A T
H
L
E
T
E
S
A LEGACY to finish, he had no financial aid left. That’s when he learned about the fifth-year senior scholarship that Hyduke started with his fellow former football players. “I started this program of giving scholarships to individuals who are in need of a little help, individuals who had a semester or maybe a little more to go to graduate,” Hyduke says, explaining that the committee consists of Horn and fellow Pepperdine football legends Harry Nelson (’50), Rich Raymond (’56), and Gordon Weisenburger (’55). “I wanted to do something so the University never forgets that we had a football program, and it was a good one. And because I know that athletes nowadays put in a lot of time, and sometimes you just can’t take 16 units.” Barlow is the 19th recipient of the award, and the 19th to successfully graduate. “Growing up, I wanted to go to college and finish it at a major university. And, thanks to Ed, that’s what I did,” he says of his May 2008 graduation. After flipping his tassle, Barlow became the youth and family director at the YMCA in Pacific Palisades, where he was named Employee of the Year in 2008. He has come to think of Hyduke as a trusted advisor and friend. Get these two in a room together, and they can swap stories for hours. “Whenever the team traveled, we always would fly,” Hyduke tells his young protégé. “We went up to Brigham Young, to Portland, to Arizona State. That was kind of an impressive thing for a young fella.” Hyduke was a local hero for his exceptional ability to throw a pass that could find a receiver like a heat-seeking missile. A reporter for the Graphic once wrote, “He loved to pass—to toss the pigskin around until his opponents got dizzy.” During his senior year in 1950 Hyduke was named All-American among the best quarterbacks in the nation. He also represented Pepperdine as a member of the U.S. national team. “It was thrilling,” he says.
Barlow’s dream of playing professional basketball did not end with graduation. “This summer I’m gonna be trying out to play pro ball over in Spain,” he says. “Basketball is what I love to do and it’s something that I’m very good at and passionate about. If I can do it, why not try it?” Barlow says that Hyduke’s support, both financially and emotionally, has played a big role in his ability to believe in himself. “It’s really special to me. It lets me know that I’m doing something right.” Hyduke, who was a physical education
teacher and football coach for 25 years after he left Pepperdine, has had a similar impact on many of his students and athletes. And when it comes to resurrecting a football program at Pepperdine, Hyduke has that same “never-give-up attitude” that he preaches to his young athletes. “Somebody said to me, ‘They’ll never have football here again,’ and I said, ‘You know something, never is a long time. Never say never, because you never know.’”
41
PA0903047AÐ Pep Mag sp09 text_R1.indd 41
7/16/09 1:40 AM