OT - Bob Saulsbury

[Mazhude]

http://www.gametimect.com/boys-basketball-wilbur-cross-names-gym-court-bob-saulsbury/

I meant to post this when it came out in January. Just getting to it now... Saulsbury was a great high school coach here in Connecticut back in the day. And he ran a disciplined program at Wilbur Cross -- players were expected to do well in class, to wear a tie to school, and to say "sir" and "ma'am" to their teachers.

“I played for a lot of coaches when I was younger and professionally all over the world,” Earl Kelley said. “He was the only coach who instilled the words student, athlete. It wasn’t vice versa.”

Kelley mentioned that Saulsbury would check academic progress of students often – like every single day.

“I wanted my players to realize this was a privilege and not a right, that they were representing their schoolmates, their parents sand the city of New Haven and most of all, Wilbur Cross High School,” Saulsbury said.

 

[mauconnfan]

Thanks always heard of Coach Saulsbury as a great man as well as a great coach. Obviously seems about time and man he looks great!!

I believe Earl Kelley is in pictures # 13 and 14 and he looks pretty good too - hopefully he's changes things around for himself. loved watching him play…….
Picture #18 has Scotty Burrell in it………would have been tough for the media involved to actually caption each picture with the people in them huh?

 

[pnete]

The absolute golden age of Connecticut high school basketball.

 

[60'sfan]

One of the players on Bob Saulsbury's state championship teams was Dave Hicks. Dave grew up in Ansonia but his family was forced to move after the floods of 1955. I have often wondered how good Ansonia would have been if he had stayed.

 

[Yonick]

One of the players on Bob Saulsbury's state championship teams was Dave Hicks. Dave grew up in Ansonia but his family was forced to move after the floods of 1955. I have often wondered how good Ansonia would have been if he had stayed.

Hicks actually played for Red Verderame who preceeded Saulsbury at W. Cross. He didn't have the grades for college. He was ranked the #2 H.S. player in the country, behind Bill Bra dley.
He joined the Globetrotters out of H.S. I believe he was living back in Ansonia when he passed away about 15 years ago.

 

[AZHuskiePop]

One of the players on Bob Saulsbury's state championship teams was Dave Hicks. Dave grew up in Ansonia but his family was forced to move after the floods of 1955. I have often wondered how good Ansonia would have been if he had stayed.

Hicks actually played for Red Verderame who preceeded Saulsbury at W. Cross. He didn't have the grades for college. He was ranked the #2 H.S. player in the country, behind Bill Bra dley.
He joined the Globetrotters out of H.S. I believe he was living back in Ansonia when he passed away about 15 years ago.

Your right Red made WC a household name. The days when Ct High Schools dominated the old New England BB tourney.

Ansonia did have two excellent teams in the late 50's and early sixties. Dave Wright I believe was the coach. I'm not sure where Dave Hicks would have fit.
The 60's team with Shorty Gardin, Jake Moore, gave Public-all it could handle in the tourney.
Hicks was a man among boys he would have made Anyone a winner.

 

[UCweCONN]

He taught Earl Kelley to be a student athlete? Come again?

 

[HistoryMajor]

I was in Itaca, NY at Cornell and by happenstance met Bob Saulsbury's son - a genuine nice guy. We reminisced about the great WC teams. His Dad's teams and also Red V's teams. Dom Perno played for Red but not on the same team as Dave Hicks.

Regarding Ansonia and how good they might have been, I saw Naugatuck play Dave Hicks/WC and the game I saw Naugy won. The Naugy team featured Bill Rado and Ed Slomceski. Later that year they played again and WC won. Of course Ed Slom went to UCONN. Rado was a fantastic player. He went to some big time school, had a great frosh year and then had some health issues.

 

[Mazhude]

He taught Earl Kelley to be a student athlete? Come again?

So, I went to high school with Earl and I have to say, he was always a complete gentleman at Wilbur Cross. Not sure what happened when he got to UConn, but he was not a problem in high school. Always well dressed, always polite. Amazing basketball player as well... he could dribble like a magician and he just did not miss... money at the foul line too. Very sad to see his career play out the way it did.

 

[60'sfan]

I was in Itaca, NY at Cornell and by happenstance met Bob Saulsbury's son - a genuine nice guy. We reminisced about the great WC teams. His Dad's teams and also Red V's teams. Dom Perno played for Red but not on the same team as Dave Hicks.

Regarding Ansonia and how good they might have been, I saw Naugatuck play Dave Hicks/WC and the game I saw Naugy won. The Naugy team featured Bill Rado and Ed Slomceski. Later that year they played again and WC won. Of course Ed Slom went to UCONN. Rado was a fantastic player. He went to some big time school, had a great frosh year and then had some health issues.

I saw Ansonia play Naugatuck in Ansonia in 1960. Naugy won but Ansonia with Jack Jakauski, Carl Wendlelowski and John Figoris gave them a great game. I think if Hicks had played, Ansonia would have been tough to beat. If I remember correctly, Rado went to school in Florida. There were several Rado's involved in Naugatuck politics.

 

[LIUCHusky]

I saw Ansonia play Naugatuck in Ansonia in 1960. Naugy won but Ansonia with Jack Jakauski, Carl Wendlelowski and John Figoris gave them a great game. I think if Hicks had played, Ansonia would have been tough to beat. If I remember correctly, Rado went to school in Florida. There were several Rado's involved in Naugatuck politics.

Billy Rado went to Manhattan College. He then transferred to the University of Georgia following his freshman year. His father was a long time mayor of Naugatuck.