WR Jeff Graham (official thread)

[tones3778]

Source

Crews Battle Massive Blaze at the Home of a Local Football Star

Fire crews battled a massive blaze at the home of a local football star.

Officials say a lightning strike caused the fire at Jeff Graham's home.

...

The damage is estimated at least $700,000.

 

[HabaneroBuck]

Thanks for the link and mention. I was always a Jeff Graham fan since his days at Alter when he battled the vaunted Dunbar powerhouse basketball teams on the court. Dunbar got the better of Alter when they had Baker and Haley, but I remember Graham going for 36 points or so in a loss at UD arena. He was pretty good in Columbus, too, obviously.

Surprised to see he has around a million dollars invested in a home in West Dayton, but home is home. He spent time in San Diego...I figure he would have kind of settled out there! He had some family issues here in Dayton with a sister, I believe, relating to money and cocaine. (I actually typed "here in Dayton" though I haven't lived there for seven years. Just goes to show that home is home, I guess.)

 

[Buckskin86]

Jeff Graham?s experience a good fit for Trotwood
By Marc Katz, Staff Writer
Thursday, October 1, 2009

He has been through all this before. Turmoil. Uncertainty. Yappers all around suggesting this and that.

Jeff Graham is the short-term interim football coach at Trotwood-Madison High School, taking the place for four games of Maurice Douglass, who?s being punished by his superintendent for dissing referees. In Trotwood?s first game under Graham, the Rams lost 20-13 in overtime to Springfield.

Douglass has been suspended before, for alleged recruiting violations and such, but calling out refs is blasphemy from pee-wees to the pros.

People wearing officials? clothing are the most protected species on the planet, and Douglass knows that, having been a high-level collegian at Kentucky and a pro for 11 years with the Bears and Giants.

So here?s Jeff Graham in the middle of this, and while we had an amicable chat following one of his recent practices, he wants to hold off the media for a while, no lights, cameras or tape recorders.

He has always been shy of the media, even before family troubles several years ago.

Well before, after Graham graduated from Alter High School as a two-sport star in football and basketball, he had his nose pressed against a wall of turmoil.

He couldn?t play football as a freshman at Ohio State because of a low entrance exam score. That was 1987, so he was on campus to watch the disintegration between OSU coach Earle Bruce and school president Ed Jennings.

Bruce was fired, Athletic Director Rick Bay quit and Jennings hired John Cooper as coach. That was Graham?s first year in college, so you think he?s affected by this dust-up at Trotwood?

It didn?t seem that way as I stood for more than an hour on the practice field sideline as Graham ran everything from the middle of the field, dressed in baggy sweat pants and a light tan Nike hooded sweatshirt that made him stand out.

He told players what to do, joked with a few.

?His demeanor,? said Trotwood Athletic Director James Ladd when asked why he chose Graham over other assistants and anyone else who came to mind. ?All our coaches are excellent coaches, but his demeanor is perfect for this situation.?

Graham was OSU?s best receiver between Cris Carter and Joey Galloway on so-so teams. He caught 99 passes for 1,809 yards, 13th and 11th on the school?s all-time lists.

He was even better in the pros, lasting 11 seasons with five teams, with 542 catches for 8,172 yards and 30 touchdowns, finishing after the 2001 season.

Jeff Graham’s experience a good fit for Trotwood

 

[Buckskin86]

Jeff Graham: (at OSU 1988-90) Consistent possession receiver wore No. 81 for 11 consecutive seasons, although he never spent more than three seasons with one team. Graham ended his career with 542 receptions and 8,172 yards for the Steelers, Bears, Jets, Eagles and Chargers.

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