Pollock: Jeff Hazard's passing; the 'real?' reason for Beane's rant on WGR; here are the two missing Buffalo road games

By CHUCK POLLOCK, Wellsville Sun Senior Sports Columnist

Two friends alerted me to the passing of Jeff Hazard, last Friday in Saratoga Springs, and it was hard to process even though Jeff was 80.

One heads-up came from Tom McElory, the former St. Bonaventure sports information director who has gone on to several high-profile positions in collegiate athletics and is currently Director of Athletics at Rhode Island.

Tom sent me an email. The other alert was in person from Jim O’Dea, a former guidance counselor at Allegany-Limestone who taught with Jeff at Oswayo Valley High School in Shinglehouse, Pa.

Hazard was a prolific scorer at St. Peter’s Academy in Saratoga, Springs and finished with 1,275 points, then a Section II record, and long before the three-point shot was incorporated.

Jeff was recruited by Kentucky, Wake Forest and Canisius, back then a frequent NIT participant, but chose St. Bonaventure which was opening its new building, the University Center, in 1966. And he inadvertently was part of a controversy.

My late friend Chris Henzel claimed he had scored the first basket at the UC, but I believe he mixed his metaphors. The first game was between the Alfred and Bona freshman/JV teams and Chris actually scored the first bucket as a visiting player.

According to McElroy, Bona freshman Gene Fahey took credit for scoring the initial basket, but he pointed out that honor actually went to John Hayes before the building was open.

For the record, Hazard did score the first varsity basket in what is now the Reilly Center against Quincy College in 1966..

Meanwhile, O’Dea recalls Jeff, a gifted long-range shooter, inherting the nickname “Half-Court Hazard” after he made a shot from that distance to beat Fairfield at the buzzer in Madison Square Garden (92-90, winter of 1967).

USUALLY, Bills general manager Brandon Beane is a picture of poise.

But not two weeks ago Monday.

That day he tore into WGR morning host Jeremy White for criticizing Buffalo virtually ignoring wide receiver in the draft. The Bills only selected wideout Kaden Prather with a seventh-round pick they had to get via trade.

In addition, Buffalo signed free agent receivers Joshua Palmer and Laviska Shenault Jr.

But, unbeknownst to White, the Bills were negotiating with Cleveland free agent Elijah Moore though apparently the paper work wasn’t finished.

Turns out, Moore, a second-round pick by the Jets in 2021, had run an impressive 4.35, 40-yard dash at the combine that year but had struggled with the Jets and Browns. Still, he loomed as the field-stretcher Buffalo needed if he regained form but, without a signed contract, Beane wasn’t in a position to discuss it on WGR. In my mind, that frustration bubbled over into his rant.

SEVERAL alert readers noted that a piece I wrote last week on the Bills schedule was missing two road games. Turns out, a technical glitch wiped out the last line which noted visits to Atlanta and Carolina.

The complete NFL schedule will be revealed tonight on the NFL Network.

(Chuck Pollock, a Wellsville Sun and Olean Star senior sports columnist, can be reached at cpollock@wnynet.net.)

Pollock: Jeff Hazard’s passing; the ‘real?’ reason for Beane’s rant on WGR; here are the two missing Buffalo road games

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