Rob Stover is in his first year as Varsity Football Coach, but has eleven seasons as Assistant Coach with the Spartans to help him craft a team that is ready for on the field execution as well as focused on scholastic and community success.  Stover spoke about being devoted, relentless, and connected as a team during this week’s Rotary meeting.  He was joined by three of his five team captains who echoed the same thoughts when giving personal remarks.  Those present were Caden Ralph, Will Rosenow, and Adam Carrick.  Unable to attend were Peter Gehrig and Ben Anderson.  There will be a new quarterback this season with junior Madden Larsen taking on those duties.  Their season starts August 21 with the traditional rivalry game against DeKalb.

 

Stover noted the restructuring of rules for the number of games required to be played to qualify for IHSA playoffs finds the Spartans traveling about four hours south to the St. Louis area for a game against the Triads of Troy, Illinois this year.  Stover says the Triads are a similar sized school to Sycamore and were picked after closer schools opted not to risk losing to a historically strong Spartan team.

 

Stover says he is thrilled to be in Sycamore.  He said that the quaint downtown and families with long-term ties to the area made this just the kind of place he and his wife were looking for to raise their family.

August 10, 1874 – Herbert Hoover, the 31^st U. S. President, is born in West Branch, Iowa.  He is the first President born west of the Mississippi River.

 

August 11, 1921 – “Roots” author Alex Haley is born in Ithaca, New York.

 

August 12, 1881 – Film pioneer (“The Ten Commandments” and “The Greatest Show on Earth”) Cecil B. DeMille is born in Ashfield, Massachusetts.

 

August 13, 1860 – Folk hero Annie Oakley, known for her shooting ability, is born in Darke County, Ohio.  As a performer in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show she was known to shoot a cigar from her husband’s hand or split a playing card edge-on at thirty paces.

August 11, 1965 – Six days of riots begin in the Watts area of Los Angeles triggered by a traffic stop and subsequent fight between an African American motorist and a white member of the California Highway Patrol.  The rioting results in 34 deaths, more than 3,000 people arrested, and damage to property listed at $40 million.

 

August 14, 1935 – President Franklin Roosevelt signs the Social Security Act guaranteeing a pension supplement to workers retiring at age 65.

 

August 14, 1945 – V-J Day; President Harry Truman announces the Japanese surrender to the Allies to end World War II.

 

August 15, 1969 – The Woodstock festival began in a field near Yasgur’s Farm at Bethel, New York.  The three-day concert featured 24 rock bands and drew a crowd of more than 300,000 young people. The event came to symbolize the counter-culture movement of the 1960’s.