The Michigan Daily - Sports Monday - April 6, 1992 - Page 3 Hobey Baker: more than an award Former Princeton star was one of sport's first heroes Jeff Sheran Friday, the Hobey Baker Mem- orial Award Committee awarded this year's Hobey Baker Award to Scott Pellerin of Maine. The award is given to the outstanding collegiate hockey player in the nation. Consideration is also givenmto character, scholastic achievement and sportsmanship. Michigan for- ward Denny Felsner was one of this year's 10 finalists. However, Hobey Baker is more than just the name on college hock- ey's most prestigious award. Hobey Baker was one of America's first and greatest sports heroes. On the playing field Hobey's rec- Josh ord was unparal- Dubow leled. He is the only athlete elect- ed to both the College Football and U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. He is also one of a handful of Amer-} icans to be in- ducted in Can- ada's Hockey Hall of Fame. But Hobart Amory Hare Baker was more than just a great athlete. He was a hero of mythical propor- tion. F. Scott Fitzgerald, who was a first-year student at Princeton during Hobey's senior year, 1913-14, wor- shipped Baker during his Princeton days. Baker inspired Fitzgerald's first novel, This Side of Paradise. The protagonist is named after Hobey's middle name - Amory Blaine - and Hobey appears in the novel as the character Allenby. Varsity football players were greatly revered in those days at Princeton, and Fitzgerald describes this in the novel. "There at the head of the white platoon marched Allenby, the foot- ball captain, slim and defiant, as if aware that this year the hopes of the college rested on him, that his 160 pounds (his actual size was 5-foot-9, 160 pounds) were expected to dodge to victory through the heavy blue and crimson lines," Fitzgerald wrote. Hobey was born Jan. 15, 1892 to an aristocratic Philadelphia family. He enrolled at St. Paul's School, a preparatory school in Concord, N.H., at the age of 11. St. Paul's was cred- ited with bringing hockey from Canada to the United States, and Hobey began playing for the squad at the age of 14. He played for Malcolm Kenneth Gordon, who is sometimes referred to as the father of American hockey. Hobey led St. Paul's to victories over top collegiate teams such as Princeton and Harvard. But hockey wasn't the only sport Hobey mastered at St. Paul's. In fact, he was the punt returner and kicker - the two most important positions in those days - in foot- ball, played the outfield in baseball, competed as a gymnast, swimmer, diver, sprinter and cross-country runner. He also could juggle five balls at once and climb a flight of stairs on his hands. Hobey could have played the part of Bo Jackson in his Nike commer- cial without hyperbole. After his days at Princeton, he actually raced cars and played polo as well. However, keeping Hobey at St. Paul's was not easy for his family. His parents divorced in 1907 and virtually abandoned Hobey and his brother Thornton. Their father suf- fered from financial difficulties as well that year. By 1909, he could only afford to send one of his sons to He held the single-season scoring record for Princeton football with 92 points which stood until 1974. He also led the Tigers to a 20-3-4 record over his three varsity seasons along with a Big Three championship (defeating.Harvard and Yale) his first season. Hobey's strengths on the gridiron were the drop kick and punt return- ing. Football strategy differed greatly during this period and teams sometimes punted as many as 40 times a game. This placed added im- portance on the punt return and Hobey excelled at it with a unique style. After judging the punt, he would retreat far enough so that he could catch the ball on the dead run. While on the run, his blond hair would wave through the wind as Hobey played without a helmet. Though other players donned hel- mets, Hobey felt he was immortal utes of overtime, the coaches freely substituted for players collapsing from exhaustion. All but Hobey. However, Hobey's careerat Princeton came to a close. And without major professional sports, Hobey began to miss the thrill of competitive athletics. Hobey talked about this with his friend and class- mate, James M. Beck. "In reminiscing about college days," Beck wrote to Hobey Baker biographer John Davies, "(Hobey) suddenly became very serious and said, 'I realize that my life is fin- ished. No matter how long I live, I will never equal the excitement of playing on the football fields."' After graduation, Hobey began working on Wall Street for J.P. Morgan. However, he was bored without athletics in his life. He re- lieved that boredom by joining an amateur hockey team - St. Nick's - which was composed primarily of former college players. Hobey became the team. Wherever the team went, signs an- nounced HOBEY BAKER PLAYS TONIGHT. When he came onto the ice, shouts of HERE HE COMES rang throughout the arenas. Limousines lined up outside the arenas where Hobey played. High- class citizens in fancy evening wear made sure to catch Hobey's show, for they knew they would never see another as good. That is until he re- turned. His St. Nick's team defeated the Montreal Stars for the coveted Ross Cup, and a newspaper in Montreal reported, "Uncle Sam has the cheek to develop a first class hockey player who was not born in Montreal. Baker cooked our goose so artisti- cally that we enjoyed it." Hobey averaged over four goals a game. His exploits made him a marked man on the ice. But instead of retaliating with violence, Hobey kept on playing. During his days at Princeton, Hobey committed only one penalty - a slash against Harvard in 1913. He also kept a tra- dition of going to the opposition's lockerroom after each game to con- gratulate the players. What hurt him most about this violence was not the physical act itself, but the realization that the opposition would resort to such a tactic. By 1916, Hobey had become restless with hockey and picked up a new pastime - flying. With World War I already in its third year, Hobey wanted to be prepared to fight if the United States joined the war. It did, and on Aug. 23 1917, Lieutenant Hobey Baker went to France to fight in the fabled Lafayette Escadrille air squadron. See HOBEY, Page 6 Michigan riots as well as it plays bas ketball Ann Arbor is supposed to be a football town. One hundred and six thousand fans pack Michigan Stadium on various Saturdays each fall, and pack the streets each Saturday night. Well, basketball is now number one in this town, at least in terms of packing the streets. Ten thousand screaming basketball devotees (for this weekend, at least) poured onto South University Street Saturday night in celebration of Michigan's 76-72 semifinal win over Cincinnati. It was like a religious pilgrimage, with everyone headed toward Church. The street, that is. What we did out there, acting like a cross between slamdancers and molecules in a nuclear accelerator, was celebrate. We didn't destroy, like in 1989. We exercised our First Amendment right to peaceful assembly, something with which even the Ann Arbor Police, most clad in riot gear and some positioned strategically on rooftops, could not interfere. It was a proud feeling to see the two factions - students and law en- forcers - coexisting freely and in clear air. No handcuffs, no tear gas. There was a brief scare, when someone set off a smoke bomb in front of Charley's, but it was just students blowing off smoke. Several cops said there would be no need for tear gas on this night, unlike in September when a Notre Dame/Michigan rivalry escalated into a show of force by Ann Arbor's finest. The cops, too, were nonviolent Saturday, allowing students to scale streetlights and some low rooftops. One officer on horseback even trotted through the South U./Church intersection (minus one traffic light, the ob- ject of destruction in 1989) wielding an 'M' flag. Of course, most of the police on hand would have preferred watching the fireworks on the local news from their couches. But some seemed to be enjoying their duties just a little bit. Fewer still even cracked smiles and exchange high fives. Maybe the most fulfilling aspects of Saturday, besides the basketball victory, was watching the complimentary news reports later that night. The footage showed thousands of people smiling, laughing, and exulting. It was a welcome change from television's other recent sports-related depictions of Michigan students. Like the 1989 riot. Or the Notre Dame tear-gassing incident. Or the sea of middle fingers aimed at Florida State. When I see these negatives on TV, I think of the overturned cars and bonfires that spread throughout East Lansing after an NCAA Tournament loss two years ago. It's not the image I connect with my own university. What I do connect with my university is victory. In my first year here, the Wolverines won the title. They're in the finals again this year. And the students in successive classes can't even speculate how much more cause for celebration Michigan will provide in the coming years. So with such successful basketball (and other) teams, it's great that we know how to handle success. Saturday showed that in addition to playing basketball, Michigan students are good at rioting. Tonight still holds the possibility of reversing this positive trend. It was on a Monday in 1989, after the finals, that all the destruction hap- pened - windows broken, awnings ripped down, taxicabs overturned into ATMs, glass bottles hurled into crowds, and one elusive traffic light nearly torn from a live electrical wire. But I don't think that will happen. I don't think the cops will allow it, nor do I think they will need to. Because as damage-free as Saturday's riot was, it was still incredible fun. After tonight, when people think of Michigan, they will no longer think of football. They will think of football and basketball. And students who know how to riot. Maine's Scott Pellerin took home the 1992 Hobey Baker Award on Friday night. He helped his team to a quarterfinal finish in the NCAA tournament. St. Paul's. Thornton realized Hobey's greatness and volunteered his spot there to Hobey. Hobey was also forced to stay an extra year at St. Paul's because his father couldn't afford to send him to Princeton.. Hobey became a hero immedi- ately at Princeton, starring for the freshmen football, baseball and hockey teams. However, school rules prohibited Hobey from playing three varsity sports, so he concen- trated on hockey and football. and resisted the constricting equip- ment. This feeling of immortality would eventually prove to be his Achilles' Heel. Hockey was also different during Hobey's days at Princeton. It was played seven-on-seven and forward passing was disallowed. Also, substituting was looked down upon and only used during time of injury. Hobey actually played the entire 73 minutes of a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Harvard in 1914. In the 33 min- REUNION' continued from page 1 the singles consolation title at the NCAAs, losing to Sammy Giammalva of Texas in the first round, whom he later defeated in the '57 finals to claim the title. "It was really an unusual cir- cumstance that we had several highly-ranked junior players on the same team," Potter said. "I think most of us wanted to go to the best school we could that would com- bine tennis and education - Michigan offered the best mix." The 1956 season opened with a victory over the University of Detroit for the team's 22nd straight win. The Michigan lineup again placed MacKay at No. 1, with Potter, Jaffe, Harris, Dale Jensen, Larry Brown, Dick Cohen, and George Koral filling the rest of the singles spots, respectively. May 26, Michigan captured its second straight Big Ten crown. Michigan sent Potter, Jaffe, Harris and Jensen to the National Championships in 1956, with Potter as the only Wolverine who ad- vanced to the third round. MacKay went unbeaten at the first singles position but missed the NCAAs in order to play with the Davis Cup team. As the 1956 campaign ended, the winning streak stood at 30. At the start of the 1957 season, Michigan coach William Murphy outlined the team's three goals: winning the Big Ten title, sweeping all nine matches at the Big Ten tournament, and winning the NCAA title. In extending their win- ning streak to 45, the Wolverines captured their third straight confer- ence title by sweeping the nine matches. After the quarterfinals, Michigan was tied with Tulane at seven points. No. 2 seeded MacKay beat Ron Holmberg in a tough semifinal match and then posted a five-set victory over No. 1 seed Giammalva, to earn the singles title. In doubles, the team of MacKay and Potter dropped the final to Tulane's Crawford Henry and Holmberg, but their getting to the finals was enough to give Michigan its National Championship title. Other players contributing to Michigan's singles victories at the NCAAs that year were team captain Potter, John Erickson, and Jaffe, all of whom were defeated in earlier rounds. Beside the outstanding perfor- mances by the individual players, player-coach Murphy, who was with the Wolverines for 21 years, is given much of the credit for the team's success. "He was one heck of a player, not just a great coach," MacKay said. "It gained him a lot of respect from the team members." U.. The 1957 team returned to Ann Arbor in 1982 for its 25th reunion. Organized by current men's tennis coach Brian Eisner, the team mem- bers were called out onto the foot- ball field at halftime of the Purdue football game. They were presented with their championship rings by Don Canham, the Athletic Director at the time. Potter described the re- union as one of the most inspiring moments of his life. "Being brought down on the 50- yard line in front of 110,000 people and being recognized for a feat we accomplished 25 years agzo was ex- bers of the '83 varsity team," Harris said. "Being a parent, I really en- joyed that aspect of it." The credit for this year's 35th reunion can be attributed to Mrs. Potter, Dick's mother. "For 25 to 30 years, my mother had been saving all my tennis arti- cles in her bottom dresser drawer," Potter explained. "I didn't know there were so many, but when I went home about three years ago I men have continued to play tennis through the years. "Everyone is still kicking the ball around," Potter said. "And pretty well, by the way." The players remember vividly the days of team practice at Michigan. "The Intramural Building here was one of the only organized in- door tennis facilities in the winter - that's one reason why I chose to life. We were all pursuing different academic interests and had multi- faceted lives," Potter said. Thirty-five years later, the play- ers have a great deal to catch up on. They are all as successful off the court as they were during their ten- nis careers at Michigan. MacKay is now a local and in- ternational television tennis sportscaster, and owner of BNK Sports Inc., which runs the annual Labs. They have three children, James, Mark and Gregg. James and Mark work in the electrical engi- neering field - James graduated - from Wayne State and Mark from Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo. Gregg is a Ph.D. candidate at Michigan State. Jaffe owns his own certified fi- nancial planning firm in Bay City, Mich. His wife, Judy, is a teacher. Their three children are Lynn, an accountant, who is a 1980 Michigan business school graduate; Ellen, a teacher, who graduated from Western Michigan in 1984; and David, a student here at Michigan Harris is president and owner of a commercial real estate firm in Washington, D.C. He and his wife, Nancy, an associate director at the Hilwood Museum, have two chil- dren, Brian and Nicki. Brian is a Yale graduate who works as'a sports marketing agent, and Nicki is a student at Wisconsin studying ad- vertising. Erickson is now Dr. Erickson, employed by the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston as a chief scientist. His wife, Mary, is a teacher. They have three children. Paul is a junior at Texas. Matt is studying for his Ph.D. in microbiol- ogy at MIT. Christa is pursuing a master's degree at UC-San Diego. Jensen is a human resources manager at McDonnell Douglas Corp., an aircraft company, in Long Beach, Calif. Carolyn, his wife, is a high school principal in Long Beach. Their daughter, Sheryl, is an executive at the Gap and is getting married this June. Cohen and his wife, Donna, run their own law firm in Pasadena. Coach Murphy and his wife, Mimi, are retired and living in Former Michigan greats Dick Potter (left) and Barry McKay finished second in the men's doubles finals of the 1957 NCAA Tournament Their performance helped the 1957 team bring home the NCAA championship.