Wally’s World

Rambling reflections of a cradle Catholic, ex-high school linebacker and catcher and forever a diehard Boston Braves and National League baseball fan:

It poured in buckets on the Saturday in May of my First Communion 61 years ago. All baseball games were postponed on that date, but the wet weather failed to dampen the sweetness of the day in the life of a 7-year-old altar boy.

The next biggest date in my spiritual journey was my Confirmation, which took place five years later when I was 12. I was confirmed by the late Jeremiah Minihan, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston. Interestingly, Bishop Minihan, during his college days, was a scrappy 150-pound center on Hall of Fame Coach Lou Little’s Georgetown University football team.

Like so many, I look forward to the NCAA basketball tournament or March Madness every year. I always root for the Catholic Colleges against the rest of field. This year I was particularly disappointed when St. Bonaventure, despite a gallant, near-miss effort, came up short against Florida State after winning the Atlantic 10 post-season tournament championship. My late father, Walter, was a three-sport star for the Bonnies (1936-’40) and he is a member of the St. Bonaventure University sports Hall of Fame.

In high school, myself and my teammates participated in a special Mass on Saturday morning before our varsity football games. It was truly an ecumenical experience because both Catholic and non-Catholic teammates together filed into Our Lady Help of Christians Church for the Mass. Such spiritual unity contributed greatly to our bonding as a football team.

As far as I am concerned, “Rudy” is the finest sports movie ever made. As many know, the movie is a true story. It tells the story of Daniel E. “Rudy” Ruettiger, an undersized and athletically challenged youngster from a blue collar midwestern background who overcame impossible odds to earn a spot on the Notre Dame football team. My favorite scenes in the movie, a true lesson in perseverance and the power of prayer, show him lighting a candle at the grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes and later praying before the Blessed Sacrament inside the Basilica of the Sacred Heart. The movie brought back warm memories of my own visit to Notre Dame, with my wife, Mary,  to attend a Notre Dame-Stanford football game. That weekend we were privileged to attend two Masses at the Basilica and make multiple pilgrimages to the Grotto.

Speaking of the Grotto, former Notre Dame football coach Gerry Faust prayed at the Grotto after every game, home or away. Sometimes, after away games, he visited the Grotto in the wee hours of the morning demonstrating his love for Our Lady and his commitment to his faith. Faust’s faith is legendary and he is one of the finest Catholic men I have ever interviewed.

Do kids today have sports heroes? We sure did. Growing up I had four: Bob Cousy, Phil Masi, Harry Agganis and Pete Dawkins. Cousy, the Boston Celtics Hall of Famer, revolutionized the game of basketball with his ball handling wizardry. Masi, who came from Chicago, is a former rugged catcher for the 1948 National League Champion Boston Braves. Agganis, an All-American quarterback, was a first baseman for the Boston Red Sox who tragically died of a pulmonary embolism in 1955 at age 26. And Dawkins, of course, was a Heisman Trophy winner and Rhodes scholar who starred for Coach Earl “Red” Blaik’s Army Cadets in the late 1950’s.

More about Cousy, the former Holy Cross star: He was a pioneer in race relations during his years with the Celtics and he championed the Black athlete during his NBA career. Cousy and George Mikan were the first two NBA superstars. Growing up, I was so crazy about Cousy that I scribbled a number 14 (Cousy’s number) on the back and front of a white tee shirt with a green magic marker when I shot baskets for hours by myself.

Memories are so important as we travel pilgrim journeys of faith. They anchor us to the riches of the past and enable us to count our blessings.

Wally Carew is a contributor to the Good Sports Blog, an award winning journalist, freelance writer and the author of Men of Spirit, Men of Sports and A Farewell To Glory.