. . . {T}his is probably because he was from Athens County. I am not sure most students who come to Athens realize what it is like to have someone from your community do well. I am not from Athens, but from a small working class town in the northern half of the state. When on the rare occasion you do have someone who becomes a stellar athlete or a success of any kind it generates a great amount of pride and you will defend the individual at pretty much all cost. Coach Hunter played for the Plains High School right before the merger that would end up being the new building called Athens High (now in the Plains.)

Nothing like people coming from big cities, especially the East Coast disparaging Athens. I remember all too well a few students in my dorm and classes mock Athens and the people associated with the university. Thankfully they transferred up the road to Columbus, but that only makes people in Athens or any small town defend their native sons and daughters all the more.

Just imagine how the locals felt when they heard that Coach Hunter, who could have taken Kansas State's offer and moved to Power Conference school, was fired even though he was always winning close to 20 games a year. Then to add gasoline to the fire, the locals hear after a couple of years that the new coach's wife can't wait to leave Athens (I have no idea if this was true or not, but it certainly was the scuttlebutt among the athletic community.) Perhaps this is why people are very defensive concerning Coach Hunter and even Coach Solich (a Cleveland kid who still is fondly remembered as a gusty Parma Holy Name football kid.)