OKC native starred for Colorado
Oklahoma City native Cole Hayes was a defensive lineman for Colorado over the 1986-88 seasons. He was a Navy chief of staff when he died recently at age 50. A salute to Hayes 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:
•Cole Hayes, 50, of Okinawa, Japan, was an Oklahoma City native. He was Navy chief of staff for Task Force 76 at the time of death. Hayes was football standout for Chaparral High School in Las Vegas, Nev., and then attended the University of Colorado on scholarship.
Hayes lettered for the 1986, 1987 and 1988 seasons under coach Bill
McCartney. The 6-foot-4, 260-pound defensive lineman finished his playing career with 82 tackles while helping the Buffaloes to Bluebonnett and Freedom bowl appearances.
Hayes graduated with an English Literature degree and soon joined the Navy. He spent 24 years on active duty, including three command tours. Hayes also was a Naval War College graduate.
•Ami Whitlow Brown, 41, of Tulsa owned several medals from running marathons. She was a special education teacher at the Jenks Freshman Academy.
•Jimmy Balentine, 71, of Altus was a drag racer. He once appeared on the TV show “Pinks All Out”, racing his Chevrolet S10 pickup. Balentine owned an auto salvage business.
•Pat Green, 83, of Duncan played football at Paducah High School in his native Texas. He went on to play at Texas Tech, lettering in 1952 and 1953. The ‘53 team under coach DeWitt
Weaver was 11-1, including a 35-13 victory over Auburn in the Gator Bowl.
Green enjoyed golf, working with horses and team penning. The auto salesman and realtor also refereed high football and basketball games.
• Earl Robbins, 78, of Del City. He assisted in the construction of the original Del City Sports Association ball fields, including concession stands, light standards and backstops. Robbins spent 52 years as an electrician.
• Don Schoenhals, 72, of Edmond was employed by Remington Park. One of his first assignments at the horse track was selling, creating and proofing advertising. Schoenhals moved to the pari-mutuel department, where he served many happy winners and frustrated losers. He retired after 20 years.
Schoenhals loved golf, whether he was playing a course or watching a tournament on television.
• Scott Krumme, 50, of Argyle, Texas, was a Putnam City North High School and OU graduate who played basketball and soccer while growing up. As a dad, he was involved in his daughters’ basketball, soccer and archery activities.
Krumme was a coach for Argyle’s Hilltop archery team that competed in a national tournament. Although he spent 27 years living south of the Red River, he remained a diehard Sooner football fan.
• Myrtle Tucker, 77, of Oklahoma City raced dirt bikes. She participated with the Okie Dirt Riders and the Oklahoma Cross Country Racing Association. The Sooner football fan spent 45 years as a nurse.
•Chuck Glass, 82, of Moore starred in football, basketball and track at Sallisaw High. He later played fastpitch softball. Glass’ best love was golf; he worked each day to improve his game and played in several tournaments in the city area. The die-hard OU football fan spent 26 years in the Air Force.
• Clarissa Smith Shoopman, 64, of Oklahoma City was a longtime bowler. She competed in several leagues and participated in national tournaments for 20 years.
• Dr. Henry Pearce, 85, of Edmond. The vascular surgeon owned Arcadian Downs, a farm for thoroughbred race horses. Pearce enjoyed golf and restoring classic cars.
• Freddy Hudson Jr., 52, of Oklahoma City was passionate about cycling. He especially enjoyed mountain biking with his cousin, Jeff Hanes.
• Haeworth Robertson, 86, of Wilmington, N.C. He was a two-year basketball letterman at Central High School in Oklahoma City. The Air Force veteran was a benefits consultant; he was once the chief actuary for the Social Security Administration.
• Glen Hale, 93, of Tulsa. Dating back to when he co-piloted a B-17 bomber during World War II, Hale was a Chicago Cubs fanatic. A family obituary said Hale, who owned a company that supplied gumball machines, was “thrilled to see his beloved team win the World Series in 2016.”
• E.J. Zenon, 16, of Prague. Though standing just 5-feet-8 and 160 pounds, he was a tough defensive end for the Prague Red Devils football team. The high school junior talked about entering the engineering field. His mother,
Sheryl Zenon, told Oklahoman staff writer Graham Lee
Brewer, “He wanted to make enough money to own a house and have a truck and motorcycle and buy a nice car for his future wife.”