Vann brother dies
Brento Vann, one of five brothers who helped Putnam City High School to football success, died at age 52. A salute to Vann and other people with Oklahoma ties who enjoyed the game day experience.
A farewell to people with Oklahoma ties who enjoyed the game day experience:
•Brento Vann, 52, of Yukon was one of five brothers who helped Putnam City High School enjoy success on the football field in the 1970s and 1980s. Vann had 2,456 yards and 35 touchdowns over two seasons as a starting running back. He scored 79 percent of the Pirates’ points over his junior and senior years.
Vann was The Oklahoman’s Back of the Year in 1983; The Oklahoma City Times’ Back of the Year in 1984; an Oklahoma Coaches Association All-State pick in ‘84; and a member of the Oklahoma team that played Texas’ best prep players in the 1985 Oil Bowl.
Vann was an All-American at Pasadena Community College (Calif.) before playing his final two seasons at Central Oklahoma.
He worked in construction and umpired baseball. Brento is survived by his brothers Bryce Jr., Bruce,
Brandy and Bryatt.
•Johnny Crabb, 74, of Mangum. He was one of four Crabb brothers (Joe,
Jim and Larry) who coached high school basketball in Oklahoma. Johnny was one of the top girls coaches in state history; his teams at Duke and Mangum combined for a 211-55 record.
His 1972 Mangum team finished 29-4 and beat Latta 44-38 for the Class 2A state championship. The Oklahoma Girls Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame inductee had six All-State
players during a 13-year career.
Before his coaching days, he played baseball for Central State College — now the University of Central Oklahoma — and had a part in designing the Bronchos’ ball diamond.
Johnny later joined Joe and Jim in the UCO Athletics Hall of Fame.
•Nathan Williams, 19, of Blanchard. The linebacker for Blanchard High School had 331 tackles and eight sacks during his varsity football career. The senior was on the Oklahoma Coaches Association’s Class 4A All-Star team and an honorable mention selection on The Oklahoman’s All-State team.
He also wrestled and was a member of the school’s powerlifting team. Williams’ plan after graduating this month was to join the Army National Guard.
•Wanda Clawson Stevens, 86, of Norman. She spent 25 years in the Oklahoma football office during the
Barry Switzer and Gary Gibbs coaching eras. Stevens was the secretary for the Sooners’ assistant coaches. She traveled with the team to several bowl games, including the Orange Bowl when the Sooners beat Penn State 25-10 for the 1985 national championship.
•Brian Fox, 49, of Miami in northeastern Oklahoma spent 16 years driving the No. 24 modified race car at local dirt tracks. He liked to hunt and fish. Fox worked at the J-M mushroom farm.
•Ken Smith, 90, of Oklahoma City. In 1958, he joined Carroll Cornett and
Bennie Funderburg as one of the founders of the original Satellite Athletic Association.
The trio coached the association’s first baseball team, the Portland Hills Satellites. Smith’s son, Jerry, and Cornett’s son, Don, were ballplayers on some of the early Satellite teams on a diamond about 100 yards south of where Deaconess Hospital now stands.
“Few people other than Don Cornett and myself can attest to how that first Satellite team was formed,” Jerry Smith told The Oklahoman. “It relied on my dad and (Cornett’s) father literally combing the neighborhoods, knocking on doors soliciting 9- and 10-year-old boys who might be interested in playing baseball.”
Ken Smith also coached an American Business Club team to a state championship in 1967. He was a youth bowling instructor and was involved in the Boy Scouts.
•Bill Montgomery, 91, of Edmond loved to play baseball while growing up. The World War II paratrooper played ball as an adult, including for two local breweries. A family obituary said Bill could still throw a mean knuckleball into his 90s.
Montgomery also liked fast cars. As the story goes, during his career at Tinker Air Force Base, the man known as “Wild Bill” hopped in his 1969 Oldsmobile 442 and raced an F-4 fighter jet, only to lose a head start after 600 feet.
•Shirley Barnard Matchen, 78, of Norman was a longtime auto racing fan — and for good reason. Her husband of 35 years was the late, great Troy Matchen, who won three super-modified points championships at State Fair Speedway. Troy died in 2010 at age 75.
•John Windolph, 76, of Norman. He played basketball and baseball at Vici High School in northwest Oklahoma. Windolph enjoyed coaching son
Tommy in baseball and football. He was a Sooner sports fan.
•Bob Sharp, 96, of Oklahoma City. The World War II veteran coached American Legion baseball. Sharp was a nifty card player. He participated in several blackjack tournaments in Las Vegas.