Athletic Success doesn’t begin at the Top
One of the most profitable and enjoyable new shows on TV is the series “Driven.”
This series is one to be watched by all aspiring young athletes and their hopeful parents. It is the story of past and present players of the Atlanta Braves and how they came to be where they are. The predominant theme, as the series told about Chipper Jones, Evan Gattis, Tom Glavine and others, is the theme of perseverance. The great lesson set forth in all the stories is that none of these players began their career at the top. It is a story of their putting in the time and effort to climb the ladder from one level to the next.
At this point I want to discuss the career of one of our local young lady softball players. Several years ago, my friend and past Calhoun High ath- already doing. Like so many other stories from zealous parents and kin I took this one with a grain of salt. I couldn’t remember the young ladies name and neither could I pronounce it. How right Roger was!
The young lady was Alyssa Shawgo who became one of the premier pitchers in Georgia. Way back in 1987 I read a story in Reader’s Digest titled “Secrets every achiever knows.” Well, Alyssa Shawgo is an achiever. She paid the price of preparation and persistence. To look at the beautiful young lady you would label her “cheerleader” or “majorette.” Her beauty and build contradicted her skill and toughness on the mound and her role in leading the Lady Jackets to region championships and a State Championship her senior year. She drew the assignment for the championship game and pitched a shutout against Harlem for the victory.
Alyssa’s story isn’t over. She will be heading to college in late August to climb another rung in her great story of success. She has made all of us proud.
I could not finish this section without mentioning Alyssa’s parents Ron and Angie Brown Shawgo. Ron did a great job in developing the young lady. Angie was the beautiful majorette at Red Bud in the late 1970s and early ‘ 80s. Angie’s distinct honor was being named “Motor Rever Upper of the Year” award during the 1979-80 year.
The Best Ever
The best athlete of any school, any sport, any nation, or any nation often arises as a matter of discussion. Let the feeling from this writer’s view be stated that probably the matter would be hard to determine. In this section I will mention three of my random topics.
First, a few days ago, I read a long treatise about Jim Thorpe the great athlete from early last century. His stories are a matter of pleasure and reward to read. One king referred to him as “the greatest athlete who ever lived.” Here I recommend that is possible see the 1951 movie starring Burt Lancaster in the movie “Jim Thorpe — All-American.”
Thorpe’s story is a sad one. The book and movie tells of the triumph and tragedy of Native American Jim Thorpe, who after winning both the pentathlon and decathlon in the same 1912 Olympics, is stripped of his medals on a technicality.
Second, Josh Brown, in his informative Rome News-Tribune column (710) was titled “100 years after his debut, Babe Ruth is Still the Best.” To read this column would remove from any fan’s mind the idea that Babe Ruth was simply a player who could hit the long ball and set home run records. His accomplishments were great and varied. Was he the best ever? I don’t know but no one can question the fact he was great.
Third, there is always in the back of my mind the intention to write about Jackie Robinson. It is feared that we do to Robinson what we do to Ruth: We limit our thinking of him to the fact he was the first black player to play in the major leagues. Listen, as I tell you Robinson was so much more than that. His accomplishments and performances in high school and college in so many different activities is a matter of fascination and admiration. Jackie Robinson was a great baseball player and athlete and his performances thrill this old heart.