Jerry Martin

[Orangejet]

Not sure if this mentioned on this site but the Cuse lost one of its former players last week to cancer at age 59. Gerald (Jerry) Martin was a 4 yr starter at OLB from 74 - 77 and as a senior was a mentor to me my freshman year. Undersized for the position, Martin had the heart and determination of a lion and impressed the heck out of Nick Saban who was our coach at the time. After spending one year as a GA for the Cuse, Martin went on to become the S/C coach at Yale than UCONN for 24 yrs and highly respected by all. RIP my Orange friend!

 

[TexanMark]

Sorry to hear that...I really loved watching the team back in that era.

 

[dasher]

Sorry to hear that...I really loved watching the team back in that era.

You did? I went to every game but loved watching is not exactly how I remember it.

 

[OrangePA]

Gerry Martin was an outstanding player.

I believe he was part of Frank Maloney's first class.

He was quick and athletic.

And along with guys like Ken Clarke and Larry King he helped the Orange play some very good defense in the mid 1970s.

He will be missed.

 

[dasher]

Gerry Martin was an outstanding player.

I believe he was part of Frank Maloney's first class.

He was quick and athletic.

And along with guys like Ken Clarke and Larry King helped the Orange play some very good defense in the mid 1970s.

He will be missed.

Two names from the past

 

[TexanMark]

You did? I went to every game but loved watching is not exactly how I remember it.

I did...cuz they were a few years older than me. They played hard. They came off the Black Player's Boycott and Ben left the program at 2-9. They had some really good games then...not great teams but the kids came and played in a crumbling stadium with crap facilities.

They had two 6-5 seasons in that period...geez that sounds pretty good right now.

Penn State and Pitt were monsters at that time.

 

[dasher]

I did...cuz they were a few years older than me. They played hard. They came off the Black Player's Boycott and Ben left the program at 2-9. They had some really good games then...not great teams but the kids came and played in a crumbling stadium with crap facilities.

You must remember the Penn st game in '77. God, we could have won. Bruce Semell dropping a pass when he all alone very late in the game...Damn.

 

[TexanMark]

You must remember the Penn st game in '77. God, we could have won. Bruce Semell dropping a pass when he all alone very late in the game...Damn.

Also, Pitt in 1976...we got screwed on a bad spot and was driving to take the lead

I have a soft spot in my heart for the Maloney Teams...

 

[hungrychuck]

That '77 team went 6-5. We'd be talking about a bowl game in today's world.

 

[TexanMark]

That '77 team went 6-5. We'd be talking about a bowl game in today's world.

1975 too!

 

[HurleyForHeisman]

Also, Pitt in 1976...we got screwed on a bad spot and was driving to take the lead

I have a soft spot in my heart for the Maloney Teams...

Re that 76 Pitt game. That game was at Pitt on not on TV. I assume you, like me, were listening to the game on the radio and remember Joel Mareiness going crazy over that bad spot. I wonder if it was as bad as we were led to believe.

 

[hungrychuck]

1975 too!

Frank finally got off the schneid in '79 with the Independence Bowl team, but only after flubbing a shot at what I recall was the Tangerine Bowl with the debacle in the regular-season finale at Schoellkopf. I was in Shreveport, what a weird scene. But a nice consolation prize for a team that had some impressive individual talent, especially on offense.

 

[OrangeFoo]

Way too young...

 

[TexanMark]

Re that 76 Pitt game. That game was at Pitt on not on TV. I assume you, like me, were listening to the game on the radio and remember Joel Mareiness going crazy over that bad spot. I wonder if it was as bad as we were led to believe.

Exactly...but I believed it. He was really vociferous about it. I wonder if the refs were from PA?

 

[TexanMark]

Frank finally got off the schneid in '79 with the Independence Bowl team, but only after flubbing a shot at what I recall was the Tangerine Bowl with the debacle in the regular-season finale at Schoellkopf. I was in Shreveport, what a weird scene. But a nice consolation prize for a team that had some impressive individual talent, especially on offense.

How many fans did we have there? Like 500? McNeese treated it like their Super Bowl.

The Halftime Guest was Gen Omar Bradley in a wheelchair IIRC.

 

[sutomcat]

I remember Gerry well. Tough kid, always played hard.

So sorry to hear he died so young.

Obit

 

[hungrychuck]

How many fans did we have there? Like 500? McNeese treated it like their Super Bowl.

The Halftime Guest was Gen Omar Bradley in a wheelchair IIRC.

That sounds about right. I mostly recall that as a naive young student, I expected Shreveport to be something like New Orleans. It was, after all, in Louisiana. Boy, was that a learning experience...

 

[Crusty]

RIP Orangeman.

 

[TexanMark]

That sounds about right. I mostly recall that as a naive young student, I expected Shreveport to be something like New Orleans. It was, after all, in Louisiana. Boy, was that a learning experience...

Shreveport is a weird place...Kinda Texas, Kinda Arkansas and just enough Cajun to screw it all up.

 

[im4cuse]

Gerry Martin was an outstanding player.

I believe he was part of Frank Maloney's first class.

He was quick and athletic.

And along with guys like Ken Clarke and Larry King he helped the Orange play some very good defense in the mid 1970s.

He will be missed.

Jim Collins too -- good middle linebacker IIRC

 

[Orangejet]

Jim Collins too -- good middle linebacker IIRC

Collins was an excellent ILB and the Cuse had some very good players back then but the facilities were the worst in the nation though.

 

[Orangejet]

That '77 team went 6-5. We'd be talking about a bowl game in today's world.

We started that season 0 - 2 losing to a bad Oregon State team in Corvalis and a very good NC State team 38 - 0 led by A-A RB Ted Brown at Archbold. Beat Rose Bowl bound Washington w/ Warren Moon the next week at home on a long FG by everyone's buddy Dave Jacobs before 12k fans.

 

[TexanMark]

The UW game was in the rain...Spider Gaines was their stud receiver. It was mild but rainy...the 3-0 Tulane game had the worst early/mid season weather ever...that day crowd was announced at 11k...

 

[hungrychuck]

We started that season 0 - 2 losing to a bad Oregon State team in Corvalis and a very good NC State team 38 - 0 led by A-A RB Ted Brown at Archbold. Beat Rose Bowl bound Washington w/ Warren Moon the next week at home on a long FG by everyone's buddy Dave Jacobs before 12k fans.

It was raining if I recall correctly. But there is some perspective right there after a season of attendance woes. It's never been easy beyond a complement of hardcore fans. But there were bigger and better things ahead, and there can be again.

 

[im4cuse]

The UW game was in the rain...Spider Gaines was their stud receiver. It was mild but rainy...the 3-0 Tulane game had the worst early/mid season weather ever...that day crowd was announced at 11k...

There was nothing finer than sitting on cold rainy cement. Wasn't there a 5-2 game against Holy Cross the year before? Recall rain coming in at 45 degree angle !