Honoring Carson's best

A Navy Seal who was supposed to see action in the Bay of Pigs. A civil engineer who was voted as one of his college's greatest football players of all time as a write-in candidate. And a golf pro who has written a book on how to play golf with a bad back.

It's another diverse and accomplished class who will be inducted into the Carson High Football Hall of Fame when the CHS Football Boosters hold their annual dinner/street dance on Aug. 28 at Adele's.

Pat Bacon (class of 1959), Gary Bushman (class of 1968) and Billy Hoffman (class of 1984) will all be inducted this year into Carson's Hall of Fame.

Bacon was a 6-3, 250-pound monster of an athlete with great speed and size who could run the 100-yard dash in 10.3 seconds when he was at Carson. He was a four-year varsity football player and played on Carson's 1955 and 1956 state title teams.

A center and defensive end, Bacon made the all-state team in 1958 as a senior and played in what's believed the only North-South State All-Star Game in Las Vegas in 1959.

He also played three years of varsity basketball and played on the 1957 state runner-up team. He was a pitcher, catcher and first baseman in baseball and also ran the 220, 440 and hurdles and did the discus and high jump in track.

Bacon had 17 scholarship offers out of high school. "I was too proud to tell them I didn't have bus money to get there, so I joined the Navy," Bacon said.

He ended up in the Navy's elite unit, the Seals, and was supposed to take part in the Bay of Pigs, the ill-fated attempt in 1961 to overthrow Fidel Castro. Bacon understandably can't say much about what happened.

"We never really had a chance to perform," he said. "We had everything in place to go."

Bacon's continued duty included playing football and basketball at various bases. He went on to play semi-pro football for the Central Florida Broncos where he was noticed on the professional level.

"Baltimore was my favorite team," said Bacon about the Colts. "That was my boyhood dream to play for Baltimore."

While the Dallas Cowboys have received the label of being America's Team, Batimore was truly America's Team in the late 1950s.

While the Colts showed interest in Bacon, he knew Baltimore already had a great defensive end in Gino Marchetti. "I thought well I couldn't make the team," he said.

But unkown to Bacon, Marchetti was retiring and the Colts were looking at him as a possible replacement. "I didn't know it," Bacon said. "I never got a chance to play in Baltimore."

He ended up signing with the American Football League's Buffalo Bills. He went on to take over Carson City Heating and Air Conditioning, which he still owns today.

His coach at Buffalo, Lou Saban, later took over the Denver Broncos and asked him to join the team. But since Bacon was already established in business and had a family, he wanted a no-cut contract, which Denver couldn't offer.

Saban told him "I'm the coach, you're on the team," Bacon said. But Bacon passed as he did on an offer from the Oakland Raiders, which was a no-cut contract, but didn't offer as much money as Denver.

He admits he regrets not taking the offers. "I wished I would have played another three years," said Bacon on what would have qualified him for the NFL pension.

He also admits he wonders why such a large school as Carson doesn't have more success in sports like football. "I wished more of the youngsters would play ball," he said. "I know we have the kids."

Bacon is married to Linda and has two sons, Chris, who works for Landmark Homes, and Michael, who's studying for a doctorate in Scotland.

When the debate of who Carson's greatest athlete of all time is, Bushman's name is usually mentioned. He was a three-year starter and two-year all-state performer at quarterback.

During his senior year at Carson in 1967, the Senators finished as the state's No. 2 ranked team after losing in the zone finals to Wooster, who went on to win the state title. Bushman misssed most of that game with a back injury, an injury that went on to plague him throughout the rest of his athletic career.

"Who knows if it would have made a difference," Bushman said. "We had a wonderful team."

A 6-0 guard who could dunk, Bushman was a two-year all-state performer in basketball. He was a three-year starter at shortstop with a cannon of an arm in baseball. In 1968, he was the State Player of the Year for a team that finished as the state runner-up.

His career also included a record-setting performance in which he intercepted eight passes in one game at Columbia Basin Junior College in Washington and playing two years of minor league baseball in the San Francisco Giants' organization.

Bushman went on to become a golf pro and is now trying to qualify for the senior tour. He has written a book covering how to play golf with a bad back.

Hoffman was a 6-3, 215-pound tight end-defensive end for Carson, who played for the 1983 team that advanced to the zone finals under head coach Paul Croghan, who is now retired, where it lost to Reno.

He also played basektball for Pete Padgett and played in the Sertoma Football All-Star Game. He flourished at Santa Rosa Junior College where he earned All-American honors at tight end.

Hoffman went on to become a two-year starter at tight end at Wyoming. He played for Dennis Erickson as a junior and earned honorable mention All-American honors as a senior.

He was selected to play in the Hula Bowl and East-West Shrine Game, but couldn't go because he broke his arm in the Holiday Bowl. Hoffman was rated as the third best tight end coming out of college in a class that featured Oklahoma's Keith Jackson. He received interest from the Kansas City Chiefs, New York Giants and Los Angeles Rams.

Hoffman credited his coaches at Carson for his success. "I had some good coaches back then," he said. "They were player oriented.

"I've seen with coaches, it's more about winning, the win-loss record. With these coaches, it was more about fundamental coaching and teaching and the winning was secondary although we did fairly well."

When Wyoming picked its all-Century Team in 1992, Hoffman placed fourth in the voting as a write-in candidate.

"I'm sure I received a lot of help from my father, though," said Hoffman about his father, Bill Hoffman Sr.

Tickets for the dinner on Aug. 28 are $25. Music by Damage Control will be featured. Cocktails are at 5 p.m. with the dinner at 6.

The event will include a drawing and silent auction. All proceeds will go to CHS football. For more information, call 883-8627 or 882-6258.

CHS football notes: Carson has picked up an extra game to begin the season which is allowed by NIAA rules as long as a portion of the proceeds from the game goes to the NIAA. The Senators will open the season at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 27 at Moapa Valley. It's a much needed contest that will allow Carson to have one game under its belt going into its home opener at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 3 against powerhouse McQueen.