Some random thoughts and observations

Sometimes I struggle to come up with a topic for a column. I suspect that many columnists deal with the same struggle at times. Writer's block is a very real phenomenon.

So there won't be a specific topic for this week - just a collection of random thoughts and observations I've gathered over the past week

I had the privilege of interviewing Bloomfield senior volleyball player Lexi Place earlier this week for a feature story on her role with the IHSAA Student Advisory Council. Council members perform much of the "grunt work" at state championship events. They are also responsible for planning and organizing Special Olympics events and coordinating fundraising efforts for those events.

When you consider that there are over 400 IHSAA member schools offering approximately 20 girls and boys sports, you get an idea just how many student athletes there are in the state of Indiana. To be one of 18 students selected to serve as a member of the Student Advisory Council places Lexi in select company indeed.

The leadership qualities and organizational abilities that Lexi is utilizing in her capacity as a Student Advisory Council will carry her far beyond the volleyball court into her adult life.

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I've also had the pleasure of briefly meeting White River Valley cross country runner Buddy Davis at a couple of invitational cross country meets recently. I can't say that I personally know Buddy very well but my initial impression of Buddy is that he is one of the nicest and most polite young men I've ever met.

I'm sure the same could be said for quite a few young men and young ladies that I haven't even met.

Just when you thought you've seen enough cross country from me lately, well - as they say in the infomercials, "But wait - there's more!"

At the Bloomfield Invitational Tuesday, I was talking with Bloomfield coach Caleb Dunkerly, Loogootee's cross country coach, and a couple of officials - one of whom was an IHSAA official who coached track and field at Eastern Greene for 40 years.

One of the subjects that came up was the struggle coaches face in getting sufficient numbers to field teams. As was reported here only seven girls participated in the meet.

Logootee's coach said Loogootee didn't have one single girl come out for the team. He said, "I see these young women out running after they get out of high school and I wonder, why didn't you run when you were in school?"

When I mentioned that Linton-Stockton only had five boys running cross country this year, the Loogootee coach asked, "Five guys? In a school that size?"

They all seemed surprised when I told them that none of Linton's basketball players ran cross country.

In days past it was generally expected that if a basketball player didn't play football he would run cross country. And of course if your school didn't have a football program all the basketball players ran Double-C.

The advent of "basketball conditioning programs" - of which I am a long-time proponent - changed all of that.

Some people I talked to expressed the sentiment that coaches are "missing the boat" by not requiring basketball players to run cross country.

I always thought the best way to get in "basketball shape" was by, well, playing basketball - provided you were going hard and not just jogging up and down the court. And maybe playing a little defense while you were at it.

But that's just the opinion of one guy who admittedly didn't particularly care for distance running.

There's no right or wrong here. Just different opinions that each have validity.

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Our random ramblings now take us to the football fields where Coach Joey Paridaen's Eastern Greene Thunderbirds racked up a huge win over North Daviess last Friday.

After Eastern Greene's "tale of two halves" the previous week at North Knox I wasn't sure what to expect when the Cougars invaded. As it turned out the Thunderbirds put together four quarters like they played the first half at North Knox and dominated from start to finish.

I'm looking forward to covering Eastern Greene's game at Mitchell this Friday. This game may tell us a lot about the Thunderbirds' prospects for the rest of the season as they continue their pursuit of the first winning season in the history of the Eastern Greene program.

It was reported here earlier that the Dugger Union-White River Valley football game would not take place. I'm happy to report that we've since received word that the game will be played after all at Dugger Saturday. I covered Dugger's scrimmage at Springs Valley and the Bulldogs' season opener against the Noblesville Lions. I'm amazed by the community support I've seen.

It's a long haul from Dugger to French Lick but the Bulldog supporters came out in force nearly filling the visitors' section at Springs Valley.

It's unfortunate that Mother Nature failed to cooperate and rained on Dugger's parade canceling the huge media events that were scheduled for opening night on Aug. 23. I had looked forward to being a part of that.

But it didn't dampen the enthusiasm of the fans - many of whom parked their vehicles around the perimeter of Bulldog Field and honked their horns as the Union Dugger Bulldogs charged onto the field.

The Union Dugger football experience hearkens back to a more nostalgic era. From the cars and trucks lining the field to the voice of Byron Ward on the public address system there are some things that are uniquely Dugger.

I encourage our readers to experience Dugger Football for themselves and attend a Bulldog game - perhaps a Saturday afternoon game if you have the time.

Why not this Saturday when they host Southside Home School at 2 p.m.

Terry Schwinghammer is a sports writer for the Greene County Daily World. He can be reached by telephone at (812) 847-4487, ext. 27. He can also be reached via email at tschwing32@yahoo.com.