The highlight of the auction at the end of the Friends of Dartmouth Football Ninth Annual Golf Classic is one of the items pictured here. Read on to learn more. ...The weather held up Saturday and so did the, uh, beverages, as almost 100 former players, alumni, friends of the program, parents -- and one future player -- teed it up at Hanover Country Club. Not that this is really about golf, but the team of Shoun Kerbough '76, Bob Friedl '76, Dave Van Vliet '77 and Tom Souza '76 shot 61 to win over the team of Frank Polsinello '84, Frank Quinn '84, Rick Stafford 83 and Jerry Pierce '81 after cards were matched.
And the long drive winner: Jay Fiedler!
Tournament sponsor - Perry's Restaurant-San Francisco
Dinner Sponsor - Pete Chapman '91
Lunch Sponsor - Byron Anderson '76
Beverage Sponsors - (Your tournament winners: Shoun Kerbough '76, Bob Friedl '76, Dave Van Vliet '77 and Tom Souza '76)
Awards Sponsor - Atlas Container - Paul Centenari '79
Beer Sponsor - Harpoon Brewery
Golf Course Sponsor - Class of '80
Golf Cart Sponsor - Brad Evans '64
Gift Sponsor - Reggie Williams '76
Tent Sponsor - Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce; David Brown '79.
Tee Sponsors
Russ Smale '53
Jimmie Lee Solomon '78
Dave Watt '80
Roger Phillips '79
Kevin Griffin '88
Bob Rex '57
The Alumni Brothers of Alpha Phi Alpha
Jim Evans '75
David Brown '79
Rick Bartlett '89
Bob Brown '80
Bill Gundy '60
Sam Coffey and Curt Oberg '78
Dr. Terry Phillis '88
EBA's
Harry Bourque '85
Mahoney Family
Dave Howard '82 and Family
Jacques Harlow '50
Class of '83
Mike Lena '84
Sean Riley '93
Green Sponsors
Mark Abel '97
Jahn Bajus '94
Jon Aljancic '97
Byron Boston '81
Moose Morton '60
Steve Terrell '79
Win Hutchins & Paul Elmlinger '80
Jim Knox '71
Joe Frankhouse '85
Scott Sims '89
The Canoe Club
Bill Pollock '72
Lee Sedberry '82
Eric Paul '09
Dale Lattanzi '86
Dartmouth Co-Op
Dan Cummings '75 and Family
Jim Darnell '77
Peter Benzian '64
Bill Connolly '84
Jack Manning '71 and Family
Mugglebee "Mt. Ventoux" Bicycle Camp, France (That's what it said in the program ;-)
Merchandise Sponsors
Golf and Ski Warehouse, West Lebanon, NH
Hanover Country Club
OK, now about that auction.
First, kudos to coach Matthew Smiley. Never would I think anyone could step in for toastmaster general (and occasional auctioneer) Whitey Burnham and not suffer for the comparison, but Smiley managed admirably. He had the audience rotfl (rolling on the floor laughing) as they say in computerese. About the only place he came up short was when he failed to pull out YT's famous line after the sound system went dead for a bit. Unfailingly, and he did it at last year's auction, Whitey would greet a microphone failure with this line: "I've been in front of more dead mike's than an Irish undertaker."
Anyway, despite Smiley's enthusiasm, humor and cajoling, the auction was dragging along until Brian Mann's No. 4 jersey from the Los Angeles Avengers went up for bid. Fiedler, who has always shown unbelievable reserve in his public comments with the media, can be very, very funny. As it turns out, he and BMann were going at it pretty good throughout the day with Jay needling his fellow pro quarterback mercilessly (all in good fun) with lines like, "The Arena League. Is that the one where the field is 50 yards long?"
When Brian's jersey came up for bid, Jay continued to have his fun by deciding he would be the one to buy it. The only other serious bidder for the red shirt was former offensive lineman Brad Kliber, who played Fiedler like, well, like a fiddle. Every time Jay thought he had the shirt bought, Kliber upped the ante just a bit. Back and forth it went. Each time Smiley would say, "Going once, going twice," Jay would glare over at Kliber, raise his big right hand and the bid would go up by $25 or $50. Through it all the audience was roaring, including BMann.
Finally, after the bid got to $800, Kliber requested an unusual meeting with the auctioneer in which he proposed a peace. If Mann could come up with another shirt, Kliber and Fiedler would each get one and the football program would be $1,600 the richer for it. When that option was announced, all heads turned to Mann who had little choice but to nod in the affirmative, a move greeted by tremendous applause. (I just hope Brian doesn't have to dig in a trunk for his last shirt ...)
After Mann's jersey sold, by the way, Casey Cramer's No. 49 Carolina Panthers jersey went on the blocker. Said Smiley, "Casey Cramer's going to cry if it goes for less than $800." When the bidding on it was considerably slower without Kliber and Fiedler involved, Smiley, thinking back to Mann's Arena League shirt, cracked, "I didn't want to make this distinction ... but this is the NFL!!!" The remark drew a lot of laughter but didn't help the bidding.
That's about it for tonight. Tomorrow I'll tell you about the incoming freshman who played in the tournament.
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