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Kannapolis Local Weather
WONDERS
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kannapolisfootball.com: History
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Stairway to Heaven

Stairway to Heaven


Series of high schools served Kannapolis
source...Kannapolis Citizen
atricle by Norris Dearmon

History of Kannapolis schools

Early school history from the Independent-Tribune

The early years
The early years
1907 South School
1907 South School
1917 North School
1917 North School

1920's Centerview School
1920's Centerview School
1939 Carver
1939 George Washington Carver
Birth of a school system
Birth of a school system

History on the Kannapolis School system
From the KCS schools site:

Before there was a town of Kannapolis, there were little one-room schools where all grades met together. Charles McIver School was opened in 1908 with three elementary teachers (costing $4,500). James Cannon donated land and loaned the school board $2,500 for construction of the school.

Ten years later the high school curriculum was added with the first high school class, consisting of 5 girls, graduating in 1921. In the fall of 1917, the second school was built on land donated by J.W. Cannon. It was a two-story, eight room school with seven teachers and one principal. The school was located in the north end of town and was referred to as the “North School”. McIver School then became known as the “South School”. In later years, it was named Woodrow Wilson. A few years later a third school was built in the southeast section of town and was named Centerview School. In 1924, the J.W. Cannon High School was built east of town.

The Kannapolis City School System was created by the North Carolina Legislature on March 28, 1935. J. W. Bullock became superintendent and remained in that position until his retirement in 1971.
Dr. Grier Bradshaw served from 1971-1989. Ralph Johnson served from 1989-1992, and Dr. Edward B. Tyson served from 1992 until June, 2001. On July 1, 2001, Dr. Jo Anne A. Byerly became the fifth superintendent of Kannapolis City Schools and the first woman to hold the superintendent's position.

Additional schools built for Kannapolis City Schools were:

Charles B. Aycock (1927) - retired in June, 1998
Carver (1937) - currently used as administrative annex
Jackson Park (1938)
McKnight (1949)
Shady Brook (1949)
A. L. Brown High School (1952)
Fred L. Wilson (1968)
Kannapolis Middle (1981)

In 1991, a new Jackson Park Elementary School opened on the same site as the original school. In fact, one wing of the original school was included in the new building.
In August 1998, Forest Park Elementary opened. It replaced Aycock Elementary which was closed in June of 1998.

Kannapolis Intermediate School (5th and 6th grades) will be opened during the fall of 2005. It will be located in the current (1981) Kannapolis Middle School building. The 7th and 8th grades of Kannapolis City Schools will occupy a brand new building located at 1445 Oakwood Dr.

TIMELINE
1924- Central High School Opens
1930- Renamed J.W. Cannon High School
1933- J.W. Cannon High School burns down because of faulty wiring
1934- Cannon HS is rebuilt
1950-51- A.L. Brown High School is constructed 50 yd southeast of Cannon High. Cannon High becomes J.W. Cannon Junior High School.
1957- An 8-classroom science wing is added to the west end of the main building.
1958- The W.J. Bullock Physical Education Building is constructed. Kannapolis Memorial Stadium is built and the central courtyard is added.
1967- The Samuel B. Stroup Vocational Arts Building, The Ruth Coltrane Cannon Musical Education Center and the Administrative Annex is constructed (Now the Central Office).
April 17, 1974- Roof Burns; graduation is moved to W.J. Bullock Gymnasium.
1976- The W.J. Bullock Physical Education Building is extensively renovated under the supervision of Coach Bob Boswell.
January 10, 1982- J.W. Cannon Junior High School burns down. (Fire was caused by accident). Gymnasium, Cafeteria and Home Economics buildings remain.
1991- Media Center Wing is constructed.
1993- Cafeteria Addition is built
1994- Main Office Renovated
1995- Music building roof pitched, W.J. Bullock Gym roof replaced.
1995- An 8-classroom science wing is added to the existing science wing
1997- Cyber Campus comes online.
2003- Science wing basement is renovated. Becomes the Mathematics wing.
2005- Cannon Cafeteria and Home Economics Building are demolished
2006- Auxiliary Physical Education Building is constructed and the Auditorium is extensively renovated. An addition is built for the Central Office and the Main Office is renovated.


Famous Fires

Famous fires of Kannapolis history
April 16, 2008 By jmorris 

By Norris Dearmon
For the
Kannapolis Citizen
I have been asked several times, “What has been the biggest fire in Kannapolis history?” Here is a list of some of the big fires since the 1920s. There have always been house fires in Kannapolis, which always hurt families. Some were big and some small.
The fire of April 24, 1927, which destroyed three business buildings in the first block of North Main Street was large, I am sure. The buildings were the first three on the east side of Main Street, at the square. The first building was two stories. The businesses affected were Hoffman’s Cafe, which was on the first floor of the corner building. Other buildings housed Thomason’s Grocery, O.K. Shoe Shop, Linkers Real Estate Office, Helm’s Real Estate Office, Concord Tribune and Dr. H.B. Humphries’ office. The Red Man’s Hall was also on the second floor. Other fraternal organizations also met there.
The fire of Jan. 6, 1933, almost completely destroyed the entire J.W. Cannon High School building, inflicting more than $100,000 in damage. It was rebuilt and enhanced at the same location. For the remainder of the school year in 1933 and all of 1934, the high school classes were held at the elementary schools on half-day schedules.
The YMCA fire, which occurred Dec. 20, 1937, with damage in excess of $100,000, almost completely destroyed the building. The building was rebuilt at the same location, without the movie theater.
The Colonial Theatre fire of Feb. 20, 1940, destroyed that business to the tune of more than $60,000. It was never rebuilt.
The fire of Feb. 21, 1942, did an estimated $150,000 damage to the Gem Theatre. The repairs could not be made until after World War II was over. Only the theater part was completely burned. Part of the front continued to be used.
The dollar figures quoted above were hugh figures for that time period. The actual cost of rebuilding the Gem Theatre after World War II, I am sure, was much more than the estimate in 1942.
McIver School had been abandoned before it burned down on March 25, 1975. It was thought that vandals or homeless started the fire. The floors were wood soaked in oil, which made it burn very quickly.
On May 3, 1975, a small fire was reported in the bank at A.L. Brown High School. The room was small, so by closing the door, the flames smothered and the fire never spread. It was thought to be deliberately set. Damage was estimated to be about $1,000, mostly to equipment.
The Carver seventh grade center was destroyed by fire on May 8, 1975. It was built back as Kannapolis Middle School.
The three fires in 1975 were only two weeks apart. An investigation was launched by local and state officials to determine if arson could be the cause. A $2,500 reward was announced for the arrest and conviction of the person or persons involved with the A.L. Brown fire May 3. Several persons were questioned, but no arrests were made. It was speculated that the fire at Carver was from spontaneous combustion.
On Jan. 1, 1982, the J.W. Cannon High School burned for the second time. Three other smaller fires were set prior to the final fire. It was a huge building and was completely destroyed. On the back side was a large auditorium, which could seat the entire school student body. Freezing weather hampered the firefighters. A granite marker is to be dedicated April 24 by the classes of 1941 and 1942 to denote the location of the school.
The mill company was always having fires. Sometimes in the cotton warehouses from spontaneous combustion, or in the plants themselves, from cotton dust sparked by an electrical spark. The sprinkler systems or other fire systems kept the fires to a minimum.
The most spectacular fire would have to be the fire which destroyed Taylor’s Hatchery in Midway. Fireworks of all makes and descriptions were stored in the building. It put on quite a show and the firemen were too afraid to get too close to it.
April 29, 1974, the A.L. Brown High School fire started in the attic, where papers were stored, but only part of the roof burned. The firemen were hampered because they didn’t have any ladder trucks at the time. Trucks with extension ladders were called in from the mill company to help with the fire.
The fire of the Moss and Moore business on South Main Street will have to go down as one of the largest for the year 2008 in Kannapolis. The building was completely destroyed and trains were stopped until the fire was under control.
My choice for biggest is the fire which destroyed the J.W. Cannon High School in 1982. The buildings were large, with two wings, and a huge auditorium. A close second would have to be the fire at McIver School.
Norris Dearmon is a local historian and member of the Kannapolis History Associates. He is a volunteer in the Hinson History Room at the Kannapolis Branch Library.|


Famous Fires in K-town

History...starting in 1924
Just a little background check into how this all came about. I went back as far as I could using the Kannapolis Library’s yearbooks and micro-film of old newspapers. The yearbooks went back to 1924 (not much info in them), and the newspapers, back to the early 1930s. This is the best I can make out, because the information is limited and sometimes contradictory. As best as I can tell, the first high school was called “Central High School”, the yearbook was titled the “Pioneer”. This was during the ‘20s. It became J.W Cannon shortly afterward. The yearbook was called the “Pioneer in 1928, and by 1930, it was called “The Cannon Ball”. H. B. Waters was the first principal up to 1931, then W. J. Bullock took over.

It was during this time the football team became the “Little Wonders”. Now that name will stir up some disagreement on how that name came about.  I read an article on WONDER fan Dane Laney and this was in that article, so I decided this is a good place to put it...The name of this segment was... Where did the nickname "WONDERS" come from..."There are a couple of stories that go with that. The one I've heard, back in the 1920s, when our colors were black and blue, that we were losing so much. But we finally won a game, and when the team got back to J.W. Cannon High School, they said, "It's a wonder we won that game!"  The other story is that the bus broke down  on the way to a football game and when they finally got it cranked up and going and got to the neighboring town, they said, "It's a WONDER you even got here for the game." From that, it was the WONDERS. Later on, we changed our colors to green and white, because our colors were too much like Concord's-- which are black and gold."

They were known as the Little WONDERs up until the late ‘70s when Bob Boswell took over. He didn’t like the word little, saying this was projecting the wrong image. So, they became known as simply WONDERs and has stayed that way, although some schools (I won’t mention their names) still like to call us Little WONDERS.

The home games were played at the Kannapolis Ballpark during this time. One of the best Kannapolis teams (according to the oldtimers) was the 1932- 1933 team. They were SPC champs and were 21-0 at one time. The coach was Leon Smith, a K-town druggist. BTW, the school was admitted to the SPC in the 1931-1932 year. The school was built in 1924, and burned in the year 1934. When this happened, the seniors had to finish the school year at Aycock. They became known as the class that graduated from Aycock. They voted to change the name of the 1934 yearbook and called it "The Senior Blaze". It was rebuilt, and stayed J. W Cannon High School until 1952, when A.L Brown High was opened. Brown's attic caught fire in 1974 just prior to graduation. There was concern that damage was done to the auditorium, so the graduation was moved to the gym. This class became known as the class that graduated from W.J. Bullock Building. When Brown opened in 1952, Cannon then became the junior high, housing the 8th and 9th grades, and Brown having grades 10-12.


1924 team
1924 team1
1924 team

History Photos
Football1
History Photos link
Photos from 1924-1952

***A.L. Brown History lessons by Salisbury Post's Mike London***

Hall
1952-53 Howard Hall
1952-53 Howard Hall
By Mike London

Hall was Brown's first quarterback.

mlondon@salisburypost.com

KANNAPOLIS — Howard Hall likes to brag to his grandchildren that he used to be the best quarterback in A.L. Brown history.

"That's because I was the first one," Hall said with a laugh. "For two years there (1952-53), I was the only one they'd had so I was the best."

Hall, 74, still near his playing weight and still a regular on the Irish Creek golf course, is being modest.

He was the versatile co-captain of the basketball, baseball and football teams and winner of the Wonders' prestigious Lug Leazer Award for his work on the gridiron in 1953. Hall weighed less than 150 pounds, but he was quick, he was slick running the option, and he had a mean streak on the field.

"Knocked out Concord's biggest guy my senior year," Hall said with his perpetual smile. "But how I knocked him is out is something you can't print."

Hall attended J.W. Cannon High until A.L. Brown opened its doors in 1952 about 50 yards away from Cannon. Hall had not played football at Cannon where'd they'd used the smashmouth single-wing offense. That was not his cup of tea, but then he heard coaches Tuck Gudger, who handled the line, and Ed Edmiston, who instructed the backs, were switching to the Split-T offense for the 1952 season. Like Jimmy Chitwood in "Hoosiers," Hall decided it was time to play some ball.

He got a late start in his football comeback because Kannapolis won the American Legion state championship and advanced to the regional. Hall claims catcher George Suggs fired the ball back to him harder than he ever threw it to Suggs, but he was a fine right-handed pitcher and made the All-State team.

That Kannapolis roster included future NFL back Billy Ray Barnes and future Pittsburgh Pirates hurler Ron Blackburn.

"Billy and Ron went to the pros," Hall said. "I went to the mill."

First, he helped A.L. Brown athletics get started in the right direction.

"My first day of football, Coach Edmiston took me home with him for lunch and said I was his quarterback," Hall said. "He was a nice man, very humble, and I got to eat."

Brown's first scrimmage with its experimental offense was at Catawba against coach Bill Ludwig's big Boyden boys.

"I was scared and I ran fast," Hall said.

After the scrimmage, Ludwig told Brown's coaches their quarterback was going to be a handful for everyone. That analysis proved accurate.

Hall took charge, and the Little Wonders beat 10 straight foes for a perfect season. They topped Mooresville for the Victory Towel and Concord for the Victory Bell. They even beat Albemarle, and Albemarle rarely lost.

"We didn't pass often, but I was 13-for-13 before my 14th got intercepted," Hall said. "I liked to let those other fellas run it down to the 1-yard line, and then I'd tell them they could take a little break and I'd sneak it in."

Hall earned a permanent role in Brown's football history when he led a 27-13 win against Concord, the first victory since 1941 by a Kannapolis team against the Spiders. Hall threw two TD passes, rushed for 65 yards and baffled the Spiders with his fakes.

"The thing about option football now is it's easy to see who's got the ball," Hall said. "I was good at faking, and I'd fake right down to the whistle. If you faked out a man, that was as good as blocking him."

The Concord Tribune named Hall its Player of the Week, no different than the Daily Tar Heel declaring Kyle Singler its Citizen of the Month.

Hall's senior year in 1953, the Wonders added a fast, strong sophomore fullback named Leroy Scercy to the attack.

I remember playing Mooresville in '53 when Edmiston and Dan Hamrick were our coaches," Hall said. "They told me to give the ball to Leroy every time until they stopped him, and they haven't stopped him yet."

Another time, Hall ran the wrong way, but wound up following Scercy into the end zone.

"My back was to the line of scrimmage calling plays so I got a little confused on directions," Hall said. "I remember I ran the wrong way once, but then I circled around and just followed Leroy for a TD. Leroy told me, 'You did that on purpose.' "

Brown mashed Concord 32-0 his senior season, but Hall's fondest memories are Wonder fans singing "Happy Birthday" to him and the night he changed a play call.

"I'd called a jump pass to the outside and then a player came running into the huddle with a play from the coaches," Hall said.

"This fellow who brought in the new play was fast and ran hard when he had the ball, but he didn't block much. He was supposed to get the ball. I called for a vote and the guys said, 'Howard, stick with the jump pass.'

"I threw the pass for a touchdown, but when I got to the sideline, Coach Edmiston didn't say nothing about the touchdown. He wanted to know why I was changing plays on him."

Brown went 9-1 Hall's senior year. The loss was 26-0 to Albemarle and a single-wing machine coached by Toby Webb.

"Albemarle figured out from the year before if they stopped me on the option they would stop us," Hall said. "Every time I ran the ball it was minus-5. People were crying. It was the first time we'd lost."

Hall finished his football career with an eight-game winning streak and moved on to basketball.

"No one dunked, and I wasn't worth a lick," he said. "I was a captain and scored less than the subs. I could bring the ball up the court and pass to the people who could score."

After graduation, Hall did what people did in the 1950s. He got married and went to work for Cannon Mills. He put in 43 years, mostly as a supervisor in the spinning room. He started dating his wife Millie in high school, and the retired nurse is one of the town's leading citizens and a permanent member of the school board.

Members of the original QB's family continue to excel in sports. Hall's grandson Nick Buckwell starred for Brown's golf team and made the Appalachian State squad this fall. Sophomore Tyler Buckwell is next in line.

Hall's house is a 9-iron shot from the scoreboard at Memorial Stadium, but he has no plans to attend Brown's game tonight.

"My kids and grandkids will drive 200 miles to watch a football game," he said. "They'll tailgate at Brown games on Fridays and Appalachian games on Saturdays, but I've never been that much of a spectator. If I can't play, I don't like to go. I'll listen to the Wonders on the radio.


Stanback
1969 H. Stanback
Haskel Stanback

Snapping back with Stanback

by Mike London

mlondon@salisburypost.com

As West Rowan phenom K.P. Parks rolled at South Rowan last Friday, comparisons began with Nick Maddox, who terrorized A.L. Brown opponents a decade ago.Talk of Maddox led to memories of Haskel Stanback, who frequently put the Wonders on his shoulders from 1967-69. Old warriors who tangled with Stanback nominated him as the best in Brown's history. That's saying something, because the Wonders also produced Pro Bowler Ethan Horton. Stanback, now a citizen of Roanoke, Va., and a prosperous 56-year-old executive with Norfolk Southern, modestly remarked such praise from former opponents "makes an old man feel pretty good."

Stanback starred in the 1969 Shrine Bowl and was Tennessee's Outstanding Player in the 1973 Gator Bowl. He scored 26 TDs for the Atlanta Falcons and rushed for 2,662 yards in six NFL seasons.

He grew up in the Bethel area of Kannapolis at a time when segregation was losing its grip on the South.

His earliest football efforts were in his grandmother's backlot. He started organized ball at Carver, Kannapolis' black school, and he entered A.L. Brown as a sophomore in 1967.

"Coming over to Brown took some adjustments," Stanback said. "We had coaches (notably Benjamin Dupree) who came over with us from Carver, but there were a lot of kids who had played at Carver that didn't want to play at Brown."Stanback played — and starred. He was about 180 pounds when he debuted, but still growing. He ran with gliding grace and power, and he was physical. His hero was Jack Tatum, Ohio State's rugged defensive back, and Stanback preferred defense to offense.

During his time at Brown, the Wonders were pretty good (18-10-2), and he was special. He posted four-TD games in the rugged SPC and made 21 trips to the end zone his senior year.

Surprisingly, Stanback remembers the struggles with Lexington more than those with Concord.

"There was a heated rivalry with Logan (Concord's black school) when I was at Carver because the towns were so close together, and that naturally carried over to Brown and Concord," Stanback said. "But I knew of the Concord players more than I actually knew them. They kind of didn't come our way and we didn't go down there."

Lexington was WNCHSAA champ in 1967. Its lone loss was to Brown. In 1968, with Lexington bent on revenge, the Wonders tied the Jackets 14-14 thanks to an 85-yard run by Stanback.

Stanback's senior year, the Wonders knocked off the Jackets again.

"We kept coming back in the fourth quarter and I was scoring touchdowns," Stanback said. "The thing I really remember is my uncles bickering back and forth in the stands with the Lexington fans. Just the ebb and flow of it all. The family thing added a little flavor."

By November of 1969, a genuine recruiting war had broken out for Stanback's signature. His timing was good. Even the traditionally all-white Southern schools had begun to recruit exceptional black athletes. Georgia Tech and Tennessee joined Ohio State as finalists in the competition.

Ohio State coach Woody Hayes wined and dined Stanback and his mother. The Buckeyes were Tatum's school, so they were the clear frontrunner.

Stanback's dream was to follow Tatum in the Ohio State secondary, but his official visit changed his mind.

"It was the first time I'd been on a plane, and when I flew out of Charlotte it was 60 degrees," Stanback said. "I got to Columbus, we're about to land, and I'm like, 'Hey, what's that white stuff all over the ground?' "

It was a brutally cold with snow flurries. Stanback crossed Ohio State off his list.

Georgia Tech was warmer, but the engineering school had a tiny percentage of females. That was not good news for Stanback, who figured he'd meet the future Mrs. Stanback in college.

"Bobby Dodd was the athletic director," Stanback said. "I asked him where the girls were. He told me to pick out a few and he'd recruit them too."

Tennessee coach Bill Battle won the Stanback sweepstakes in part because of the efforts of Volunteer boosters from Concord and Kannapolis.

"They called me out of class one day to come to the guidance office," Stanback said. "I'm wondering, 'Uh, oh, what did I do now?' "

He was greeted by two busloads of cheering Volunteer fans.

"They had these mason jars full of ketchup," Stanback said. "They said they'd give up blood if I'd come to Tennessee. It was corny, but it worked."

He never got to play defense, but in 1972 and 1973, he was Tennessee's main ballcarrier. He rushed for 1,572 yards and scored 20 TDs those two seasons.

Besides his heroics in the Gator Bowl, games with Alabama and Penn State stand out in his memory.

He rushed for 133 yards against the Crimson Tide, but mostly he remembers the battle his teammate, Salisbury's Robert Pulliam, had against Alabama All-American John Hannah.

"It was a hot day, and Robert had them icing Big John down at halftime," Stanback said. "He wore him out."

In 1971, Tennessee handed Penn State, which had Franco Harris and Lydell Mitchell, its only loss in a December game in Knoxville.

The teams were contractually obligated to meet again in Knoxville in September, 1972, but Penn State coach Joe Paterno said his team would not play that game in the Tennessee heat.

That statement led to the installation of lights at Neyland Stadium, and Stanback rolled in Tennessee's historic first night game against the Nittany Lions.

"They came down with John Cappelletti, and we thumped them again," Stanback said with satisfaction.

On perhaps his most memorable college play, Stanback stabbed a dangerous pitch from QB Condredge Holloway with his left hand on second-and-goal at the Penn State 9 and ran over tacklers to the 2. He scored the clinching TD on the next snap.

The Cincinnati Bengals drafted Stanback on the fifth round in 1974. He'd have gone higher, but he was in the hospital with the second broken wrist of his career.

"I didn't have an agent," he said. "San Diego tried to call me during the third round, but they couldn't find me."

Cincinnati played Atlanta in an exhibition game, and the Falcons saw enough that they worked out a deal with Paul Brown for him.

He stuck with the Falcons from 1974-79. His best season was 1977 when he rushed for 873 yards and added 261 receiving yards.

He remembers the bitter rivalry games with New Orleans and cherishes his games against the Washington Redskins because he's been a Redskins fan all his life.

He also remembers the individuals.

"We're playing the L.A. Rams and Hacksaw Reynolds — he's a Tennessee guy — is digging in my ribs after a tackle," Stanback said. "The whole time he's yelling, 'Yeah, Big Orange.' "

After the NFL, Stanback spent three years in sales before his Transportation and Logistics degree from Tennessee led to working for Norfolk Southern. He's steadily advanced up the ranks.

He met his wife while at Tennessee when he was sitting in a lounge nursing his injured wrist.

"I told her she didn't know it yet, but it was her lucky day," Stanback said.

Somehow that line worked, and the Stanbacks produced two daughters.

Both are both UT graduates.

"I just feel very blessed that I had the ability to go out and compete with the very best," Stanback said. "Playing in the NFL was one heck of a feeling."



Basketball history
1968 team still standard for A.L. Brown basketball

By Mike London

Kannapolis Citizen

Athletes get taller, faster and springier every year, but A.L. Brown hasn't produced a basketball team in the last 40 years that was better than the one it put on the floor in 1968.

That's the year Brown won its second straight Western North Carolina High School Activities Association title.

It's also the last time Wonder basketball players celebrated at the end of a season knowing they'd won everything there was to win.

Coach Earl Lentz, who had enjoyed a Hall of Fame baseball career at Catawba as well as modest success on the hardwood, coached a championship team in 1967 that was a Cinderella story. The Wonders lost twice in the regular season to Albemarle and finished third in the South Piedmont Conference behind Albemarle and Statesville.

The 1967 team was a smart bunch, with slick veterans Reggie Smith and Steve Lambert combining with talented young guys Dan Dayvault, Kenneth Sharpe and Vernon Long. They beat Statesville and Albemarle in the postseason when it mattered, and then they went all the way.

There wasn't anything Cinderella about the 1968 team, which won the SPC title and was never an underdog until its final game. That team simply overwhelmed people with talent night after night.

Albemarle coach Ken Frazier, who had seen his share of hoops, told the Salisbury Post in 1968 that Brown had the finest collection of high school talent he'd ever witnessed — "incredible raw material at every position on the floor."

Agility, size, speed, shooters, the Wonders had it all.

It was still Dayvault, Long and Sharpe, but now they were joined by James Lipscomb and Larry Johnson.

Lipscomb and Johnson brought serious athleticism and rebounding strength, and Dayvault, Long and Sharpe handled the ball and filled it up.

The 6-foot-1 Dayvault averaged 20 points a game, while the 6-2 Long got 15.5. Johnson averaged 11, Lipscomb 10 and Sharpe 8.5.

A few years earlier, Long, Lipscomb and Johnson would have been Carver High Blue Eagles, but times were changing, and the rapidly integrating Wonders were the beneficiaries of some of the great African-American talent that transformed the sport.

There was a game on Feb. 1, 1968, people still talk about. The Wonders went to South Rowan to play the Rebels (they wouldn't be Raiders for a while yet), and it was over almost before it started.

It was 20-0. It was 41-10 at the half. It was 52-13 early in the third when Lentz pulled the starters and turned it over to reserves led by King Hill and Robert Horton. The lead kept growing. The final was 85-35.

The bleachers were full of SPC coaches— Frazier, Salisbury Boyden's Bob Pharr, Concord's Ted Blake and Lexington's Wayne Hoover. They all left the gym knowing they were playing for second place.

Brown lost to nemesis Albemarle 62-58 in its third game that season, but it took charge of the SPC race with a dramatic 15-0 run that beat the Bulldogs 74-64 in the rematch in late January.

Brown had an 11-game winning streak broken when it ran into a hot Concord team and got hammered 67-46. There weren't any nights off in the SPC of the late 1960s.

But Brown crushed the Spiders 74-52 in the rematch a week later to start a streak that never ended. The Wonders finished 22-2.

Brown needed 28 points from Johnson and 23 from Dayvault to overcome a fired-up South team, led by Jerry Franks and Franklin Rhyne, when the teams played in Kannapolis. That 72-65 victory helped seal the SPC title.

The SPC tournament at Concord was a wild affair. No. 2 seed Albemarle was upset by No. 7 South Rowan. No. 6 Boyden knocked off No. 3 Statesville. Then Concord was eliminated by Lexington. Brown was the only favorite to survive the first day. The Wonders held off last-place Thomasville 53-49.

Brown beat Lexington in a semifinal 80-70 — the seventh time the Wonders had scored at least 80 points.

Who else but South Rowan was waiting in the final? South coach Harold Higgins had called up jayvee guards Jay Bradshaw and Johnny York late in the year, and Bradshaw's offense — he was getting 20 every night — made the Rebels a dangerous team.

Dayvault led four players in double figures, and the Wonders beat South in the championship game 71-60.

The Bi-Conference tournament in which the top two SPC finishers joined with the top two from the North Piedmont was next.

The Wonders jumped on Central Davidson 10-0 and rolled 73-53.

Brown fans anticipated a showdown with NPC top dog West Rowan, which was 19-4, but South Rowan had other plans. The Rebels drilled the Falcons. They wanted a fourth shot at the Wonders, and they got it.

Put it in the be-careful-what-you-wish-for file. Brown romped 69-49 in the Bi-Conference championship game. All five starters were in double figures.

The Wonders were one victory away from back-to-back WNCHSAA titles and they would play on their home floor, but they weren't supposed to beat Kings Mountain.

Kings Mountain had won 25 straight games. It had whipped Hickory and annihilated Crest to win the championship of the Southwestern and Northwestern conferences.

Kings Mountain had 6-foot-5, 210-pound George Adams, a celebrated leaper who would go on to be one of the great players in Gardner-Webb history. He was a third-round pick of the Milwaukee Bucks, although he opted to play instead in the ABA.

Dayvault, a senior who had a season full of phenomenal games, had another one in his final appearance. It was March 14, 1968, and he scored 25 points in front of a packed house to offset 30 by Adams.

Lipscomb scored 11, Long and Johnson got eight apiece and Sharpe scored five. Tom Miller scored six huge points and was the only reserve to dent the scorebook in a tense 63-58 victory.

Brown led by two after a quarter. It was tied at halftime. It was 44-44 heading to the fourth. Dayvault's jumper with 1:51 remaining put the Wonders on top to stay, and Johnson, Sharpe and Long hit clutch free throws late.

It was one of the great moments in A.L. Brown's rich athletic history, but the story wasn't quite done.

Eleven days later, the NPC and SPC all-stars tangled with their counterparts from the Northwestern and Southwestern conferences in the Marion Civitan Classic.

Adams scored 26 for his team, but it wasn't enough. Dayvault and Long poured in 24 points apiece to lead the Piedmont stars to a 103-93 victory.



WNCHSAA(1929-1977)
Below is a recap of the years that the WNCHSAA existed. I've often WONDERed why you didn't hear that much about past state champions. I think when you read this you will understand more of what happened in those days. Lots of great teams that would have been state champions under different circumstances. Kannapolis was a member of the WNCHSAA from the early '30s until 1977.

Many thanks to a Concord friend for making this information available.

WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA HIGH SCHOOL ACTIVITIES ASSOCIATION CHAMPIONS

The Western North Carolina High School Activities Association was founded on December 10, 1929. Charter members included Belmont, Concord, Kings Mountain, Lexington, Lincolnton, Monroe, Newton, Mooresville, Black Mountain, Cliffside, Hickory, Lenoir, Marion, Morganton, and Rutherfordton-Spindale. The WNCHSAA grew to 42 members in four conferences before it was dissolved in June of 1977 and its members joined the NCHSAA.

Only three of the 42 members failed to win a Western title in some sport during the WNCHSAA’s existence and it had some outstanding football programs in it. W.C. Clary served for many years as executive director of the organization. From 1930-1953, the WNCHSAA had two conferences; South Piedmont and Western. Round robin league schedules were not played; therefore, numerous times two teams would finish tied for the loop crown. Occasionally, a playoff was held for a particular conference, but an overall WNCHSAA title game was rarely played.

1930 Hickory and Monroe no game
1931 Hickory and Morganton no game
1932 Hickory and Newton-Conover no game*
*These two teams met late in the regular season
with Hickory winning 19-0. However, an official
title game was not played.

1933 Lexington and Newton-Conover no game
1934 Lexington and Cherryville no game
1935 Concord 39, Newton-Conover 0
1936 Winston-Salem Children's Home and
Newton-Conover no game
1937 Winston-Salem Children's Home and
Forest City no game
1938 Winston-Salem Children's Home, Lexington
and Lenoir no game
1939 Lexington and Morganton no game
1940 Lexington, Statesville and no game
Morganton
1941 Barium Springs and Morganton no game
1942 Thomasville Mills Home and
Marion no game
1943 Winston-Salem Children's Home
and Hickory no game
1944 Albemarle 19, Shelby 0
1945 Winston-Salem Children's Home and
Newton-Conover no game
1946 Albemarle and Morganton no game
1947 Winston-Salem Children's Home and
Shelby no game
1948 Statesville and Charlotte Tech no game
1949 Winston-Salem Children's Home ,
Monroe, and Lenoir no game*

*In 1947 Hickory officials inaugurated a Lions
Bowl game to be played at Lenoir-Rhyne College
featuring two of the top teams in the WNCHSAA;
one from each conference. The game was played from
1947-1950. The teams were selected several weeks before the end of
the regular season making it difficult to pick the league champion. In

1949 South Piedmont co-champion Monroe and Western
champ Lenoir battled to a 13-13 tie.
1950 Asheboro and Lenoir no game
1951 Lenoir 19, Wilkes Central 14
1952 Kannapolis and Lenoir
1953 Albemarle 7, Belmont 6
1954 Lexington and Valdese no game
1955 Albemarle and Valdese no game
1956 Lexington and Kings Mountain no game
1957 Albemarle 54, Marion 6
1958 Asheboro 33, Hickory 14
1959 Hickory 34, Albemarle 13
1960 Hickory 0, Kannapolis 0(TIE)
1961 Mooresville 13, Hickory 12
1962 Wilkes Central 14, Asheboro 7
1963 Asheboro 21, Shelby 6
1964 Thomasville 20, Hickory 13
1965 Asheboro 34, East Rutherford 7
1966 Hickory 41, Statesville 7
1967 Lexington 33, Lincolnton 12
1968 Shelby 32, Thomasville 12
1969 East Rowan 26, Shelby 21
1970 Shelby 13, Salisbury 7
1971 Salisbury 14, Belmont South Point 14(TIE)
1972 Shelby 26, Mooresville 21
1973 Salisbury 13, Boone Watauga 0
1974 Salisbury 14, Shelby 3
1975 North Davidson 21, Shelby 21 (TIE)
1976 Shelby 25, Lexington 0

More info on the WNCHSAA.....
The Western North Carolina High School Activities Association was founded on December 10, 1929. Charter members included Belmont, Concord, Kings Mountain, Lexington, Lincolnton, Monroe, Newton, Mooresville, Black Mountain, Cliffside, The Western North Carolina High School Activities Association was founded on December 10, 1929. Charter members included Belmont, Concord, Kings Mountain, Lexington, Lincolnton, Monroe, Newton, Mooresville, Black Mountain, Cliffside,Hickory, Lenoir, Marion, Morganton, and Rutherfordton-Spindale. The WNCHSAA grew to 42 members in four conferences before it was dissolved in June of 1977 and its members joined the NCHSAA. Only three of the 42 members failed to win a Western title in some sport during the WNCHSAA’s existence and it had some outstanding football programs in it. W.C. Clary served for many years as executive director of the organization. From 1930-1953, the WNCHSAA had two conferences; South Piedmont and Western. Round robin league schedules were not played; therefore, numerous times two teams would finish tied for the loop crown. Occasionally, a playoff was held for a particular conference, but an overall WNCHSAA title game was rarely played.
Source..Football2005

Other story on the old WNCHSAA.....
The WNCHSAA was formed in December 1929 (mere weeks after Concord won the state title), and it existed until June 1977. J. Eris Cassell, superintendent of the Concord City Schools, was among the Board of Directors and instrumental in the founding. There is a plaque inside the NCHSAA headquarters that spells out the charter members, I recall Belmont, Cliffside, Concord and about 20 others. Somewhere I have this written down, but not where I am right now.

Why was it formed? Long story, and I have a feeling there is more to it, but the schools felt that the NCHSAA was not being responsive to the needs of schools in the area, particularly the high schools in the towns and cities from Morganton to Winston-Salem down to Monroe. The NCHSAA at that time was very inconsistent and had some issues with administration. An early rebellion against centralized government and authority, I guess

Kannapolis was not a charter member, but they were in not too far along, can't recall the year. I expect they joined because the other city schools around them (Concord, Albemarle, Asheboro, Monroe, Mooresville, Statesville, Lexington, Thomasville, Landis, China Grove and later Salisbury) were in the WNCHSAA.

It would not be a stretch to say that there was a bit of class issue involved in the schools/communities that moved - they were the "city" schools that offered more courses and had more substantial programs, more substantial citizens and better and more athletic programs. They saw themselves as superior to the many small rural schools in their counties and preferred to play each other in a 'city' league. More appropriately a medium-sized towns league - Charlotte and Winston were never invited.

The best answer I can give for why there were periodically no WNCHSAA championships in the late 40's and sometimes in the 1950's is to compare it to the college bowl format (pre BCS). For some period of time, it was up to the champions of the Piedmont Division (SPC and NPC) and Western Division (NWC and SWC) to decide whether to play a title game. For example, I recall talking to one retired coach at Lexington who was sure that Lenoir was ducking them in the '50's. An Albemarle source (a famous one) also said, back in the mid 1950's, that the western champion said they needed to get on with basketball season...coincidentally after Albemarle had beaten them 54-6 or such the year before.

There were a few bowl games in the 1940's and 1950's. In the 1950's, the WNCHSAA Bowl was played at Lenoir-Rhyne.

Prior to that, the association AD's would select two teams to play in the Harvest Bowl. For example, my Dad's old yearbook showed that Concord and Shelby were selected in 1947 to play in the Harvest Bowl as the best teams from the Piedmont and Western, a game which Concord won. So the 1947 Spiders could consider themselves the WNCHSAA champions, although there was no playoff and thus no official champion. This happened in many years, other years the champions from the two divisions did not play. Things started getting more standard for a title game in the 1950's, but even then a team could opt out.

I don't recall when the true playoffs started. By the mid-1960's, there was a playoff format with NPC champion vs SPC champion, the winner playing the winner of the NWC-SWC champs for the title. Later, the top 2 teams from each league were added as a first-round, for a three-round playoff. For example, in 1975, Concord had to beat Lexington again (from their SPC) in round one, then the winner of the NPC champ/NPC runnerup game, and then the winner of that game played the winner of the Western Division for it all (the title tilt rotated between Western and Piedmont home game).

The membership in the WNCHSAA varied over the years originally near 30, later into the mid-40's, and then back down in the later years.

Integration, white flight from the city schools, growth of the county schools, and the smaller numbers of member schools in the 1970's did in the association, and in 1975 plans to merge with the NCHSAA were pursued and implemented at the beginning of the 1977-78 school year (my senior year).
Source...Sunset Beach


1977-2002 NCHSAA Football Champions
Kannapolis was a member of the WNCHSAA(Western North Carolina High School Athletics Association)until 1977 when they merged with the NCHSAA(North Carolina High School Athletics Association) to make one govering body for high school sports. Below are the State Champions from 1972-2002
1972-2002 NCHSAA Football Champions
1972-2002 NCHSAA Football Champions

2003-2008 NCHSAA Football Champions
2003 4A J.H. Rose 3A  South Point 2A  SW Onslow 1A  Elkin
  4AA Independence 3AA  Crest 2AA  Reidsville 1AA  Albemarle
2004 4A  J.H. Rose 3A  Concord 2A  SW Onslow 1A  Swain County
  4AA Independence 3AA Crest 2AA  Charlotte Catholic 1AA Thomasville
2005 4A J.H. Rose 3A Asheville 2A Clinton 1A Elkin
  4AA Independence 3AA Charlotte Catholic 2AA Shelby 1AA Thomasville
2006 4A J.H Rose 3A Concord 2A Burlington Cummings 1A Elkin
  4AA Independence 3AA Eastern Randolph 2AA Shelby 1AA Thomasville
2007 4AWilmington Hoggard 3A Western Alamance 2A Lincolnton  1A Plymouth
  4AA New Bern 3AA Greensboro Dudley 2AA Reidsville 1AA Warsaw Kenan
2008 4A Fayetteville 71st 3A West Rowan 2A Newton-Conover 1A Mt. Airy
  4AA Richmond County 3AA Greensboro Dudley 2AA Reidsville 1AA Thomasville
2009  4A AC Reynolds 3A West Rowan 2A Tarboro 1A Wallace-Rose Hill
  4AA Butler  3AA South Point 2AA Reidsville 1AA Albemarle 
2010         
         


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