‘I left my heart in Altoona’

April 2, 2022

It has been a while, but once again my wife and I get ready for a trip to my hometown, Altoona. The Blair County Sports Hall of Fame banquet and induction ceremony are being held on April 9. The committee that hosts and puts the affair together are to be congratulated on a wonderful evening. I moved from the city over 50 years ago, but I still call Altoona home. When being introduced to a stranger, I will tell them where I live, but that I was born and raised in Altoona. The weekend will be filled with old friends, family and reunions with people I have not seen in years. All ...

A word to the wise on gambling

March 25, 2022

If you’re looking for employment, and job security is important to you, go ahead and fill out an application for a counselor at Gambler’s Anonymous. Am I the only one noticing what’s going on with the slowly building gambling addiction supported, of course, by those hard rectangles many can’t go 30 seconds without looking at. I have just as many March Madness brackets filled out as the next guy, and will always throw $20 in for a Super Bowl square. But what I am talking about is the ease you can lose a week’s grocery money betting on irrelevant games. Ninety percent of ...

Mailbag

March 5, 2022

Expansion shouldn’t stop with Laurel Highlands So regional football leagues are disbanding and teams are applying to new surroundings. The Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference is expanding. Maybe the time has come to adopt the WPIAL format of teams playing games according to classification. Combine Districts 6 and 5, and extend an invitation to District 9 DuBois, Clearfield, Punxsutawney, Curwensville and Indiana (of the WPIAL). Other possibilities might include Erie McDowell and Cathedral Prep, both of District 10, and District 4 Williamsport. Those additions would ...

PSU wrestling doing just fine

February 12, 2022

This letter is in response to Jeff Bartlett’s letter last weekend on several NCAA wrestling subjects. I do not disagree that the extra COVID year was not necessary, but in wrestling’s case, it was probably due to the NCAA tournament not being held in 2020. What I take offense to is Bartlett’s other rants. Regarding the Pennsylvania kids going to Iowa, we need to look how this came about. There is no doubt that losing Spencer Lee was a major disappointment, but it wasn’t because of a lack of effort by Cael Sanderson. The fact that Lee’s girlfriend was enrolled at ...

Mailbag

February 5, 2022

Pheasant left mark on Altoona athletics Gary Wayne Pheasant (1954-2022) graduated from Altoona Area High School in 1972 one year after me. I knew him from playing football and baseball for the Mountain Lions. He was a superlative athlete with good size, great foot speed and excellent power. Our first encounter was on a baseball field, playing a practice Teener League game. He was on the mound throwing nothing but heat, clearly demonstrating he was no ordinary athlete. He was a wide receiver for the Purdue Boilermakers football team, but a subsequent, unfortunate turn of ...

Mailbag

January 15, 2022

NCAA must address opting out of bowls As a Penn Stater, class of 1963, I was disappointed with six starting football players who dropped out of the recent Outback Bowl. Five were defensive starters, which crippled the Penn State defense. Coach James Franklin said it was the worst bowl opt-out situation he has experienced. Happily, the Big Ten record in the bowls was 6-4. Players dropping out of bowl games for fear of being injured prior to the NFL draft is disconcerting. Injuries can occur anytime during their careers. Most of the players were on four-year scholarships ...