Front L-R: Tony Hubbard, Roger Fleming, Ricky Franklin,
Ken Miller, Anthony Akins, Ricky Curtis, Larry Wiley, Craign
Coulter. SECOND ROW: Donald Cochran, Jessie Hogan, Frank
Hogan, Michael Walker, Jerome Curry, James Carr/Ross, Vincent
Lewis, Monroe Murphy, Michael Robinson. THIRD ROW: Hubert
Massey, Robert O’Dell, Thad Shepard, Michael Hornsby, Ken
Harrison, Damion Watkins. BACK ROW: Coach Martin Crane,
Gilbert Lee, Henry Young, Ricky Townsend, Carol Wright, Darryl
Forbes. Not Pictured: Ruben Ramirez, Bernard Carpenter.
Front L-R: Roger Fleming, Michael Walker, James Carr/Ross,
Kenneth Miller, Henry Young, Hubert Massey, Kenneth Banks.
SECOND ROW: Za Mabry, Lirobea Walker, Jerome Hogan,
James Franklin, Kevin Jones, Michael Hornsby, Tim Roman,
Michael Robinson. BACK ROW: Coach Don Dematio, Vincent
Lewis, Darth Akins, Ray Tonkin, James Adams, Craig Roman,
Coach Martin Crane, Mgr. Tony Hubbard, Paul Richmond.
Front L-R: Troy McKowen, Tim Roman, Leroy Block, Vincent
B. Lewis, Wesley Patton, James Maupin, Michael Hornsby, Paul
Richmond, Jon Fralick, Kevin Jones, Brian Connie, Jerry Skipper.
SECOND ROW: Don Dematio, Coach Colen Graham, Craig
Roman, Terry Walton, Lonni Donald, Barry Francis, Prentice
Spight, Brian Miller, Sheldon Singleton, Jerome Hogan, Ray
Tonkin, Ray Golson, Walter Seay. BACK ROW: Charles Francis,
Larry Wiley, Lirobea Walker, Michael Robinson, Barrion Hicks,
Jerrell Wynn, Michael Wilkerson, Vincent Lewis, Lonnie Young,
Isaac Golson, Kenneth Hawthorne, Coach Martin Crane.
They didn’t know it at the time, but Beecher’s 1975 mile relay team of Greg Knox, Mike Mosby, Ron Simpson and Anthony Akins was responsible for starting perhaps the greatest dynasty in the storied history of Flint-area high school sports.
That quartet won an individual state championship and inspired those who followed that great things were possible when everyone put the team first, a philosophy that led to 10 Class B state track and field championships in a span of 18 years.
The run started with three straight state titles from 1976-78 and those teams are being recognized for their brilliance by being inducted into the Greater Flint Area Sports Hall of Fame Dec. 4 at Genesys Banquet Center.
“The first relay team (in ’75) kind of really started them thinking, “We can do well in the state meet, not just as individuals but as a team,” said Marty Crane, a GFASHOF member himself who coached all 10 of those championship teams.
“It kind of really brought the team concept together for that next year. It became more of a team thing. We had always had decent individuals but never got the whole thing to where it looked like we could score a lot of points at the state meet.
“As far as state championships, that started the ball rolling. It changed our (mindset) from being individuals in the state meet to thinking about team championships.”
Akins returned in 1976 and visited the winner’s circle three times, twice as an individual and once with his teammates-although there’s much more to that part of the story, something we’ll get into later.
Akins won the 120 hurdles in 14.2 seconds while anchoring the mile relay for the second straight year, this time teaming with Bernard Carpenter, Ricky Franklin and Ricky Curtis to win in 3:23.9
“Anthony really set the bar for the ’76 team,” Crane said. “Anthony could go anywhere from 200 yards to 800 plus being an outstanding hurdler. Duane Raffin (former Holly coach) always said, “You have to have a great hurdler to win the state championship.:
“I don’t know why but it seems like you have to have a hurdler to get there. It’s only two events. A lot of those teams, we had always had a great hurdler.”
In 1977, depth was the key again for Beecher as the Bucs won just one event when Ken Miller, Henry Young, James Carr and Ken Banks teamed to win the 880 relay in 1:30.0.
The third state championship was shared with Muskegon Heights as both scored 29 points to nip third-place Linden, which had 26.
Surprisingly, Muskegon Heights didn’t win a single event while Beecher captured two-the 120 hurdles and mile relay.
Larry Wiley won the high hurdles for the Bucs in 14.2 while the mile relay team of Young, Jerome Hogan, Tim Roman and John Fralik clocked 3:23.1.
Believe it or not, the ’75-78 run wasn’t Beecher’s best ever. The Bucs strung together four straight Class B boys championships from 1985-87, a stretch that also saw the Beecher girls win the Class B title in 1986-87.
The boys other championships came in 1980, 1983 and 1992. They nearly added two more, but finished second in both 1981 and 1993.
“We’d go to a track meet and people would say, “Oh crap! Beecher is here. Who’s running for second?” Crane said with a laugh. “At the Mott Relays, we’d stick our noses in there against the city schools and the kids loved that. We never dodged a bullet as far as running against people.”
In addition to having talented athletes, there was also one other big key to Beecher’s championships teams.
“Every year we won the state championship, we had 12 kids qualify for the meet,” Crane said. “That was the weirdest thing. Everybody kept calling us the Dirty Dozen. We’d get on the bus afterward (at the regional) and it was, “Coach, how many kids we qualify?”
“If it was 12, we were going to win the state championship. One year, we had 16 kids qualify and we finished fourth.”
Now, for the rest of the story behind that first state championship in 1976.
When the meet had ended in Battle Creek, the Buc’s were on the winner’s stand ready to accept their trophy when the public-address announcer said that Dearborn Robichaud had won the championship with 46 points while Beecher was second.
Crane had been keeping score as usual, and knew that was incorrect. But while he was discussing the situation with meet officials, Robichaud had accepted the trophy and was heading out of the parking lot on the team bus.
“It was a comedy of errors,” Crane recalled. “Ricky Franklin started running after the bus with his track shoes in his hand. He was banging on the bus, trying to get them to stop. They thought he was bad.”
When the error was discovered-Robichaud didn’t have a contestant in the two-mile run, but was given eight points that really belonged to Dearborn Divine Child-Beecher was declared the champion, but left without the trophy.
“Ricky Franklin’s dad was on the school board,” Crane said. “He called the state police and they stopped the Robichaud bus. They got on the bus, got the trophy and brought it to us. We were having dinner at Win Schuler’s in Marshall.”
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