Bonus - A Tribute To My Dad

Early on New Year's Day, my Dad passed away.

He is the reason The Dream Season Podcast exists, so I felt that he deserved an episode in his honor.

His Obituary

Donate to the Pat & Jim Calhoun Cardiology Center Fund

Transcript

Hi.

This was not supposed to be the next episode of the show. I still have the final regular episode to release, Legacy, but I’m waiting for something special to arrive before I can release that episode. And then there’s the listener memories of the Dream Season and possibly some other surprises still to come, but recent events have changed that.

Early in the morning on New Year's Day, my father, my best friend, my Dad, passed away. It was fairly sudden, drawn out over the course of a week after suffering a stroke on Christmas night.

I’m going to do my best to not make this the full story of his life but he needs to have the spotlight shone on him, as this podcast would not exist without his influence on me.

When I finally started releasing episodes of this project, I had hoped to have it done by Father’s Day of 2022, as a gift to him. Obviously that didn’t happen but the majority of it was done not long after Father’s Day 2023. I’m saddened that he won’t be able to hear the final episodes nor be able to include HIS memories, so I’m hoping that this episode will accomplish that.

My Dad, Albert Edwards, was born in 1944 and grew up on Fishers Island, a small island off the coast of southeastern Connecticut. It was (and is) technically part of New York State but is basically Connecticut, due to the proximity to Connecticut, and because New London is the home port for the ferry to get to the island.

Fishers Island is a small island and during the 1950s, the island boasted a robust population of nearly 500 people, compared to the 225 or so that live here today. The class sizes at the school were small but still managed to produce some pretty good athletes. 

Growing up, my Dad played many sports with his older brothers and other island kids.

According to an article in the New London Day in June of 1957, he won a foul shooting contest when he was in 8th grade. (Apparently, The Day printed A LOT of random, local news stories back then.)

He earned his varsity letter in basketball his freshman year. 

That’s when I believe his connection to the University of Connecticut began. His coach, beginning during the 1956-57 season, his 8th grade year, was Constantine Chiger. Coach Chiger was a 1956 graduate of UConn, earning a degree in physical education. He and his wife moved to Fishers Island that fall and began teaching phys ed and coaching.

My Dad talked about Coach Chiger often but I don’t recall hearing anything about him and any connections to UConn. But in doing some research, I’ve found that Coach Chiger incorporated his alma mater into his teachings.

In April of 1959, near the end of my Dad’s sophomore year, Coach Chiger invited Robert Kennedy, the head of intramural sports at UConn, to speak at their end of the year banquet. Mr. Kennedy also brought film of UConn’s 75-53 victory over Fordham from January to show to the kids. (Kennedy would go on to become the head coach of the men’s track and cross country teams at UConn for more than 25 years before retiring in 1985.)

That 1958-59 UConn squad, coached by Hugh Greer, finished 17-7, losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to Boston University, 60-58. (Hey, a parallel to the Dream Season. 31 years later, UConn would avenge that loss in the 1st round of the tourney,)

The following summer, my Dad, along with his good friend Peter Waddington (whom he maintained a lifelong friendship with) attended Boys State on the campus in Storrs.

Between that week on campus, most likely playing some ball in the Field House, along with Coach Chiger’s influence, certainly instilled a love of UConn men’s basketball in my Dad that he would eventually pass on to me.

After graduating high school in 1962, my Dad joined the Navy, serving aboard the USS Kearsarge, an aircraft carrier based out of Long Beach, California. He played pick up games with some notable people, including Joe Bellino, the 1960 Heisman Trophy winner from Navy.

After leaving the Navy in 1966, he was recruited to play basketball from some small schools, including Columbia Basin College in Pasco, Washington before attending West Valley College in Chapman, California. I assume that he played basketball there but sadly, I’m not 100% sure. Then again, if he did, I’m sure I would have heard about it a few hundred times over the years.

He eventually moved back east before marrying my Mom in 1969. They settled in East Hartford and attended many Hartford Capitals games, who’s roster featured former UConn star Wes Bialosuknia.

I was born in 1973 and we lived in Manchester, CT. Some of my earliest memories are sitting in our kitchen, presumably eating dinner, with the sounds of Arnold Dean and Sports Talk on WTIC 1080 coming from the radio.

My Dad claimed he was at the Civic Center for the UConn/UMass game in January, 1978 before the roof collapsed a few hours later. My Mom can’t confirm that, but also can’t dispute it, so we’ll let him have that one.

He most certainly attended more UConn games during the 70’s. My parents ended up divorcing in 1979. My Dad moved to Ledyard and my Mom settled in Torrington.

This is the point where things become clearer for me in terms of memories and recall. At that time, my Dad was working at Triangle Wire and Cable in Jewett City, CT as a distribution manager. He eventually formed a friendship with Dave Messier, who worked for Norwich Express, a trucking company in Bozrah, CT. Dave was our primary source of tickets to UConn men’s basketball games.

I am not 100% sure of the first game he took me to, but I have a solid, educated guess. It was Saturday, February 27, 1982. The mighty Georgetown Hoyas and their super-freshman Patrick Ewing were the opponents for Senior Day at the Hartford Civic Center. 

The reason I’m sure this is my first game is the indelible memory of me being extremely sad. My only exposure to UConn at this point was the aforementioned Arnold Dean talk, occasional local news highlights of a game, looking through UConn yearbooks that were mixed in with Sports Illustrated’s at my Dad’s and whatever he told me about the team and the players.

So there I am, 8 years old, sitting in the Civic Center and before the game even starts, there’s a ceremony on the court. Three players, Mike McKay, Chuck Aleksinas and Corny Thompson, are being presented with flowers by their parents. Apparently this is the final time that these players will be playing in front of the home crowd, as they’re seniors and will be graduating after the season.

I remember being so sad and every single senior day that I’ve been to since that day has moved me.

Anyway, Georgetown won the game handily, 60-42. UConn would lose a heartbreaker in their Big East Tournament opener a few days later against St. John’s (also held at the Civic Center) and the season would end with an NIT loss at Dayton, 76-75. Georgetown would fall in the National Championship game to Michael Jordan and North Carolina a few weeks later.

That game began a tradition of going to as many games as possible. It certainly wasn’t every game, in fact it was only a handful, if that, most seasons. Games would have to be on the weekend that I happened to be visiting my Dad and usually just afternoon games in Hartford.

The usual scenario went something like this. My Dad would pick me up in Torrington around 9, 9:30 AM on a Saturday. We would head to Hartford but make a pit stop at the McDonald’s in Unionville on Route 4. I’d have some hot cakes, he’d have some coffee and then we’d continue on to Hartford.

We’d get to the Civic Center early and do some shopping. There was a bookstore, a candy store and most importantly, the Hartford Whalers team store. After the shopping, we’d enter the coliseum, grab a program and some of that famous Civic Center pizza (which I can still taste to this day) and sit in our usual seats, halfway up in section 214, above the UConn bench.

Over the next five seasons, we would attend those Saturday afternoon games and usually a Connecticut Mutual Classic game while I was enjoying Christmas vacation. Watching Earl Kelley play was a highlight, but sadly, his off the court troubles tended to be the larger story.

Games started to become more memorable in the 1986-87 season. I was now 13 years old and the Huskies had a fiery new head coach, Jim Calhoun.

That first season provided one of the best memories for me during this era. Again, Senior Day at the Civic Center, this time for Gerry Besselink, on Saturday, February 28, 1987. Seton Hall was the opponent and the Huskies were wrapping up a dismal campaign for Calhoun’s first season. They entered the game with an 8-18 record and were without the services of their two best players, Cliff Robinson and Phil Gamble, who were suspended for academic issues.

The announced attendance that day was 8,130, but that was probably generous. During the first half, I noticed a lot of empty seats directly behind the UConn bench. In fact, they were one row behind where Cliff & Phil were watching the game. At halftime, I made my move. I walked right down and sat there like they were my seats the whole time.

Cliff and Phil each signed my program, which was an incredible memory, and the Huskies won a thriller, 56 to 54, earning a curtain call from all of us who stayed to the end. I also took a bunch of  pictures that day with a really bad camera and they continue to be a prized-possession.

A few months after that game, in August, my father brought me to the UConn campus for the first time, to drop me off for a week of hoops at Jim Calhoun’s basketball camp. I roomed at McMahon Hall with a kid from Holy Cross in Waterbury. I’ve forgotten his name but he and I would see each other over the next few years when Torrington High and Holy Cross matched up in hoops.

My coach that week was the great Gerry Besselink. My main memories from camp were how wonderful Gerry was, what a great guy Dave Leaito was, how tall Bill Lanes was, seeing the giant hole in the ground next to the Field House where Gampel would soon be sprouting from and a lot of running in Guyer Gym. I also remember my Dad being there on the final Friday, to watch our games and see us receive our awards. 

My first game at the Field House would come a few months later for the opener of the 1987-88 season against Maryland Eastern-Shore. Being so close to the action was a treat, as was the 102-63 UConn win.

My Dad & I would return to the Field House for one of, if not the greatest game we saw together, the NIT quarterfinal matchup against Virginia Commonwealth. Dad picked me up after school that Friday afternoon and off we went for the loudest, hottest, most exciting game I’d ever experienced up to that point. They were on their way to the Final Four! Well, the NIT Final Four, but who can expect UConn to make the “real” Final Four, right??

My Dad was at both the NIT semis and finals at MSG and we thought that was as good as it would get. Little did we know.

I’m going to skip some other highlights in an effort to keep this episode relatively brief, but I can’t skip over the Dream Season.

I went to three games that season (Syracuse, Pittsburgh & California) but only one of those with my Dad. That was the Syracuse game, which to me, was the launching point of the run.

Somehow we ended up sitting in seats reserved for wheelchairs, right at the top of section 101. Aside from the win, which was incredible, the enduring memory for me was the loud booing of the officials as they walked off the floor at halftime.

My Dad was at the Georgetown game a few nights later, so he was lucky enough to enjoy both games that magical week.

We watched the opening night of Gampel and the Big East Tournament together on TV. As for The Shot, neither of us actually saw Tate’s shot go through the hoop live. I’ll share my story in another episode, but my Dad was so despondent after Tate missed the jumper, he took our dog Trapper out for a walk, certain that the game was over.

As I got older and graduated high school, our opportunities to go to games together dwindled but certainly did not go away.

We saw Lindsey Hunter single-handedly end the 1991-92 season and we watched an incredible freshman named Ray Allen explode on the scene in 1994, amongst other moments. We were also in the house for the famous UConn women and Tennessee Lady Vols matchup in 1995.

My Dad moved to North Carolina briefly in the spring of 1998. While there, he was able to be at Greensboro Coliseum to watch Rip Hamilton’s buzzer-beater to beat Washington in the Sweet Sixteen.

That same day, he also ran into one Jim Calhoun. They exchanged info and later that summer, Coach Calhoun was my father’s guest for a round of golf on Fishers Island. Coach invited my Dad to a game the following season and we had pretty good seats to see the Huskies destroy Michigan State during the 1998-99 championship season.

We went to the 2003 Big East Tournament semifinals and watched UConn beat Carmelo Anthony and Syracuse. We watched the 2004 and 2014 National Championship games together. We went to the welcome home rallies at Gampel in 2011 and 2014. I FaceTimed him from my seat as the final seconds ticked off the clock in Houston in April of 2023.

My Dad had a lot of favorite players and a few that he moaned and groaned about on occasion. He was partial to Gavin Edwards because of his surname and that he wore his favorite number, 33. But his all-time favorite player, which I thankfully had the foresight to ask him last week while he was in the hospital, was Doron Sheffer. 

My Dad NEVER missed watching a game on TV. Over the past 30+ years when most games were televised, I’d be shocked if he missed more than five.

The last UConn game my father watched was the St. John’s game on Saturday, December 23rd. Ironically, I attended that game with my daughter. It was her first time at a game in 20 years. We sat in section 114, as I wanted her to have a better view than I usually did sitting up in 214. I probably drove her crazy that night, pointing out the seats I sat in with my Dad, where would get our food, how there used to be a mall right here, etc. I know my Dad was happy that we were in the building that night.

I am still incredibly heartbroken and stunned that my Dad is no longer here. Those of you who have lost a parent most certainly understand that feeling. I called my Dad twice a day, every day. We would always talk about the weather, my daughter, the Mets, the Dolphins, my fantasy football teams, my dogs, but most of the talk, especially in the winter, focused solely on the UConn men’s basketball team. Knowing that I won’t be doing that ever again crushes me.

It’s taken me a while to write these words and even longer to record them, without bawling like a baby. But this podcast simply would not exist if it wasn’t for my Dad. He instilled in me a love for this basketball program. I needed to put something out there to honor him and to thank him for passing his love of UConn basketball on to me.

In a strange twist of fate, my Dad died due to heart disease, which is a cause that is near and dear to Jim Calhoun. Coach Calhoun and his wife Pat each lost a parent to heart disease, inspiring them to generously support cardiology research at UConn Health over the past three decades.

If you’ve enjoyed listening to this podcast, please consider making a donation to the Pat and Jim Calhoun Cardiology Fund, to honor both my Dad and Coach Calhoun.

I want to sincerely thank EVERYONE who has been remotely associated with the UConn men’s basketball program over the past 40 years. Every coach, every player and anyone who did anything to help put a game on in any capacity. I want to especially thank Kevin Ollie, Dan Hurley and the greatest coach in the history of the sport, James Calhoun, for giving my Dad and I the incredible and at one time, unthinkable, joy of watching UConn win FIVE National Championships.

Finally, I want to thank you Dad, for being a fantastic role model, my mentor, my best friend, for everything. I love you and miss you.