After being nominated by former THS coach Ken Crawford, Doug was elected into the 2020 Class of the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. He has been selected as a “Friend of Basketball.”
Doug was supposed to be inducted last year, but due to the COVID pandemic, that ceremony has been postponed until a later date.
“I was in awe. I kept thinking, ‘Why me?’” Doug said when asked his reaction after being notified of his selection. “It was a great feeling after it sunk in. Due to COVID, I haven’t been officially inducted yet. I’m hoping that will happen sometime this spring. But either way, I sure appreciate the recognition.”
Doug, 58, was born and raised in Teutopolis, graduating from THS in 1981. He’s the son of Joan and the late Dan Smith. He and his wife, Gail, have three daughters – Kelsey, Nikki and Molly. Doug works in the Production Department at Three Z Printing. He is in his 38th year with that company.
Opportunities to be a scorekeeper in most communities don’t come around very often. Those that “keep the book” generally do so for many years. So when Mick Deters announced he was retiring from that job at the conclusion of the 1987 season, Doug immediately contacted Lawrence Carie, who was the athletic director at THS at the time.
“I wanted to know what I needed to do so I could be the next scorekeeper,” Doug recalled. “Lawrence said, ‘You need to talk to me.’”
And as they say, the rest is history.
Doug’s been the guy with the book ever since. There were a couple years in the 90’s he only did five to six games during the season.
“My two oldest daughters were little then,” he said. “We still went to the games. I just wasn’t on the bench. It killed me not to be keeping the book, but I knew I had to take care of my young ones. After a couple years, I got back to doing it full-time.”
Doug says keeping the book “isn’t hard to do. You just have to pay attention.”
“I’m the type of guy that doesn’t get real fired up in the stands,” he explained. “I’m a big T-Town fan, but I enjoy watching how the games are played. Paying attention was never difficult for me. I’ve always been able to do that.”
Doug has a routine he follows every game. He marks the running score first and then the player that scored the points. He marks the team fouls first, then the individual player.
“At first, it was just becoming comfortable with all that had to be filled out in the book,” Doug explained.
Dick Henry has operated the clock for more than 45 years in T-Town. Years ago, before electronic backboards were installed, it was more challenging to synchronize the buzzer and the air horn, which was sometimes necessary to offset the noise level in a packed gym.
“In close games, I would count the clock down so Dick would know when to shut the clock off and sound the air horn,” Doug said. “He’d have his hand on the buzzer so the horn would go off right when the clock read 0:00. That was back before there were red lights that lit up on the backboard when the quarter was over.
“Sometimes, the big crowds were so loud you couldn’t hear the buzzer from the clock. That’s why we needed the air horn,” Doug added. “That was probably the toughest part of the job.”
Doug is well-known and well-respected throughout the area for the job he does. But there was a game in T-Town against Effingham years ago that the opposing coach wasn’t happy with him. The Hearts had gone on a scoring run and a timeout was called. THS Coach Ken Crawford actually called the timeout, but the officials inadvertently pointed toward the Effingham bench.
“Jim Maxedon accused me of cheating them out of a timeout,” Doug remembered. “He didn’t realize the official had pointed toward the Effingham bench. Even the Effingham scorekeeper had the same thing I did. The official had just pointed the wrong way.”
Doug always prefers sitting next to the other team’s scorekeeper.
“If there’s ever an issue, you can communicate with each other,” he noted. “Unfortunately, not everybody is set up so the scorekeepers can sit side-by-side. I think that’s totally wrong. I think there’s a greater chance for discrepancy. I think it’s critical that we sit next to each other.”
The best gym to sit in as a scorekeeper?
“Altamont,” Doug quickly responded. “You’re above the court so nothing is in your way. In most places, the coaches or officials are always in the way. There are times you can’t see everything happening on the court.”
Doug says scorekeepers have developed quite a camaraderie.
“Most scorekeepers have been doing it for a long time,” he said. “We’re from different schools, but we’re friends and I always like seeing them. You also develop relationships with the officials. They just expect us to do our job right and keep them out of trouble.”
Some believe there is a chance Doug will be a two-time inductee into the IBCA Hall of Fame. They believe it’s just a matter of time before he also gets selected as a coach. After all, in 17 seasons as the TJHS 7th grade boys basketball coach, he has compiled an impressive 355-76 record and won four state championships.
“That’s really never crossed my mind. I’m not in it for that,” Doug said. “Would I like to be inducted as a coach? Yes. That would be a great honor. But if I’m not, that’s okay, too.”
Doug is looking forward to just having basketball games again once the COVID pandemic is more under control. He’s looking forward to joining Rich Niebrugge (announcer), Dave Burrell (foul panel and individual scoring) and Dick Henry (clock) at the Shoes home games. Jake Burrell serves as the back-up if Doug can’t make a game for some reason.
“I really like working with those guys,” Doug admitted. “They are very good at what they do and we have a lot of fun doing it.”
He also enjoys the relationship he has with the officials.
“I always like it when they walk over after a game and say ‘you guys did a great job tonight,’” Doug said. “That always means a lot to me.”
Since Doug is now in the Hall of Fame, one thing is for certain.
He’s been told “you did a great job tonight” many times.
