Post Author: Jonathan Frame
In the seventies, it was not only the varsity sports that would make huge strides, but intramurals. Intramural sports had always been a big part of the campus culture; John Doe, an alum who preferred to remain anonymous, said he believed some of the top teams in the top intramural division could easily compete with the varsity athletes, and even beat some of the local colleges (Doe). The fact is, though, until the varsity athletes were fully established for Madison College, intramurals was the only option for men if they wanted to play sports. They came to be quite the impressive league, and got to the point that something formal and official was needed. There were championships already at this point, but the coordinator for intramurals was also the varsity baseball coach, and there was not enough focus on the intramural leagues (“Replaces Babcock”). A more formal athletics program was needed, even though it was something that would not be at the varsity level.
In April 1974, just before he graduated from Madison, Chuck Lockard, the student who had covered intramurals for two years, made sure his opinion was heard on what should be done (Lockard). He called for a full time student director of intramurals, as well as other students to help assist that coordinator and a committee to review what was going on with the leagues to make sure everything was operating the way it should (Lockard). He also called for officials that would be held to the highest standards and that had to take a written exam to make sure that they understood the rules. He felt that these officials should not ref in games if they were also a part of that league (Lockard). He agreed the officials should get paid, but more than anything he wanted to have unbiased officials who brought the league to its highest potential (Lockard). This writer thought the league could be great, but at the time was being restricted and kept from achieving its potential. He was obviously passionate about the idea of having a formal league.
Whether it was due to what the Breeze writer wrote or not, the following year, Madison College took the first steps in forming the formal program that Lockard sought. President Carrier hired George Toliver as the new director of intramurals, completely taking Coach Babcock out of the role, and giving it to someone who dedicated all of their time to the program (“Replaces Babcock”). John Doe recalled that George Toliver was very involved in the program already, and continued to play in it as director. Doe said Tolliver played on one of the most “hated” teams in the league– hated due to their athletic excellence (Doe). The source went on to say that intramurals really did excel thanks to Tolliver’s hiring. For many of the games, Doe remembers there being hundreds of people at the playoff games, and Godwin Hall being completely filled for the championship games (Doe). The officiating was apparently never perfect, which is not surprising, but the intramurals program “exceeded expectations.” Tolliver continued his career as director of officiating of D-League officials for the NBA, as well as officiated many worldwide contests. His daughter, Kristi Toliver, later won the championship in women’s basketball with the University of Maryland (NBA D-League).
Citations:
Chuck Lockard, “Program Needs Change,” The Breeze, April 30, 1974.
John Doe, interview by author, James Madison University, April 17, 2013. (Informant’s identity withheld at his request)
Morgan, ” Ashby- The 1973 Intramural Football Champions,” The Breeze, October 23, 1973.
NBA D-League, “NBA Development League Referee Tryout Camp: George Toliver Bio,” NBA, http://www.nba.com/dleague/predraftcamp/bio_george_toliver.html (accessed April 30, 2013).
“Replaces Babcock: Toliver to Head ’75 Intramurals,” The Breeze, September 5, 1975.