JT Munyon oral history

John Driscoll, a former baseball player at Far East Southern, talks about his connection to BSC. He mentions playing with his brother in a National Championship game and the special bond they shared. He also shares some funny memories with Coach Hube, including an argument with an umpire and breaking his arm two years in a row during the World Series. Driscoll reflects on the growth and maturity he experienced at BSC and the impact it had on his life. He expresses gratitude for the school and the program. He believes that the loss of BSC will not only affect the history and current students, but also the future opportunities for education, friendships, and experiences on the beautiful campus. All right, so first question is just what is your name and where you from? Yeah, so John Driscoll grew up in Gadsden, Alabama Graduated from high school there and I found my way to Far East Southern in the fall of 96 What was the beginning of your connection to BSC? Like how did you end up here? Yeah, it's a great question I was on a recruiting visit and so we came out here and I met Coach Shoup who's head coach at the time and Coach Schoenrock and My dad and I got taught of them a little bit and kind of from there things kind of Proceeded through the fall as far as some home visits and and so that was the beginnings of my relationship here Do you have a favorite game, favorite practice, just favorite baseball moments from when you were here? I mean, I have personal games that stand out Where I have a good bit of success, but you know one of the things that was unique that's so special to me is my brother and I got to play together here and and so I've told the story to other people but before our National Championship game in 2001 as we're about to take the field together You know, I get emotional thinking about even now You know, we hugged each other before we took the field and he played left field and I was a second It was it was just an embrace that said You know win or lose this game like we got to play baseball together as brothers, you know And and that's something that not a lot of people get to say they got to do and and so the memory again of yes Winning a National Championship, but getting to do that with my brother And then like I mentioned earlier a bunch of bunch of close friends that are that are like brothers to me You know, those are the kind of things that that really stick out Do you have a favorite memory with Coach Hube from when you were here? Oh Man same thing same as some other questions There's a lot of a lot of memories a lot of things that I could share I'll share a couple of short ones, but we were playing at Berry College in a conference game and we were We were down a run or two and it was getting late in the game and it was a pretty important conference game And I remember him going out to argue with a home plate umpire Something that normally he wouldn't have argued about that It wasn't like a question very questionable call, but he was mad or angry and yelling again not using any You know language you shouldn't be using but you're getting an umpire space and come to find out with the fact Part of his yelling and screaming that we couldn't hear because our his back was to us What he was telling them prior to throw him out of the game and so enough I did it He turned around to us and it almost just holds a meter change and he was like trying to you know Get us fired up, you know, cuz he was getting fired up fighting for us And the other thing it's not it's funny now Wasn't funny at the time, but we were two years in a row in Lewiston, Idaho 2000 2001 for the World Series in both years Coach you broke his arm. He's a third base coach and both times somebody rounding third He's watching the play and trying to back down to decide whether to send the runner or hold him up And of course runners coming really fast and coach you've just got too close to the baseline and got knocked down two different times in consecutive years and Broke one arm one year and broke the other arm the next year And so literally coached the remainder of the tournament with the cast on his arm It's like the hat the fact that happened one time and it's crazy But it happened two years in a row was like just very very odd and it didn't happen any other time But in the you know in the World Series So So every single conversation we've had every single one has said that While they're at BSC their time was great, but they really Understood the impact of the school in the program once they were separated it from a little bit. Did you have that same? feeling once you kind of Left coach shoot and the program. Yeah, there's no no question about it You don't take it for granted while you're here But you do as we thought better to kind of get into the daily routine and like this I love what I'm doing But this is what I'm doing every day. I'm you know, getting up to a class and practicing I'm hanging out with friends I'm one of the guys that I was here with or some of my best friends to this day You know our kids do sports together We do church together do life together and you know, it happens this way for a lot of people But I have so many more friends from from Burnett Southern from those experiences of yes on the field But hanging out outside of the field and so you you don't realize how much you grow As an individual and when you start at 18 and leave at 22 or 3 just the growth and maturity that takes place and just the discipline that happens and the preparedness for You know for life, you know whether it's being a husband or a father employee and even a coach kids We're I was joking with coach shoot Saturday out here I I watched a play and it was a slow roller and I'm sitting there saying Full arm fake full arm fake and right what happens a full arm fake, you know, and it's like the things that Yeah, as you distance yourself farther from it, you need to pause and stop long enough to think back and remember How special time was how much you learned it? It definitely becomes more More important impactful with it again as you get a few years past it. So always they'll find wonderful memories that Yeah, help you realize that this place and program helped shape each other's So who we are and where we are today and admittedly not something I stop and reflect on and grateful for nearly often enough Yeah, very grateful for for very southern What do you think is lost when BSC is gone Again, how long how long do we have to sit and talk? I mean it you could talk about you know, the the history that's lost and the current student-athletes and students and employees And all that is lost and and that's Terribly sad to me. The bigger thing is going forward was lost It's all the people that won't have the opportunity to come here and get a great education make lifelong friends just experience a beautiful campus and with just the beauty of this whole campus, I mean that the buildings and the trees and the walkways and it's just It's hard to measure Honestly that what the loss is going to be in the impact it's easy to feel the loss personally with others, you know from an emotional standpoint, but the other losses are it's hard to know, you know what they'll be but they'll be great and it's terribly sad and yeah, I just We all hate that. 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