Texas Six-Man Pioneer Melvin Clements Passes

Leman Saunders

Leman Saunders

Six-man expert
Supporter
For those of you that might remember this about 6 years ago I was writing a research paper on the first schools to play six-man football in Texas and was able to locate the last surviving player from the very first game played between Sylvester and Dowell in Rotan in 1936...Melvin Clements was the starting QB for Dowell High School and I interviewed him and his wife Odessa several time over the years and became good friends with them in the process. Mrs. Clements passed away last year and Mr. Clements has struggled with health issues as well over the last year.

I wanted to let the six-man community know that Mr. Clements passed away Friday.

His services will be Monday at 2pm at the Methodist Church there in Rotan. Rotan does have a flower shop[ if anyone was inclined to order some last minute flowers for the last Pioneer that helped bring the game we all love to Texas.

Here is a link to the article the Reporter News did on us in 2009:
http://www.reporternews.com/sports/high ... 00541.html
 
Nice work Leman. Thank you for keeping us in touch with our heritage. These kind of guys won't be around much longer.
This story makes me wish we had a bonafide six-man Hall of Fame and memorabilia Center.
 
Those interviews Leman has driven all over the place to record of some of the first players of the game, as well as the interviews of more recent 'legends' are so important. I hope he gets back closer to Texas soon...

;) ;) ;)
 
Everyone should get out interview the older generations...WWII vets are going fast I am very grateful and so is my family that I recorded many of my grandfathers conversations before he passed this October. Many of the same topics I had the pleasure of talking to Mr. and Mrs. Clements about, growing up in the Dust Bowl era, going to school in rural Texas in that era and playing sports, serving in WWII, and many other topics. Stories like that are amazing to hear this day in age and I wish more people went out and recorded them to help preserve that history and those memories.
 
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