Curtis Ledbetter

1. When did you attend

LHS? What sports did you

play in high school?

During my time at Lawrence

High School I played Football

through my sophomore year

and Baseball all four years.

2. Could you tell us your best baseball story?

Stories in the game of baseball are created by a team of players

who come together with a common goal in mind, normally being a

championship. The 3 championship teams I was fortunate

enough to be a part of during my high school and college careers

all are stories in themselves. The 2000 Lawrence Lion baseball

team is probably one of the best stories in my mind though.

We had three undefeated pitchers that year; two guys who tied or

broke the school home run record at the time; first baseball team

to win a state championship since the school division; 9 seniors, 3

juniors, 5 sophomores, and 1 Adam Rock (bat boy). It was about

Coach Petry, Coach Spencer, Coach Wiles, and Coach Garvin. It

was about a group of young men, who no one really gave a

chance to win, that came together to play a game that we all

loved so dearly. It was a special year, and a special group of

people.

3. What was your most memorable LHS experience?

There are so many memories that come out of a place like

Lawrence High School, it's tough to knock it down to one. Other

than tackling Matt Wiedeman to begin the State Championship

dog pile in 2000, which turned out to be a feat in itself, there are

two games that come to mind. From a team standpoint, both

teams were 10-0 entering the double-header at Ice Field in 2000.

Shawnee Mission South was ranked #1 in the state and LHS was

ranked #2. Down by 4 runs entering the bottom of the 6th inning,

we hit a solo home run in the 6th, a solo and two-run home run in

the 7th to send the game into extras--LHS won the game in the

bottom of the 8th. On a personal note, I believe one of the most

memorable games would have to be the state semifinal game

against Wichita North and their left-handed knuckleballer. I can't

remember the final, something like 4-3, but I was a single away

from the cycle in that game against the only left-handed

knuckleballer I've ever seen.

We did go ahead and throw a 2000 Mud Volleyball

Championship in there as well--something the 6 of us I'm sure will

never forget!

4. What teacher at LHS had the greatest impact on

you?

I'd hate to name only one teacher, but know that I'll miss a

couple in here as well. I'm going to go with three teachers though

that did have great impacts on my life and career. I'm going to

start with a man I met even before my days at Lawrence High in

my Freshman year at South Junior High School. Lynn Harrod

was our Assistant Principle in 1996-1997. Every time I would see

Coach Harrod in the hallways or at lunch he would shake my

hand checking for blisters to make sure I was getting enough

swings in--he taught me work ethic without ever seeing me work

out one time.

The second man I'm going to go with was a familiar face around

LHS when I was in school, Terry Wells. Mr. Wells had a great

sense of humor, but one that few understood--I was lucky enough

to be one of the few. He taught me to write. He taught me how to

get my point across through writing. A great teacher and man!

Finally, my sophomore football coach, Greg Farley. When I

made the decision to begin concentrating on baseball only, I

thought Coach Farley was going to end me right then and there.

I'll never forget him taking me into the hallway our first day of

Math class in 1998-1999 and in the kindest words he could spit

out asked me what in the world I was doing giving up football. He

had his doubts, and those were the types of conversations that

drove me--he and I can laugh about that conversation, thankfully,

still today.

5. What college did you attend? What was your

major?

I earned by Bachelor's degree in Journalism in May of 2005

and will have finished my Master's degree in Education

Administration in December of 2012 from the University of

Nebraska-Lincoln.

6. What did you do after your college days?

After finishing up at Nebraska in 2005 I went on to be

drafted by the Seattle Mariners and spent the next 3 years playing

pro ball. I "retired" from baseball in 2008, accepted a job in the

college ranks, was married in October of 2009 to Monica, and

we've been living in Lincoln, NE since.

7. What is your current occupation?

I am currently the Director of Baseball Operations at the

University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

8. If you could do one day all over again at LHS,

what would you do?

I don't know that there would be one day in particular that I

would like to live all over again, but some of the most exciting

nights were Football Friday nights in Lawrence. I grew up a huge

Lion football fan traveling the state with my dad, Calvin, and Dan

Stoll watching numerous state champion teams play. Lawrence

High Lion athletes were my heroes growing up--I always dreamed

of being a Lion. On into my high school days, even after making

the decision not to play the sport any longer, I truly enjoyed

watching and supporting LHS football.