Scott Bosley saves Don Plusquellic

Don Plusquellic, the aggressive, blustering former mayor of Akron, had one soft spot in his heart – for the Beacon Journal.

Honestly.

Scott Bosley

Former BJ columnist Steve Love tells the story in today’s BJ Chapter One of its series, “Football: A Plan for a Lifetime,” about the bombastic Plusquellic. It’s based on Steve’s book, “The Indomitable Don Plusquellic: How a Controversial Mayor Quarter­backed Akron’s Comeback.”

When City Series football coaches voted Plusquellic only honorable mention on the 1966 All-City Series team, former BJ managing editor Scott Bosley, then only a prep sports reporter, over-rode the vote and made Plusquellic co-first team quarterback with Tim Flossie, the coaches’ choice.

Don Plusquellic

Plusquellic was All-Ohio first team after putting on a season of aerial shows. It was unthinkable that he would be honorable mention All-City.

But the coaches were sticking it to a coach they disliked, and picking on a kid to do it.

Plusquellic’s reaction, even years later: “The Beacon saved me.”

The same Beacon that he blamed for his mayoral retirement decades later.

West Virginia University School of Journalism graduate, Keyser (West Virginia) High School Hall of Famer and former American Society of Newspaper Editors executive director Scott later became managing editor of the Detroit Free Press and today lives in retirement in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

You can check out Steve’s story in today’s BJ by clicking on http://www.ohio.com/news/local/the-indomitable-don-plusquellic-how-football-set-the-stage-for-his-political-career-1.680998