My wife and I walked into Blair County Ballpark on Monday evening and heard a ticket taker call me over to tell me something.
He asked me if I had heard the latest news about Ed DeChellis leaving Penn State. I thought he was joking, but he was sincere. He said DeChellis had accepted the coaching position at the U.S. Naval Academy.
I am not sure what ran through my mind, but I was relieved for him.
Coach leaves the Penn State men's basketball program with a losing record. He was not a good fit to coach in the Big Ten, and one wonders if anybody could ever resurrect this program.
That remains to be seen.
Coach Ed has been rebuilding programs at Penn State only to see one time the 2010-2011 team made it into the NCAA Tournament of 68 teams and lose in the first round. That is the only positive legacy he will be remembered for.
Aside from coaching, Ed DeChellis is a great human being and a role model for young players. He is a cancer survivor and his moral character is unblemished. I personally wish the best for this man and hope he will take his coaching staff with him to coach the Mids and accomplish some good things for all concerned.
Coach doesn't have to produce winning teams but just be competitive. Go Navy!
Les Hart, Duncansville
Let players strike
I wish the NFL players would go on strike.
Let a bunch of scrubs and no-names play instead. Pay them next to nothing. I bet people would still watch it. TV would still air games, and life would go on, then, ultimately, players would walk over the strike line, and the players union would be embarrassed.
I am ashamed that any organization thinks their product is worth anything if there is no consumer. What happened when there was an NHL lockout? There was no hockey for a time, but when it came back, it was better than ever.
I say to heck with the NFLPA. Let the players sit on their butts for a bit, and when they finally look in a mirror, they will finally see the fans pay their checks, not the union.
David Winters
Altoona
Locals contributing to IUP success
The IUP Crimson Hawks' softball team deserves congratulations for winning the Atlantic Region championship and advancing to the Division II College World Series.
It's especially nice to see that local players have contributed to the success. Among the team members are three former Claysburg-Kimmel standouts - Marissa Leslie, Monica Iachini and Christi Mauk.
Paul Mauk
Imler
