Todd Whitsitt

From 6/8/14

One of the most gifted athletes to ever play on one of our teams was Todd Whitsitt. It almost never happened due to a decision he was rumored to be considering. This is a story that I never tire of telling.The word had gotten to me that this very talented 9th grader was going to quit school. I went to Todd and asked if it was true? When he said "yes" I asked him why? He said, "Coach I'm bored."I reminded him how important an education was, and how talented he was, and what a great future he had in basketball and we needed him.He stared at me for a while and said "I'll think about it."I then asked him if he didn't have something he would like to do with his life, maybe some dream in the future. He shocked me when he said,"I think I would like to be a doctor."I almost laughed at him, here he was threading to quit school as freshman and saying he wanted to be a doctor. The rest is history, Todd went on to be one of the best players and was one of the most intelligent to ever play for one of our teams. In Todd's senior year he averaged 32 points a game which was the highest in my 50 year career. More important Todd led us to a 27-2 record and a State Championship as he received many individual awards. He was aided by fellow senior Randy Henderson who played on a badly sprained ankle. The starting underclass men were Brad Bradley, Tony Groves, and freshman Don Holder. Todd earned a scholarship to Lagrange College where he had a 4.0 average. Then he went on to Augusta Medical School where he also had a 4.0 average. One of his medical students said that Todd set the bar in all of his classes. Today about 30 years later cardiologist Dr. Todd Whitsitt has a large staff as he practices in Fort Collins, Colorado. I called him awhile back and asked him right before he takes a heart apart if he tells the patient he almost quit school in the 9th grade? He said "NO, they don't know me that well." I said "I do, Todd, and I'm proud of you."