By Brad Morris
SportingPumpkin.com
Whenever one of the schools I cover had a game in Logan’s Jim Myers Gymnasium, I would always make sure to arrive earlier than normal.
I made a beeline for the scorer’s table and was greeted by a handshake and smile that would have lit up the gymnasium on its own.
I would talk about the schools I cover, and he would talk about his beloved alma mater, Logan High School, that he covered for decades with class, dignity and writing style that was unique to his pen.
Our conversations would then touch on journalism and “talking shop” as we put it, our beloved Cincinnati Reds, our families and places we liked to go to, whether I would be heading to one of the state parks that Pickaway County is blessed to have or if he would take a drive to spend the afternoon at Buckeye Lake and maybe grab a bite to eat at one of the local establishments.
On Thursday morning, the Good Lord decided to make a call to the bullpen for a Hall of Fame sportswriter and brought my friend, colleague and mentor, Craig Dunn, to his eternal Heavenly Home to start covering sports at the highest level there is.
Craig was more than a colleague to the sportswriters of the Southeast District.
He was a friend.
Craig was someone you could go to for advice about our profession or everyday life.
Craig was a tremendous ambassador for the Logan Chieftains, Hocking County and the Southeast District.
He truly cared about the coaches and the young men and women he felt privileged to cover on an everyday basis when he took Logan fans behind the scenes of a win or loss and explained the backstory better than anyone else.
Over the last decade, we spent hours on the phone chatting about or brainstorming suggestions for Logan and Teays Valley, as the two schools worked together to find a new athletic home.
Logan needed a new athletic home following the demise of the Southeastern Ohio Athletic League, an association of schools that has always held a soft spot in Craig’s heart, and Teays Valley was looking to move from the Mid-State League to be part of an existing or new league that was closer to its growing enrollment that has been impacted by the growth of the Columbus metropolitan area.
Craig and I broke the story last year when Logan and Teays Valley finally found a new home together in the Ohio Capital Conference, starting in the 2024-25 school year.
Craig and I talked for over an hour on Monday night in what turned out to be our final conversation. He talked about potentially making a partial comeback, if his health allowed, for the first year that Logan would be competing in the OCC. He wanted to be there to write about the next chapter in Chieftains history.
Now, he will be covering the Chieftains’ inaugural campaign in the OCC from a skybox above Logan Chieftain Stadium.
When Craig and I had a big story, we would often proof each other’s work. There were other times when we would bounce ideas against the wall together to see what would stick.
Craig’s support and advice as I started Sporting Pumpkin and then ramped up the website last September into a full-service media website was invaluable and much appreciated.
Craig was always there to support one of his friends in any way that he could.
Thank you, Craig, for being my colleague, my mentor but, most importantly, my friend and the many laughs that we shared together over the years.
Lord, you are getting a decent and humble servant.