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Mar. 22—WILKES-BARRE — With the NCAA March Madness tourney in full swing, it seemed more than appropriate that I ran into Nanticoke High School legend Bob Beggs at the Pierce Street Deli this week.
While waiting for our lunch orders, Beggs and I recalled the rivalry that was Nanticoke versus Plymouth — on the gridiron and on the hardcourt. Shawnee Indians versus the Nans, or was it the Rams?
Whatever, it was always a battle. And the fans, oh those fans — on both sides.
Talk about madness!
So Bob and I traded stories and we remembered those days, the intensity of the rivalry and how every Nanticoke-Plymouth game was a battle.
As intense as those games were, we always walked away with our heads held high and respect for each other.
It was great to go back and recall those halcyon days, especially the 1965-1966 year. It got me to thinking — yet again — of our teachers and the Plymouth High School campus and all the stories we tell to this day.
Coach John "Snoggy" Mergo is always the most popular topic — his infamous "how many bones in the heart, true or false," question and his almost daily "check to see if the big boss was in the hallway" before we would escape to the football field to play softball instead of learning boring health lessons.
"I once swam halfway across Harveys Lake," Coach Mergo would say, "but I got tired and swam back."
And that magnificent school campus with its beautiful brick buildings, winding sidewalks and tall shade trees, with Huber Stadium and its amazing wall and the Plymouth Little League that sat adjacent.
Back in 1966 and all the years before the big school mergers, school spirit was a way of life. Whether it was Plymouth versus Nanticoke, West Pittston versus Exeter, Kingston versus Coughlin, Meyers versus GAR, or Avoca versus Moosic, rivalries were to live and die for year after year.
And at the Pierce Street Deli some 59 years later, Bob Beggs and I eagerly recalled those days of our youth — of growing up and celebrating our hometowns — and those rivalries.
The days of high school rivalries and school spirit remain today within the bracket of the NCAA tournaments. The NCAA men's basketball tournament is always met with great anticipation — bracket pools abound, college sweatshirts are worn and sports bars with several giant screen TVs are filled with fans.
I enjoy when the cameras pan to the stands and you see the fans and the cheerleaders and the pep bands and the banners and the enthusiasm. "March Madness" is alive and well at every game.
It's great to relax in my recliner to watch the games, with the remote in hand that enables me to catch all the excitement — "madness," if you will — of every NCAA game/rivalry.
So, instead of lamenting about those great old days, the NCAA tournaments allow us to fondly recall the experiences we had when local high schools played all those down-to-the-wire games.
As I watch the games and check my lone bracket to see how I did with my predictions, my mind will be elsewhere at times. I will think about firing up the Way Back Machine and heading back to 1965-1966 and landing at a Plymouth versus Nanticoke basketball game.
I can see the red and black of the Shawnee Indians and the red, white and blue of the Nanticoke squad. I can see Coach Joe Evan and Coach Syl Bozinski pacing the sideline, shouting instructions to their players.
I can see Pat "Tiger" Denoy hopping on one leg, blowing his whistle and calling traveling as the fans scream.
I can see the old Plymouth Gaylord Armory, with its horseshoe balcony, packed with fans. As was the Nanticoke gym, with its pillars in the corners that were in bounds!
It really was good to see Bob Beggs again. It was great to share a few stories.
May rivalries always be around — and may former rivals enjoy talking about them.
With no madness whatsoever.
Reach Bill O'Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.
Continue reading...
While waiting for our lunch orders, Beggs and I recalled the rivalry that was Nanticoke versus Plymouth — on the gridiron and on the hardcourt. Shawnee Indians versus the Nans, or was it the Rams?
Whatever, it was always a battle. And the fans, oh those fans — on both sides.
Talk about madness!
So Bob and I traded stories and we remembered those days, the intensity of the rivalry and how every Nanticoke-Plymouth game was a battle.
As intense as those games were, we always walked away with our heads held high and respect for each other.
It was great to go back and recall those halcyon days, especially the 1965-1966 year. It got me to thinking — yet again — of our teachers and the Plymouth High School campus and all the stories we tell to this day.
Coach John "Snoggy" Mergo is always the most popular topic — his infamous "how many bones in the heart, true or false," question and his almost daily "check to see if the big boss was in the hallway" before we would escape to the football field to play softball instead of learning boring health lessons.
"I once swam halfway across Harveys Lake," Coach Mergo would say, "but I got tired and swam back."
And that magnificent school campus with its beautiful brick buildings, winding sidewalks and tall shade trees, with Huber Stadium and its amazing wall and the Plymouth Little League that sat adjacent.
Back in 1966 and all the years before the big school mergers, school spirit was a way of life. Whether it was Plymouth versus Nanticoke, West Pittston versus Exeter, Kingston versus Coughlin, Meyers versus GAR, or Avoca versus Moosic, rivalries were to live and die for year after year.
And at the Pierce Street Deli some 59 years later, Bob Beggs and I eagerly recalled those days of our youth — of growing up and celebrating our hometowns — and those rivalries.
The days of high school rivalries and school spirit remain today within the bracket of the NCAA tournaments. The NCAA men's basketball tournament is always met with great anticipation — bracket pools abound, college sweatshirts are worn and sports bars with several giant screen TVs are filled with fans.
I enjoy when the cameras pan to the stands and you see the fans and the cheerleaders and the pep bands and the banners and the enthusiasm. "March Madness" is alive and well at every game.
It's great to relax in my recliner to watch the games, with the remote in hand that enables me to catch all the excitement — "madness," if you will — of every NCAA game/rivalry.
So, instead of lamenting about those great old days, the NCAA tournaments allow us to fondly recall the experiences we had when local high schools played all those down-to-the-wire games.
As I watch the games and check my lone bracket to see how I did with my predictions, my mind will be elsewhere at times. I will think about firing up the Way Back Machine and heading back to 1965-1966 and landing at a Plymouth versus Nanticoke basketball game.
I can see the red and black of the Shawnee Indians and the red, white and blue of the Nanticoke squad. I can see Coach Joe Evan and Coach Syl Bozinski pacing the sideline, shouting instructions to their players.
I can see Pat "Tiger" Denoy hopping on one leg, blowing his whistle and calling traveling as the fans scream.
I can see the old Plymouth Gaylord Armory, with its horseshoe balcony, packed with fans. As was the Nanticoke gym, with its pillars in the corners that were in bounds!
It really was good to see Bob Beggs again. It was great to share a few stories.
May rivalries always be around — and may former rivals enjoy talking about them.
With no madness whatsoever.
Reach Bill O'Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.
Continue reading...
