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CELTIC-NATION
You
were born on October 16th, 1941, in Coos Bay, Oregon. Please share some of the
memories from your childhood, and also some of the events in your life that led
you to the basketball court.
MEL COUNTS
 Growing
up in a small town of about 300-to-400 people was a real advantage and positive
for me. I had the opportunity to hunt and fish, and go to a small school. I
think one of the best coaches I ever had was my fourth, fifth and six grade
coach. Just him being a mentor and a teacher of the basic fundamentals, not to
mention his general enthusiasm and his involvement with kids, really set the
stage for the rest of my life.
There are so
many childhood memories that stand out. We lived about three miles from
Coos Bay. In grade school, we used to hitchhike to town to go to the
movies. Back then the movie houses were a little different – you had all of
the previews, you had the news, you had two serials, you had two cartoons,
and you had a double-feature, all of this for the price of one ticket. The
average movie house cost sixteen cents for a ticket, and the uptown movie
house cost a quarter. Either way, it was dark outside by the time you got
out. I remember one time when my friend and I were hitchhiking back to the
little town that I lived in, and we’re about a mile or so away when this car
stopped for us, and we got in. We drove along for a couple of blocks before
the two guys in the front seat stopped the car and asked what we were doing
in the car. Well, what happened was that they’d stopped at a stop sign and
we’d just walked over and gotten in [laughs]. They ended up giving us a
ride all the way home anyway [laughs].
I have fond
memories of growing up around Coos Bay. I have a lifetime friend that I
still hunt and fish with, this after about fifty-five years of knowing each
other. I remember the area being boom or bust, because the two primary
sources of revenue were the fishing and lumber industries. People would be
down and out when the longshoremen were on strike, and other times thing
would be going lickety-split. There were a lot of economic cycles, no doubt
about it. At one time the area was the number one exporter of lumber in the
world. Of course it’s no longer that way now.
I remember,
too, that you didn’t have to worry about your topside getting wet during a
rain – it was always your bottom, because when the rain came at you, it came
at you sideways from the wind blowing it. So that umbrella didn’t do you a
lot of good [laughs].
CELTIC-NATION
You are
the most accomplished basketball player in the history of Marshfield High
School. Please tell me a little about this period in your life.
MEL COUNTS
I
think my work ethic was the reason I was so successful – it was instilled in
me at a very early age by my mom. She always talked about things like
that. And the great coaches that I had in junior high and high school also
made a big difference. Their influence helped shaped me into a better
basketball player, and also a better person. There really is no substitute
for work ethic and for trying to do what’s right.
CELTIC-NATION
You
graduated from high school in 1960, and then signed to play collegiate
basketball at Oregon State University. As a junior, you led the Beavers to
the Final Four. Please tell me about this experience.
MEL COUNTS
I
got to play for Slats Gill. To me, he was one of the greatest college
coaches of all time He was assisted by Paul Valenti, another great coach.
I think nine of the thirteen players on that Final Four team were from
Oregon. One of them was Terry Baker, who had won the Heisman Trophy and was
also Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year. Steve Pauly was a
decathlon champion. We had people who played dual sports – two or three of
the guys were also baseball players – which I don’t think that they do quite
so much anymore.
The
experiences that I gained from playing for Slats was worth so much more than
just basketball. He was very similar to my earlier coaches, in that he
helped mold me into a better person and prepare for things that would come
later in life. In fact, some of the best times of my life were spent in
college, at Oregon State, having that college experience – not only as an
athlete, but as a student. It was a great place to grow, and to meet other
people – and not only from other parts of the country, but from other parts
of the world. It was a wonderful experience.
As for
reaching the Final Four, that was only the second time in school history
that Oregon State had done that. Slats guided the 1949 team to the Final
Four as well, so that tells you a little about his coaching ability. We
didn’t have as good a record as some of the teams in past years, but we had
a real cohesive group. And when they talk about peaking at the right time,
towards the end of the year, that’s what we did. We were ready for the
tournament. We won some games when we had to and reached the Final Four
where Cincinnati beat us. We played Duke in the consolation game and we
lost that game as well – back then you played two games if you reached the
Final Four, which they don’t do now – but it was just a wonderful
experience. Just to represent Oregon, OSU and the community was quite a
privilege, and quite an honor. Of course, the idea is to go all the way and
win it, but it just didn’t happen. The other teams were better than we
were. They deserve all of the credit for a job well done.
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