Doug Grzibowski, Class of 1985 (Submitted Photo)

The Norwich High School Sports Hall of Fame is happy to announce its 2024 class, which includes athletes Dr. Meyer “Sol” Bloom, Doug Grzibowski, Dave Lewis, Richard “Dick” Mattice & Bryn Loomis, Rifle Team Coach Jim Sergio & the 1965 Football Team. An in-depth biography of all inductees will run Fridays in The Evening Sun.

This year’s event will be held at the Canasawacta Country Club on October 5, where a buffet dinner, will commence at 5:30 p.m., followed by the induction ceremonies at approximately 6:30 p.m. Tickets to attend are $35 and can be purchased at the front desk of the Norwich YMCA or the Norwich High School by phoning 607-334-1600, Ext 1439. Those wishing to attend just the ceremony may do so free of charge.

Doug Grzibowski, Class of 1985

by Tom Rowe

Blessed with strength, speed and superior agility in his 6-foot-4; 220-pound frame, Doug Grzibowski in many ways was The Iron Sheik – the fictious professional wrestling character he so much liked to mimic.

While his pro wrestling hero was all papier-mâché, Doug was the real deal – as rock solid as a Sherman tank, blessed with hurling power like a howitzer and given the cat-like speed and leaping grace of a charging cheetah. All these qualities enabled him to be a one-man wrecking crew while on the football gridiron or the track and field environs thus catapulting him to be one of the newest members of the 12th annual Norwich High School Sports Hall of Fame class.

The Iron Sheik was the pseudonym used by Iranian professional wrestler Hossein Khosrow Ali Vaziri when he villainized the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) world en route to his heavyweight championship with a victory over Bob Backlund back in 1983. Prior to his years as a marquee WWF superstar, Vaziri was an AAU Greco-Roman national champion in 1971 at 180½ pounds for the Minnesota Wrestling Club.

Grzibowski, whose name may have been difficult to pronounce during his high school career, needed no alter ego, though, as he made an immediate presence whenever he stepped onto a football field or track and field oval. His name may have been slurred but the oohs and aahs that echoed from the stands after witnessing some of his superlative feats were precise in the admiration that was just foreseen.

Although an all-star football player, track and field was the environ that Doug excelled in best. And his senior spring of 1985 was a testament to just how dominant he was throughout his Southern Tier Athletic Conference competition and Section IV in general.

During the season-opening meet versus Union-Endicott on April 16, he established a new Section IV record in the discus with a gargantuan heave of 172 feet; 7 inches. That mark eclipsed the old standard of 169 feet that was set by Gary Dennis of Maine-Endwell. Grzibowski’s record-breaking toss stood for 27 years until Sam Cherney of Ithaca toppled it in 2012 with a mark of 176 feet.

He followed up that sectional record with a STAC championship heave of 159 feet; 4 ½ inches on May 24 and a Section IV title toss of 157 feet; 7 inches on June 1. Those accomplishments earned him a STAC All-Conference spot for the discus.

Besides the discus competition, Doug placed second during the STAC championships in the shot put with a heave of 51 feet; 3 inches, 1 ¼ inches shy of the winning toss, and was later named a STAC All-Division II honoree for that event.

Weights, however, were not his only forte as he won four straight triples (discus, shot put and triple jump) while engaged in dual meet competition versus U-E (April 16), Vestal (April 23), Owego (April 30) and Maine-Endwell (May 7). At the STAC championships, he placed third in the triple jump with a leap of 41 feet; 5 ¾ inches.

That multi-faceted talent was nowhere more obvious than during the Section IV championships when he was crowned decathlon champion. There he produced first-place finishes in the discus (148-9), triple jump (40-8) and 110-meter high hurdles (16.7). His winning point total of 5,782 was enhanced by his other efforts in the pole vault (8-6), 1,500 meters (5:04.3), high jump (5-7), long jump (21-0), 400 meters (55.0), 100 meters (11.7) and shot put (50-9).

“He obviously was at his best with the weights, but his natural abilities allowed him to do everything well,” recalled his fellow Norwich teammate and friend Jamie “Hawk” Edwards. “From listening to my dad’s stories of athletes from the past as well as everyone I have seen in the years since high school, Doug is clearly one of the best, if not the best, all-around track and field athlete ever at Norwich High School.

“At 6-foot-4; 225 pounds, Doug was the champion of the section for the decathlon competition held at MacArthur Park in Binghamton,” added Edwards. “Consider that for someone his size, he pole vaulted 8-6 and only did it once. And he showcased his speed with a time of 11.7 in the 100 meters.”

His previous year of track competition as a junior witnessed Grzibowski winning the Section IV discus title when he established a new NHS record fling of 151 feet; 2 inches to erase the old mark of 149-2 set by Doug Wilson back in 1971. He also won out during STAC championship play and was named to the STAC All-Conference squad in the same event, as well as being tabbed to the STAC All-Division III team for his triple jump efforts.

The chameleon Doug was as a track and field competitor was similarly manifest on the football gridiron. Able to produce prodigious heavenly heaves in the discus and shot put, while also being adept with effortless grace during hurdles and jumping events, he combined those physical attributes as a football player to be reckoned with.

“Doug could play any position in football. He was just a natural athlete with the skill to do anything,” praised Edwards. “With such size, speed and you name it, those helped him basically rise above everyone else regardless of what position he wanted to play. He was simply better than you period.”

A two-way starter for the Tornado, Grzibowski shown both offensively and defensively as the Purple produced back-to-back 6-3 records during his junior and senior autumns. As an All-STAC Division III senior all-star, he pulled in 15 passes for 222 yards from his tight end position for the best per-catch ratio of 14.8 on the Norwich team, while a year earlier he chalked up 168 yards on 35 totes (4.8 per carry) as a bruising fullback. The switch from running back to receiver was necessitated because of an injury to his upper thigh.

“I felt more comfortable at tight end because I’ve been playing there longer,” said Doug when asked if he favored the idea of being a running back instead of an end used primarily for blocking during an interview with this author concerning the 1984 Evening Sun All-County Football Team. “I’m used to the blocking aspect and therefore it was almost like being on defense.”

And defense was where he excelled as he not only was named to the All-STAC Division III squad, but was tabbed the All-County Defensive Most Valuable Player. In writing about that All-County honor, I noted “No other player in the county, and for that matter perhaps the Southern Tier League, exhibited the physical domination that ‘Grzi’ did from his defensive end position. As the front-line leader, he forced other clubs to either run away from his side or to double team him, thus allowing another Purple player to free-up on defense.”

Doug’s head football coach Dan Chrisman could not have agreed more. “Doug’s a very intelligent player and extremely tough to stop,” recalled the Norwich mentor at the time. “His defensive work speaks for itself, but he was a devastating blocker on offense and altered the game plan of many of our opponents.

“He’s got the best potential of anyone I’ve seen in this area,” continued Chrisman. “He definitely can play Division I football in college because of his outstanding size and strength.”

Following his stellar football and track career at Norwich, Doug chose to follow the former sport after matriculating at Colgate University. As a freshman starter at tight end for Coach Fred Dunlap’s 7-3-1 Red Raiders, Grzibowski caught a pair of touchdown passes during Colgate’s 45-43 loss at Army on Oct. 26. For the year, he pulled in 11 aerials for 140 yards (12.7 per catch), but his time in Hamilton was short lived as he decided to transfer to Michigan State and join his brother Chet for the 1986 season.

Forced to red shirt because of the transfer, Doug was the running back on the “look team” versus the “first team” defense. According to one of his Spartan teammates, he was very impressive – more so than any player on the roster, including wide receiver Andre Rison and running back Lorenzo White, both future NFL players. While redshirted, Doug incurred shoulder issues that ultimately ended his season.

Because of the injury, he decided to join the Army to regain all eligibility so he could return to school in the future. While in the Army infantry, Desert Storm began just a few months later. Following his discharge, Doug went back to Michigan State but never played again for the Spartans.

Today, Doug lives in Las Vegas, but all attempts to locate him have fallen through the proverbial cracks. His long-time friend “Hawk” Edwards, though, has fond memories of their years together.

“From grade school on. Doug and I were friends. He was our leader, not just because of his size, but also because he was very well liked by all our other teammates. It’s not that he would tell us what to do, but he was a gifted athlete who was very intelligent. We would just follow his example.

“He was just a lot of fun to be around. We formed a group together called the C-lunch pit, during which we had a daily get-together to do interviews. He was the captain on and off the field.”

While the pro wrestling superhero The Iron Sheik, who Doug loved to emulate, was built behind mirrors, Doug never required any sleight of hand or mischievous tricks to achieve the lofty goals he reached as a football and track star. All that he needed was home within his 6-foot-4; 220-pound frame – an iron-clad will and a steel-like body to go along with it.