Track Coach Joe May

I know him well. He and his wife are in Shreveport, on lake Caddo. One of the nicest men I have ever known. Did you run for, or we're you otherwise involved with the team?

This is an ancient thread but I just found it and it brought back some fond memories.

In 1969 I had just gotten out of the Army and started college at L.S.U. mostly because I could get there from Port Allen by public transportation and my G.I. bill would pay for all of it with money left over (times have changed...a lot.)

My first semester was summer school and during an orientation Joe May got up and said that he was short runners on his cross country team and that all comers were welcome. I had been a runner of modest ability in high school so I signed up.

Long story short - I stuck. I contributed in Cross Country, especially early in the season because I always came in in shape. I was never able to truly run with the big boys but I ran on the team for three years and was privileged to run at the Conference Cross Country Meets in 1969, 1970 and 1971. I graduated in three years because I had met the girl I married and needed to get a job.

I really didn't have the talent to run on the track team. We ran against a lot of studly boys back then, Leonard Hilton, Doug Brown and Gary Bjorkland to name just a few; not household words today but all of whom ran in the Olympics, in the case of Hilton more than once.

However the upgrade in coaching and competition upped my game a lot. I never broke 4:50 for the mile in high school but in the 1970 Conference Meet I ran the first mile in 4:45 en route to a 20:58 time for the four mile Montgomery Ala. course. A race in which I finished 10th...from last .

The athletic department backdoored me a scholarship my senior year as a manager though I still ran for LSU that year and ran a comparable time to my 1970 effort in 1971.

I got to know some cool people. Tommy Casanova was a true gentleman for example, John Stewart, a Baton Rouge boy and one of the best middle distance runners the state ever produced was another. I was hurt and missed track season my freshman year and I remember that "Cholly Mac" would ask how I was when he saw me even though I not only wasn't a football player but wasn't on scholarship at the time.

I made some great trips, ate some great food and made some close ties. Three guys I ran with were groomsmen in my wedding.

If we were on the road the Department of Athletics would sometimes get us tickets to football games. One memorable one was Alabama in 1970. After the meet we drove down to Legion Field. Coach May said we had tickets half way up on the 50 yard line. That was correct but it was half way up on the 50 yard line on the Alabama side . So two coaches and seven athletes in LSU travelling gear were sitting in a sea of Crimson Tide high rollers. Those Alabamians were very gracious and went out of their way to compliment the play of the Tigers. Of course beating the tide that day made it even more fun. I have had a bit of a soft spot for 'Bama since then unless of course they play the Tigers.

Coach May did have a sense of humor. He wore number 20 for the Tiger football team before Billy Cannon. It is said that walking into the stadium when Billy Cannon's number was retired he commented "Look! they retired my number." .

Those were happy days. A guy with very modest talent was able to run on big league track program for three years.... what a country.

He’s a big Trump guy. Not sure where he is or what he is doing but he’s a big donor.

Great story, beautifully told br ArtW.

Coach May and his wife spend their time now in Las Vegas mainly and also with family in Ponchatoula. The camp they had on Caddo Lake was flooded in 2015 and pretty much gutted. They came to most games last year as he still will sit in the press box. Actually was his 50th year up there. Coach May had a fall earlier in the year and broke his femur so traveling has been tough. They hope to make it in for the Florida game and rest of the Sec schedule.

Love this thread. Good stuff.