Army West Point Athletics
Lots To Talk About
November 15, 2010 | General
Mady Salvani at the keyboard today after missing several other blogs ... as you are probably aware of, football became bowl eligible with its win over Kent State Saturday and there is a lot of excitement in our building today ... on Friday evening, the men's basketball team paid tribute to former Dean of the Academic Board Brig. Gen. John Jannarone and his wife, Anna May, for their long-time service to West Point and their unwavering support of Army athletics prior to their season-opening win over Vassar.
Since I have been around so long, unlike my young co-workers, I knew the Jannarone family and half of the basketball players returning for the tribute. And, when I listen to my young office mates, they keep saying the last time was 1996 that Army went to a bowl game and they said they were in grammar school. I didn't have the heart to tell them that I was at the first two bowl games, the Cherry Bowl and the Peach Bowl in 1984 and 1985 - which is before they were born.
When I first started working in Bldg. 600, which is Headquarters Bldg., Gen. Jannarone was the Dean and I have to admit I was intimated by his presence. I didn't have much interaction with him as I did with his secretary, but I got to know Mrs. Jannarone at Delafield Pond where she was a regular during the summertime and was a great swimmer. She would swim the length of the enclosed roped-off area. I would be tired after a few laps and would rest on the dock (that was the days that the steps at the dock were made so you could just pull yourself up on it, today they have a different kind and it doesn't work for me) and get tired watching her. I always looked forward to seeing her, then Gen. Jannarone retired and they moved to New Jersey. They eventually came back and bought a house in Highland Falls, and once again Mrs. Jannarone became a regular at the pond. Even after she had a stroke, I would run into her there, and though she lost the power of speech, she was able to swim the length of the pond. She was an avid Army supporter, so it was a nice gesture by Coach Spiker and his staff.
Friday night they also honored the returning players with names like Bill Schutsky, Jim Oxley, Bill Helkie, Scott King, Jocko Mikula and trainer Jimmy Wallace, to name a few. Most of them played their games at the Army Field House. As much as I love Christl Arena and all its modern features, there were great games I watched with my younger brother Jim at the Field House under coaches Bobby Knight and Mike Krzyzewski. Back then a $10 winter pass got you into hockey (Smith Rink) and basketball and all the other winter sports at Arvin Gymnasium.
Bowl Time. Years ago when Army was being looked at by the bowl committees in 1984, we would be checking out all the good bowl games (not half as many as today) and wondering where we might go. I wanted warm weather and was looking at the Cotton Bowl, but when the Cherry Bowl folks came, they invited us all to the Hotel Thayer and you would be surprised how many cherry desserts they had. I was in hog heaven, and they even gave us a recipe book - didn't do me any good as I burn everything, but it was still nice to have to show off to family and friends. I wish I still had it to see if I could come up with cherry jubilee.
It was exciting having all the bowl folks come to the games with Bob Outer interviewing several of them on the Army network. We played December 22 in the inaugural Cherry Bowl at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Mich., and the temperature indoors was 72 degrees and they had a Christmas tree hanging at the very top. It was cold and snowy outside and warm inside, and it was a great time with a 10-6 win. I remember calling everyone to watch the game. We came back on the plane the next day and the Superintendent played Santa Claus handing out giant Hersey bars (it is amazing I can't remember scores and dates, but throw in a candy bar or a great dessert and my brain goes into full gear). I remember we hit turbulence and my seatmate, Ann Marie Rose, was scared. I told her not to worry, but when she started praying, I asked her if she knew something I didn't know. Everything was fine, but she couldn't eat the candy bar so I got an extra one, which I devoured on the way home.
Peach Bowl - That was exciting as Army played Illinois on Dec. 31 in Atlanta, Ga. You would think warm weather, but instead , it was rain, mud and cold. I had two great bowl games that year as I went with the men's basketball team to Tokyo, Japan, for the Suntory Bowl between Army, Navy and Air Force. I had two Christmas Eve's that year (in another blog I will tell you all about that trip). We left Tokyo Christmas Eve morning and several hours later arrived In New York City around 1 p.m., and no one slept on the trip. One person was having a Christmas Eve party, I was expecting my brother for Christmas and had no food in the house, plus he had to climb through a window to get in and was smothered in kisses by my watchdog. Fast forward to the Peach Bowl. On the flight we had rice, the last thing I wanted to see. The weather was horrible and I was working with the radio crew as the spotter and was numb with the cold. Only Bob Outer had dressed right as he had boots and winter clothing. The best part was when Peel Chronister knocked down the two-point pass conversion attempt in the waning seconds as Army held on for a 31-29 win over Illinois. I called it before it was recognized by the stat folks and the win made the cold and dampness melt away.
I'll tell you about the other two bowls in my next blog.
