Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Newsletter Gammas, This newsletter highlights the Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Association Board Meeting, Fall Reunion, Board Officers and Brother Alex Sandusky. Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Association Board Meeting On August 3, 2020 President Wayne Norris opened the Board meeting of the Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Assoc. at 10am at the offices of Dura-Bond Industries, in Export, Pa. The meeting was held via Zoom due to the distance of the members and consideration of the Corona virus. Present were all current board members which constituted a quorum. Present were: Robert Cornali, Earl Petrucci, Dan Wolovich, Brad Whoolery, Jack Irwin and James Wilkinson. Items discussed at the meeting were: • Fall Reunion, held at Clarion, Pa. in conjunction with Clarion University's Homecoming • Winter Reunion, February 15 – 16, 2021, held in Punta Gorda, Florida and is now known as the Jack Bertani Golf Outing in honor of Jack Bertani • Scholarship Fund – aka Last Gamma Standing • Association Membership • Election of Officers and Board Members The complete Board Meeting Minutes are posted on our site – Organization-Board Fall Reunion The Fall Reunion held at Clarion, Pa. in conjunction with Clarion University's Homecoming and Clarion’s Autumn Leaf Festival has been cancelled for 2020 due to the ongoing Pandemic. The hospitality room is too crowded as well as the banquet hall to provide the needed distancing required by the current health guidelines. It was mentioned that individuals still wanting to attend golf at Hi-Level would be free to do so but not as part of the Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Assoc. and would be on their own. 1 Tuesday, August 18, 2020 Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Newsletter Election of Board Officers It was decided we keep the existing board members but will limit their terms according to the by-laws. An election of Officers was held, and the following were elected. Wayne Norris -President Robert Cornali Vice President Dan Wolovich Treasurer Brad Whoolery Secretary 2 Tuesday, August 18, 2020 Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Newsletter Brother Alex Sandusky Alex Sandusky, one of all-time great Baltimore Colts, dies at age 87 One of the most famous photographs in National Football League history shows fullback Alan Ameche crossing the goal line to score the winning touchdown for the Baltimore Colts in the 1958 championship. Baltimore beat the New York Giants, 23-17, in overtime at Yankee Stadium in what became known as “the greatest game ever.” PHOTO CREDITS MARK LEIFER 3 Tuesday, August 18, 2020 Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Newsletter Alex Sandusky could pick himself out of the pile of bodies on the ground in the iconic image. As the starting right guard, Sandusky helped open the huge hole Ameche plunged through to give the Colts a memorable victory. That play was called ‘16 power’ and went off-tackle between me and George Preas,” Sandusky once told an interviewer. Sandusky, a member of the Baltimore Colts Silver Anniversary Team, died early Tuesday morning. He was 87 years old and residing in assisted living in Louisville, Kentucky, family members said. Sandusky played for the Colts from 1954 until his retirement following the 1966 season. He was a fixture along the offensive line, missing just one start in 166 games over 13 seasons while protecting quarterback Johnny Unitas and paving the way for tailback Lenny Moore. Sandusky, who was 6-foot-1 and 235 pounds in his prime, routinely earned praise from opponents such as Detroit Lions All-Pro Alex Karras. “Sandusky gives me more trouble than any other guard in the league,” Karras once told The Baltimore Sun. “He’s short and quick and he has great agility.” Sandusky, who was the last surviving member of the starting offensive line from the Colts’ halcyon days of the 1950s, knew his primary job was to safeguard Unitas. “You took pride in protecting John. Everyone was focused on that,” Sandusky told The Sun for a retrospective story in 2009. “Unitas was our bread-and-butter. When he called plays in the huddle, it was like a priest talking in church.” “It was almost a mortal sin to get beat by your man, if he then got to John,” Sandusky said. “I remember several games when (Unitas) played hurt and we made sure that he never got his knees dirty. We took immense pride in that.” Sandusky, a 16th round draft choice Gamma from Clarion State Teachers College, was named second team All-Pro twice and honorable mention three times. He received more 4 Tuesday, August 18, 2020 Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Newsletter votes than any other offensive lineman when the public selected the 50th anniversary “All-Time Colts” team in 1978. Sandusky was once asked the secret to his success. “Balance, technique and a little holding when the ref’s not looking,” he said with a chuckle.” On a more serious note, Sandusky credited bashing heads daily with a pair of future Hall of Famers for molding him into an All-Pro. “Practice regularly against Art Donovan and Gino Marchetti and you either learn how to do it or you get killed,” he said. Sandusky routinely played injured, almost a requirement during an era when active rosters consisted of 33 players. It was assumed that separated shoulders and twisted ankles would not keep starters of the lineup. “We never even thought about coming out of the game. You played as long as you could walk,” said Sandusky, who would pay the price for his durability and longevity. Later in life, he had a hip and both knees replaced. “I’m reminded of pro football every time I move,” he said prior to his induction into the Anne Arundel County Sports Hall of Fame in 1996. Bob Vogel, who was a starting offensive tackle for the Colts from 1963 through 1972, admired the way Sandusky played the game. “Alex may have been the smallest offensive guard in the NFL. Through being a tenacious competitor and using great technique, he did an exceptional job,” Vogel said. “Alex was extremely competitive. He played down to the nth degree of what he could bring to the field.” Vogel said Sandusky was a man of few words but had a subtle sense of humor. “Alex really enjoyed hunting and his locker was right next to Jim Parker’s,” Vogel recalled. “On the way to practice one day, Alex went rabbit hunting. He killed a bunch of rabbits and hung one of them up in Parker’s locker. When Jim saw that bloody carcass, he slammed the door so hard he almost tipped over a whole row of lockers.” 5 Tuesday, August 18, 2020 Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Newsletter Sandusky lived in the Whitehall community of Annapolis near the Bay Bridge for much of his retirement. He named the waterfront estate “Point After” and loved fishing on the Chesapeake Bay. He also was involved with numerous private business, owning Riviera Bowl in Pasadena for many years. Sandusky moved to Key West, Florida, and lived in a home overlooking the Gulf of Mexico for many years. Always an avid outdoorsman, he kept a 26-foot fishing boat in the canal behind the house. Sandusky, a native of McKees Rock, Pennsylvania, once admitted the 1958 championship was not the greatest game he played in. However, he understood the reasons why it was so significant for the NFL. “It was the first overtime game in the history of the league, it was on national television, and it was the first time anyone saw a team run a no-huddle offense,” Sandusky said. “We pioneered the two-minute drill in which Unitas would call signals at the line of scrimmage. That’s how we came back to tie and win that game.” Sandusky, who was a member of the Clarion State football all-time team, was named All- American as an end as a junior and senior. He was inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 2010. #88 All American Alex V Sandusky leaps high and hauls it in a pass. 6 Tuesday, August 18, 2020 Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Newsletter Two legendary Golden Eagles. Tick Cloherty photo with Alex - May 3, 2008 - Sandusky inducted into Robert "Tick" Cloherty Western Pa. Sports Hall of Fame Hall of Fame Induction photo --- Steve Zinram, Frank Lignelli, Alex and Rich Herman --- - October 16, 2010. Sandusky is survived by his wife of 65 years, Mary, along with four children — sons Vincent (Alma) of Great Falls, Virginia; Michael (Robin) of Charles City, Virginia; Stephen of Volcan, Costa Rica, and daughter Constance (Mark) of Louisville. He also had five grandchildren and one great-grandchild. 7 Tuesday, August 18, 2020 Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Newsletter After retiring from professional football, Sandusky became director of Waterway Improvement for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. For 24 years, he helped build launching ramps and marinas throughout the state. DNR commissioned an 80-foot icebreaker the M/V Alex V Sandusky. M/V A.V. Sandusky The Maryland Department of Natural Resources icebreaking ship, the M/V A.V. Sandusky, is 80 feet long and weighs 100 tons. (Baltimore Sun photo by Algerina Perna) The A.V. Sandusky is 700 HP, 80-foot buoy tender captained by Captain Shawn Orr. Ice-breaking capability is eight-inches thick. Areas of responsibility include Kent Narrows, Rock Hall, Chester River to Cedar Point, Miles River to St. Michaels, Eastern Bay, and Tilghman Creek. 8 Tuesday, August 18, 2020 Alpha Gamma Phi Alumni Newsletter Larry Kuzma ‘64 9 Tuesday, August 18, 2020 .