As this is a difficult time to commemorate something like Colquitt County High head football coach Justin Rogers’ first full year with the program, imagine reaching such a milestone as the age of 50 these days.

(It was last week, but don’t feel bad about making any belated wishes. After all, there are other far more important matters out there for everyone’s concern.)

It is taxing trying not to always do opinion pieces that are centered around how in the spring of 2020 a sports journalist has no fresh sports events to cover (thanks again to COVID-19). There is a list made by our friends at The Associated Press of all the sports either suspended, postponed or cancelled because of this pandemic, and it takes up two entries. We are talking about everything from Archery to the Zumba World Championships (made that second part up because A to Z needs a Z, and Zumba was the only thing resembling athletics that came to mind).

That list doesn’t include what we lost at the high school level here in Georgia. Just like the NCAA, there won’t be any more championships handed out for the preps until further notice. It brings the harsh reality to bear that those prizes are a privilege, not a right.

One time in this career of scribing I wrote that nobody is entitled to win any game of any kind. That’s despite what they may say at an Alabama Crimson Tide football booster club gathering or the New York Yankees front office (RIP to another member of the Steinbrenner family). Everyone works hard, and who has the better talent is certainly up for debate.

Point being that while it would be nice to have a big 50-year bash, I was not entitled to such. I also know of a 30-year wedding anniversary recently celebrated with a home-cooked meal. I was thankful to God to wake up on April 8 and then again on April 9.

Encountering one of the Packer parents earlier in the week, the question came up if I would resort to rerunning old game stories much the way the television networks are doing with old footage (you could spend Easter with an NBA Finals, a Stanley Cup Finals, a Super Bowl or a Masters, all classics).

It shouldn’t come to that, but reaching the half-century of life does prompt one to relive some fond memories of coverages past. For a piece like this, it’s far more entertaining to recap the bizarre moments that you couldn’t script. Those include outbursts, dumb decisions, officiating gaffes and other comments that seemed devoid of any clear logical thinking.

Outbursts:

“I guess if he goes in there 10 times, they’ll all be blocks!” That’s where a basketball player dribbles in the lane and commits what the defending coach thinks is a charging foul. Yes, said coach was warned, and yes the next time “he” went in there … charge!

“I don’t teach my kids to swing at junk like that!” That’s of course in baseball after a called third strike.

“I can’t believe I’m paying for calls like that!” Best thing ever said to a baseball umpire, for it was a college athletic director sitting right next to me.

Dumb decisions:

I saw punts and pitching changes that no doubt in my mind changed the outcome of a game or series, both in a postseason setting. I will describe another playoff sequence in basketball that I still can’t figure out.

The team I’m covering makes a big rally from a significant deficit with a fast-paced, run the floor attack. It eventually puts the team ahead by a basket. The other team, on the ensuing possession, ties the score. So what does the coach call for after all that up-tempo success? Four-corners. In a tied game! Bye bye momentum, bye bye season.

Officiating gaffe:

The rules may have changed since then, but I saw a baseball coach get away with re-entering a starting position player twice. This was a player mainly known for pitching, but in this game he manned third base. He reached base his first at-bat, and the coach put in a runner for him. He’s back at third, and in his second time up he reaches again … and out comes the courtesy runner, or pinch runner? Yep, he’s back at the hot corner when the inning is over.

Funny thing is, the other team never said a word. A few days later I asked somebody from a different school if I missed a rule change. Nope. Maybe everyone was used to seeing that player being a pitcher and exiting every time he’s a base runner.

Then there’s the basketball game where a team was in the double bonus. But, on the first free-throw, which did not go in, the players jostle for a rebound.

Now, an alert spectator is screaming, “That’s the double bonus!” Meanwhile, someone from the shooting team (her favorite) put the ball in the hole. Two points that count to this very day. However, we can still hear, “That’s the double bonus!” So you don’t want the gift-wrapped two? He must take that second one-point throw?

Other assorted strange comments:

“You gotta get the third out!” No, I think they want to stay out there with their gloves on and watch the other team bash the baseball around and pile on the runs.

“You gotta make that shot.” Really? Is there a shot in basketball you don’t have to make?

“You know (that football team) is gonna score.” That was somebody’s reaction to the other team’s “big mistake,” winning the coin toss and deferring to the second half. So you are saying there won’t be a fumble or intercepted pass on this opening drive? Sounds like you are saying this team is unstoppable, so they should score every time they have the ball. Therefore it doesn’t matter if they get it first or second.

There’s so much more. What’s sad is we aren’t making more of those kind of memories. Sure, you can watch Kirk Gibson step in against Dennis Eckersley or a full-court inbound to Christian Laettner, but the result will be the same.