Extra! Extra! Read all about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players! Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopsters had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a June 13 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

JUNE 13

• 2B Jerry Adair (one of Oklahoma State's three leading basketball scorers in 1956-57 and 1957-58 while ranking among the nation's top 12 free-throw shooters each season) traded by the Baltimore Orioles to the Chicago White Sox in 1966.

• 1B Dale Alexander (starting center in mid-1920s for Milligan TN) traded by the Detroit Tigers to the Boston Red Sox in 1932.

• RHP Jim Bibby (Fayetteville State NC backup player and brother of UCLA All-American Henry Bibby) traded by the Texas Rangers to the Cleveland Indians in 1975.

• Philadelphia Athletics C Mickey Cochrane (Boston University player in early 1920s) manufactured three hits and four RBI for the second time in a four-game span in 1927. Two years later, Cochrane contributed four hits against the Cleveland Indians in 1929.

• 1B Darrell Evans (member of Jerry Tarkanian-coached Pasadena City CA club winning 1967 state community college crown) traded by the Atlanta Braves to the San Francisco Giants in 1976.

• St. Louis Browns C Rick Ferrell (played forward for Guilford NC before graduating in 1928) went 3-for-3, including his lone homer in first 216 MLB games, and added four RBI in a 5-4 win against the Washington Senators in 1930.

• RHP Eddie Fisher (played for Oklahoma's 1954-55 freshman squad) traded by the Chicago White Sox to the Baltimore Orioles in 1966.

• Kansas City Royals rookie RHP Rich Gale (led New Hampshire with 7.2 rpg in 1975-76) hurled a one-hit shutout against the Texas Rangers in 1978.

• In 1962, Los Angeles Dodgers LHP Sandy Koufax (Cincinnati's freshman squad in 1953-54) whacked his first MLB homer (off fellow Hall of Fame lefthander Warren Spahn of the Milwaukee Braves). Koufax went on to collect one more career round-tripper.

• St. Louis Cardinals LF Danny Litwhiler (member of JV squad with Bloomsburg PA three years in mid-1930s) logged three doubles against the Chicago Cubs in 1944.

• Milwaukee Braves SS Johnny Logan (played for Binghamton in 1948-49) contributed five RBI in a 12-5 win against the San Francisco Giants in 1960.

• In 1979, Los Angeles Dodgers 2B Davey Lopes (NAIA All-District 15 selection for Iowa Wesleyan averaged 16.9 ppg as freshman in 1964-65 and 12.1 ppg as sophomore in 1965-66) hammered a homer in the fifth game of his last seven contests.

• Philadelphia Phillies 1B Tony Lupien (Harvard captain in 1938-39) lashed two triples among his four hits against the Boston Braves in the nightcap of a 1944 doubleheader.

• A grand slam by rookie CF Jerry Martin (1971 Southern Conference MVP after he was Furman's runner-up in scoring in previous season) propelled the Philadelphia Phillies to a 5-1 triumph against the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1975.

• New York Giants RHP Christy Mathewson (played for Bucknell at turn of 20th Century) fired a no-hitter against Chicago in a 1-0 win in 1905.

• OF Sam Mele (NYU's leading scorer in 1943 NCAA playoffs) traded by the Boston Red Sox to the Washington Senators in 1949.

• New York Yankees SS Gene Michael (Kent State's leading scorer with 14 ppg in 1957-58) pulled hidden-ball trick for the first of two times in a six-week span in 1970.

• St. Louis Cardinals LF Rip Repulski (started a few games for St. Cloud State MN) stroked two hits in each game of a 1954 doubleheader sweep against the Pittsburgh Pirates, triggering a streak of 10 consecutive contests with two or more safeties.

• Philadelphia Phillies Hall of Fame RHP Robin Roberts (Michigan State's second-leading scorer in 1945-46 and 1946-47) yielded three consecutive triples to INF Danny O'Connell of the Milwaukee Braves in 1956.

• Boston Red Sox RHP Don Schwall (All-Big Seven Conference second-team selection led Oklahoma in rebounding in 1956-57) tossed a two-hit shutout against the Baltimore Orioles in 1962.

• Cincinnati Reds RHP Jeff Shaw (freshman guard for Rio Grande OH squad compiling 31-5 record and reaching second round of 1985 NAIA Tournament) notched his 19th consecutive relief appearance without yielding an earned run in 1998.

• RHP Rollie Sheldon (third-leading scorer as a sophomore for Connecticut's 1960 NCAA Tournament team) traded by the Kansas City Athletics to the Boston Red Sox in a six-player swap in 1966.

• INF Gary Sutherland (Southern California's fifth-leading scorer in 1963-64 when he averaged 7.4 ppg) purchased from the Montreal Expos by the Houston Astros in 1972.

• St. Louis Browns rookie SS Herb Upton (All-EIBL first-team selection with Penn in 1945-46 before pacing Southeast Missouri State in scoring three years last half of 1940s and finishing as SEMO's career scoring leader) provided two triples in a 6-1 win against the Washington Senators in the nightcap of a 1950 doubleheader.

• Boston Red Sox 3B Billy Werber (first Duke All-American in 1929-30) knocked in five runs in a 1934 game against the Detroit Tigers.

• New York Yankees RF Dave Winfield (starting forward for Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) contributed three extra-base hits in a 1984 game against the Boston Red Sox.

"Man, that's messed up!" This concise summation certainly depicts our current JV administration fighting Islamic terrorism and the NCAA brain trust retaining any link to higher education, which simply isn't what it used to be. Keeping remedial mathematics in mind, the Atlantic 10 Conference has more than that number of members; the Big Ten has more than 10 members and the Big 12 has fewer than 12 members. With respect to precise directions and logistics, the Atlantic Coast features Boston, Indiana (Notre Dame), Louisville, Pittsburgh and Syracuse, much of the Big East absorbs flyover country and the Southeast(ern) extends to the Midlands (Missouri and Texas A&M).

About 1/3 of the NCAA's Division I schools have switched league membership thus far in the 21st Century and another round of conference realignment is in the offing as schools such as Cincinnati, Connecticut, Houston and Memphis strive to keep up with the elite. Mid-majors Boise State and Wichita State will need to discern whether it's worth battling across the revenue-producing sports board with the big boys. Amid all of the bizarre trans this and trans that, the most ardent fan probably can't come anywhere close to naming half of the schools transferring conferences the last several years. Heaven knows how future generations will explain the Big East split. As NFL Hall of Famer Vince Lombardi, who coached freshman basketball with Fordham, would famously say: "What the hell is going on out here?"

When Appalachian State (Sun Belt), Elon (CAA) and Davidson (Atlantic 10) departed in recent years, they became the 32nd, 33rd and 34th schools to leave the Southern Conference. Following is a school-by-school look at league affiliations over the years after NJIT took Northern Kentucky's place in the Atlantic Sun Conference:

Extra! Extra! Read all about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players! Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopsters had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a June 10 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

JUNE 10

• A pinch-hit single by Houston Colts .45s 2B Joey Amalfitano (played basketball for Loyola Marymount in 1952-53) triggered a 12-game hitting streak for him in 1962.

• Pittsburgh Pirates LF Carson "Skeeter" Bigbee (Oregon letterman in 1915) provided four hits for the third time in a 19-game span in 1922.

• Boston Braves SS Dick Culler (#9 jersey retired by High Point for Little All-American in 1935 and 1936) contributed four hits in a 10-5 win against the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1946.

• New York Giants SS Alvin Dark (letterman for LSU and USL in mid-1940s) stroked a double in his fourth consecutive contest in 1950.

• Chicago Cubs RHP Mark Freeman (LSU center averaged 3.6 ppg as senior in 1950-51) notched his only MLB complete game with a four-hit, 6-1 win against the Philadelphia Phillies in 1960.

• Chicago White Sox 3B Gene Freese (West Liberty WV captain of 1952 NAIA Tournament team) went 4-for-4 against the Boston Red Sox in 1960.

• Boston Red Sox 1B Dick Gernert (Temple letterman in 1948-49 when averaging 2.7 ppg) collected two homers and six RBI against the Kansas City Athletics in 1957.

• LHP Joe Gibbon (two-time All-SEC forward for Ole Miss was nation's second-leading scorer as a senior in 1956-57) traded by the San Francisco Giants to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1969.

• Detroit Tigers 1B Hank Greenberg (enrolled at NYU on hoop scholarship in 1929 but attended college only one semester) hammered a homer for the third consecutive contest in 1939.

• Oakland Athletics rookie 3B Wayne Gross (led Cal Poly Pomona in assists in 1974-75) swatted two homers against the Detroit Tigers in 1977.

• San Diego Padres RF Tony Gwynn (All-WAC second-team selection with San Diego State in 1979-80 and 1980-81) supplied a double, triple and homer against the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1993.

• Boston Braves 1B Buddy Hassett (played for Manhattan teams winning school-record 17 consecutive games in 1930 and 1931) went 4-for-4 against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1940.

• Washington Senators LF Frank Howard (two-time All-Big Ten Conference first-team selection in 1956-57 and 1957-58 hammered two homers against the Boston Red Sox in 1967.

• Chicago White Sox 3B Vance Law (averaged 6.8 ppg for Brigham Young from 1974-75 through 1976-77) launched two homers against the Minnesota Twins in 1984.

• Philadelphia Phillies CF Jerry Martin (1971 Southern Conference MVP after he was Furman's runner-up in scoring the previous season) went 4-for-4 in a 7-5 triumph against the Atlanta Braves in 1977.

• Recently-acquired RF-1B Sam Mele (NYU's leading scorer in 1943 NCAA playoffs) knocked in six fourth-inning runs (three-run HR and bases-loaded triple) for the Chicago White Sox in a 1952 game at Philadelphia.

• Los Angeles Dodgers LF Wally Moon (averaged 4.3 ppg with Texas A&M in 1948-49 and 1949-50) smashed two homers against the Philadelphia Phillies in 1961.

• Boston Braves LF Joe Mowry (Iowa letterman in 1929-30 and 1930-31) went 3-for-3 against the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1933.

• San Diego Padres 3B Graig Nettles (shot 87.8% from free-throw line for San Diego State in 1963-64) whacked two homers against the Cincinnati Reds in 1984.

• Chicago Cubs SS Paul Popovich (teammate of Jerry West for West Virginia's 1960 NCAA playoff team) homered in back-to-back games against the San Diego Padres in 1970.

• Oakland Athletics RHP Steve Renko (averaged 9.9 ppg and 5.8 rpg as Kansas sophomore in 1963-64) allowed only five earned runs in his first five starts of 1978 campaign covering 30 innings.

• RHP Jeff Robinson (two-time NAIA All-District 3 honoree in early 1980s for Azusa Pacific CA) awarded off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates to the Texas Rangers in 1992.

• Cleveland Indians RHP Sonny Siebert (team-high 16.7 ppg for Missouri in 1957-58 as All-Big Eight Conference second-team selection) hurled a no-hitter against the Washington Senators in 1966.

• 2B Junior Spivey (redshirted his only semester at Northwestern Oklahoma State on a hoop scholarship before transferring to KS junior college) traded by the Milwaukee Brewers to the Washington Nationals in 2005.

• Chicago Cubs rookie 2B Jimmy Stewart (All-VSAC selection for Austin Peay's NCAA DII Tournament teams in 1959-60 and 1960-61) stroked four hits against the New York Mets in 1964.

• INF Gary Sutherland (Southern California's fifth-leading scorer in 1963-64 when averaging 7.4 ppg) traded by the Detroit Tigers to the Milwaukee Brewers in 1976.

• St. Louis Cardinals 1B Bill White (played two years for Hiram OH in early 1950s) smacked two homers in a 1965 against the Cincinnati Reds.

• San Diego Padres RF Dave Winfield (starting forward for Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) collected two homers and six RBI in a 1978 game against the Chicago Cubs.

Swingman Pat Connaughton, a two-time runner-up in scoring and rebounding for Notre Dame, was the most notable college basketball player selected two years ago in the 2014 MLB Amateur Draft. Connaughton, a pitcher, was picked in the fourth round by the Baltimore Orioles (121st choice overall) before losing his lone decision in the New York-Penn League (Class A). Concentrating on professional hoops this past season as a backup shooting guard with the Portland Trail Blazers, he is unlikely to become Baltimore's next Big Ben.

In an era of increased specialization, the Orioles selected former LSU hooper Ben McDonald with the first pick in the 1989 draft. McDonald, a part-time starter as a freshman forward under coach Dale Brown in 1986-87, went on to pitch in the starting rotation for the Orioles and Milwaukee Brewers for nine years from 1989 through 1997 before becoming an analyst for ESPN's CWS coverage.

Infielder-outfielder C.J. Henry, the 17th pick overall in the 2005 draft, hit an anemic .222 in four low-minors seasons in the New York Yankees' farm system before the brother of Kansas standout Xavier Henry averaged 3.1 ppg in 13 contests with the Jayhawks in 2009-10. But North Carolina State's Andrew Brackman, who pitched briefly for the Yankees in 2011, is the only DI basketball regular in the 21st Century to become a major leaguer after being selected in the opening round of the amateur draft. Brackman was chosen ahead of supplemental first-rounders Todd Frazier and Justin Jackson. Other notable players picked that year include Brandon Belt (11th round), Zack Cozart (2nd), Lucas Duda (7th), Freddie Freeman (2nd), Matt Harvey (3rd/did not sign), Greg Holland (10th), Craig Kimbrel (33rd/did not sign), Corey Kluber (4th), Jonathan Lucroy (3rd), Anthony Rizzo (6th), Chris Sale (21st/did not sign), Giancarlo Stanton (2nd) and Jordan Zimmerman (2nd).

Numerous universities have featured versatile athletes who played college basketball before going on to major league baseball careers. Connecticut's Scott Burrell, a three-time All-Big East Conference choice under Huskies coach Jim Calhoun, was the first athlete to become a first-round draft pick of two major sports organizations (MLB and NBA). The first-round selection of the Seattle Mariners in 1989 and fifth-round choice by the Toronto Blue Jays in 1990 never reached as high as Double A, compiling a 2-6 Class A pitching record in 14 starts in the Blue Jays' farm system 1990 and 1991. Burrell, a first-round pick by the Charlotte Hornets in 1993, averaged 6.9 ppg and 3.5 rpg with four different NBA franchises in eight seasons from 1993-94 through 2000-01.

In 1989, Burrell was picked ahead of supplemental first-rounder Todd Jones plus the following eventual MLB hurlers: Jerry Dipoto (3rd round), Alan Embree (5th), Scott Erickson (4th), Sterling Hitchcock (9th), Trevor Hoffman (11th), Curt Leskanie (8th), Denny Neagle (3rd), Paul Quantrill (6th), Pat Rapp (15th), Shane Reynolds (3rd), Russ Springer (7th), Mike Trombley (14th) and Tim Worrell (20th). In 1990, Burrell was chosen before eventual MLB pitchers Jason Bere (36th round), Eddie Guardado (21st), Mike Hampton (6th), Dave Mlicki (17th), Troy Percival (6th), Andy Pettitte (22nd), Rick White (15th) and Mike Williams (14th).

Former MLB lefthanded reliever Matt Thornton averaged 5.8 points and 2.4 rebounds per game for Grand Valley State (MI) from 1995-96 through 1997-98, shooting 54.7% from the floor his last two seasons before becoming a first-round draft choice by the Seattle Mariners. On the eve of the 2016 selection process, following is an alphabetical list including Thornton among the major leaguers who were first-round choices in the amateur baseball draft after playing varsity college basketball:

*Did not sign that year.
**January draft/secondary phase.
NOTES: 1B-OF Rick Leach (13th pick in 1979 by Detroit Tigers) was a JV player for Michigan and OF Ken Singleton (3rd selection in 1967 by New York Mets) was a freshman player for Hofstra. . . . Rasmussen and Stenhouse were compensation for signings of free-agent pitchers Nolan Ryan and Steve Renko, respectively.

Extra! Extra! Read all about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players! Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopsters had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Former hoopers from current ACC members Florida State (Jim Lyttle) and North Carolina State (Andrew Brackman) supplied first-round MLB draft choices for the New York Yankees on this date. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a June 7 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

JUNE 7

• SS Bill Almon (averaged 2.5 ppg in half a season for Brown's 1972-73 team ending the Bears' streak of 12 straight losing basketball records) selected first overall in 1974 amateur draft featuring 12 of first 13 choices going on to become major leaguers. Almon was chosen by the San Diego Padres ahead of first-rounders/eventual All-Star honorees Dale Murphy, Lance Parrish, Lonnie Smith, Rick Sutcliffe, Garry Templeton and Willie Wilson.

• Seattle Mariners 1B Bruce Bochte (starting forward for Santa Clara's NCAA playoff team in 1969-70) provided four hits in a 5-4 win against the Cleveland Indians in 1981.

• RHP Andrew Brackman (averaged 7.5 ppg and 3.5 rpg with North Carolina State in 2004-05 and 2005-06 for pair of NCAA playoff teams) selected in first round (30th pick overall) by the New York Yankees in 2007 amateur draft. Brackman was chosen ahead of supplemental first-rounders Todd Frazier and Justin Jackson. Other notable players picked who signed that year include Brandon Belt (11th round), Zack Cozart (2nd), Lucas Duda (7th), Greg Holland (10th), Freddie Freeman (2nd), Corey Kluber (4th), Jonathan Lucroy (3rd), Anthony Rizzo (6th), Giancarlo Stanton (2nd) and Jordan Zimmerman (2nd).

• Brooklyn Robins RF Harvey Hendrick (Vanderbilt letterman in 1918) stroked three hits in third consecutive contest in 1927.

• Philadelphia Phillies CF Kenny Lofton (Arizona's leader in steals for 1988 Final Four team compiling 35-3 record) logged three hits for the third time in a four-game span in 2005.

• OF Jim Lyttle (led Florida State in free-throw shooting in 1965-66 when averaging 12.4 ppg) selected in first round (10th pick overall) by the New York Yankees in 1966 amateur draft. Lyttle was chosen ahead of fellow first-rounders John Curtis (did not sign that year), Richie Hebner, Carlos May and Gary Nolan.

• New York Giants Hall of Fame RHP Christy Mathewson (played for Bucknell at turn of 20th Century) combined with teammate Joe McGinnity to surrender 11 runs in the opening inning of a 19-0 drubbing by the Chicago Cubs in 1906. It is the worst setback in Giants' history.

• Len Matuszek (starter for Toledo's 18-7 team in 1975-76) smashed a three-run, pinch-hit homer for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Houston Astros in 1986.

• RHP Joe Niekro (averaged 8.9 ppg and 3.8 rpg for West Liberty WV from 1963-64 through 1965-66) traded by the New York Yankees to the Minnesota Twins in 1987.

• In the midst of a 12-game hitting streak, St. Louis Cardinals RF Don Padgett (freshman in 1934 with Lenoir-Rhyne NC excelled in multiple sports) pounded his fourth homer in last six contests.

• Chicago Cubs RHP Claude Passeau (played for Millsaps MS in late 1920s and early 1930s) hurled a shutout against the Brooklyn Dodgers and supplied a two-run, game-ending homer in the ninth inning in 1946.

• Detroit Tigers LF Curtis Pride (led William & Mary in steals three times and assists twice while averaging 5.6 ppg and 3.1 apg from 1986-87 through 1989-90) contributed a career-high four hits and scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning in a 6-5 triumph against the New York Yankees in 1996.

• Boston Red Sox rookie C Sammy White (All-PCC Northern Division first-five selection for Washington in 1947-48 and 1948-49) went 4-for-4 with three extra-base hits against the Detroit Tigers in a 1952 contest.

• OF Dave Winfield (starting forward with Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) picked fourth overall by the San Diego Padres in 1973 amateur draft and goes straight to the majors. Twelve years later as a New York Yankees RF, Winfield walloped two homers against the Milwaukee Brewers in a 1985 game.

• 1B Babe Young (Fordham letterman in 1935-36) traded by the New York Giants to the Cincinnati Reds in 1947.

Extra! Extra! Read all about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players! Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopsters had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Former Illinois hoopers Lou Boudreau, Hoot Evers and Wally Roettger supplied significant MLB performances on this date. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a June 5 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

JUNE 5

• Cleveland Indians SS Lou Boudreau (leading scorer for Illinois' 1937 Big Ten Conference basketball co-champion) went 4-for-4 against the Philadelphia Athletics in 1943.

• Philadelphia Athletics C Mickey Cochrane (Boston University player in early 1920s) amassed four hits against the St. Louis Browns in 1926.

• In the midst of a career-high 19-game hitting streak, Detroit Tigers LF Hoot Evers (Illinois starter in 1939-40) contributed five RBI in a 7-4 win against the Washington Senators in 1950.

• Boston Red Sox 1B Dick Gernert (Temple letterman in 1948-49 when averaging 2.7 ppg) homered in his third consecutive contest against the Cleveland Indians in 1958.

• LHP Atlee Hammaker (averaged 5.3 ppg as a freshman in 1976-77 and 4.9 ppg as a sophomore in 1977-78 under East Tennessee State coach Sonny Smith) selected in first round (21st pick overall) by the Kansas City Royals in 1979 amateur draft.

• Brooklyn Robins LF Buddy Hassett (played for Manhattan teams winning school-record 17 consecutive games in 1930 and 1931) banged out four hits against the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1938.

• INF-OF Harvey Hendrick (Vanderbilt letterman in 1918) purchased from the St. Louis Cardinals by the Cincinnati Reds in 1932.

• A three-run, pinch-hit homer by Gail Hopkins (averaged 2.5 ppg with Pepperdine in 1963-64) sparked the Kansas City Royals to an 11-7 triumph against the New York Yankees in 1971.

• Cleveland Indians RF David Justice (led Thomas More KY in assists in 1984-85) jacked two homers against the Milwaukee Brewers in 2000.

• Cleveland Indians CF Kenny Lofton (Arizona's leader in steals for 1988 Final Four team compiling 35-3 record) launched two homers against the Detroit Tigers in 1995.

• Milwaukee Braves SS Johnny Logan (played for Binghamton in 1948-49) logged four hits in a 7-0 win against the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1954.

• St. Louis Cardinals RHP Lindy McDaniel (played for Oklahoma's 1954-55 freshman squad) notched his fifth complete-game victory in a five-week span in 1957.

• RHP Ben McDonald (started six games as 6-6 freshman forward for Louisiana State in 1986-87) picked first overall by the Baltimore Orioles in the 1989 amateur draft. RHP Scott Burrell (three-time All-Big East Conference selection from 1990-91 through 1992-93 for Connecticut under coach Jim Calhoun) was the final choice in the opening round (26th by Seattle Mariners). Burrell was picked ahead of eventual MLB hurlers Jerry Dipoto, Alan Embree, Scott Erickson, Sterling Hitchcock, Trevor Hoffman, Todd Jones, Curt Leskanie, Denny Neagle, Paul Quantrill, Pat Rapp, Shane Reynolds, Russ Springer, Mike Trombley and Tim Worrell.

• Washington Senators rookie CF Irv Noren (player of year for California community college state champion Pasadena City in 1945) went 4-for-4 against the Detroit Tigers in 1950.

• Extending his hitting streak to 15 games, St. Louis Browns LF Ray Pepper (Alabama letterman in 1926-27) provided four safeties in a 10-5 win against the Chicago White Sox in the nightcap of a 1934 doubleheader.

• Cincinnati Reds RF Wally Roettger (Illinois letterman in 1921-22 and 1922-23) registered two triples among his four hits against the Philadelphia Phillies in 1931.

• RHP Lee Smith (averaged 3.4 ppg and 1.9 rpg with Northwestern State in 1976-77) fanned four of the last five Pittsburgh Pirates batters to earn a save for the Chicago Cubs in a 3-1 victory in 1983.

• Washington Senators 2B Wayne Terwilliger (two-year letterman for Western Michigan averaged 5.6 ppg in final season in 1947-48) smacked a grand slam in an 8-4 win against the Chicago White Sox in 1953.

• New York Yankees RF Dave Winfield (starting forward for Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) delivered five hits for the second time in a three-game span in 1984. Three years later, Winfield manufactured three extra-base safeties against the Milwaukee Brewers in a 1987 contest.

Extra! Extra! Read all about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players! Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopsters had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Former college hoopers Cameron Drew (New Haven) and Dennis Rasmussen (Creighton) were MLB first-round draft selections on this date before eventually reaching the bigs. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a June 3 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

JUNE 3

• Chicago Cubs 2B Glenn Beckert (three-year basketball letterman for Allegeny PA) drove in P Ken Holtzman with the only run of the game in Holtzman's no-hitter against the Cincinnati Reds in 1971. The next year, Beckert banged out four hits against the San Diego Padres in a 1972 contest.

• New York Giants SS Alvin Dark (letterman for LSU and USL during World War II) went 4-for-4 and scored five runs in a 13-8 victory against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1954.

• OF Cameron Drew (NECC first-team selection in 1984-85 when leading New Haven CT in scoring and rebounding) selected by Houston Astros in first round (12th pick overall) in 1985 amateur draft. Drew was chosen ahead of fellow first-rounders Joey Cora, Gregg Jefferies, Joe Magrane, Brian McRae and Rafael Palmeiro.

• 1B Walt Dropo (Connecticut's first player ever to average 20 points for a season with 21.7 ppg in 1942-43) traded by the Boston Red Sox to the Detroit Tigers in a nine-player swap in 1952.

• Overweight RHP George Earnshaw (competed with Swarthmore PA squad in 1922) fined by Philadelphia Athletics owner/manager Connie Mack in 1933.

• Detroit Tigers 1B Darrell Evans (member of Jerry Tarkanian-coached Pasadena City CA club winning 1967 state community college crown) homered twice in a 1985 game against the Seattle Mariners.

• OF Hoot Evers (starter for Illinois in 1939-40) traded by the Detroit Tigers to the Boston Red Sox in a nine-player swap in 1952.

• Chicago White Sox RHP Eddie Fisher (played for Oklahoma's 1954-55 freshman squad) tossed a four-hit shutout against the Los Angeles Angels in 1963.

• New York Giants C Paul Florence (Georgetown letterman from 1920-21 through 1922-23) furnished a career-high three hits in a 10-5 win against the Philadelphia Phillies in 1926.

• In 1983, George Bamberger stepped down as manager of the New York Mets and was succeeded by Frank Howard (two-time All-Big Ten Conference first-team selection when leading Ohio State in scoring and rebounding in 1956-57 and 1957-58).

• In 1978, Philadelphia Phillies 2B Davey Johnson (averaged 1.7 ppg with Texas A&M in 1961-62) became the first MLB player to smack two pinch-hit grand slams in a single season.

• Chicago Cubs 3B Vance Law (averaged 6.8 ppg for Brigham Young from 1974-75 through 1976-77) logged four hits against the New York Mets in 1988. Law added three more safeties the next day.

• San Francisco Giants RF Rick Leach (averaged 15.5 ppg for Michigan's JV squad in 1975-76) registered four hits against the Houston Astros in 1990.

• RHP Dave Lemanczyk (participated in NCAA Division II Tournament in 1970 and 1971 with Hartwick NY) traded by the Toronto Blue Jays to the California Angels in 1980.

• LHP Dennis Rasmussen (sixth-man for Creighton averaged 5.1 ppg in three seasons from 1977-78 through 1979-80) selected in first round (17th pick overall) by the California Angels in 1980 amateur draft. Rasmussen was compensation for signing of free-agent P Nolan Ryan.

• New York Yankees RF Dave Winfield (starting forward for Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) went 4-for-4 against the Oakland Athletics in a 1985 game.

Extra! Extra! Read all about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players! Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopsters had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Former college hoopers Donn Clendenon (Morehouse GA), Mike Hargrove (Northwestern Oklahoma State), Harvey Hendrick (Vanderbilt) and Ed Morgan (Tulane) manufactured at least four hits in a MLB game on this date as a first baseman. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a June 1 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

JUNE 1

• Pittsburgh Pirates 1B Donn Clendenon (four-sport letterman including basketball with Morehouse GA) contributed four hits against the New York Mets in 1963.

• Chicago White Sox CF Guy Curtright (two-time All-MIAA selection led Northeast Missouri State in scoring each of four seasons in early 1930s) scored four runs in an 11-9 win against the Washington Senators in 1945.

• Brooklyn Robins 3B Wally Gilbert (Valparaiso captain from 1918-19 through 1920-21) stroked four hits in a 10-2 victory against the Philadelphia Phillies in 1930.

• Cleveland Indians 1B Mike Hargrove (Northwestern Oklahoma State letterman) went 4-for-4 against the Seattle Mariners in 1983.

• Cincinnati Reds 1B Harvey Hendrick (Vanderbilt letterman in 1918) went 5-for-5, including three doubles, against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1931. The previous day against the Cards, Hendrick secured four hits in the opener of a doubleheader.

• Detroit Tigers RF Lynn Jones (averaged 10.4 ppg for Thiel PA from 1970-71 through 1973-74) supplied his second four-hit game against the Milwaukee Brewers in a span of eight days in 1981.

• LF Danny Litwhiler (member of JV squad with Bloomsburg PA in mid-1930s) traded by Philadelphia Phillies to St. Louis Cardinals in 1943.

• Los Angeles Dodgers 2B Davey Lopes (NAIA All-District 15 selection for Iowa Wesleyan averaged 16.9 ppg as freshman in 1964-65 and 12.1 ppg as sophomore in 1965-66) whacked two homers against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1979.

• Philadelphia Phillies 1B Len Matuszek (starter for Toledo's 18-7 team in 1975-76) failed to notch a putout in a 12-3 defeat against the Chicago Cubs in 1984.

• St. Louis Cardinals LF Wally Moon (averaged 4.3 ppg with Texas A&M in 1948-49 and 1949-50) had his 24-game hitting streak end against the Milwaukee Braves in 1957.

• Boston Red Sox 1B Ed Morgan (Tulane letterman from 1923-24 through 1925-26) collected four hits and four RBI in a 13-1 win against the Washington Senators in 1934.

• OF Lyle Mouton (starter in LSU's backcourt with All-American Chris Jackson for 1989 NCAA playoff team) traded by the Baltimore Orioles to the Milwaukee Brewers in 1999.

• In 1962, Washington Senators RHP Ray Rippelmeyer (led SIU in scoring and rebounding in 1952-53 before transferring and pacing SEMO in scoring in 1953-54 and 1954-55 as All-MIAA first-team choice each year) registered his lone MLB victory (as reliever against Minnesota Twins).

• New York Giants RF Wally Roettger (Illinois letterman in 1921-22 and 1922-23) went 4-for-4 against the Boston Braves in the opener of a 1930 twinbill.

• Boston Red Sox rookie 3B Jim Tabor (Alabama letterman in 1936-37) amassed five doubles over a two-game span in 1939.

• Kansas City Athletics RHP Dave Thies (two-time all-conference selection finished St. Mary's MN career in 1959 as school's all-time leading scorer) lost his lone MLB decision (against the Washington Senators in 1963).

• LHP Bob Veale (scored 1,160 points with Benedictine KS from 1955-56 through 1957-58) amassed 16 strikeouts in shutting out the Philadelphia Phillies, 4-0, for the Pittsburgh Pirates' 12th consecutive victory in 1965. Veale also tossed a five-hit shutout in his second start of the month.

• San Diego Padres RF Dave Winfield (starting forward for Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) whacked two homers against the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 1979 game.

Extra! Extra! Read all about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players! Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopsters had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Former St. Joseph's (Ind.) and Oakland City (Ind.) hooper Gil Hodges owned this date in MLB history. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a May 30 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

MAY 30

• Boston Red Sox 1B Dale Alexander (starting basketball center for Milligan TN in mid-1920s) suffered a career-ending injury in 1933 (therapy for twisted knee sliding into home plate led to third-degree burns, gangrene and near loss of his leg). Four years earlier as a Detroit Tigers rookie, he launched a homer in both ends of a 1929 doubleheader split against the St. Louis Browns.

• Pittsburgh Pirates LF Clyde Barnhart (played for Shippensburg PA predecessor Cumberland Valley State Normal School prior to World War I) collected four hits, four runs scored and five RBI against the St. Louis Cardinals in the nightcap of a 1925 doubleheader.

• Detroit Tigers 2B Frank Bolling (averaged 7.3 ppg for Spring Hill AL in 1950-51) blasted two homers in a 3-2 win against the Kansas City Athletics in the nightcap of a 1957 twinbill.

• RHP Ownie Carroll (Holy Cross letterman in 1922) traded with Harry Rice by the Detroit Tigers in 1930 to the New York Yankees for two members of the legendary 1927 squad featuring Murderers' Row (P Waite Hoyt and SS Mark Koenig).

• In 1955, Milwaukee Braves 1B George Crowe (four-year letterman from 1939-40 through 1942-43 for Indiana Central after becoming first high school player named state's Mr. Basketball) closed out the month with five multiple-hit games, homering in three of the contests.

• San Francisco Giants 1B Darrell Evans (member of Jerry Tarkanian-coached Pasadena City CA club winning 1967 state community college crown) homered twice against the San Diego Padres in the opener of a 1977 twinbill.

• 3B Gene Freese (captain of 1952 NAIA Tournament team for West Liberty WV) whacked two homers, powering the Cincinnati Reds to a 1961 doubleheader sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

• Brooklyn Robins/Dodgers 3B Wally Gilbert (Valparaiso captain in early 1920s) supplied six straight safeties in a doubleheader sweep of the New York Giants in 1931.

• Detroit Tigers 1B Hank Greenberg (enrolled at NYU on hoop scholarship in 1929 but attended college only one semester) went 5-for-5, including four runs, two homers and five RBI, against the St. Louis Browns in 1937.

• Pittsburgh Pirates SS Dick Groat (two-time All-American with Duke in 1950-51 and 1951-52 when finishing among nation's top five scorers each season) went 4-for-4 and scored four runs in the nightcap of a 1958 twinbill against the Milwaukee Braves.

• C Frank Grube (starting guard for Lafayette as a senior in 1926-27), two teammates and Chicago White Sox manager Lew Fonseca involved in a fight with an umpire under the stands after a doubleheader loss at Cleveland in 1932.

• Brooklyn Dodgers 1B Gil Hodges (played for St. Joseph's IN in 1943 and Oakland City IN in 1947 and 1948) knocked in eight runs against the Boston Braves in a 1952 doubleheader sweep. The next year, Hodges homered twice against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the opener of a 1953 twinbill. In 1958 after the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles, Hodges homered in both ends of a doubleheader against the Chicago Cubs. Four years later, Hodges homered three times in a 1962 twinbill against the New York Mets.

• Washington Senators LF Frank Howard (two-time All-Big Ten Conference first-team selection when leading Ohio State in scoring and rebounding in 1956-57 and 1957-58) hammered two homers and chipped in with six RBI against the Kansas City Athletics in the opener of a 1967 twinbill.

• New York Yankees LF Charlie Keller (three-year letterman with Maryland from 1934-35 through 1936-37) went 4-for-4 against the Philadelphia Athletics in the nightcap of a 1946 doubleheader.

• RHP Cal Koonce (Campbell standout in 1960 and 1961 when North Carolina-based school was junior college), after helping the New York Mets sweep a twinbill against the Pittsburgh Pirates, didn't allow a run in his first 13 relief appearances in 1968.

• St. Louis Cardinals SS Doc Lavan (played for Hope MI from 1908 through 1910) had six hits in a 1921 twinbill sweep of the Cincinnati Reds.

• Baltimore Orioles rookie RHP Dave Leonhard (averaged 4.8 ppg with Johns Hopkins MD in 1961-62) tossed his second shutout of the month in 1968 (two-hitter after earlier one-hitter).

• RF Sam Mele (NYU's leading scorer in 1943 NCAA playoffs) traded by the Washington Senators to the Chicago White Sox in 1952.

• Cleveland Indians 1B Ed Morgan (Tulane letterman from 1923-24 through 1925-26) contributed five RBI in a 12-6 win against the Chicago White Sox in the opener of a 1932 doubleheader.

• Washington Senators 3B Buddy Myer (Mississippi State letterman in 1923-24) hit safely in all 22 games of the month and 24 in a row overall in 1929.

• Chicago Cubs rookie C Cal Neeman (Illinois Wesleyan's leading scorer in 1947-48 and 1948-49) hit safely in last 11 games of the month in 1957.

• The Chicago Cubs went 32 games in 1943 before hitting a homer prior to RF Bill Nicholson (guard for Washington College MD two years in mid-1930s) knocking a couple of balls beyond the outfield barrier in a 5-1 victory over the Braves. His first of a pair of two-run blasts came in the team's 1,120th at-bat of the season.

• 1B Jackie Robinson (highest scoring average in Pacific Coast Conference both of his seasons with UCLA in 1939-40 and 1940-41) ripped a 13th-inning homer to give the Brooklyn Dodgers a 2-1 win over the New York Giants in the opener of a 1949 doubleheader.

• Cleveland Indians LF Preston Ward (second-leading scorer for Southwest Missouri State in 1946-47 and 1948-49) walloped two homers against the Chicago White Sox in the nightcap of a 1956 twinbill.

• St. Louis Cardinals 1B Bill White (played two years with Hiram OH in early 1950s) supplied two homers and six RBI against the Los Angeles Dodgers in a 1960 game.

• San Diego Padres RF Dave Winfield (starting forward for Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) knocked in five runs against the Atlanta Braves in a 1979 contest.

Extra! Extra! Read all about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players! Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopsters had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a May 28 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

MAY 28

• In 1954, Chicago Cubs CF Frankie Baumholtz (MVP in 1941 NIT and first player in Ohio University basketball history to score 1,000 career points) stroked four hits against his original team (Cincinnati Reds).

• New York Yankees LF Bob Cerv (ranked fourth on Nebraska's career scoring list in 1949-50 whacked a pinch grand slam against the Chicago White Sox in 1961.

• RHP George Earnshaw (competed with Swarthmore PA in 1922) acquired by the Philadelphia Athletics from Baltimore in 1928.

• Detroit Tigers 1B Hank Greenberg (enrolled at NYU on hoop scholarship in 1929 but attended college only one semester) smacked two homers in an 8-3 win against the New York Yankees in 1935.

• RF David Justice (led Thomas More KY in assists in 1984-85) provided a two-run single to spark a ninth-inning rally propelling the Atlanta Braves past the San Diego Padres, 8-6, in 1991.

• San Francisco Giants CF Billy North (played briefly for Central Washington in 1967-68) stole three bases in a game for the third time this month in 1981.

• RHP Ron Reed (Notre Dame's leading rebounder in 1963-64 and 1964-65) traded by the Atlanta Braves to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1975.

• Baltimore Orioles LF Larry Sheets (All-ODAC selection in 1981-82 and 1982-83 with Eastern Mennonite VA) socked two homers against the California Angels in 1987.

• Boston Red Sox RHP Sonny Siebert (team-high 16.7 ppg for Missouri in 1957-58 as All-Big Eight Conference second-team selection) won his first nine decisions in the 1971 campaign, posting a 1.77 ERA in April and May.

• Entering the game with a .177 batting average, Washington Senators 2B Wayne Terwilliger (two-year letterman for Western Michigan averaged 5.6 ppg in final season in 1947-48) went 3-for-3 and homered for the first of three consecutive contests in 1954 (all of his round-trippers for season in 106 outings).

• As a substitute in a 17-inning tie, Los Angeles Dodgers rookie 3B John Werhas (USC's leading scorer in 1958-59 and 1959-60) collected a career-high three hits against the Cincinnati Reds in 1964.

• In 1994, Minnesota Twins DH Dave Winfield (starting forward with Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) collected his 3,054th MLB hit, surpassing former Twin Rod Carew into 15th place on the all-time list.

• New York Giants CF Babe Young (Fordham letterman in 1935-36) went 4-for-4 against the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1946.

The fallen didn't have to worry about manipulation of waiting lists and receiving proper medical care from the VA because they didn't make it back home alive. Unless you're an inferiority-complex coward comparable to MSNBC up-tight host Chris Hayes uncomfortable with calling fallen military "heroes", a Memorial Day weekend generates sobering reminders of what is really important to our freedom. College basketball contributions are aplenty.

While Baylor's football program became Animal House, the school's basketball roster developed a reputation the past several seasons for having some "soft" players who played with the fervor of a man holding his female companion's purse at the mall much of a shopping excursion afternoon. But Baylor is believed to be the only non-service academy in America to have two former athletes go on to win the Congressional Medal of Honor. Both men, Jack Lummus and John "Killer" Kane, earned the nation's highest military honor for heroics in World War II. Lummus played football, basketball and baseball for the Bears from 1938 through 1941. He was an All-Southwest Conference center fielder before signing with the NFL's New York Giants.

After one year of pro football, Lummus joined the U.S. Marines and was a platoon leader in the initial days of fighting on Iwo Jima. While leading a charge on enemy positions, Lummus stepped on a land mine and lost both legs. Despite heavy bleeding, he led his platoon to knock out several pockets of Japanese fire, a vital part of the U.S. victory. Alas, Lummus died of his wounds shortly after the battle.

Kane, who also played football and basketball, was one of the survivors on Baylor's ill-fated 1927 basketball squad that lost 10 of its 21-member traveling party in a bus-train wreck en route to Austin, Tex. As a result of the "Immortal Ten" tragedy, the remainder of the first of coach Ralph Wolf's 15 seasons was cancelled, and the first highway overpass in Texas was constructed.

Kane joined the Army Air Corps in 1932 and soon became a bomber commander of legendary proportions. It was said he was the best pilot and toughest commander in the Air Corps. It was often debated who feared him more - the Germans or his own men.

On August 1, 1943, Kane led what at the time was the deadliest air battle in history - a low-level, long-range bombing raid on Hitler's oil-refining complex in Rumania. The site produced a major portion of the Axis' fuel and was one of the most heavily-guarded locations in history.

Letting freedom ring, the heroism exhibited by ex-hoopers doesn't stop there. Al Brown, Creighton's leading scorer in 1925-26, survived the infamous Bataan Death March in the Philippines. Amid "Taps" playing in the background and issuing kudos to research by baseballsgreatestsacrifice.com, ex-players warranting salutes for making the supreme sacrifice include:

• All 11 regulars on Pittsburgh's 1941 Final Four team participated in World War II and one of them, guard Bob Artman, was killed in action.

• Kentucky players who competed multiple years for the Wildcats before they were killed during WWII included Mel Brewer (Army second lieutenant/died in France), Ken England (Army captain of ski troop/Italy), James Goforth (Marine first lieutenant/Marshall Islands) and Jim King (Army second lieutenant and co-pilot/Germany). Brewer, England and King were three of the top seven scorers for UK's first NCAA Tournament and Final Four team in 1942.

• Bart Avery, an Alabama letterman in 1942 and 1943, was killed in action on April 6, 1945, as a newly-promoted captain aiding final push against the Germans.

• Archie Buckley, letterman from 1928 to 1930 as a Washington State forward, was a Lieutenant in charge of physical conditioning of Navy pilots aboard the USS Saratoga aircraft carrier on February 21, 1945, when he was among 123 crew members dead or missing after five Kamikaze bomb hits.

• Young Bussey, a letterman for LSU in the late 1930s, participated in numerous landing assaults in the South Pacific during WWII before dying as head beach-master in early January 1945 in the Philippines.

• Bob "Ace" Calkins, UCLA's top scorer in the late 1930s before Jackie Robinson arrived, was navigator on an airplane ("The Flying Fortress") gunned down during WWII. He later died in an Italian prison camp from wounds suffered in the crash.

• Edward Christl, a center and Army team captain for the Cadets' unbeaten squad in 1944, was a first lieutenant during WWII the next year when he was killed in action. Army's arena is named after him.

• Joe Comer, captain of George Washington's 1940-41 squad, was an Army Lieutenant two years later when he died in a military plane crash.

• Andy Curlee, Auburn's captain in late 1930s, died on April 6, 1943, when the First Lieutenant was leading his squadron in Tunisia.

• Francis "Reds" Daly, a Georgetown letterman from 1938 through 1940, was killed in action during the Battle of Iwo Jima on February 22, 1945.

• George Davison, a Washington State letterman in 1943, was a Second Lieutenant on March 18, 1945, when he was killed in action while his infantry regiment was attacking German Siegfried Line positions south of Zweibrucken.

• Colorado A&M's Lewis "Dude" Dent, voted the best all-around athlete in the Mountain States Conference in 1943, was an Army lieutenant among forward observers giving firing coordinates on the radio when killed in action in France in August 1944.

• Edward Drake, who played for Rutgers in 1929-30, died on December 21, 1943, in a plane crash over the Mediterranean Sea shortly after his promotion to Major.

• Bob Duffey, a backup swingman for Georgetown's 1943 NCAA Tournament runner-up, was killed on November 13, 1944, in European theater combat. Teammate Lloyd Potolicchio, who matched DePaul legend George Mikan's 11-point output in the 1943 national semifinals when the Hoyas eliminated the Blue Demons before bowing to Wyoming in title tilt, joined the Air Force. Potolicchio was boom operator Master Sergeant when killed in a refueling mission on January 17, 1966, in a B-52 crash off the coast of southern Spain. His KC-135 tanker was completely destroyed when its fuel load ignited, resulting in the B-52G breaking apart with B28RI hydrogen weapons falling to earth and plutonium contamination occurring near the fishing village of Palomares. In March 2009, Time magazine identified the Palomares accident as one of the world's "worst nuclear disasters."

• Texas' Pete Edmond died on October 11, 1918, charging a German machine-gun position in the battle of the Argonne Forest, one of the bloodiest campaigns in the history of American warfare.

• Charles "Herb" Fash averaged 7.2 points per game for Saint Louis from 1933-34 through 1935-36. On January 21, 1945, the Lieutenant was one of 52 sailors killed when a torpedo bomber, returning from a South Pacific sortie, made a routine landing on the USS Hancock, taxied and disintegrated in an explosion as one of its 500-pound bombs detonated on the aircraft carrier.

• Bob Fischer, letterman in 1941 and 1942 as a Notre Dame guard, was serving with an Army squadron on November 17, 1944, when he was killed while bailing out of his fighter plane as it went down in flames over Italy.

• Bob Gary, captain for Washington & Lee (Va.), was a navigator on a routine training flight in early February 1944 when his bomber crashed Southeast of El Paso.

• Montana State's Cyrus Gatton, a pilot with the 11th Aero Squadron, was killed in action in Europe the first week in November 1918, a week before the Armistice was signed ending World War I.

• James Gillespie, Georgia letterman in 1939, served in the Navy when killed in action.

• Eddie Grant, who played basketball for Harvard at the turn of the 20th Century before becoming an infielder for 10 years in the majors, died from shelling on October 5, 1918, in the Argonne Forest, France, during WWI while in charge of his battalion after his commanding officer was killed.

• Frank Haggerty, St. John's senior co-captain in 1939-40 who averaged 5 points per game in his three-year career under legendary coach Joe Lapchick, was a Second Lieutenant in Air Force. Haggerty was killed instantly on training mission in fall of 1942 when his plane crashed into the Catawba River in Charlotte area.

• Ernie Holbrook was a three-year letterman as USC forward and hero of 1935 PCC playoff series against Oregon State. He died in mid-December 1944 during opening salvos of the Ardennes offensive in Luxembourg during the Battle of the Bulge.

• Bob Holmes was a forward who helped guide Central Methodist (Mo.) to MCAU title in 1942-43. In the Marines invasion of Iwo Jima in mid-February 1945, he was mortally wounded while spraying the enemy with machine gun fire and subsequently buried at sea.

• Thomas P. Hunter, a three-year letterman who was a sophomore member of Kansas' 1940 runner-up, was killed in action against the Japanese on Guam, July 21, 1944, while fighting with the Ninth Marines as a first lieutenant. Hunter was elected posthumously as captain of the Jayhawks' 1945-46 squad that compiled a 19-2 record.

• Nile Kinnick, Iowa's Heisman Trophy winner as a quarterback-halfback in 1939, played basketball for the Hawkeyes during his sophomore year, averaging 6.1 ppg to finish as their second-leading scorer. After bypassing pro football to attend law school, he was killed in a plane crash in 1943 while serving in the Navy.

• George Lenc, a four-year letterman for Augustana (Ill.) in the late 1930s, was completing his cadet training as a bombardier and navigator in mid-November 1942 when his bomber crashed near Pasco, Wash.

• Felix Little, a player for Catawba (N.C.) in the late 1930s, was a Navy bomber pilot among nine crew and passengers who perished when a port engine exploded and plane crashed while leaving runway.

• Walter "Whitey" Loos, an EIBC honorable mention selection as a Carnegie Tech (Pa.) center, died as a navigator in a B-24 plane crash in Brazil in mid-January 1944 on the final leg of a journey to Europe.

• Center Bill Menke, the third-leading scorer for Indiana's 1940 NCAA champion who supplied a team-high 10 points in the Hoosiers' national semifinal victory over Duquesne, later became a Navy pilot and served in World War II. In January 1945, he was declared missing in action (and presumed dead) when he didn't return from a flight in the Caribbean.

• John Messina, a member of coach Frank Keaney's innovative fast-break system at Rhode Island State in the mid-1930s, was a paratrooper when killed on July 13, 1943, during the invasion of Sicily.

• Joe Minsavage appeared in 12 games for Syracuse before joining the Navy. On June 19, 1943, he was on board the Henry Knox in the Indian Ocean when it was torpedoed by a Japanese ship.

• Army Air Force Lieutenant Ralph Nutter, who played for McNeese State's first basketball team when the school was a junior college, died in a plane crash in June 1943.

• Mortimer "Whitey" O'Connell, who played a couple of seasons for Rutgers in the early 1930s, died on March 15, 1945, in a hospital in France.

• Kenneth Omley, who played for Rutgers in the late 1930s and early 1940s, died while in England on November 25, 1944, as a result of wounds received in a plane crash.

• Harry "Porky" O'Neill paced Gettysburg (Pa.) to two Eastern Pennsylvania Conference championships in the late 1930s and caught one game for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1939. After surviving the worst of the horrific fighting at Iwo Jima, the Marine first lieutenant was killed instantly on March 6, 1945, by a sniper's bullet piercing his throat and severing his spinal cord as he prepared to bed down on a starlit night. Gettysburg teammate Gerst Buyer, a First Lieutenant, had died on May 25, 1944, in Italy amid heavy Armored Division tank losses.

• Captain Scott Pace, who played for Army in 2002-03, died in Afghanistan on June 6, 2012, when the helicopter he was piloting crashed after being hit by Taliban fire.

• Charles "Stubbie" Pearson, captain of Dartmouth's 1942 national runner-up and valedictorian of his class the same year, was killed in action on March 30, 1945, while dive-bombing a Japanese ship off the Palau Islands. Pearson, who also served as captain of the school's football squad, was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

• Four-sport letterman Tommy Peters, who averaged 17.5 ppg to lead the Southern Conference in scoring in 1942-43, died during WWII after only one season with Davidson.

• San Diego State's Milton "Milky" Phelps, the NAIA Tournament's first bona fide standout when he sparked the Aztecs to the 1941 title after two runner-up finishes, gave his life for his country during WWII in the crash of a Navy torpedo bomber.

• Curtis Popham, Texas' co-captain in 1943, was killed during WWII.

• Robert Roach, a member of Omaha's squad before entering the military, was a second lieutenant in the Army Air Forces in July 1945 when he died in the crash of his plane in Arizona, where he was an instructor.

• Jim Robertson was an All-Northwest Conference selection for Willamette (Ore.) in 1941-42. The Marine Corps airman's bomber, damaged by Japanese anti-aircraft fire in the South Pacific, overshot an island runway attempting a landing in heavy rain and crashed into a lagoon.

• Glenn Sanford, who enrolled at Hillsdale (Mich.) in the late 1930s, was an Army Second Lieutenant stationed in Oakland area in early November 1943 when his plane spiraled into the ocean on a routine patrol along the coast.

• Wilmeth Sidat-Singh, Syracuse's first African-American athlete in the late 1930s, became a fighter pilot in a unit known as the Tuskegee Airmen. On May 9, 1943, Sidat-Singh was on a training run over Lake Huron when he radioed his engine was on fire. He ejected from the plane, but upon striking the water, Sidat-Singh's parachute pulled him down and causing him to drown.

• Carleton (MN) forward Wayne Sparks, a "Little All-American" in 1936-37, died in a bomber crash during WWII.

• Len Supulski, a standout end who also played basketball for Dickinson (Pa.), died in the crash of a B-17 bomber during a routine Army Air Corps training flight near Kearney, Neb., in late August 1943.

• Charles Taggart, who played in 39 games for Syracuse in the early 1930s, was in the Navy on board the USS Frederick C. Davis on April 24, 1945, when the destroyer escort was torpedoed by a German U-boat.

• Ed Tuttle, a forward for Lenior-Rhyne (N.C.), was an Air Cadet in the spring of 1942 when his plane collided head-on with another during training in Florida.

• Jimmy Walker was an All-SEC Tournament selection in 1934 and 1935 as an Alabama forward. While on duty as first lieutenant with the Navy, he was seriously wounded in an accident and died in mid-December 1943 in Brazil.

• Four-time All-MCAU forward Eugene "Peaches" Westover, class of '38 for Drury (MO), was killed December 12, 1944, at the Battle of the Bulge while private first class served in Armored Division.

• Gene Ziesel, who also played football for Creighton, was the co-pilot on a bomber shot down by the Germans at high altitude on January 11, 1943, over Italy. Previously, he was a POW in Turkey after his plane was grounded there, but this time he did not survive.

Numerous standout players had their college playing careers sidetracked by WWII. Following is a list of All-Americans who had their college days interrupted in the mid-1940s while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces:

Air Force - Charles Black (Kansas) and Jack Parkinson (Kentucky).

Army - Don Barksdale (UCLA), Lew Beck (Oregon State), A.L. Bennett (Oklahoma A&M), Gale Bishop (Washington State), Vince Boryla (Notre Dame/Denver), Harry Boykoff (St. John's), Bob Brannum (Kentucky), Arnie Ferrin (Utah), Alex Groza (Kentucky), Ralph Hamilton (Indiana), Walt Kirk (Illinois), Allie Paine (Oklahoma), Don Rehfeldt (Wisconsin), Jack Smiley (Illinois), Odie Spears (Western Kentucky) and Gerry Tucker (Oklahoma).

Marine Corps - Aud Brindley (Dartmouth), John Hargis (Texas), Mickey Marty (Loras), Andy Phillip (Illinois), Gene Rock (southern California) and Kenny Sailors (Wyoming).

Navy - Bobby Cook (Wisconsin), Howie Dallmar (Stanford/Penn), Dick Dickey (North Carolina State), Bob Faught (Notre Dame), Harold Gensichen (Western Michigan), Wyndol Gray (Bowling Green State), Hal Haskins (Hamline), Leo Klier (Notre Dame), Dick McGuire (St. John's) and John Oldham (Western Kentucky).

In an incredible achievement, Phillip and Tucker returned to first-team All-American status in 1946-47 after missing three seasons while serving in the military. Black and Sailors also returned to All-American acclaim after missing two seasons. Meanwhile, Whitey Skoog served in the U.S. Navy before becoming a three-time All-American with Minnesota in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Gus Broberg, an aviator with the Marines after being named an NCAA consensus first-team All-American for Dartmouth in 1940 and 1941, lost his right arm in a plane crash. He went on to study law and become a respected judge in Florida.

Fallen heroes also emerged post-WWII. Gene Berger, who started 43 games for Syracuse from 1939-40 through 1941-42, was 41 while serving on the USS Lexington stationed in San Diego in mid-September 1961 when his plane crashed into the ocean shortly after takeoff during maneuvers. Don Holleder, who averaged 9.3 ppg as a junior and 6.8 ppg as a senior for Army in the mid-1950s, was a major during the Vietnam War in October, 1967, when he was killed by a sniper's bullet in an ambush 40 miles from Saigon as he hurled himself into enemy fire attempting to rescue wounded comrades. Three months earlier, Don Steinbrunner, who averaged 3.9 ppg for Washington State in 1951-52 before playing with the NFL's Cleveland Browns, was an Air Force navigator shot down and killed over Vietnam.

We honor and remember after they went from the playing field to battlefield! For instance, former Dayton standout Bucky Buckhorn had older brothers killed in WWII and the Korean War. That's why right-thinking Americans are disgusted when a Democratic-controlled Senate several years ago had time for signing a letter encouraging the NFL to have the Washington Redskins change their "bigoted" nickname but isn't "big" enough or sufficiently honorable to prevent stalling of a three-page veterans health bill. Petty politicians, transitioning from Tear Down This Wall to Tear Down This Stall, may forget their "sacred obligation" similar to POTUS' lame emphasis on climate change rather than military salutes at a Coast Guard ceremony. However, the remainder of us will not forget genuine heroes. Gorilla fall-zone or no gorilla fall-zone.