COACH KNEW HOW TO TURN BOYS INTO MEN.Byline: Dennis McCarthy Dennis McCarthy may refer to:
The gray-haired men stood reverentially rev·er·en·tial adj. 1. Expressing reverence; reverent. 2. Inspiring reverence. rev in the background, waiting their turn to approach the legend and say a few words. ``Coach Vu, remember me?'' one of them asked, moving forward to shake the legend's hand at the Glendale High School Glendale High School can refer to:
``Class of '54. I was in your basic math class, the kid who never shut up. Remember one day you took me out in the hallway and pinned me up against the lockers? ``I thought you were going to kill me,'' the man said. ``Thanks. You really straightened me out.'' Roy Vujovich laughed and hugged the man. Sure he remembered him. The legend remembered all the wayward young men he straightened out in the '50s and '60s by pinning them up against the lockers and offering a few words of sound advice only fools ignored. Today, he'd get slapped with a lawsuit and fired. Back then, he got thanked. Things were better back then. ``Look at them,'' said Bill Lindsay Bill Lindsay (born May 17, 1971 in Fernie, British Columbia) is a Canadian ice hockey player. He has played in the National Hockey League for the Quebec Nordiques, Florida Panthers, Calgary Flames, San Jose Sharks, Montreal Canadiens and the Atlanta Thrashers and currently plays in , one of Vu's former varsity players, watching the men in their mid-to-late '50s approach the coach for a handshake. ``Forty years later, and they still idolize i·dol·ize tr.v. i·dol·ized, i·dol·iz·ing, i·dol·iz·es 1. To regard with blind admiration or devotion. See Synonyms at revere1. 2. To worship as an idol. him. We all do. Coach Vu had that kind of effect on all his classroom students and football players. You worshiped the guy. He turned a lot of boys into men.'' Behind Lindsay, a few other gray-haired and balding men shook their heads and marveled at how it could be that their old high school football coach looked younger today than they did. It wasn't fair. Time may stand still for no man, but for Roy Vujovich, who turns 70 this November, it sure slowed down to a crawl. About the only things at this reunion that hadn't changed much were the Bob's Big Boy burgers, the '57 Chevies parked out in the lot, and the legend who piloted the Dynamiters' golden era of football from 1952 through 1965 (the team is now called the Nitros). But the story of this reunion, like most from that era, goes much deeper than football or any sport. It goes right down to the roots of a time when teachers, like Vujovich, were trusted and honored - when they were allowed to turn boys into men without looking over their shoulder for a lawyer with a subpoena subpoena (səpē`nə) [Lat.,=under penalty], in law, an order to a witness to appear before a court. A subpoena ad testificandum [Lat. in their hand - or a kid with a gun. ``We were spoiled,'' said Vujovich, who quit coaching in 1966 to go into business. He and his wife, Christina, a 1962 Glendale High grad, live in Granada Hills. ``There was a chemistry between the faculty, administration and students back then. The kids respected you for what you said and did. ``The secret in teaching for me, besides knowing your subject, was knowing each individual kid, because there are big differences. You can't treat everyone the same, and that was quite evident in sports. ``You had to know who you could push verbally, and who you couldn't - who you had to praise and slap on the butt to go out there in the second half and make the plays for you. ``I learned a lot from coach (Red) Sanders at UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX , where I played my football. He was an inspiration to me, and hopefully, I was an inspiration to my players,'' Vujovich said. There's no hopefully about it. If imitation is the greatest form of flattery - even 45 years later - the legend made a deep, lasting mark on his students. At the next table, a couple of Vu's football linemen - Lindsay, Gordy Bartow and Todd Thompson Todd Thompson may refer to:
Patroclus wore the armor of Achilles against the Trojans to encourage the disheartened Greeks. [Gk. Lit.: Iliad] Prisoner of Zenda, The of one of their coach's famous halftime tirades when his team was trailing or playing badly. Vu's slow, ominous pace around the locker room slowly shaking his head - his right hand covering his eyes, like he couldn't bear to even look at his players - his left folded across his chest. And the voice - that low, gravelly grav·el·ly adj. 1. Of, full of, or covered with rock fragments or pebbles: a gravelly beach. 2. Having a harsh rasping sound: a gravelly voice. voice that made each player murmur a silent prayer that its wrath wouldn't be aimed at him. ``Geez geez interj. Used to express mild surprise, delight, dissatisfaction, or annoyance. [Shortening and alteration of Jesus1.] , Lindy lin·dy or Lin·dy n. pl. lin·dies A lively swing dance for couples. Also called lindy hop. [From Lindynickname of Charles Augustus Lindbergh. , what's the matter with you tonight, you're getting murdered out there,'' Lindsay growled, impersonating Vu lecturing him from 42 years ago. Vujovich laughed and put down the Big Boy hamburger he was eating, smiling at his wife as he got up from the picnic table to resume the duties of a legend. Another group of boys he had turned into men was approaching, wanting to shake his hand and say thanks. MEMO: Dennis McCarthy's column appears Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday. CAPTION(S): PHOTO Former Glendale High School coach Roy Vujovich, right, sharesa laugh with 1954 graduates Marty Huckabone, left, and Bill Lindsay at a '50s reunion picnic at Verdugo Park. Phil McCarten/Daily News |
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