33 OLD DOMINION

SUN BELT

19-12
LAST SEASON

-4-
RETURNING STARTERS

"GANGSTERS OF THE GROOVE"
THE MONARCHS
(COACH: TOM YOUNG)

Old Dominion's Kenny Gattison had his first close shave when he was two months old. A 2-year-old brother, Jap, grabbed Dad's straight razor to make like Floyd the Barber. Unfortunately, Jap did a better imitation of Sweeney Todd; the gash on Kenny's left cheek took seven stitches. For years he thought the scar was a birthmark. "I figured it came with the package," he says. "But when I was six I realized nobody else had a scar. Most people think I'm some kind of gangster."

They're right. The senior forward specializes in inside jobs. His menacing reverse stuffs and his in-your-face jumpers—call them mug shots—helped the Monarchs hack up opponents all last season. Here's the rest of the rap sheet:

•Ronnie (Two-Man) Wade, forward. "Team hit man," says Gattison. "Goes out and sticks his man."

•Frank Smith, guard. Quiet as a cat burglar.

•Keith Thomas, guard. He would just as soon rub you out in the lane as pick his teeth with a match.

•Sylvester Charles, swing-man. Middle name: Zelworth. "A vegetarian," says Gattison. "All he eats is macaroni and cheese, French fries, grapes and, I think, potato chips."

•Clarence (Moose) Hanley, center, 6'10", 235 pounds. "Hands as big as toilet seats," says UAB guard Steve Mitchell. Watch them.

ILLUSTRATION

MICHAEL DORET

PHOTO

BILL BALLENBERG

Scarface Gattison is the most untouchable member of the Monarchs' power-line gang.