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Gold and Black Illustrated, Vol 26, Digital 4

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VOLUME 26, ISSUE 4 21 ALAN KARPICK AKarpick@GoldandBlack.com I n many ways Rick Mount hasn't changed much in 50 years. He still loves basketball and hunting. He is physically fit enough to be able to shoot hundreds of jumpers as daily exercise. He doesn't seek publicity in 2016, and he didn't in 1966 when he became the first high school athlete in a team sport to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated. In today's world, it is hard to put into words what it meant to be on the cover of a national magazine in those days. The national sports magazine. In 2016 terms, a spot on the cover of Sports Illustrated was akin to having a "30 for 30" documentary in your name or being featured for a week on "SportsCenter." Mount, who has always been the thoughtful sort, had his reasons for not wanting the attention back in '66. He knew of jealousy on the team and worried about its effect, but his high school basketball coach, Jim Rosenstihl, didn't give him the option. "He said, 'You're going to do it,' and the rest was history," Mount said. "The beat writer (Frank Deford) showed up and everywhere I went, four to five guys followed me. At one point, I did have to tell him, 'If I have to use the bathroom, you guys are not coming in with me.'" The town didn't know of the jealousy and really didn't seem to care much. COVER BOY COMES TO PURDUE Golden anniversary of SI cover produces memories Design Dan Annarino/Photo Tom Campbell Rick Mount was the first high school athlete in a team sport to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Fifty years later, he wore the same warm-up to pose for our mock cover.

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