A familar name re-emerges

Page 2 of 2 -- The biggest difference now is that the majority of the kids he coaches do not even realize what a legend he was on the football field.

ADVERTISEMENT

"The guys that were in middle school or high school when I was in college were more in tune with what was going on at Holy Cross in terms of the football and what I was able to accomplish personally," said Lockbaum." A lot of the kids now don't know me as an athlete, they know me as a coach and Gordie's dad."

During the summer of 2002 once again the name Gordie Lockbaum popped up, but this time it was not Gordie Lockbaum the football player, but rather his son the baseball player.

Lockbaum's son was the starting shortstop for the Jesse Burkett (Worcester) Little League team that made it all the way to the Little League U.S. final before falling to a club from Louisville, Ky.

"The Little League World Series was exciting," said Lockbaum. "Being an athlete who loved baseball growing up I knew all about Williamsport and followed it so closely each and every year. To have something like that fall in your lap as an adult where your son gets to participate in it and do well and get to the U.S. final was incredibly exciting. It was a once in a lifetime thing that was extraordinary and awesome. We really enjoyed it as a family and we enjoyed the whole process."

Back in his heyday, Lockbaum was the epitome of a gridiron warrior, playing offense, defense, and special teams. Unlike today's two-way players, Lockbaum was involved in every play. Looking at what Lockbaum accomplished and how versatile a player he was, it is very easy to see why he earned two trips to the Downtown Athletic Club.

Offensively, Lockbaum scored 44 touchdowns -- all coming during his junior and senior seasons. Defensively, he made 146 tackles, recorded four sacks and intercepted five passes as a Crusader.

"I always enjoyed being on the field and being in the competition trying to make a difference by making a block, making a play, putting it in the end zone, making a tackle or making an interception," said Lockbaum. "Whatever the case, even special teams, just trying to do something to make something happen.

"My emphasis was just trying to get on the field and when that opportunity came up it was really exciting. It had not been done in quite awhile so we were learning on the fly. Playing up here in New England, the weather was not hot and muggy, so it was pretty ideal for being out there and running around for 60 minutes."

Which side of the ball did Lockbaum like best?

"At that time we were running a very exciting offense," said Lockbaum. "We were doing a variation of run and shoot. We were throwing the ball a lot, yet we were still running the ball and being a featured type back was exciting because I had my hands on the ball a lot. We were putting the ball in the end zone so we were scoring a lot of points and really lighting things up.

"On the other side of the ball we had a real creative defensive coordinator and guys that really liked to blitz the quarterback and play a pressure type of defense. That was exciting too. But hands down, everyone likes putting it into the end zone."

After Holy Cross, Lockbaum gave it a go in the NFL, playing in preseason games for both the Pittsburgh Steelers and Buffalo Bills.

"Initially I wanted to play football," said Lockbaum. "That was my goal, but that didn't work out. Two years after graduation and a lot of preseason football games with Pittsburgh and Buffalo it was time to get to work. You have to give it a fair amount of time to try and play ball, but when you see the writing on the wall that things are not going to work out it's time to move on."

As the time passes by, the legend of Gordie Lockbaum continues to grow. Every time a player tries to play both offense and defense the comment always comes up, "Didn't a guy by the name of Gordie Lockbaum do that back in the 1980s?"

If you would like to hear where a former New England Sports Star is these days, please e-mail Jon Goode at jgoode@lowellspinners.com.