His job is to help good kids out of bad situations

I am inclined to write a sentence on Cape’s intervention specialist like - “Otis Blackburn is a good guy with a bad job” - a play on words describing the man whose job it is to help good kids out of bad situations. Otis himself is fit and solid at 58, a former major athlete from the city of Chicago, a running back and linebacker who was on the list of Big 10 recruiting classes at Michigan, Purdue, Indiana and Illinois until a catastrophic double hit above and below the knee from the opposite direction with his spiked shoe planted firmly in the grass and dirt shattered dreams of Big 10 glory.

Blackburn was hired by Cape in April 2008 and he’s a great guy doing a bang-up job laying down the discipline when necessary, but he also is an advocate for kids and there to help them. The 1972 Lincoln University graduate came to Cape from Brandywine where he taught physical education and also helped with “interventions” and had lived all over the country growing up with a father who was in the Navy. He has four sisters.

Otis actually worked at Northwestern University as an athletic trainer and worked the college ball game at Soldier Field back when the best college players played a game against the Super Bowl champions.

“I remember John Matuszak, Darryl Stingley, Bert Jones, Rich Glover, John Hannah and coach John McKay from Southern Cal - it was quite an experience,” Blackburn said.

John Hannah, a first-round pick from Alabama, made nine Pro Bowls while playing at New England and is in the NFL Hall of Fame and remained a good friend to Otis. Otis worked for years running programs for the YMCA in Evanston, Ill., and later Newark, N.J., describing those jobs as the best he ever had helping kids organizing programs and working with families. Otis did say that he thought tearing down the Cape gym was a travesty because of all the programs and community activities that could benefit. If you see Otis Blackburn stop and say hello. He is one of the good guys helping kids having bad days.

DIVING FROM DIVERSITY - I left a televised NHL hockey game in high definition last Tuesday night to attend the school board candidates’ forum proving my life is out of control ever since my hip went bad and I quit drinking.  I listened to some comments that made me wince, like Cape kids leaving the district because of discipline concerns. I think more leave in the pursuit of exclusivity, and let’s face it, the club that is Public with a capitol P is not exclusive and given the option people run from that; just look at housing patterns.

And that’s fine. Let parents make choices but don’t explain it based on the choice they didn’t make. I know Cape’s top students and there are hundreds are as good as any who choose to go someplace else. It reminds me of travel ball versus school ball. I hear that travel ball is so much better, but in reality it isn’t because no one cares that the Orange Crush won some tournament.

How about parents who send their kids to private school then attend Cape school board meetings and complain? How can that be anything but lame? There are too many complaining adults jabbering and mucking about the countryside. Just get out there and help some kids, make personal appearances, give of yourself and be quiet for crying out loud!

TABULATIONS - Every year since forever I plug Cape track information into the database of statewide performances to see if the Vikings have a chance to win a state title. And so not wanting to alert heavily favored Tatnall in the girls Division II bracket, Cape has a chance if they perform at optimal levels across all events. So a heads-up to administrative types and others who are all about the kids to get out there and show your face, such as it is, and let kids know you support their efforts

ELECTRIC SLIDE - The million-dollar fieldhouse at Cape seems to be weirdly wired and parents working concessions were seen scooping ice from trash bags and there seemed to be other plug-in problems.

I’m a guy who once plugged a radio into a 220 outlet so I am not one to criticize, but no one is interested in rocking it old school inside a new building.

SNIPPETS - A Frederick personality trait is that none of us crave recognition. So if a picture of one of my grandchildren appears on the sports page and I took it you better believe I sent 10 other photos of players to the sports desk and did not pick a family member because we don’t care who we are - we are cool like that.

Anthony Duffy who ran the 800 for Cape in two flat back when I coached him 30 years ago saw me at Wawa and congratulated me for being the new principal at Beacon. I love Anthony but I did ask him if he had lost his mind drilling too many wells.

“You would be good because you’re good with kids,” Anthony said. “I was happy when I thought it was you.”

There are more happy people who know it’s not me but rather the younger, sleeker speed racer version. Personally, I ain’t tryin’ to be no principal, yo.