A classmate in my dorm had been a pretty decent high school running back. He earned some all LA city high school honors, but was not D1 scholarship material. But he wanted to try to walk on. So he did the walk-on tryouts. I’d guess he was about 5’10”, 185 lbs. Solid and muscular.

At the end of the tryout period there was a scrimmage with the varsity. He returned from the practice and we all asked him how he did.

He said that his first play was against the starting defense. His number was called for a pitch sweep around Patulski’s end. He said he caught the pitch and then looked to turn up field. All he saw was Patulski in his face.

He said he didn’t remember much of the rest of the scrimmage.

Our athletic director back in those days, Bill Regan, was an ND grad who appears in Knute Rockne, All American. Maybe that's how Regan got him? Maybe NIL before it had a name? Walt was a great guy then and now.

He was friends with Walt and said Walt once dove out of a window at original Senior Bar to avoid getting caught there.

At our sports dinner, Walt had to shake hands with Mr. Jiggs, a cigar-smoking chimp. Ever the good sport, Walt played along. I still do not know his true feelings about sharing the limelight with a monkey.

about 10, I wrote him a fan letter. About two weeks later, he wrote me back. Receipt of his thoughtful note was a wonderful thrill.

Walt drove about four hours each way to present me with a car leasing proposal for my company. I was pretty confident that I would agree to the terms but they were not even in the ballpark of competitive offers and had to turn him down. He handled that rejection very professionally.