A hundred episodes in. And the best possible guest wasn't here to hear it.
Coach Keith Black and his wife, Susie, died in October in an accident outside Huntingdon. So Episode 100 belongs to them.
Keith was a 1973 Juniata grad and a four-year player who came back to coach. Then left. Then came back. Then retired twice. All told, more than thirty years on the bench. Van rides home from Albright at 1 a.m., a 5:30 walk through town the next morning, then back at practice like nothing happened. Susie taught first grade for 36 years and made sure the players knew somebody in Huntingdon had their back. In the program, it was always Coach and Sue. Coach Greg Curley puts Sue first. He says Keith would agree.
Tom Frank, Drew "Biz" Besket and Coach Curley bring in four guys who played for him: assistant coach Nick Hager '07, Luke Mellott '14, Dan Sekulski '12, and State College head coach Brian Scholly '14. They came with stories. Some made us laugh. One made a grown man say yes to coaching his son's team.
Why Sue spent a whole season begging Curley to put Keith back on the bench. Why one raised finger at the memorial said everything. The graduation letter that told every senior they owed a debt to the next generation of kids. The deer, the vans, the one-liners that hit like a sniper. And Sue's one complaint about the program: turnovers.
It ends the only way it could. Seven words from the people who knew them best. Warm. Welcoming. Rock. Caring. Selfless. Perspective. Heart.
To the Black family: thank you for sharing them with us.
The Juniata Men's Basketball Show is hosted by Tom Frank, Drew "Biz" Besket and Coach Greg Curley. The Show is produced and distributed by Merrick Studios in conjunction with 16803 Media. Catch all our episodes at https://www.coachshowplaybook.com/juniata-mens-basketball-show
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