SANDERSON RIDES PINE

Plattsburgh, NY: It’s every child’s dream growing up to be the starting quarterback. Every kid imagines himself scoring touchdowns, hitting home runs, throwing a perfect game, scoring the game-winning goal, or scoring a hat trick. For some kids, just being part of the team is enough to satisfy them. Otis Sanderson just wanted to be part of the PHS bowling squad.

“I know I’m not a great bowler, but my little brother was on the team and I just wanted to be able to participate,” cried a remorseful Otis Sanderson, who was cut from the JV bowling team his senior year. “I just wanted to hang out with the guys.”

“It was kind of sad,” admits brother Luther. “He wasn’t even allowed to come to our away matches to watch, let alone participate. We needed an extra player once and the coach still wouldn’t let him play…she just averaged the missing guy’s score, subtracted 40 pins, and we used that…now that I think about it, it was probably a good move since it was a higher score than Otis would have ever gotten, but it was a kick to the pills for him…he took it very hard.”

“Yeah, I’ve ridden pine before,” recalls long time friend Yashur al Fuqur, a member of the Seton Catholic varsity basketball team. “It’s certainly not fun. Although I actually DID have the talent, I just wasn’t allowed to play ‘cuz I disobeyed the code of conduct by drinking before games and at half time.” The Fuqur’s certainly do not mess around. They start their drinking years early.

“I’ve been there before. It’s a tease,” says long time friend Carrie Oakey. “You see your buddies out there scoring goals, shooting baskets, making plays. All you want is to get in there and show everyone what you’re capable of. I feel bad for the kid, I mean, it was his senior year.”

Although Sanderson excelled on the baseball diamond and the football grid, bowling just was not his sport. “Yeah, neither is drinking,” claims Rufus Feldmore. “No wonder the kid didn’t play. I certainly hope he was a better bowler than he is a drinker. He puked in Boston, couldn’t even participate in the ice-cube tray race, and yet he wanted to go to the bars. The kid is probably one of the worst athletes I know, but let me tell you…he plays with heart.”

“He may be a loser in my right eye,” says Randy Lozier, “but in my left eye, he’s the biggest winner I know.” “I did my fair share of bench sitting,” admits Stamford "Patch" Branch, “but that was my freshman year, on the varsity team. Poor Sanderson got cut his senior year…from varsity, JV, and mod A bowling. That’s not very impressive.”

Contributing Writer, Otis Terry Sanderson