Kevin Gilmore, killed [Click to enlarge]

The song says, "Only the Good Die Young," and in the case of Kevin Gilmore that is certainly true. "He was a wonderful young kid," said Pat Keitges, Kevin's backfield coach at McCook Junior College in 1967 and 1968. "Kevin was an outstanding, all-around leader who was respected by both players and coaches."

Even on the phone from his Aurora, Colo., home, Pat was near tears as he talked about the young man who perished in 1970 when the airplane carrying the Marshall football team crashed and burned near Huntington, W. Va.

Gregg 'Huck' Finn, spared [Click to enlarge]

Kevin and his teammates and coaches are being remembered today upon the nationwide release of "We Are Marshall," the true- life film which tells of the small town of Huntington's efforts to rebuild after the devastating plane crash.

"I will never forget the day Kevin died," Coach Keitges said. "We (the McCook College football team of 1970) were in Miami, Okla., for a game. A minute before halftime, a Miami official rushed up to me and said, "You have an emergency phone call. You can take it in the locker room."

All kinds of thoughts rushed through Pat's head as he hurried to take the call. "Has my wife or one of my kids been hurt? Or, even worse, has someone died?" The news he heard was what he least expected: "The Marshall football team plane went down today. Kevin Gilmore and Gregg Finn (another former McCook College player) may have been aboard."

In the hours which followed, Coach Keitges came to accept that Kevin had lost his life, but was relieved to discover that the other player from McCook College, Gregg "Huck" Finn, did not make the trip due to a knee injury and was thus spared.

Larry Kramer, the head coach at McCook College when Kevin first arrived on campus, was also deeply shaken by Kevin's death. "He was a great kid; a quality kid, who was very quiet but spoke volumes with his actions on and off the field. He played both ways for me, as a running back and defensive back, and gave it all he had on every down."

Kramer, who was an All-American tackle when he played at Nebraska, went from McCook to the head coaching job at Southern Oregon College. He was there when he heard the news about Kevin. Soon afterwards, he placed a call to Kevin's mother, and grieved with her during one of life's most cruel occasions: the death of a child.

"You should do something special in McCook for Kevin," Coach Kramer said. "He represents all that's good about college athletics. He was a gentleman on and off the field."

One of Coach Kramer's fondest memories is of Kevin after Indian practices. "He was dog tired, but he still would hang around to toss the ball back and forth with the neighborhood kids. They idolized him. To them, Kevin was a big college star, but he always took time to spend with them."

Dennis Frank, a 1968 graduate of McCook High School, played with Kevin and Gregg on the McCook College football teams. "Kevin was a sophomore during my freshman season at the college and Gregg was a freshman."

"The college teams in those years were very close-knit," said Dennis, who played strong tackle. He remembers Kevin as very dedicated to football and Huck, as he called Gregg, as a very onery cuss. "We didn't have much depth, so all of us had to step up, and Kevin and Gregg certainly did," said Dennis, who now owns a trucking company in Greeley, Colo.

Kevin Francis Gilmore, who was from Harrison, N.J., near Newark, attended McCook College in 1967-68 and for the fall semester of the 1968-69 term. He was named Empire All-Conference, Nebraska Juco All-Conference and Honorable Mention All-American in JC Gridwire for both the 1967 and 1968 seasons.

Gregg "Huck" Finn came to McCook College from Medfield, Mass., located near Boston. He attended McCook College in 1968-69 and 1969-70. He earned Empire Conference and Grid Wire All American first team status.

"Kevin's death changed my life," said Coach Kramer, who now lives in Emporia, Kan.

"It was the first time one of my players had been killed. It made me think about how precious life is and what's really important. Kevin stood for the things that count: family, team and loyalty. I wish he was around today. We need him. We need his example."