Where is gordie lockbaum

Carter was on the national map, too. NC State came calling, and the job was Carter's if he wanted it. But the Rev. John E. Brooks, the president of Holy Cross, and Williams --? Carter's recruiter and trustee chairman -- would not let him out of his original five-year contract. When other schools knew the president wouldn't let him out of the contract?

Forget it. Why even bother calling? It was the beginning of a rift between Carter and the school. His next contract would include an escape clause, but there was a much bigger challenge looming: The impending creation of the Colonial League later renamed the Patriot League , led by Father Brooks himself, de-emphasized football.

Not only would Carter not be coaching at the highest level, but his own school was taking a step back from its commitment to football. While he hoped to appeal to save his program, Carter learned its fate 10 minutes before a news conference after a victory over nationally ranked Delaware. Carter was simply handed a news release announcing that Holy Cross was dropping athletic scholarships, shaking an already shaken man.

He wanted to keep on winning to go to the next level. Despite the disappointment, the team started out and featured a promising freshman defensive back named Gordie Lockbaum. When he came to my living room, he made such a huge impression on my family. He was a major league closer with this VCR he would bring to show highlights. He was young, energetic, enthusiastic and had this innovative staff that just bubbled with excitement.

The team ended the season at , and as Holy Cross prepared for , Carter took an interest in another project -- unheralded quarterback recruit Jeff Wiley, from Celina, Ohio. And it wasn't like I was 10 minutes from any airport. This was a drive from wherever he was. That has stayed with me to this day. But I was undersized, and I grew up in Ohio. You could describe coach the same way. Perhaps, and I don't know because he never said it to me, but I think he saw himself in me a little.

If you were with Carter, you were family. And family was everything to him. Family can bring out the best and worst in us, and in Rick Carter, you could argue it did both. The two of them talking together all the time. Lockbaum earned national publicity for the small college in Worcester, Massachusetts, as his ironman story splashed across television screens and the pages of magazines such as Sports Illustrated and People.

During his junior and senior seasons, he totaled 44 touchdowns and 4, all-purpose yards as a running back who returned kicks and punts.

He also led the Crusaders with four interceptions as a sophomore. In his final game, he caught 15 passes -- still a school record -- to help lift Holy Cross past Villanova and improve to in a nationally televised game on ESPN.

How important is Lockbaum to the athletic identity of his alma mater? The Holy Cross football media guide lists his name times. Occupation and family: Lockbaum is a vice president and principal at Sullivan Group, a regional insurance and risk management firm in Massachusetts.

Lockbaum has been with the company since when his college roommate Jim Andreoli got him involved. Lockbaum has been with his wife Denise since They have three children — Gordie 28 years old , Olivia 20 and Luke Lockbaum coached wrestling at Worcester Academy from and also coached youth football and baseball. Quotable: "You've got to be willing to work hard, pay the price and take your lumps. What's next? More of the same, hopefully. The business world has treated him well, and he's not likely to be cured of the coaching bug anytime soon.

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