Oklahoma basketball reunions revives memories

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John Hudson’s annual State of Oklahoma Basketball Reunion was held Thursday in Oklahoma City. And like always, it was loads of fun.

Coaches, players, referees and administrators from decade after decade gather each August for a three-hour reunion that now draws more than 200 attendees. Hudson started the reunion five years ago and drew 26 people. But word has spread, and now coaches from every level stop by to reminisce about old times and renew old friendships.

Sometimes, you can make new friendships.

For instance, this year, I met Don Dodd.

I started attending in Year 2, at the invitation of Hudson, and have written about the reunion a few times. I see a lot of people I know and meet a lot of people whose names I know.

Dodd is a retired coach who I remember from when I was a kid. I was 14, at the 1975 State Tournament in State Fair Arena, watching Dodd’s Deer Creek team play Depew for the state championship. I remember the ending 43 years later. Depew led by one point, but Deer Creek had the ball, inbounding at midcourt, with about 10 seconds left.

Then Lawrence Washington stole the inbounds pass and swooped in for a layup that sealed the championship for Depew.

I regaled Dodd with my memories of that game, but of course, I was telling him nothing he didn’t already know. He recalled that he had changed the inbounds play during a timeout. Still regrets it. But, Dodd pointed out, the entire room was full of coaches who regret some of the strategy they deployed.

Dodd also remembered an Oklahoman headline from that season. “Can Anyone Beat Deer Creek?”

“You guys really helped me a lot,” Dodd said with a smile.

Wasn’t me? In 1975, I wasn’t even a gleam in The Oklahoman’s eye. I couldn’t find the headline, but I didn’t look too hard. Seemed like a legitimate headline.

I also heard a fabulous story from Ken Hayes, who was born in 1931 and became head coach at Tulsa in 1968. He later coached New Mexico State and Oral Roberts, finishing up his career with 14 seasons as head coach at Northeastern State in Tahlequah.

But in 1959, Hayes became the basketball and baseball coach at Bacone Junior College in Muskogee. After a couple of years, he was allowed to hire another staff member.

Hayes offered the job to a Muskogee Junior High coach. Fellow by the name of Enos Semore.

You know, of course, all about Semore, who spent 21 years as the OU baseball coach and took the Sooners to the College World Series five straight years  (1972-76). Semore ushered in the era of college baseball as a high-profile sport in Oklahoma.

Semore signed on with Hayes and Bacone. He assisted Hayes with both sports, then Hayes told Semore he could take over as head coach. And even gave him his choice.

Hayes said he had made it clear that baseball was his favorite and what he coached best. But he allowed Semore to choose. Semore was hesitant to pick but finally said baseball.

You know the rest. Hayes became an excellent Division I basketball coach. In seven years at Tulsa, Hayes never had a losing season. In four years at New Mexico State, the Aggies never had a losing season and made the 1979 NCAA Tournament. Then Hayes went 50-43 in 3-1/2 seasons at ORU but fired in December 1982 after a 3-5 start to the season.

Hayes’ overall record as a Division I coach: 236-158.

Semore went on to coach Bacone to the juco national championship, got the OU job and put college baseball on the map in Oklahoma.

Now both men are closer to 90 than to 80 and still doing well.

And finally, I got to see a crazy, for me, pairing. I saw Steve Eoff chatting with Clester Harrington.

Eoff was a Norman High School sharpshooter who graduated in 1976, three years ahead of me. We’ve become friends later in life, but in the ‘70s, I was just a star-struck kid who wished I could shoot like Eoff.

Harrington is one of my all-time favorite people, the long-time coach at Altus known for his stomping foot. Harrington’s voice box was severely damaged in a car crash in 1966, and his voice was gone. He could shout a whisper and you could barely hear him. He would get his team’s attention during games by stomping his foot loudly on the hardwood. 

In 1997, I went down to Altus and spent a day with Harrington. One of my favorite all-time stories, which you can read here. 

Anyway, a week after Lawrence Washington broke Deer Creek’s heart, Harrington broke mine.

In the 1975 Class 4A state semifinals, Harrington’s Altus Bulldogs upset Norman’s great team 56-55. Those ’75 Tigers might have been my favorite team as a kid, any sport. They were headed for a state championship showdown against Muskogee. 

But Altus stormed back from a 14-point deficit and took a late lead. Then with 15 seconds left, my future friend Steve Eoff swished an 18-footer to give Norman the lead. Then my future friend Clester Harrington drew up a play, and his son, Bruce Harrington, fired a pass to a wide-open Roger Shaw for a go-ahead layup with three seconds left.

And 43 years later, there they stood chatting. I interrupted them to tell them the last time I saw them together, they ruined my weekend.

If I could go back and change one verdict of all the games I’ve ever seen, I might change Thunder-Warriors Game 6. I might change the OSU-Georgia Tech Final Four. I might change the OU-Georgia Rose Bowl.

But I might change Norman-Altus 1975. That’s what’s great about Hudson’s reunion. 

Some memories never die.