I walked into Ned West's office in September 1970 at the beginning of my sophomore year and asked him if he needed a student assistant who had been brought up on Georgia Tech stories of Coach Alex, Dean Griffin & Bobby Dodd, and had been a high school sportswriter. I guess being a 3rd generation Tech alumnus helped convince him that I could be of some assistance around the office and in dealing with the media. That, plus the fact that I offered him my services for free! (Well I did get free BBQ and Cokes in the press box!)
What a wonderful man, such a gentleman, and a great boss, very respected in the college sports world. I so looked forward to finishing class each day and going over to the Athletic Association to work. I guess our old offices at 190 Third Street are part of the new North Stands now!
While working at the GTAA, Ned told me that I personally helped to make Rock Perdoni an All American. All Rock had to do was play phenomenal football. I, on the other hand, folded, stuffed, stamped, and mailed every press release that Tech sent out about Perdoni. And we all know that All Americans are not just made on the field on Saturdays but during the week thanks to the SID offices!
After proving my worth to the GTAA, Ned saw to it that I got treated like a student manager or a student trainer, first with free text books supplied by the GTAA, then eventually paying for some fees and a small stipend by my senior year, when he let me become the official scorekeeper for the baseball team during my last quarter at Tech.
I played intramural basketball with his son Ted one year on a team called the Burdell Bay Bombers, possibly the best nickname in the history of Tech intramurals.
I last saw Ned West at Whack Hyder's funeral when Ted brought his father there in a wheelchair. I am glad that I got to speak to him then.
I will certainly be there at St. Philip's on Wednesday to pay my respects to a truly great and loyal Georgia Tech man, one who gave an 18 year old kid one of the biggest breaks of his life. For that I shall always be grateful.
God bless you, E. P. "Ned" West. May you rest in peace.
Ned West, Long Time Tech SID, dies at 91; funeral Wed 2pm @ St. Philips
What a wonderful man, such a gentleman, and a great boss, very respected in the college sports world. I so looked forward to finishing class each day and going over to the Athletic Association to work. I guess our old offices at 190 Third Street are part of the new North Stands now!
While working at the GTAA, Ned told me that I personally helped to make Rock Perdoni an All American. All Rock had to do was play phenomenal football. I, on the other hand, folded, stuffed, stamped, and mailed every press release that Tech sent out about Perdoni. And we all know that All Americans are not just made on the field on Saturdays but during the week thanks to the SID offices!
After proving my worth to the GTAA, Ned saw to it that I got treated like a student manager or a student trainer, first with free text books supplied by the GTAA, then eventually paying for some fees and a small stipend by my senior year, when he let me become the official scorekeeper for the baseball team during my last quarter at Tech.
I played intramural basketball with his son Ted one year on a team called the Burdell Bay Bombers, possibly the best nickname in the history of Tech intramurals.
I last saw Ned West at Whack Hyder's funeral when Ted brought his father there in a wheelchair. I am glad that I got to speak to him then.
I will certainly be there at St. Philip's on Wednesday to pay my respects to a truly great and loyal Georgia Tech man, one who gave an 18 year old kid one of the biggest breaks of his life. For that I shall always be grateful.
God bless you, E. P. "Ned" West. May you rest in peace.
Ned West, Long Time Tech SID, dies at 91; funeral Wed 2pm @ St. Philips
