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Post by TTX on Aug 14, 2022 6:33:45 GMT -5
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Post by jimsteel on Aug 14, 2022 17:18:18 GMT -5
Charlie Brandon, a former defensive lineman in the CFL, passed away at the age of 78 The following is an excerpt from his online obituary: "He was educated in the Wake County School System and graduated from Shaw University in Raleigh, NC with a degree in Physical Education. Charles began his teaching and coaching career in 1965 at Booker T. Washington High School in Norfolk, VA. Shortly after, Charles left teaching to play football for the Winnipeg Bluebombers in Manitoba, Canada. He then spent three seasons in the Continental Football League playing for the semi-pro Norfolk Neptunes, in Norfolk VA. Eventually, Charles left for Canada, again, to play for the Ottawa Rough Riders for 7 years in Ottawa, Ontario. He was a member of the feared "Capital Punishment" defensive unit. He won 2 Grey Cups and earned the title of Grey Cup MVP in 1973. After football in 1978, Charles returned to teaching and coaching at Maury High School and Norview High School, to name a few. Charles retired from teaching in the Norfolk Public School system in 2005." He played on the following teams during his pro football career: 1967 Winnipeg Blue Bombers 1967–69 Norfolk Neptunes 1972–78 Ottawa Rough Riders In 1973 he was the Grey Cup Most Valuable Player.
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Post by jimsteel on Aug 14, 2022 17:19:40 GMT -5
Steve Worster, a former running back in the CFL and more famously a college football star at the University of Texas, passed away at the age of 73. Worster was heavily recruited to play football for several schools. He chose to accept a scholarship to the University of Texas at Austin, where he played under coach Darrell Royal. He was the cornerstone of Royal's famed Wishbone formation, which was introduced against the Houston Cougars in 1968. Texas Longhorns fans nicknamed Worster "Big Woo." During his years at Texas, Worster rushed for 2,353 yards and scored 36 touchdowns. His team's won three Southwest Conference titles and two national championships. Worster was featured on the cover of Dave Campbell's Texas Football magazine in 1970 and finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting for the 1970 season. He was a two-time All-American (1969 and 1970) and three-time All-Southwest Conference selection, and was voted 1970 Texas Amateur Athlete of the Year by the Texas Sports Writers Association. Worster has also been inducted into the Texas Longhorn Hall of Fame and the Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame. Although Worster was chosen by the Los Angeles Rams as the 12th pick in the fourth round of the 1971 NFL draft (the Rams' fourth pick overall), he did not play in the National Football League (NFL). Worster spent one year (1971) in the Canadian Football League (CFL), playing for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats before pursuing a career in sales.
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Post by TTX on Aug 15, 2022 15:22:55 GMT -5
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Post by jimsteel on Aug 16, 2022 12:16:23 GMT -5
Pop Idol star Darius Danesh found dead in apartment aged 41 Former Pop Idol contestant and theatre star Darius Campbell Danesh has been found dead in his US apartment room at the age of 41, his family announced.
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Post by jimsteel on Aug 17, 2022 1:03:55 GMT -5
Wolfgang Peterson, director of Das Boot, The Perfect Storm, and The NeverEnding Story passed away at 81 The filmmaker also directed Air Force One, Enemy Mine, and In The Line Of Fire
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Post by jimsteel on Aug 17, 2022 10:34:43 GMT -5
Inez Ferne Voyce, nicknamed Lefty, a former first basewoman who played from 1946 through 1953 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, passed away at the age of 97. In 1946 Voyce hit a .210 average in 104 games for South Bend. The team advanced to the playoffs, but lost to the Racine Belles in the first round. She was traded to the Grand Rapids Chicks at the end of the season. After being traded, Voyce emerged as one of the most dynamic hitters in the league, helping the Chicks capture two titles and making each playoff in her seven-year tenure with the team. In 1947 she hit .214 in 113 games and finished third in runs batted in (45), providing a one-two punch along with versatile Connie Wisniewski (.291, 24 RBI) to support a pitching staff consisting of Mildred Earp (20-8), Alice Haylett (19-11) and Wisniewski (16-14). Managed by Johnny Rawlings, Grand Rapids dispatched South Bend in the first round and defeated Racine in the finals to clinch the championship title. Earp was the heroine of the final, even though she lost Game 1, 2–0, in 11 innings after retiring the first 21 Belle batters. She rebounded to win Game 4 on a 3–0 shutout, and then pitched a four-hit, 1–0 shutout to win decisive Game 7.
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Post by jimsteel on Aug 17, 2022 10:42:53 GMT -5
James Bryan "Jim" Smithwick-Hann, a former pro football linebacker, passed away at the age of 70. The following is an excerpt from Hann's online obituary: "He participated in football, basketball, and track. He was elected student body president and played the lead in the school musical Li'l Abner. After graduating high school in 1969, Jim continued his football career at Grays Harbor Jr. college while his family moved to Centralia, WA. Jim always joked he was probably one of the few kids whose family moved away from them when they were starting college. After two years, Jim earned a football scholarship to the University of Montana. Jim's time at the University of Montana turned him into a true Montana boy, where he latched onto multiple new interests including fly fishing, downhill skiing, and looking up a new word in the dictionary daily. In swimming class, he met and fell in love with his life partner, Lori Smithwick. He not only committed time to football, becoming captain of the 1972 Grizzlies, but devoted time to school as well. Most of his free time was spent with Lori and friends he met from the University of Montana football and basketball teams. After graduating with a degree in Health and Physical Education, Jim was selected as a linebacker in the 1973 NFL draft by the St. Louis Cardinals being picked in the 16th round (396th overall). He finished his football career in the World Football League playing for the Portland Storm in 1974.
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Post by jimsteel on Aug 17, 2022 12:50:23 GMT -5
Another woman baseball player 6th or 7th this year Kathryn Vonderau, a former All-Star catcher who played from 1946 through 1953 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, passed away at 94. Vonderau was an integral part of multiple playoff teams with her leadership. More important than her offensive numbers, Vonderau was a fine receiver with a quick throwing arm and a fine glove during her eight seasons in the league. After retiring from baseball, she had a successful career as an educator for thirty-one years. Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Vonderau caught and played first base for a fast-pitch softball championship team sponsored by Harold Greiner, owner of the Bob-Inn Restaurant in Fort Wayne. The team won state championship titles in 1944 and 1945, while Greiner, who scouted for the All-American Professional Baseball League, recommended Vonderau for the league's tryouts. She joined the league in 1946, following her high school graduation from Elmhurst High School, and was assigned to her hometown team, the Fort Wayne Daisies. But then the league started shuffling her around to fill in where she was needed. For the next three seasons, Vonderau divided her playing time with the Muskegon Lassies (1947), Chicago Colleens (1948) and Peoria Redwings (1948–1949). She suffered a knee injury in 1948 while playing for Peoria, which somewhat limited her playing time for the rest of her career. Vonderau returned to the Daisies in 1950, playing for them through 1952, when she helped Fort Wayne win the pennant. She was then sent to the Muskegon Belles in 1953, her last year on the circuit. Her most productive season came in 1951, when she posted career numbers with a .221 batting average, 32 runs batted in and 24 runs scored. She also gained a spot in the 1953 All-Star Team. Following her baseball career, Vondearau had a teaching career at all academic levels from elementary through university as a Health, Physical Education and Recreation educator. Her academic honors include bachelor's and master's degrees from Indiana University and a doctorate from the University of Iowa. She retired from the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater in 1988.
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Post by jimsteel on Aug 17, 2022 14:48:49 GMT -5
Fred Hyatt, a former NFL wide receiver, passed away at the age of 75 unexpectedly following open heart surgery. He played college football at Auburn University and was drafted by the Cardinals in the second round of the 1968 NFL Draft. Hyatt played on the following teams during his career in the NFL: 1968–1972 St. Louis Cardinals 1973 New Orleans Saints 1973 Washington Redskins The following is an excerpt from an article in the Ocala Gazette by Rosemarie Dowell; " It was Oct. 29, 1966, and the Auburn Tigers were playing the Florida Gators in Gainesville. It was Florida’s Homecoming and Hyatt kept begging coach Ralph Jordan to put him in the game. The coach finally relented so that Hyatt would shut up,” said Morgan Hyatt. “So, Freddie caught a pass and as he started pulling away from the safety, he said, "See you later alligator,’” she said. The story with Hyatt’s witty quip ran in “The Auburn Plainsman,” the university’s newspaper. (The Gators went on to win the game, with quarterback Steve Spurrier, winner of the Heisman Trophy a few weeks later, kicking a field goal to break a 27-27 tie to take the lead for good."
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