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Brian Straight: 140 pounds of heart ... RIP

Thursday, 10 April 2008

By MARK HUBER

Walking into the gym I grew up with was no big deal for me as a sports reporter. Getting unwanted attention was, however, ... well, a little bit unnerving.

But Brian Straight always seemed to have a “Huuu-berrr” for me when I made an appearance to watch him wrestle or play football at Blanchester High School. He also had an infectious smile and a “How’s it goin’?” to boot.

I won’t be fortunate enough to see or hear any of that for a while. Straight, a 1994 graduate of Blanchester High School and a corrections officer at Lebanon Correctional Institute, died early Thursday morning.

Despite being every bit of 130 or 140 pounds wringing wet, Straight was a well-decorated football running back at BHS. The teams he played on weren’t the greatest, but Straight always managed to stand out.

He was named Div. IV second team All-Ohio his senior year, the same school year he advanced to the state wrestling tournament as a 140-pounder. Straight’s 1,107 rushing yards is among the single season best in BHS history. Straight accumulated 1,620 all-purpose yards and 14 TDs his final year.

In wrestling, size isn’t much of a factor. Afterall, everybody is slotted into a weight class and competes against someone about their same size.

Still, Straight was one of the best grapplers BHS has produced and that school has produced plenty of top-flight wrestlers. He was 93-20 in his career, winning more than 82 percent of his matches.

When talking with former Blanchester coaches and teachers in the wake of Straight’s untimely death, one ideal — or body part if you will — was a genuine yet unprompted theme.

“It doesn’t matter how big he was or how much he weighed,” said Blanchester’s long-time wrestling coach Kermit Zimmerman, “he was all heart.”

Zimmerman, a member of the Clinton County Sports Hall of Fame for his accomplishments as a wrestling coach at BHS, was never in the corner, so to speak, when Straight wrestled at the high school level. Zimmerman was, however, there as a teacher and fan when Straight donned the blue Wildcats’ singlet.

But years before Straight ever reached high school, he would find his way to the mat as a youngster when the varsity club was at home. Zimmerman had no trouble remembering the diminutive red-head.

“He was one of the little kids coming up, rolling around out there,” Zimmerman said. “He was one of the hardest working kids I was ever around. He was just go, go, go … that’s all he thought about.”

Straight started his prep wrestling career as a 119-pounder as I recall. He eventually “grew” into a 140-pound body and reached Columbus as one of the best in the state as a senior.

Despite his success, Straight remained just one of the guys. No BMOC syndrome here.

“What made him special in me eyes was he was just one of the wrestlers on the team; he did whatever I asked him to do,” said former BHS wrestling coach Mark Volz, who had Straight his first three years in high school. “And he was a winner. He’d constantly work his tail off.”

That Straight was so successful as a 140-pound football player is testament to his work ethic and hard-nosed attitude. It wasn’t like he was blessed with blazing speed. In fact, he seemed just as comfortable running inside against guys who weighed 100 pounds more than him. On defense, he played linebacker, knocking heads again with those guys 100 pounds heavier.

“For that little 140-pound frame, he was all heart,” said Bob Braman, who coached Straight five years in the Blanchester football program, two in junior high and three more in high school. “Brian was an exception to the rule as far as size, but he had heart and that’s what made him special.”

Braman, who grew close to Straight outside the academic/athletic arena of BHS, said the youngster’s family was equally special and all will remain in his thoughts and prayers.

“Brian is — in my 30 years of coaching football — one of the few individuals who will always stick out in my mind and not only because of Brian but his family (father Don and mother Gwen), too.”

It had been some time since my path had crossed with Brian’s, but for me he will be one of those “got the most out of his ability” athletes who will hold a special place in my heart whenever I reflect on the best I’ve been privileged to write about. Maybe somewhere, sometime in the future he’ll be able to hit me with a “Huuu-berrr” once again. In fact, I look forward to it.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Visitation for Brian Straight will be noon to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Davis-Turner funeral home, 201 Broadway, Lynchburg. The funeral service will be 11 a.m. Monday at the funeral home.