ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, January 21, 1997 TAG: 9701210097
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DANIEL UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
E&H COACH BOB JOHNSON says he'll stay as intense as ever, despite losing All-ODAC player Jason Light.
Emory & Henry center Jason Light scored the 1,000th point of his career Wednesday against Maryville (Tenn.).
The next day, he quit the team.
Light, a 6-foot-6 junior from Floyd County High School, is the sixth player to leave the Wasps' program this season. The same day Light stopped playing basketball, his two roommates, sophomore guard William Fickes and junior guard Garrett Noegel, also quit. All three still are enrolled in school.
A source close to the Emory & Henry program who declined to be identified said he believed Light's decision was made out of loyalty to Fickes and Noegel.
Light's departure is the biggest loss. A first-team All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference selection last season, he led the league in scoring with an 18.3-point average and was second in rebounding with an 8.4 average at the time of his departure. His 22 points in a 96-70 loss to Maryville left him with 1,010 for his career.
If he resumes his playing career, it won't be at Emory & Henry.
``An incident happened with the coach's son,'' Light said. ``Some players quit. We felt like there was a lack of respect and there was no integrity left in the team.''
Light said he did not want to comment further, but added he didn't plan on playing at another college in the future.
``We were having a problem scoring as it is,'' said Bob Johnson, Emory & Henry's coach. ``It's a huge loss. We needed his offensive punch, and we don't have it now.''
William Byrd High School graduate Donald Childress and Northside alumnus Justin Porterfield are two of the 11 remaining players on the Wasps' roster.
A source said that during a team meeting Jan.14, Fickes, a reserve who had played in nine games and saw 22 minutes of action in the Wasps' previous game, stood up and told Johnson he thought the coach had a double standard when dealing with his son, sophomore guard Casey Johnson. Fickes said Casey Johnson received preferential treatment during practice and in terms of playing time.
Casey Johnson had played in eight games this season - one fewer than Fickes and two fewer than Noegel and Light.
On Wednesday night, after the Maryville game, Casey Johnson had a physical and verbal confrontation with Noegel's father. To get away from a situation his family deemed unhealthy, Casey Johnson left school the next day.
Bob Johnson said Monday he was feeling ``really, really low,'' and was assessing his program. But he said practices have been better since the trio left and that many players have shown a renewed desire to participate in the program he has run for the past 16 seasons. It's almost as if the program is in the midst of catharsis.
Johnson has built his program and won 240 games on the basis of discipline and toughness. A veteran of two tours as a ranger in the Vietnam War, he was known for holding the majority of his practices by 6 a.m. However, he had not done that much this season, until this week.
In describing his philosophies Monday, Johnson said, ``I wanted to create this person who could read and write and who would take his hat off at a restaurant and who will also absolutely bite your face off in a contest.
``My way, you need to be physically tough and mentally tough and strong. The only way to do that, in my mind, is to put them through it. It may not be what the world wants, but it's what I want.''
Johnson said when he has discussed this situation with others, ``the conclusion's generally the same: Times have changed.''
``I've been questioning things for a long time,'' he said. ``Where are we going and how do we get there?''
The Wasps were off to a 2-10 start this season, but the slow start was understandable considering they lost five players who started at some point last season.
``We've got to learn to play hard,'' Johnson said. ``Often, we think we're doing something well and we're not. I'm loud and intense verbally, and it gets to them and sometimes they have a point. I'm willing to listen to the guys' concerns.''
LENGTH: Medium: 79 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshot) Light.by CNB