From 1979...

Leatherneck57 · Sat Jan 09, 2016 2:33 pm

yokedneck wrote:Yeah that was my next stop. Appears to be a void in our history in the 70s

Tom

There is and it's unfortunate! Even the SID admitted that a lot of records were lost when we went Division I. Western had a lot of great athletes in the late 60's and all of the 70's. That's why I'm tweeting so many pics! I just don't want anyone to be offended by me posting so much!

Former Neck

Sat Jan 09, 2016 9:55 pm

So, Leatherneck57 has been sending me a bunch of photos (most he's posted on twitter), but I thought maybe the easiest way to show them would just be to set up a flickr album for them, then add photos as I get them.

So, if you want to see more of them, you can head over here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/lawsonpho ... 3302319076
You may have to scroll down a little on the photos to see the titles and descriptions.

BobLovely · Sun Jan 10, 2016 5:55 am

Leatherneck57 wrote:
yokedneck wrote:Yeah that was my next stop. Appears to be a void in our history in the 70s

Tom
There is and it's unfortunate! Even the SID admitted that a lot of records were lost when we went Division I. Western had a lot of great athletes in the late 60's and all of the 70's. That's why I'm tweeting so many pics! I just don't want anyone to be offended by me posting so much!

Former Neck

LN57,

Please keep posting the great photos! Larry Heimberger was the SID during this era and it is hard to believe he did not keep excellent records. Someone could have later thrown them out...

Bob

Leatherneck57 · Sun Jan 10, 2016 10:08 am

BobLovely wrote:
Leatherneck57 wrote:
yokedneck wrote:Yeah that was my next stop. Appears to be a void in our history in the 70s

Tom
There is and it's unfortunate! Even the SID admitted that a lot of records were lost when we went Division I. Western had a lot of great athletes in the late 60's and all of the 70's. That's why I'm tweeting so many pics! I just don't want anyone to be offended by me posting so much!

Former Neck
LN57,

Please keep posting the great photos! Larry Heimberger was the SID during this era and it is hard to believe he did not keep excellent records. Someone could have later thrown them out...

Bob

I spoke with Patrick Osterman our current SID at the forum for the new HC and he mentioned to me that when the change to Division I took place a lot of records stats etc were misplaced somehow. It's not that Larry Heimburger didn't keep good stats they just can't be found. Patrick has been here for 7 or 8 years.

My parents gave me a box many years ago that had a lot of this stuff in it including weekly newsletters from Larry that he sent to the parents and boosters etc. Thank good my dad worked for Kodak and owned a photography store as well...he was the one that took all of the pictures. I have 100's of pictures as well as articles from the Western Courier, Macomb Daily Journal and my home town newspaper The Quincy Herald Whig that they saved for me.

I asked Pat during our conversations why I wasn't listed in the Press Guide and Program with some of my stats like tackles, forced fumbles, fumble recoveries etc. and that's when he said he didn't have them. Well he does now...thank god my parents saved the final stat sheets from 1978 and 1979. Patrick was very grateful to say the least! If you look stats in the guide tackles stats only go back to '81 or 82'. There was a helleva lot football played at Western before then other than "Team" records. The only real stat showing from back then is Mike Wagner's interception record of 10.

I told Pat that I should be listed as a tackles leader, I played more plays in 1979 than anybody on the defense that year...779, had 137 total tackles, 4-forced fumbles, 4-fumble recoveries, 4 interceptions and received the prestigious Red Miller Award. Not a bad senior season. I also lead the team in tackles as a junior in 1978 and was the punter as well.

We had a crap load of kids get drafted in the qualifying rounds and or as Free Agents and I think the Free Agent names should be listed as well not just the ones that made a team. That would really paint an example of how many players over the years had NFL potential. If you think about it in 1979 (my senior year) we had 11 seniors and 5 us either signed a contract or were picked up as a Free Agent including me. I signed with the St. Louis Cardinals...got cut during camp and then my agent got me on in Denver. Since I received the Red Miller Award who at the time was the HC in Denver...at the time they brought in...got cut but at least I was there. The following year I had tryouts with the 49ers and Seahawks...didn't make it but again at least I was there! There are numerous examples of players like that.

Patrick now knows my stats and mentioned to me in email that I qualify for being listed in some categories. Western was good to me and I played my ass off and I'm not a person that needs accolades but when you know you meet the qualifications you just want it to be right! If I wouldn't have asked the questions that day it would have stayed the way it is.

How many other examples are like this from the 60's and 70's?? That's the question...

Former Neck

BobLovely · Sun Jan 10, 2016 10:27 am

LN57,

Thank you for insights! Much appreciated! As an example, I know there were a number of guys from the 1973 team that were offered FA contracts in addition to those who were drafted. A number of them played in the USFL as well.

Bob

Leatherneck57 · Sun Jan 10, 2016 10:40 am

BobLovely wrote:LN57,

Thank you for insights! Much appreciated! As an example, I know there were a number of guys from the 1973 team that were offered FA contracts in addition to those who were drafted. A number of them played in the USFL as well.

Bob

Case in point; if you go to the football section of the website and pull up Leathernecks in the NFL...check out the Denver Broncos...

In 1976 I had the privilege of playing with one of the best Tight Ends in Western's rich football tradition...Scott Levanhagen. He was a stud blocker and one of the best handed guys I've ever seen. He was drafted in the 3rd round by the Broncos in the 1977 draft and was on the final roster at the end of camp...but he decided he no longer had the drive or need to play football anymore.

I talk to Scott whenever he's back to see a game and I've actually run into him at the Macomb Country Club playing golf with Brodie Westen...great guy!

Should he be listed? I'll let you guys decide that...

Former Neck

Leatherneck57 · Sun Jan 10, 2016 10:53 am

Sorry...he was drafted in the 12th round and does show being drafted. I guess they have the site setup to show who made rosters and who were actually drafted. Doesn't show "Free Agents"...

Sun Jan 10, 2016 11:59 am

That does explain a lot. If you look in the record book for this year: http://goleathernecks.com/documents/201 ... d_Book.pdf
starting on page 58, you've got the listing of all the players to wear each number. There was one player that I knew played in the late '70s, but he's not listed anywhere in the book.

If you look at some of the numbers, there's pretty huge gaps. I can see going a few years without using a number but in some cases you have over a full decade of not using a number. Unless the number got temporarily retired or something, it seems unlikely that you'd have a number go unused for that length of time.

Hopefully the athletics department is able to get some of those records and info pieced together...that's another benefit to getting the alumni football players involved again...I'd imagine at least a few of them have season books, newspaper articles, team rosters, other notes, etc. sitting in boxes in their attics and basements. It'd be a huge amount of work, but once you're able to start getting together lists and contact info for alumni of various "eras", you can contact them and see if they can help start filling in the gaps.

beauspencer · Sun Jan 10, 2016 1:41 pm

Glad you brought that up, Brian. I've done a lot of research on WIU men's basketball, and also worked in the sports info Dept for a few years. It's cry surprising at how many records are missing from pre-1980.

If I can track down some rosters from the 60s and 70s, I think I can track down free agent signings.

Leatherneck57 · Sun Jan 10, 2016 2:05 pm

beauspencer wrote:Glad you brought that up, Brian. I've done a lot of research on WIU men's basketball, and also worked in the sports info Dept for a few years. It's cry surprising at how many records are missing from pre-1980.

If I can track down some rosters from the 60s and 70s, I think I can track down free agent signings.

Free Agent signings may be a little difficult to track down being there were 12 rounds back then. I signed for a whopping $3000...still have my contract and defensive play book from the Cardinals. I signed the same year that Steve Carpenter signed with them. He didn't make the roster but was brought back late season due to injuries. He then played in Canada but by that time he moved to D end as he out grew the safety position. Jerry Bey from 1979 was a last cut by the packers in '80. I bet he won't show up...

Another former teammate Scott Mielke #17 (cornerback) was drafted by the Saskatchuan Roughriders of the CFL in 1980 and signed for $10,000. I know this because I was with him when he bought a new car with it...then we went on Springbreak to Ft. Lauderdale...lol. It was our only Springbreak because of spring football. Coaches wouldn't let us go! We were on tri-mesters for '76, '77 and I believe '78 before we went to semesters and that always screwed things up! We usually had 2 weeks of spring practice for 2 weeks then Springbreak hit then 3 more weeks of spring ball. Coaches wouldn't allow us to go because they didn't want us to come back out of shape from partying for a week!