Letters
DAVIS'S LEGACY
My youth was filled with the glory days of Syracuse football—John Mackey, Jim Nance, Floyd Little, Larry Csonka—but there has never been another Ernie Davis, on or off the field (A Life Cut Short, Sept. 4). Jim Brown makes a powerful point about Davis being accepted by both blacks and whites, transcending race. In 1961, at the tender age of nine, I first saw Davis play and I was struck by the fact that he was accepted by both adults and kids. Now I can appreciate why.
BARRY WATERS
Guilford, Conn.
ORT'S EXAMPLE
Regarding Douglas S. Looney's wonderful story about Roland Ortmayer (A Most Unusual Man, Sept. 4), it's heartwarming to know that there are still coaches who feel the primary purpose of attending college is to get a good education and the primary purpose of college sports is to have fun and learn something about life. The University of La Verne is to be congratulated for recognizing what a winner it has in Ort.
W. THURMON WHITLEY
Milford, Conn.
Looney did an outstanding job of capturing what makes Ortmayer an unusual man, except for one small detail. He said that Ort does not have a playbook because "a playbook is not fun, so to hell with it." Ort would not have said "hell."
BRUCE PHILLIPS (La Verne, '60)
Covina, Calif.
A LITTLE MIFFED
We are Lafayette alumni, so you can imagine our delight at seeing Lafayette quarterback Frank Baur pictured on the cover of your college football preview issue (Sept. 4). However, we were disappointed that in the article (Keynote Kid) you kept referring to our college as "little Lafayette" and as a "nice little" liberal arts school. While it is true that Lafayette has a relatively modest enrollment of 2,050, it is also true that it has a well-rounded big-time curriculum that includes highly respected science and engineering programs.
DAVID S. and DEBORAH V. ROHRBAUGH
Sellersville, Pa.
Bruce Newman has a "nice little" writing style. He must be a "nice little" man.
CHARLES F. SMITH JR.
Conshohocken, Pa.
K-STATE
In the wake of recent disgusting revelations about academic ineptitude on the part of so-called hero athletes at some of our institutions of higher learning, it seems that Kansas State (Futility U, Sept. 4), with its collection of Rhodes and Truman scholars, has its priorities in order.
JIM CAIN
Pacifica, Calif.
DUNKERS
Please show us a picture of Clyde Drexler slamming the ball through that 11'7"-high basket (SCORECARD, Aug. 14).
BRAD CLEMENTS
Warm Springs, Ga.
•Here you are (below left). However, we have since been informed that while the Portland Trail Blazers, cosponsors of the Slam 'n Jam contest, intended the height of the basket to be 11'7"—and, in fact, announced it as 19 inches above regulation—postcontest measurements showed it was actually 11'1", or only 13 inches above regulation height.—ED.
Isn't Clyde Drexler 6'7"? Dunking over 11 feet should be easy for him. I'm only 5'11", and I have slam-dunked into baskets 11 feet (below right) and over with no problem at all. I won the Short-Dunk (players 6 feet and under) championship of Cincinnati in 1985 and '86, and I can do a variety of dunks. Right now I am trying to perfect my 720° spin dunk. I play basketball for Northern Kentucky University.
HERMAN J. PEOPLES
Cincinnati
PHOTO
TONY TOMSIC
PHOTO
ART GEE
Letters to SPORTS ILLUSTRATED should include the name, address and home telephone number of the writer and should be addressed to The Editor, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, Time & Life Building, Rockefeller Center, New York, N.Y. 10020-1393.