During a ceremony held Friday, Jan. 19, at Cardington-Lincoln High School, Gary Crum, 1960 graduate, was inducted posthumously into the high school’s pre-1976 Athletic Hall of Fame. The ceremony was conducted between the reserve and varsity basketball games with East Knox.
Accepting the award for Gary, who died in 2007, was his brother-in-law, Ron Carsner. Gary’s wife, the former Dalene Carsner, was unable to travel from Kentucky to accept the award.
Crum earned numerous athletic awards in football, baseball and track during his high school career and was a member of the undefeated football team of 1959. That team went 9-0 and outscored opponents 340-38 for the season that included wins over Olentangy, Big Walnut and Mt. Gilead. There were only two divisions in football in Ohio at that time and Gary was awarded the honor of Class A first team All-Ohio and offensive back of the year.
He was recruited to play football at numerous colleges and chose Northwestern University where Hall of Fame member Ara Parseghian was the head coach. During his junior season, he was a starting wide receiver on a team which defeated then sixth-ranked Ohio State 18-14 in Ohio Stadium and defeated Miami in the Orange Bowl. Due to injury, Gary was unable to play his senior year but graduated from Northwestern in 1964.
Following college, he coached football, baseball and golf at the University of Evansville in Indiana and Murray State University in western Kentucky.
Bill Clauss, C-LHS athletic director, announced the award and a duplicate plaque was presented by Joe Mills, High School Principal, to Carsner. Carsner was also recognized as an honorable mention All Ohio Football Player in 1959. Also present and recognized was Dale Levering who played on the team with Crum.
The original plaque will hang in the school’s high school mezzanine.
