Coach Whack Hyder...*thanks Ahso

[spellingbee]

passed away today per one of his managers on The Hive in the early 50s.

link to The Hive

 

[ahsoisee]

Spellingbee, thanks for the information. His nickname is Whack, not wack. I followed the games while he was the coach at Tech. He was really a good basketball coach, but Tech did not dole out the money nor put much emphasis on basketball recruiting while Whack was the coach.

I have never heard how he got the nickname of Whack. Maybe someone else on the board can enlighten us on his nickname.

He was a good representative of Tech and a fine gentleman. As far as I can remember, he was as well liked and respected as Bobby Dodd.

He will always be remembered by us oldtimers.

 

[rammsting]

Whack Hyder was the most underrated coach in the history of basketball. To win as many games as he did, with the resources he had, was amazing. No coach ever had a better record against Adolph Rupp, and Tech totally domominated the hapless dawgs during his tenure. Coach Hyder was at Tech for almost 70 years. I absolutely loved the man. Nobody EVER had abad word to say about him [ except Rupp]. Coach Whack Hyder , rest in peace.

 

[gnats67]

Amen to the above said. I may have never become interested in basketball if it hadn't been for Whack Hyder.

I was seriously interested in baseball and football as a child but never really started taking BBall seriously until I got into TECH BBall and Coach Whack Hyder.

Coach Hyder was sort of the Bobby Dodd of TECH BBall and was a GREAT coach (and an actual TECH alum)that fought an ugly war year after year back when few, if any, cared about TECH BBall.

A great man who's never gotten as much credit as he deserved. Hats off to Whack Hyder. One of the all time TECH greats!

 

[toe meets leather]

correct me if i am wrong but, i think he graduated all but 1 of his basketball players, a truly fine person and representative of ga tech, might i add not a bad coach either.

 

[oldfoggy]

I loved Whack!!! I will never forget when Tech back in the early to mid 50's beat Rupp twice in the same year when Rupp's Kentucky team was rated #1 and as I recall did win the Nat championship. Message to God you got yourself a good man but you already know that. Whack we love you.

 

[spellingbee]

Thanks Ahso,
I'm going back to edit the subject line. I hate to see the mispelling out there like that. It was a typo (or brain fart.) I went back to a post on the Hive I made a few weeks ago about Coach Hyder and I spelled it correctly there. I'm not being super-sensitive, I just hate to make that sort of error, especially given the situation.

I got to meet Coach Hyder twice through a Tech friend with whom I go to the games. This gentleman played for him in his (Coach Hyder's) first season (my friends last.) Both times I met him (one football game, one basketball game,) he was dressed sharply in coat and tie with a slide rule tie-tac. My AMC plaque that hangs in my bedroom sports his and Coach Cremin's signature on it. He (IMO from someone who never attended Tech) exemplifies what it means to be a Tech man.

 

[bellyseries]

Originally posted by oldfoggy:
I loved Whack!!! I will never forget when Tech back in the early to mid 50's beat Rupp twice in the same year when Rupp's Kentucky team was rated #1 and as I recall did win the Nat championship. Message to God you got yourself a good man but you already know that. Whack we love you.

<font size="2" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">I remember that, oldfoggy. It was '54 or'55, and it made Sports Illustrated.
Ciraldo always called him "Georgia Tech Coach John 'Whack' Hyder".

(By the way, spellingbee, it's "misspell")

 

[spellingbee]

What do you expect belly, I'm just an English teacher...

by the way, you wrote ---"Georgia Tech Coach John 'Whack' Hyder".
.... the period should go inside the quotation mark

 

[bellyseries]

Originally posted by spellingbee:
by the way, you wrote ---"Georgia Tech Coach John 'Whack' Hyder".
.... the period should go inside the quotation mark

<font size="2" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">You're right, of course.
Isn't it fun being picky?

 

[beeware]

I would like to echo all the nice things said about the coach.....he will be missed.

(Note to spellingbee: I promised I wouldn't correct your spelling....so I let ahso do it.)

 

[gnats67]

Originally posted by bellyseries:

<font size="2" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">Ciraldo always called him "Georgia Tech Coach John 'Whack' Hyder".


Interesting tidbit - Ciraldo and Hyder were old friends from before TECH. Al, a native Ohioan, was calling games for a minor league baseball team there, the Akron Yankees, where he met Whack who was a player on the team. Later they were re-united at TECH and Hyder convinced Ciraldo to start calling the GT BBall games which at the time were not aired. "And the rest is history.."

 

[bellyseries]

Originally posted by gnats 67:
</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">Originally posted by bellyseries:

<font size="2" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">Ciraldo always called him "Georgia Tech Coach John 'Whack' Hyder".


Interesting tidbit - Ciraldo and Hyder were old friends from before TECH. Al, a native Ohioan, was calling games for a minor league baseball team there, the Akron Yankees, where he met Whack who was a player on the team. Later they were re-united at TECH and Hyder convinced Ciraldo to start calling the GT BBall games which at the time were not aired. "And the rest is history.."</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">Great story, gnats, thanks.

 

[ChamrousseJacket]

My personal experience with Coach Hyder dates back to the fall of 1955 when I participated in freshman basketball walk–on tryouts.

I came to the tryouts with an inflated vision of my ability and during scrimmages it was rapidly obvious that I was outclassed by most of the other players. Coach Hyder, who was overseeing the tryouts, never made any critical remarks about my lack of talent and after the scrimmages thanked everyone for coming.

He said that names of those who would be invited for the next phase would be posted on the team bulletin board the next day. I knew enough immediately without being told and never bothered to check the bulletin board for my name.

I always felt that Coach Hyder along with several other Tech coaches of that era were true gentlemen and excellent roll models worthy of the highest respect and admiration. By running Cross Country I was fortunate to get to know Dean George Griffin, one of the nicest men I ever met.

 

[oldfoggy]

Nice post CJ. I never met the man (did know Bobby Dodd) he must have been a gem. I wish I had had the good fortune to have met him.

 

[pjjacket]

I thank the Lord for allowing GT to have Coach Whack Hyder. He represented the best of college athletics and was a great credit to his profession and to GT.

My condolences to his family.