passes all four classes he will graduate.
November 6
Kebo coached both exhibition games. I was at the home game but did not travel to the road game. We met as a staff.
Our inside game doesn’t look as strong as we would like it to be. We’ll work on it. Here’s our lineup; we had some tough decisions to make and there will be changes: Juniors Bret Bent and Scot Hast will start at guard, backed by senior Den Ross, and soph Dez Daws. Jr. Brad Weld should get minutes but there aren’t enough to go around. Hast was very impressive in the exhibitions. Junior Pat Hall is back at SF. Seniors Don Toby and Vern Rigs start up front. Soph Cory Barr backs up inside. We need another big man but we do not have one. An injury up front will really hurt.
I am able to attend some practices, or parts of them, but Kebo is really running the team, with my guidance. I remain in a great deal of pain.
We start the season on the road, first at Indiana ST. Then we go to #25 LSU. I am amazed that the state of Louisiana is allowing us to play this game, but they encouraged it. I hope there are no repercussions locally; I suspect that as long as we lose things will be fine. We intend to play to win. This is a tough game against a very good team.
I will go on the road trip. Grandma will accompany the team as I need her to attend to my wound. The team trainer is very good but he has no experience with burns.
Center Wendell Jessie, #197, has committed. We now have 3 bigs and 2 PGs. We hope to land 2 more recruits.
Wallace will again start at Center for Cal, in this his junior year.
Loretta is loving Juilliard, as well as the excitement of living in New York City.
Ruth Ann continues to be a big help to me.
I was away from work for 19 days.
We told folks I had been badly burned falling into the fireplace, and that my hand had gotten caught in the grating so it took some time for me to pull it out of the fire. I’m sure no one believed me since everyone could see what had happened to Kerby, although neither he nor Caleb said a word.
My assistants were great. They ran practice and contacted recruits (We got a partial waver from the NCAA), and did all of the MANY things that needed to be done. Kebo, my bench coach, came to the house most every evening, sometimes very late, to give me an update, and to go over what needed to be done the following day. On some evenings I was helpful but on some the pain was so excruciating that I was unable to help at all.
Grandma changed the dressing and applied the poultice and dressing every six hours. Ruth Ann was with her whenever she was not in school, and Callie was with her when she could be. Ruth Ann eventually felt she could do the job. Grandma had her unwrap the wound (The stench was, and remains, unbelievable.), clean it, and inspect it. Then Ruth Ann said what she thought and grandma told her where she was right and where she was wrong, and how to tell.
Win Nell, PG, #197, committed during that time. I managed to call and thank him, but it was difficult to keep the pain out of my voice.
Then a little later we lost a recruit. Kebo and I made the decision as far as who to offer to.
So anyway, I’m back, part time. I can only stay for about 4-5 hours at a time, at most; I can’t drive so someone from the athletic department must transport me. I still need the dressing changed every six hours. Honestly, I rarely last four hours. The pain is only very slightly less intense than it was, and pain, along with everything else it is, is fatiguing.
A.D. Whit Brown has been wonderful, everyone at the university has been. Our President wanted to fly me to the burn clinic at the best burn hospital in the world, in Boston, but a specialist we were able to see (secretly, he’s white) said that grandma is doing as good a job as anyone else would.
“I’ve dealt with that hospital, and they are very good, but honestly, we don’t know a great deal about severe burns yet. Keep doing what you’re doing.”
The wound is clean, at least grandma says it is. The smell nauseates me so much I turn away, and frankly, I’ve never looked at the wound since the day it happened, and I do not wish to. There is a tiny bit of feeling, aside from pain, coming back, but there are some numb spots, lots of them; no way of knowing how much feeling I’ll have when (if?) this heals. Ruth Ann is really learning. Grandma gives her very little advice. I am concerned because grandma has not missed a single six hour check. Her sleep is interrupted, and she is 75 years old. But she insists she is fine, and says that she naps when she needs to. Every time I see her she is tending to me, or cooking, cleaning, working in the garden, tending the animals… Here too, Ruth Ann has been wonderful. She is doing all that she can to help.
Callie has not been able to help with wound care.
“I just cannot do it, Marcus. The few times I’ve looked at that wound it tears me apart; breaks my heart. I can’t. If mama and Ruth Ann weren’t doing it I would find the grit, but…"
A big concern is Vern Rigs’ grades, still. He is fine in two of his courses but in danger in the other two. We enforce study hours and tutoring, and he never misses, but honestly, he’s a wonderful young man, but he struggles. The academic world is not for him. He will leave here trained as a health care aide, and he is very good with people, so that’s good.
We just need to see that he gets his degree. If he passes all four classes he will graduate.
November 6
Kebo coached both exhibition games. I was at the home game but did not travel to the road game. We met as a staff.
Our inside game doesn’t look as strong as we would like it to be. We’ll work on it. Here’s our lineup; we had some tough decisions to make and there will be changes: Juniors Bret Bent and Scot Hast will start at guard, backed by senior Den Ross, and soph Dez Daws. Jr. Brad Weld should get minutes but there aren’t enough to go around. Hast was very impressive in the exhibitions. Junior Pat Hall is back at SF. Seniors Don Toby and Vern Rigs start up front. Soph Cory Barr backs up inside. We need another big man but we do not have one. An injury up front will really hurt.
I am able to attend some practices, or parts of them, but Kebo is really running the team, with my guidance. I remain in a great deal of pain.
We start the season on the road, first at Indiana ST. Then we go to #25 LSU. I am amazed that the state of Louisiana is allowing us to play this game, but they encouraged it. I hope there are no repercussions locally; I suspect that as long as we lose things will be fine. We intend to play to win. This is a tough game against a very good team.
I will go on the road trip. Grandma will accompany the team as I need her to attend to my wound. The team trainer is very good but he has no experience with burns.
Center Wendell Jessie, #197, has committed. We now have 3 bigs and 2 PGs. We hope to land 2 more recruits.
Wallace will again start at Center for Cal, in this his junior year.
Loretta is loving Juilliard, as well as the excitement of living in New York City.
Ruth Ann continues to be a big help to me.
- Wayne23
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Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Fri Nov 20, 2015 6:47 pm
November 20
82-63 at Indiana ST. A huge game for Vern Rigs, 19 and 13. 17 for Dan Toby, 14, 5, 6, 3 for Bret Bent, but 7 TOs. 13, 4, 2 for Cory Barr from the bench, 11, 2, 3 for Pat Hall, and 8, 7, 3 for Scot Hast. +13 RBs. A good start!
59-69 at #25 LSU. 17, 4 for Rigs, 10 for Toby, but -7 RBs, and very poor outside D. Their starting guards had 27 and 14, and that was the difference. To be fair, both of those guards were outstanding players, which we knew in advance.
I coached both games but I leaned on the staff for advice during time outs and at the half.
This week we go to Illinois. They lost their opener to #18 Oregon in the NIT and dropped from the top 25 but they are a very tough team. This is our biggest challenge of the season. Then we finally play at home, against 0-2 George Mason.
One of our recruits, PF Ben More, did not sign. That means he will not hit our SAT score. Nothing we can do until the scores come out except to recruit another big.
I am really tired. This road trip is too much for me. Grandma and I spend most of our time in my hotel room. I have only been to one practice.
She says the wound is healing, but slowly, as expected. We’ll be home in three days, thankfully.
November 27
86-91 at Illinois. I don’t believe in moral victories, but we showed real heart tonight. The beginning was horrible. We were down 31-10 at one point. After my third time out (in less than the first 10 minutes) we finally adjusted. From that point on we actually outscored them 76-60, but
it was too big a mountain to climb. Still, we never quit, and we got it to 2 once. 26, 8 for Rgis, 16, 7, 3 for Hall, 13, 7 for Toby, 11, 2, 4 for Hast, 9 for Daws. +8 RBs, but -8 TOs. They were just better, especially in the back court.
We have just played the two best back courts we will see all season. The staff and I do not want to judge our guards based upon these two games. We’ll see what next week brings.
58-37 over George Mason. 14 each for Rigs and Hall, 10, 6 for Hast but he fouled out in 23 minutes. 9, 2, 7 for Bent. Den Ross played well backing up at guard. Only 9 TOs (+10).
This week we host 3-1 Penn ST. We need to stop their SG, but we feel we are much stronger inside. Then we host 2-2 Dayton.
It’s great to be back home, sleeping in my own bed. The pain is definitely diminishing. It is still bad but most of the time it is at about 6-7 out of 10. For a very long time it was 8, 9, and even 10. It is always there though. After 7 ½ weeks grandma still feels we need to apply the poultice and change the dressing every six hours. We had hoped to go to eight hour intervals by now.
“There is a little spot near your pinky that I don’t like at all. I noticed it day before yesterday. I may need to open it up.”
That does not sound pleasant.
Wallace is averaging 14.7 and 9.2. He has really stepped up his game. He feels his defense is even better than his offense.
I had hoped to be back full time by now, but I simply cannot do it. I am probably averaging 6 hours a day but I spend most of the rest of my time sleeping.
December 4
75-57 over Penn ST. We never trailed. 18, 7 for Hall, 15, 5, 2 for Rigs, 12 for Toby. 8 TOs (+12).
Dez Daws had a bad ankle sprain. Out for about two weeks. Den Ross will get his minutes.
69-53 over Dayton. The front court did it again tonight. 18, 6, 3 for Hall, 17, 7, 2, 2 for Toby, 12, 10 for Rigs. 9 TOs (+5), 34 RBs (+6).
Great defense after the Illinois game. Three straight wins and we’re 4-2.
This week only one game, 1-5 Vermont is here. They are not as bad as their record and they have a strong outside game. They are weak inside though. We need to exploit that.
I remain too weak and tired to work full time. I usually go in for two four hour “shifts” with a nap in between. Given that my normal work day is 10-15 hours, this still isn’t enough. But my staff is doing a great job of picking up the slack, and our players have been great about all of this. The pain is more at the 6 level than anywhere else these days.
Grandma had to do “surgery” on me.
“We cannot ignore this any longer, Marcus. If you like we can take you to Dr. Erasmus-”
“You’re a better doctor than he will ever be, grandma. What needs to be done?”
“I need to lance a small area at the outside base of your pinky, and bleed it. It just doesn’t look good, and I’m afraid it could very quickly become the beginnings of gangrene. I’ll numb the area with ice, but it will hurt.”
“Do what you need to do. Ruth Ann, I don’t want you to see this.”
“Daddy, I need to learn. If grandma got sick I’d be the one to help you.”
We had a long discussion. Ruth Ann insisted she could stand it so we let her stay. Grandma numbed the area and made one quick cut. It was only about ¼ inch long but it was down to the bone. I don’t know how I held still, but I did; of course it happened quickly. It didn’t really hurt that much, which grandma said was not good. Anyway, she did it over a large basin. The stench, as soon as the wound was opened, was horrible, and that, she said, was good. It meant she was right in opening the wound. She bled it, squeezing and squeezing until all of the green/yellowish pus stopped coming out, and only blood emerged. She then applied a different compound, tried to get it deep into the wound, then patched the mess up, and closed the wound.
“I can stitch it but I’m not going to. I will want to squeeze out the poisons a couple of times a day, and re-apply this new medicine until there aren’t any more poisons coming out. We'll be able to tell by the smell as much as anything. We’ll keep it clean and watch for infection. With a bit of luck it will be all right.”
Ruth Ann was wonderful. She helped in many ways, following grandma’s directions precisely, and she was not at all squeamish, or if she was she hid it well.
We did the open it up, drain it, re-apply the medication business for three days. On the fourth day there was no pus, only blood. Grandma said we’d do two more days and if the wound stayed clean she’d stitch it up.
Wallace and Loretta have been getting regular updates on my health throughout this now two month long ordeal. They are both doing very well, and even more important to Callie and me, they are both safe and happy.
82-63 at Indiana ST. A huge game for Vern Rigs, 19 and 13. 17 for Dan Toby, 14, 5, 6, 3 for Bret Bent, but 7 TOs. 13, 4, 2 for Cory Barr from the bench, 11, 2, 3 for Pat Hall, and 8, 7, 3 for Scot Hast. +13 RBs. A good start!
59-69 at #25 LSU. 17, 4 for Rigs, 10 for Toby, but -7 RBs, and very poor outside D. Their starting guards had 27 and 14, and that was the difference. To be fair, both of those guards were outstanding players, which we knew in advance.
I coached both games but I leaned on the staff for advice during time outs and at the half.
This week we go to Illinois. They lost their opener to #18 Oregon in the NIT and dropped from the top 25 but they are a very tough team. This is our biggest challenge of the season. Then we finally play at home, against 0-2 George Mason.
One of our recruits, PF Ben More, did not sign. That means he will not hit our SAT score. Nothing we can do until the scores come out except to recruit another big.
I am really tired. This road trip is too much for me. Grandma and I spend most of our time in my hotel room. I have only been to one practice.
She says the wound is healing, but slowly, as expected. We’ll be home in three days, thankfully.
November 27
86-91 at Illinois. I don’t believe in moral victories, but we showed real heart tonight. The beginning was horrible. We were down 31-10 at one point. After my third time out (in less than the first 10 minutes) we finally adjusted. From that point on we actually outscored them 76-60, but
it was too big a mountain to climb. Still, we never quit, and we got it to 2 once. 26, 8 for Rgis, 16, 7, 3 for Hall, 13, 7 for Toby, 11, 2, 4 for Hast, 9 for Daws. +8 RBs, but -8 TOs. They were just better, especially in the back court.
We have just played the two best back courts we will see all season. The staff and I do not want to judge our guards based upon these two games. We’ll see what next week brings.
58-37 over George Mason. 14 each for Rigs and Hall, 10, 6 for Hast but he fouled out in 23 minutes. 9, 2, 7 for Bent. Den Ross played well backing up at guard. Only 9 TOs (+10).
This week we host 3-1 Penn ST. We need to stop their SG, but we feel we are much stronger inside. Then we host 2-2 Dayton.
It’s great to be back home, sleeping in my own bed. The pain is definitely diminishing. It is still bad but most of the time it is at about 6-7 out of 10. For a very long time it was 8, 9, and even 10. It is always there though. After 7 ½ weeks grandma still feels we need to apply the poultice and change the dressing every six hours. We had hoped to go to eight hour intervals by now.
“There is a little spot near your pinky that I don’t like at all. I noticed it day before yesterday. I may need to open it up.”
That does not sound pleasant.
Wallace is averaging 14.7 and 9.2. He has really stepped up his game. He feels his defense is even better than his offense.
I had hoped to be back full time by now, but I simply cannot do it. I am probably averaging 6 hours a day but I spend most of the rest of my time sleeping.
December 4
75-57 over Penn ST. We never trailed. 18, 7 for Hall, 15, 5, 2 for Rigs, 12 for Toby. 8 TOs (+12).
Dez Daws had a bad ankle sprain. Out for about two weeks. Den Ross will get his minutes.
69-53 over Dayton. The front court did it again tonight. 18, 6, 3 for Hall, 17, 7, 2, 2 for Toby, 12, 10 for Rigs. 9 TOs (+5), 34 RBs (+6).
Great defense after the Illinois game. Three straight wins and we’re 4-2.
This week only one game, 1-5 Vermont is here. They are not as bad as their record and they have a strong outside game. They are weak inside though. We need to exploit that.
I remain too weak and tired to work full time. I usually go in for two four hour “shifts” with a nap in between. Given that my normal work day is 10-15 hours, this still isn’t enough. But my staff is doing a great job of picking up the slack, and our players have been great about all of this. The pain is more at the 6 level than anywhere else these days.
Grandma had to do “surgery” on me.
“We cannot ignore this any longer, Marcus. If you like we can take you to Dr. Erasmus-”
“You’re a better doctor than he will ever be, grandma. What needs to be done?”
“I need to lance a small area at the outside base of your pinky, and bleed it. It just doesn’t look good, and I’m afraid it could very quickly become the beginnings of gangrene. I’ll numb the area with ice, but it will hurt.”
“Do what you need to do. Ruth Ann, I don’t want you to see this.”
“Daddy, I need to learn. If grandma got sick I’d be the one to help you.”
We had a long discussion. Ruth Ann insisted she could stand it so we let her stay. Grandma numbed the area and made one quick cut. It was only about ¼ inch long but it was down to the bone. I don’t know how I held still, but I did; of course it happened quickly. It didn’t really hurt that much, which grandma said was not good. Anyway, she did it over a large basin. The stench, as soon as the wound was opened, was horrible, and that, she said, was good. It meant she was right in opening the wound. She bled it, squeezing and squeezing until all of the green/yellowish pus stopped coming out, and only blood emerged. She then applied a different compound, tried to get it deep into the wound, then patched the mess up, and closed the wound.
“I can stitch it but I’m not going to. I will want to squeeze out the poisons a couple of times a day, and re-apply this new medicine until there aren’t any more poisons coming out. We'll be able to tell by the smell as much as anything. We’ll keep it clean and watch for infection. With a bit of luck it will be all right.”
Ruth Ann was wonderful. She helped in many ways, following grandma’s directions precisely, and she was not at all squeamish, or if she was she hid it well.
We did the open it up, drain it, re-apply the medication business for three days. On the fourth day there was no pus, only blood. Grandma said we’d do two more days and if the wound stayed clean she’d stitch it up.
Wallace and Loretta have been getting regular updates on my health throughout this now two month long ordeal. They are both doing very well, and even more important to Callie and me, they are both safe and happy.
- Wayne23
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Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Fri Nov 20, 2015 9:03 pm
December 11
A real battle with Vermont, 68-65 in OT. It went back and forth all night, 26 lead changes, 8 ties. Scot Hast was our guy when it counted. He hit a 16 footer to tie it at the end of regulation, then a 20 footer to win it. But it was a solid team effort. We had seven players who scored between 7 and 13 points, and they all rebounded. 8 TOs (+6). A good win!
This week it’s 2-3 San Francisco, there. And once again Cal is at home so I’ll get to see Wallace play. Grandma is coming on this trip so she’ll see him as well.
The wound stayed clean, so grandma stitched it. I am happy to say that I feel better. I’m not 100% yet but I am getting closer. We’re redoing the dressing every 8 hours now.
December 18
63-60 at San Francisco. Another battle. No one ever led by more than 7. We scored the last 4, all free throws by Rigs who had 30 and 9. This was his first career 30 point game.
Dez Daws is back.
Wallace really put on a show for us with career highs in both points (26) and rebounds (17), as well as 7 blocks.
We close out the pre-conference season with 4-5 Western Michigan, here. They are much better than their record, with good players at every position, and a long bench. Grandma and I went to dinner with him after the Saturday afternoon game. We had a great visit.
I am definitely feeling better. The pain is still there but mild, maybe 3-4. There is no longer any smell from the wound, and we now air it- leave it uncovered, while I am at home, and during the night. It is truly ugly, and I can only move my thumb and first two fingers. I cannot make a fist. But it could have been much worse, and thankfully, it is my left hand.
I think I will go in to work full time next week.
December 25
64-42 over Western Michigan. We needed an easy game. 19, 4, 2 for Hall, but 7 TOs. 15, 11 for Rigs (Grades come out today. If we lose him we’re in huge trouble.). Our defense held them to 26.7% shooting while we shot 51.1%.
We close the pre-conference season at 7-2, losing only to the two really tough teams we played.
Rigs hit 2.1. He’s good for the rest of his senior season!
We begin conference play here with 2-7 Prairie View, then travel to 4-5 Jackson ST.
Wallace had all A grades. Loretta had 2 As and 3 Bs. Ruth Ann made all As.
Loretta was home for the holidays. It is safer for a young woman here, as long as she remains at home. The Klan doesn’t see our women as threats, or at least not in the same way as they see our men.
A real battle with Vermont, 68-65 in OT. It went back and forth all night, 26 lead changes, 8 ties. Scot Hast was our guy when it counted. He hit a 16 footer to tie it at the end of regulation, then a 20 footer to win it. But it was a solid team effort. We had seven players who scored between 7 and 13 points, and they all rebounded. 8 TOs (+6). A good win!
This week it’s 2-3 San Francisco, there. And once again Cal is at home so I’ll get to see Wallace play. Grandma is coming on this trip so she’ll see him as well.
The wound stayed clean, so grandma stitched it. I am happy to say that I feel better. I’m not 100% yet but I am getting closer. We’re redoing the dressing every 8 hours now.
December 18
63-60 at San Francisco. Another battle. No one ever led by more than 7. We scored the last 4, all free throws by Rigs who had 30 and 9. This was his first career 30 point game.
Dez Daws is back.
Wallace really put on a show for us with career highs in both points (26) and rebounds (17), as well as 7 blocks.
We close out the pre-conference season with 4-5 Western Michigan, here. They are much better than their record, with good players at every position, and a long bench. Grandma and I went to dinner with him after the Saturday afternoon game. We had a great visit.
I am definitely feeling better. The pain is still there but mild, maybe 3-4. There is no longer any smell from the wound, and we now air it- leave it uncovered, while I am at home, and during the night. It is truly ugly, and I can only move my thumb and first two fingers. I cannot make a fist. But it could have been much worse, and thankfully, it is my left hand.
I think I will go in to work full time next week.
December 25
64-42 over Western Michigan. We needed an easy game. 19, 4, 2 for Hall, but 7 TOs. 15, 11 for Rigs (Grades come out today. If we lose him we’re in huge trouble.). Our defense held them to 26.7% shooting while we shot 51.1%.
We close the pre-conference season at 7-2, losing only to the two really tough teams we played.
Rigs hit 2.1. He’s good for the rest of his senior season!
We begin conference play here with 2-7 Prairie View, then travel to 4-5 Jackson ST.
Wallace had all A grades. Loretta had 2 As and 3 Bs. Ruth Ann made all As.
Loretta was home for the holidays. It is safer for a young woman here, as long as she remains at home. The Klan doesn’t see our women as threats, or at least not in the same way as they see our men.
- Wayne23
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Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Sat Nov 21, 2015 12:40 am
January 1, 1961
55-43 over Prairie View. 34-15 at the half and never a game. 16, 7 for Rigs, 13 for Hast, 11, 8 for Barr from the bench. 9 TOs, 34 RBs. We shot poorly but that is my only criticism.
71-66 at Jackson ST. 16, 12 for Rigs, 16 from Hall. +8 TOs.
This week we’re at 5-6, 2-0 Alcorn ST. They were our #1 conference rival last season, and they are not to be taken lightly.
Then we host 4-7, 0-2 Alabama ST.
Great holidays. Loretta flew out today.
Grandma says we no longer need to dress the wound, and that she does not need to travel with me anymore. That is wonderful news. The hand and wrist still hurt. Perhaps they always will. But the pain is minor. I stretch and clench the hand as often as possible, trying to gain more movement. I still cannot make a fist, but I’m getting closer. There is no feeling at all in my last two fingers. Grandma says it is possible that there never will be.
Kerby is a changed man. He was a happy person, always a ready smile. Now he is completely serious, and very quiet.
“They could come again, Marcus. That thought never leaves me. Marcella and I talk about going North, but how? I don’t know of a way. Wish I could work it out though. I just can’t get that terrible night out of my head. I wake screaming often. My kids see my fear and it sure isn’t good for them. My oldest, Maurice, is bitter. I fear he’ll get himself in trouble. He’s 16 now, sees himself as a man. Wants to quit school. I don’t know, Marcus. I just don’t know.”
Caleb is a good friend and a good neighbor. I thank him often and he shrugs it off.
“You would have done the same.”
He checked on me regularly at first, and kept doing so even after I began to get better.
Ruth Ann get letters from the Kings regularly. They wrote me once after the attack expressing their sympathy. They put a return address of Mr. and Mrs. Josiah Brown on the envelope of their letters, and they have a post office box under that name at home. They know how dangerous it would be for us, and surely for others they correspond with, to have the word get out that we were in contact with them.
January 8
52-64. We shot 34% and had 18 TOs. We never led. This was really the first night all season that we have played poorly. 18, 5 for Rigs, 13, 4, 3 for Bent. Their bench gave them a great deal more than our bench gave us.
66-37. This is the way we want to bounce back from a loss! 23, 12 for Rigs, 15, 7 for Cory Barr, who has been getting more minutes lately. We are considering starting him. +7 TOs, +13 RBs. We really played well tonight.
This week we travel to first place Alabama A & M, 9-4, 4-0. This will be a challenge on the road. Then we host 5-8, 0-4 Texas Southern.
I’m feeling like I’m back to normal. No need to wrap the hand anymore. Yes, there is still that pain, at level 3 or so. Yes, the last two fingers are still without feeling. But I may need to live with those things. My energy level is good. I work 10-12 hours most days, and I tolerate that just fine. This may be the new normal. Oh well, if so, I can deal with it.
Wallace had two big games this week, 18 and 11 against UCLA, and 22 and 9 against Oregon. He is the best center in his conference.
January 15
71-48 at first place Alabama A & M. 21 for Hall, 11, 5, 5 for Hast, 10, 8 for Toby, 11, 4 for Barr. 8 TOs, 31 RBs, and just good solid play on both ends, all night long. This one was fun!
77-54 over Texas Southern here. 19, 4 for Toby, 13 for Bent, 10 each for Rigs and Hast. +15 TOs. We’re playing really great ball right now.
This week we’re at 6-9, 1-5 Southern, then we host 8-7, 5-1 Ark-Pine Bluff, tied with us for 1st place.
January 22
75-62 at Southern. 29 for Pat Hall, who couldn’t miss tonight. 11 for Dez Daws, 12, 1, 6 for Den Ross, 9, 5, 6 for Scot Hast. Back up guards did great work.
60-52 over Ark-Pine Bluff here in the battle for 1st place. It’s early though. 13, 15 for Rigs. Good bench play from Barr, 9 and 2, and Daws, 11 points. We took an early lead and never trailed.
This week we’re on the road. First we’re at 6-11, 4-4 MS Valley ST, then we go to 4-13, 2-6 Prairie View. We beat them by 12 here.
Wallace was conference Player of the Week for the third time. He had 19 and 16 in the first game this week, and 24 and 7 in the second, and he is blocking shots like a young Bill Russell.
Loretta is loving Julliard. They will play one of her compositions at their spring jazz concert. I am told that is unheard of for a freshman. We hope to send
Callie up to see the concert.
We have a new, young President in our country. I must say that President Eisenhower stood up for Negroes. My people overwhelming supported President
Kennedy in the election and we have great hopes for his presidency. After his inaugural address Ruth Ann and I had a little talk.
“Daddy, I really want to do something for our people. Times are changing, and I want to be part of it.”
“Yes, I know you do, Ruth Ann, but you’re not even 16 yet. I’m hoping you’ll wait a little while.”
“Daddy, the time is now. If we’re going to finally get our rights we need to work for them.”
“Yes, but down here in the Deep South you know how dangerous that is. You saw what happened to Mr. Lee and to me, and we never were active in the fight.”
“We cannot let fear stop us. Dr. King says-”
“Dr. King is an incredibly brave and admirable man. But I don’t see him coming to Grambling, and I don’t see him saying that you should demonstrate or protest here.”
“Well…”
“Have you and he corresponded about that?”
“… He tells me to wait… But daddy, I don’t want to wait.”
“Just a little while, Ruth Ann. If we are able to move away from here, it may be that we’ll be in a place where it’s a bit safer to take action. Will you at least wait until say June 1?”
“… Okay, daddy, but I really don’t want to wait too long. I want to be part of the fight. And daddy, I want to be here in the south; this is where our people are the most oppressed. When it’s time for college I want to go wither here or Jackson ST.”
“We have plenty of time before we need to make those decisions.”
January 29
74-86 at MS Valley ST. the defense was invisible tonight; just awful. We allowed them to shoot 55.6%. They took 13 fewer shots. We lost it on fouls though. We were called for 23 to their 15, and most of them were in the 2nd half. I received the first technical foul of my career. It was purposeful. I felt I needed to defend my players. It didn’t seem to help much, unfortunately. Hast, as well as sub Cody Barr, fouled out. Rigs and Bent had 4 fouls each.
Rigs played only 17 minutes due to fouls. They took 36 free throws, we took 13.
19, 3 for Hall, 15 for Hast, 12, 6, 5, 3 for Bent. We could have played better, but the foul calls did us in. Please note that this is the first time in my four year head coaching career that I have ever said anything like this.
The loss drops us into a 1st place tie with Alcorn ST.
65-50 at Prairie View and we’re alone in 1st place again. 27, 5 for Rigs, 12 TOs (+8). Everyone else did their part.
Home all week this week. First it’s 9-10, 5-5 Jackson ST, who we beat by only 5 there, then 2nd place Alcorn St, 10-9, 7-3. They beat us by 8 there.
As expected Ben Morris did not hit the SAT score. We have a scholarship to give. We’ll wait at least a week to offer.
I was really tired when we returned home from the road trip. I’ve been going at a good pace and I guess it caught up with me a bit. Grandma checked my wound and said it was fine, and it is. I can almost make a fist now. There is still no feeling in the last two fingers, and still some mild pain throughout the rest of the hand and wrist. My hand is ugly and disfigured, of course. I would say my fatigue is simply residual from all I have been through. I took half a day off and napped, and felt better after that.
Wallace won Player of the Week again.
55-43 over Prairie View. 34-15 at the half and never a game. 16, 7 for Rigs, 13 for Hast, 11, 8 for Barr from the bench. 9 TOs, 34 RBs. We shot poorly but that is my only criticism.
71-66 at Jackson ST. 16, 12 for Rigs, 16 from Hall. +8 TOs.
This week we’re at 5-6, 2-0 Alcorn ST. They were our #1 conference rival last season, and they are not to be taken lightly.
Then we host 4-7, 0-2 Alabama ST.
Great holidays. Loretta flew out today.
Grandma says we no longer need to dress the wound, and that she does not need to travel with me anymore. That is wonderful news. The hand and wrist still hurt. Perhaps they always will. But the pain is minor. I stretch and clench the hand as often as possible, trying to gain more movement. I still cannot make a fist, but I’m getting closer. There is no feeling at all in my last two fingers. Grandma says it is possible that there never will be.
Kerby is a changed man. He was a happy person, always a ready smile. Now he is completely serious, and very quiet.
“They could come again, Marcus. That thought never leaves me. Marcella and I talk about going North, but how? I don’t know of a way. Wish I could work it out though. I just can’t get that terrible night out of my head. I wake screaming often. My kids see my fear and it sure isn’t good for them. My oldest, Maurice, is bitter. I fear he’ll get himself in trouble. He’s 16 now, sees himself as a man. Wants to quit school. I don’t know, Marcus. I just don’t know.”
Caleb is a good friend and a good neighbor. I thank him often and he shrugs it off.
“You would have done the same.”
He checked on me regularly at first, and kept doing so even after I began to get better.
Ruth Ann get letters from the Kings regularly. They wrote me once after the attack expressing their sympathy. They put a return address of Mr. and Mrs. Josiah Brown on the envelope of their letters, and they have a post office box under that name at home. They know how dangerous it would be for us, and surely for others they correspond with, to have the word get out that we were in contact with them.
January 8
52-64. We shot 34% and had 18 TOs. We never led. This was really the first night all season that we have played poorly. 18, 5 for Rigs, 13, 4, 3 for Bent. Their bench gave them a great deal more than our bench gave us.
66-37. This is the way we want to bounce back from a loss! 23, 12 for Rigs, 15, 7 for Cory Barr, who has been getting more minutes lately. We are considering starting him. +7 TOs, +13 RBs. We really played well tonight.
This week we travel to first place Alabama A & M, 9-4, 4-0. This will be a challenge on the road. Then we host 5-8, 0-4 Texas Southern.
I’m feeling like I’m back to normal. No need to wrap the hand anymore. Yes, there is still that pain, at level 3 or so. Yes, the last two fingers are still without feeling. But I may need to live with those things. My energy level is good. I work 10-12 hours most days, and I tolerate that just fine. This may be the new normal. Oh well, if so, I can deal with it.
Wallace had two big games this week, 18 and 11 against UCLA, and 22 and 9 against Oregon. He is the best center in his conference.
January 15
71-48 at first place Alabama A & M. 21 for Hall, 11, 5, 5 for Hast, 10, 8 for Toby, 11, 4 for Barr. 8 TOs, 31 RBs, and just good solid play on both ends, all night long. This one was fun!
77-54 over Texas Southern here. 19, 4 for Toby, 13 for Bent, 10 each for Rigs and Hast. +15 TOs. We’re playing really great ball right now.
This week we’re at 6-9, 1-5 Southern, then we host 8-7, 5-1 Ark-Pine Bluff, tied with us for 1st place.
January 22
75-62 at Southern. 29 for Pat Hall, who couldn’t miss tonight. 11 for Dez Daws, 12, 1, 6 for Den Ross, 9, 5, 6 for Scot Hast. Back up guards did great work.
60-52 over Ark-Pine Bluff here in the battle for 1st place. It’s early though. 13, 15 for Rigs. Good bench play from Barr, 9 and 2, and Daws, 11 points. We took an early lead and never trailed.
This week we’re on the road. First we’re at 6-11, 4-4 MS Valley ST, then we go to 4-13, 2-6 Prairie View. We beat them by 12 here.
Wallace was conference Player of the Week for the third time. He had 19 and 16 in the first game this week, and 24 and 7 in the second, and he is blocking shots like a young Bill Russell.
Loretta is loving Julliard. They will play one of her compositions at their spring jazz concert. I am told that is unheard of for a freshman. We hope to send
Callie up to see the concert.
We have a new, young President in our country. I must say that President Eisenhower stood up for Negroes. My people overwhelming supported President
Kennedy in the election and we have great hopes for his presidency. After his inaugural address Ruth Ann and I had a little talk.
“Daddy, I really want to do something for our people. Times are changing, and I want to be part of it.”
“Yes, I know you do, Ruth Ann, but you’re not even 16 yet. I’m hoping you’ll wait a little while.”
“Daddy, the time is now. If we’re going to finally get our rights we need to work for them.”
“Yes, but down here in the Deep South you know how dangerous that is. You saw what happened to Mr. Lee and to me, and we never were active in the fight.”
“We cannot let fear stop us. Dr. King says-”
“Dr. King is an incredibly brave and admirable man. But I don’t see him coming to Grambling, and I don’t see him saying that you should demonstrate or protest here.”
“Well…”
“Have you and he corresponded about that?”
“… He tells me to wait… But daddy, I don’t want to wait.”
“Just a little while, Ruth Ann. If we are able to move away from here, it may be that we’ll be in a place where it’s a bit safer to take action. Will you at least wait until say June 1?”
“… Okay, daddy, but I really don’t want to wait too long. I want to be part of the fight. And daddy, I want to be here in the south; this is where our people are the most oppressed. When it’s time for college I want to go wither here or Jackson ST.”
“We have plenty of time before we need to make those decisions.”
January 29
74-86 at MS Valley ST. the defense was invisible tonight; just awful. We allowed them to shoot 55.6%. They took 13 fewer shots. We lost it on fouls though. We were called for 23 to their 15, and most of them were in the 2nd half. I received the first technical foul of my career. It was purposeful. I felt I needed to defend my players. It didn’t seem to help much, unfortunately. Hast, as well as sub Cody Barr, fouled out. Rigs and Bent had 4 fouls each.
Rigs played only 17 minutes due to fouls. They took 36 free throws, we took 13.
19, 3 for Hall, 15 for Hast, 12, 6, 5, 3 for Bent. We could have played better, but the foul calls did us in. Please note that this is the first time in my four year head coaching career that I have ever said anything like this.
The loss drops us into a 1st place tie with Alcorn ST.
65-50 at Prairie View and we’re alone in 1st place again. 27, 5 for Rigs, 12 TOs (+8). Everyone else did their part.
Home all week this week. First it’s 9-10, 5-5 Jackson ST, who we beat by only 5 there, then 2nd place Alcorn St, 10-9, 7-3. They beat us by 8 there.
As expected Ben Morris did not hit the SAT score. We have a scholarship to give. We’ll wait at least a week to offer.
I was really tired when we returned home from the road trip. I’ve been going at a good pace and I guess it caught up with me a bit. Grandma checked my wound and said it was fine, and it is. I can almost make a fist now. There is still no feeling in the last two fingers, and still some mild pain throughout the rest of the hand and wrist. My hand is ugly and disfigured, of course. I would say my fatigue is simply residual from all I have been through. I took half a day off and napped, and felt better after that.
Wallace won Player of the Week again.
- Wayne23
- DDS:CB Support Squad
- Posts: 14322
- Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2007 5:23 pm
Re: Grambling Rose
by Wayne23 » Sat Nov 21, 2015 12:48 pm
February 5
A very frustrating night, 62-65 to Jackson ST at home. They took an early 12 point lead. We came back and led by as many as 11. Then they chipped away at the lead, and in the last minute outscored us 6-2 for the win. We let this one get away. Fouls were part of it with Hast fouling out and Rigs having 4, but -8 RBs was a bigger factor, and the biggest factor was awful defense. They shot 55.9% and had far too many open looks. Bench play also hurt us. Our bench had 15, 8, 2, and theirs had 29, 12, 5. We may have been looking ahead to our game with Alcorn ST. We will work harder.
68-42 over Alcorn ST, and alone in first yet again. We scored the first 11 and never looked back. 30, 13, 4 for Rigs, a great game. He held his opponent scoreless. 12, 6 for Toby, 11, 6 for Barr.10 TOs, 42 RBs (+17).
Pat Hall twisted his knee but it does not seem serious. He is day to day.
At 10-11, 6-6 Alabama ST, then here against 12-9, 7-5 Alabama A & M. We beat both teams handily last time.
We are 16-5, 9-3, RPI #43.
I ran into Jeb Lang yesterday. You will remember that he was the KKK ringleader the night my hand was burned. It was purely a chance meeting, but we had not met since that night. When I saw him I stopped dead in my tracks.
“Well, well, if it ain’t the ni-er coach.”
“Afternoon, Mr. Lang, sir.”
“Surprised ya hung onto that hand.”
“Yes sir.”
“You bound ta run outta luck sooner or later.”
With that he turned and walked away. There are monsters walking the Earth.
February 12
68-52 at Alabama ST. Six guys had between 7and 13 points. 15, 9, 3 for Rigs. It was close for about 25 minutes. Then we stretched the lead to 17 and it was over. +15 RBs.
70-53 over Alabama A & M. 41-19 at the half. It was never a game. 22, 4 for Hall, 13 each for Hast and Bent. 9 TOs (+9).
We’re one up on Alcorn ST, 2 on MS Valley ST, 3 or more on the rest, with 4 to play.
This week we go to 8-15, 3-11 Texas Southern, who we beat by 23, then we host Southern, also 8-15, 3-11. We won by 13 there.
We’re not excited about any of the recruits, so we have not yet offered that final scholarship. Still looking though.
Wallace turned that ankle again. He only played 22 minutes in Cal’s 2nd game of the week, when it happened. It does not appear to be serious, and he doesn’t think he’ll miss any games.
February 19
68-44 at Texas Southern. Once again we exploded out at the start and quickly built a 25 point lead. We never trailed, or came close to trailing. 16, 7 for Rigs, 15 for Toby, 11, 3, 6, 3 for Bent. +8 TOs.
We’re up 2 on Alcorn St, 3 or more on the rest, with 3 to play.
Vern Rigs stretched a calf muscle but it seems to be okay. Day to day.
69-58 over Southern. We got off to a slow start. They built a 13 point lead early. We cut it to 5 by halftime. We then made some adjustments and took control in the 2nd half, but we really did not play all that well. 16, 3, 3, 3 for Hast, 12, 7 for Rigs, but foul trouble limited him to 20 minutes. 11, 6, 6 for Hall. 8 TOs (+8).
This week ends the regular season. We go to 12-13, 9-7 Ark-Pine Bluff. We won by only 8 here. Then we end here with 12-13, 10-6 MS Valley ST. They beat us by 12 there, scoring 86 points, 20 more than we’ve given up to any other conference opponent.
We offer to a center from right here in Louisiana. He is showing only slight interest but we hope to convince him.
Wallace was named conference Player of the Week for the fourth time.
I can now make a fist, but the lack of feeling in the two fingers seems to be permanent.
Loretta is so happy at Juilliard. They are very encouraging regarding both her playing and composing and she says the courses are interesting and challenging.
Ruth Ann joined the debate team and she loves it. Frankly, it’s a wonderful activity for her.
February 26
68-62 over Ark-Pine Bluff there. We never trailed, and the final score was as close as it got after the first few minutes. 16, 3 for Hast, 12, 6 for Rigs, who was in foul trouble again. Very good bench play, 24, 12, 2. 11 TOs. This one clinches first place.
Sub Jay Haun got a mild hip pointer. He’s out for about a week.
80-63 over MS Valley ST. Rigs was amazing, 31 and 9. But 4 fouls and only 29 minutes. 12 TOs (+9).
We win the conference by 3 over Alcorn ST, 4 or more over the rest. We’re at 22-5, 15-3, RPI of #30 heading for post season play. And the biggest news is that for the first time in program history Grambling is ranked! #25.
We will host the tourney again, since the first place team always does so. We will get a bye into the semifinal round.
A very frustrating night, 62-65 to Jackson ST at home. They took an early 12 point lead. We came back and led by as many as 11. Then they chipped away at the lead, and in the last minute outscored us 6-2 for the win. We let this one get away. Fouls were part of it with Hast fouling out and Rigs having 4, but -8 RBs was a bigger factor, and the biggest factor was awful defense. They shot 55.9% and had far too many open looks. Bench play also hurt us. Our bench had 15, 8, 2, and theirs had 29, 12, 5. We may have been looking ahead to our game with Alcorn ST. We will work harder.
68-42 over Alcorn ST, and alone in first yet again. We scored the first 11 and never looked back. 30, 13, 4 for Rigs, a great game. He held his opponent scoreless. 12, 6 for Toby, 11, 6 for Barr.10 TOs, 42 RBs (+17).
Pat Hall twisted his knee but it does not seem serious. He is day to day.
At 10-11, 6-6 Alabama ST, then here against 12-9, 7-5 Alabama A & M. We beat both teams handily last time.
We are 16-5, 9-3, RPI #43.
I ran into Jeb Lang yesterday. You will remember that he was the KKK ringleader the night my hand was burned. It was purely a chance meeting, but we had not met since that night. When I saw him I stopped dead in my tracks.
“Well, well, if it ain’t the ni-er coach.”
“Afternoon, Mr. Lang, sir.”
“Surprised ya hung onto that hand.”
“Yes sir.”
“You bound ta run outta luck sooner or later.”
With that he turned and walked away. There are monsters walking the Earth.
February 12
68-52 at Alabama ST. Six guys had between 7and 13 points. 15, 9, 3 for Rigs. It was close for about 25 minutes. Then we stretched the lead to 17 and it was over. +15 RBs.
70-53 over Alabama A & M. 41-19 at the half. It was never a game. 22, 4 for Hall, 13 each for Hast and Bent. 9 TOs (+9).
We’re one up on Alcorn ST, 2 on MS Valley ST, 3 or more on the rest, with 4 to play.
This week we go to 8-15, 3-11 Texas Southern, who we beat by 23, then we host Southern, also 8-15, 3-11. We won by 13 there.
We’re not excited about any of the recruits, so we have not yet offered that final scholarship. Still looking though.
Wallace turned that ankle again. He only played 22 minutes in Cal’s 2nd game of the week, when it happened. It does not appear to be serious, and he doesn’t think he’ll miss any games.
February 19
68-44 at Texas Southern. Once again we exploded out at the start and quickly built a 25 point lead. We never trailed, or came close to trailing. 16, 7 for Rigs, 15 for Toby, 11, 3, 6, 3 for Bent. +8 TOs.
We’re up 2 on Alcorn St, 3 or more on the rest, with 3 to play.
Vern Rigs stretched a calf muscle but it seems to be okay. Day to day.
69-58 over Southern. We got off to a slow start. They built a 13 point lead early. We cut it to 5 by halftime. We then made some adjustments and took control in the 2nd half, but we really did not play all that well. 16, 3, 3, 3 for Hast, 12, 7 for Rigs, but foul trouble limited him to 20 minutes. 11, 6, 6 for Hall. 8 TOs (+8).
This week ends the regular season. We go to 12-13, 9-7 Ark-Pine Bluff. We won by only 8 here. Then we end here with 12-13, 10-6 MS Valley ST. They beat us by 12 there, scoring 86 points, 20 more than we’ve given up to any other conference opponent.
We offer to a center from right here in Louisiana. He is showing only slight interest but we hope to convince him.
Wallace was named conference Player of the Week for the fourth time.
I can now make a fist, but the lack of feeling in the two fingers seems to be permanent.
Loretta is so happy at Juilliard. They are very encouraging regarding both her playing and composing and she says the courses are interesting and challenging.
Ruth Ann joined the debate team and she loves it. Frankly, it’s a wonderful activity for her.
February 26
68-62 over Ark-Pine Bluff there. We never trailed, and the final score was as close as it got after the first few minutes. 16, 3 for Hast, 12, 6 for Rigs, who was in foul trouble again. Very good bench play, 24, 12, 2. 11 TOs. This one clinches first place.
Sub Jay Haun got a mild hip pointer. He’s out for about a week.
80-63 over MS Valley ST. Rigs was amazing, 31 and 9. But 4 fouls and only 29 minutes. 12 TOs (+9).
We win the conference by 3 over Alcorn ST, 4 or more over the rest. We’re at 22-5, 15-3, RPI of #30 heading for post season play. And the biggest news is that for the first time in program history Grambling is ranked! #25.
We will host the tourney again, since the first place team always does so. We will get a bye into the semifinal round.
- Wayne23
- DDS:CB Support Squad
- Posts: 14322
- Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2007 5:23 pm
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