By DAVE KITCHELL
Tribune columnist
December 15, 2007 09:53 pm
—
Tony Gabriel wouldn’t have wanted me to write this column. He wouldn’t have wanted the attention or to be singled out as being anything special. He was most comfortable in the background, leading a quiet life.
But today, Tony can’t argue with me. He died Thursday afternoon.
That his death wasn’t unexpected after a three-year battle with cancer, hasn’t lessened its impact. Taylor High School lost its boys varsity basketball assistant coach and perhaps its greatest all-around athlete ever; Kokomo lost a longtime business owner and outstanding mentor to his young employees; all of us lost the kind of giving, humble person that makes our community a better place to raise our families.
Tony’s athletic prowess was somewhat of a secret in Kokomo because he didn’t want to thump his own chest. His success, it seemed, embarrassed him.
After winning 12 varsity letters at Taylor and playing college baseball and basketball, Gabriel found his niche when he began playing racquetball in 1978.
In just four years, he was the state’s finest singles player and by the time he retired from the sport, he’d won seven open class singles and doubles state titles, two Open Midwest Regional singles championships and had been inducted into the state association’s Hall of Fame.
Getting that information in our newspaper wasn’t as easy as one might think. Despite our pleas, Tony wouldn’t call with details of his conquests. Often it would be a friend or fellow racquetball player that would tip us off and then our job was to pry the information from Tony. The term “humble” can’t even begin to describe him.
Tony will be particularly missed in the Taylor basketball program where he was on coach Jeff Fisher’s staff the past 13 seasons. Due to his illness, he wasn’t able to begin season No. 14 last month.
Fisher said he would miss Tony as a coach and as a friend.
“He wasn’t a vocal guy, but he would pull kids over and get straight to the point — he’d tell them the way it was,” Fisher said. “He was also a detail kind of guy and he loved the game. If a player wasn’t hedging a screen correctly or getting square on his shot, he’d notice.
“From a standpoint of being my assistant, he was so good because he would tell me what I needed to hear, not necessarily what I may have wanted to hear. Over the years we had some real quality conversations about not only basketball, but life. Tony knew things about me that probably no one else knew. This is tough — we were a team.”
“Shooter” had his moment in the movie “Hoosiers” just as Tony had his in last year’s sectional when Fisher was forced to miss the game with Eastern. Taylor had twice beaten Eastern during the season and few expected their third meeting to be close. But Eastern played a slow-down style and very nearly won the game that lasted through two overtimes. Tony, in his debut as head coach, was a basket case during the game and afterward.
“That was some night,” Fisher said with a laugh. “What made Tony so nervous was that if we lost, he knew it would have been my son’s last game and I wouldn’t have been there to see it. He was just so relieved that we won and that I got to see Tyler play again. That’s where Tony’s concern was that night — with my family — and that’s what made him special.”
Tony was inducted into the Howard County Sports Hall of Fame in October and when I called him with the news of his selection there was silence on his end of the phone.
“Is this because of my illness,” he finally asked?
I explained that it absolutely wasn’t, but he never stopped questioning it. Even when he gave his induction speech he said he felt he didn’t belong with the great athletes of all time. He didn’t want his selection based on his cancer.
He was, of course, the only person that questioned the board of directors’ decision. In five years the Hall of Fame has inducted 30 men and women and no inductee has had more family and friends attend the banquet than Tony. They certainly knew he belonged.
Tony didn’t take treatment the week of the banquet so he’d be stronger when he made his induction speech. Still, it was difficult for him physically; for the audience emotionally.
There wasn’t a dry eye in the crowd when Tony exited the stage to a standing ovation. It seemed the audience sensed Tony was having his first and last moment in the spotlight and they were honored to witness it.
Dave Kitchell is the Kokomo Tribune’s sports editor. He may be reached by e-mail at dave.kitchell@kokomotribune.com
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