|
A Night to Remember in God's
Country...My Alma Mater...
The real greatness of sports
I have witnessed many great individual and team feats
in my short lifetime.
I’ve been privileged to see the careers of greats
like Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, and Dale Earnhardt.
I remember the 1980 Lake Placid “Miracle on Ice,” “The
Catch,” Christian Laettner’s dagger in the heart of
Kentucky (NCAA Tournament), and the greatness that was
the voice of Jack Buck.
But on Jan. 20, I saw the real
greatness of sports.
I was in Sulligent and Rashad Johnson was nowhere to
be found.
Those of us who watch a lot local high
school basketball have seen Corey Marchbanks before. He
is a tall, timid young man who plays varsity basketball
for the Sulligent Blue Devils.
We’ve seen Corey play before after a talented
Sulligent team builds a big lead. Toward the end of the
game, Corey enters the contest. We’ve seen this scene
with many young men and women before, but this is
different.
Corey is mentally handicapped. When he enters the
game, the outcome has been decided and everyone knows
Corey wants to score. He’s gonna shoot every time he
touches the ball. That’s his job and that what everyone
on both teams expect. I tell Corey’s story to my best
friend from Texas who is attending with me on this
night. Little did we know the great story
that was about to unfold before us.
This was Senior Night for Blue Devils’
basketball. Corey is a senior and is introduced like
every other senior cheerleader and player. I felt a lump
in my throat as he was introduced and made his way to
center court--hand held high, waving to an adoring home
crowd and applauded by everyone in the gymnasium.
The time comes to introduce the starting lineups for
each team. I look at the five young men on Sulligent’s
bench and, lo and behold, Corey there, waiting to be
introduced!
The coaches restrain him as he
prematurely leaves the bench to shake hands with
Hamilton coach Barry Peoples. Waiting until his name is
called, Corey is the last of the five starters
introduced.
With an extra dose of excitement and in a voice that
would’ve made Michael Buffer proud, the announcer calls,
“And finally, a senior, No. 10, Corey
“THE BIG TICKET” Maaaaarch-baaaaaaanks!"
Both sides of the gym erupt and I begin to wonder,
“How is this going to work?” I mean, this is a big game
between two of the best teams in the area. What are they
gonna do with Corey?
It doesn’t take long for me to get my answer. The
referee tosses the ball into the air and Hamilton center
Jeffrey Nunn doesn’t even jump. The Aggie defenders fall
back into a 2-3 zone and the ball is brought into
Sulligent’s front court.
Corey is on the right wing calling for
the ball. The pass is made and he shoots an uncontested
shot. Miss. A Blue Devil teammate retrieves the ball and
Corey shoots again. Miss. Another rebound and pass to
Corey, this time a lot closer to the basket. YES!
The shot goes in and the gym goes wild! Corey races
to the defensive end of the floor pumping his left arm
at every step. Corey has scored but the Aggies now have
the ball. What happens now?
Senior point guard Ethan Lawler calmly
takes the inbounds pass and brings it up the floor. With
no one defending him he takes it to the hoop and calmly
lays it in. This is great! Corey has scored and my good
friend and Sulligent head coach Tommy Chism has returned
the basket.
Tommy will call time out, substitute for Corey, get
him a big ovation and we can get on with the game.
But as Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast my friend!”
It isn’t over. Sulligent brings the ball up the floor
and the Aggies again fall back into the lane. The pass
is made to Corey on the right wing. He shoots and
misses.
The rebound is given back to him and
he scores from close range. The fans go crazy again and
Corey fist-pumps his way back to the other end of the
floor. Hamilton inbounds the ball and Ethan Lawler
brings it up the floor. He passes to an unguarded
Jeffrey Nunn who lays it in.
But we still aren’t finished. Three more times down
the floor and Corey Marchbanks has 10 points!
At one point, Hamilton ’s Jeffrey Nunn gets the
defensive rebound and hands the ball back to Corey who
lays it in. Five possessions. Five baskets for Corey
Marchbanks.
As Hamilton scores its fifth uncontested bucket to
tie the game at 10, Tommy Chism finally calls timeout. I
look at the clock. 5:42. Less than 2 1/2 minutes have
elapsed.
Everyone in the gymnasium rises to
their collective feet, cheering for the marvelous feat
they’ve just witnessed. That lump in my throat has
returned bigger than ever as my friend turns and says,
“I am really glad I was here tonight to see this. That
was absolute greatness.” Greatness indeed!
Corey leaves the game and sits at the end of the
bench. He will not play again on this night as the
outcome of the game is not determined until Ethan Lawler
drives the lane in heavy traffic and makes an incredible
lay-up with one second remaining to give the Aggies a
one-point lead. Victory is sealed as Jeffrey Nunn blocks
a final Blue Devil shot attempt.
I know a lot of folks on both sides talked about the
last few seconds of the game, but I know one thing for
certain, they will remember the first two minutes for
the rest of their lives.
As we drove home that night, I told my
son Jeffrey, “I’m glad you were at the game tonight to
see what happened at the start of the game.”
“Why’s that?” he asks.
I replied, “Because you just witnessed what is great
about sports. Of all the games you will play in high
school, you will remember just a very few moments. But
you will never forget what you witnessed tonight at this
ball game.
“It’s something you’ll one day share with your kids
and grandkids. (Fifteen-year-old boys sometimes have
difficulty seeing the big picture!)
The following day I spoke with coach Peoples about
the game. He told me that as he left the locker room the
previous night, he was startled as an unknown man
approached him. This is generally not good for a coach
who just won a close contest on the road, but the man
said, “Coach, I’m Corey’s father, and I appreciate what
you did for my son tonight."
Aren’t we all! A gentleman’s agreement
between two excellent coaches who also proved themselves
as outstanding men. Two minutes in a small gymnasium in
Sulligent , Alabama . Numerous lives changed forever.
Thank you, Tommy Chism and Barry Peoples, for showing us
the real greatness that is high school athletics.
Todd Clippard
10655 U.S. Highway 278
Hamilton, Alabama 35570
|
