IT TOOK AWHILE... over 32 years for some, 30 for others, but these members of the West Virginia AAU teams, which won the 1977 and 1979 national championships in Cincinnati and Charleston, respectively, have been awarded their rings. Pictured are (standing l to r) Andy Spradling, Mike Reed, Jeff Overstreet, Brett Harrison, Willie Jenkins, Joey Bowles, Ron Dawson, Alex Nagy, Mark Cline, Bruz Hicks, Gay Elmore, J.T. Morris, and seated in foreground, Coach Ron Cobb and Coach Rodger Monk.
Thanks to Balfour representative Doug Richardson for providing us with the service, and special thanks to friend and teammate Alex Nagy. Together we met with Doug to come up with the design of the ring, which is truly beautiful and, I believe, befitting the stature of the accomplishment. Just like his personality, Alex didn't want to go small, and I agreed. The below photo doesn't do the ring justice. Also, a sincere and special thanks to Rodger Monk, who helped make the rings, the reunion -- and the titles themselves -- a reality with his contributions. Thanks also to the Dunbar Athletic Boosters for helping to support our efforts.
Now, on to some photographic foolery. Due to a bit of a late start in planning, the rings were not actually ready for the Saturday evening reunion dinner at Sleepy Hollow. I have to thank the aforementioned Rachel Bush for this graphics enhancement. To make the picture as memorable as possible, two team members were actually replaced from other versions of the pose. Can you guess which two?
