Sports
Future Hawkeye Bobby Washington and West High star dies at 87
Rockford's top basketball team just lost its most unsung star, a player who tried to ignore the spotlight to get his best shot at stardom.
Bobby Washington, who died last week at age 87, scored a career-high 17 points, including three straight free throws in the final 21 seconds, to help Rockford's West High win its second straight IHSA state title with a 67-65 win over Edwardsville in 1956.
Bobby was the difference tonight, Hall of Fame coach Alex Saudargas told the Rockford Register-Republic after the game. He really delivered.
More:Rockford's best basketball players 9B: John Wessels top scorer on 2-time state champions
Washington saw it differently.
When Register-Republic sports editor Jim Johnston asked him what it felt like to be the hero, Washington replied, No, no. No. We've all done it.
“Robert,” said his wife of 50 years, Tamarra Washington, “was a quiet man. Robert would never take sole credit for a team effort. Or even an individual effort. He always downplayed it.”
And the pressure on those free throws? Well, he said then, it kind of scares you when you think about it, so I just didn't think about it.
Nearly 70 years later, the people of Rockford still remember those great West teams. Just as one rival predicted. East coach Art Sadtler told the Register-Republic at the time: This team is one in a million. It will be a long time before we see another one, in Rockford or anywhere else.
More:Rockford's best basketball players #9A: Nolden Gentry leads Rockford's best team
Those West teams were led by 6-foot-7 frontcourt players Nolden Gentry, a high school All-American, and John Wessels. Both players were named to this newspaper’s list of the 10 greatest basketball players in Rockford history, and both went on to the Big Ten for Iowa and Illinois, respectively. Washington, who replaced Rex Parker on the 1955 team and was the starting point guard in 1956, also made the Big Ten. He had an average 5.8 points and 2.7 rebounds in 58 games over three seasons as Gentry's teammate at Iowa.
Parker and Gentry both attended Washington's funeral last weekend.
He was a good defender and he could score, Parker said. He was an excellent athlete.
Washington was a three-sport star athlete at West, also starting quarterback for the football team and being the leading pitcher on the Warriors baseball team. He remained athletic throughout his life, whether it was playing golf, pool, table tennis or just staying in shape.
More:Rockford's Best Games No. 1: Six Points in One Second Equals Western State Title
“Robert was an avid golfer,” his widow said. “This time last year, we were planning which golf course we were going to play on. At 87, he didn't play basketball, but he played a lot of golf and he worked out three days a week with a friend who had coached basketball at a community college. He also worked out two days a week at the wellness center at our hospital. He tried to take care of his body.”
Those West teams both finished 28-1 and, at the time, became only the third team in Illinois history to win consecutive state titles. The second title helped Rockford pass Mount Vernon to become the first city to win five state titles in high school basketball. Rockford High School won in 1911, 1919 and 1939 when it was the city's only public school. West High, which opened in 1940, closed after the 1989 school year and was converted into a high school.
Washington lived in his wife’s hometown of Burlington, Iowa, for the entire 50 years of their marriage. Tamarra never saw Bobby play basketball for West High or Iowa, but she and their two children know the stories well. West High’s accomplishments live on, even before a book about the team was published in 2017.
“Our son remembers hearing the stories when we visited Rockford or went to visit his former teammates,” his wife said. “It came up a lot. They had a book signing before they sold the rights to the book. The people waiting to have their books signed had stories that they passed on from beginning to end.
“The stories always came back. It was just fun times.”
Matt Trowbridge is a sports reporter for the Rockford Register Star. Email him at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @MattTrowbridge.
Sources 2/ https://www.rrstar.com/story/sports/high-school/football/2024/09/04/future-hawkeye-bobby-washington-and-west-high-great-dies-at-age-87/75015783007/ The mention sources can contact us to remove/changing this article |
What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online
LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos
to request, modification Contact us at Here or [email protected]