Ray Felton – (1992)

RAY FELTON

Raymond N. (Ray) Felton typified the term “student-athlete” before it became fashionable.

A 1970 graduate of Lorain High School, Felton, a 6’1″, 220-pound football blocking dynamo at guard and tackle, received United Press International’s Class AA (now Class AAA) Ohio Lineman of the Year Award and the LHS Booster Club George Daniel “Danny” Memorial Award for his outstanding play with the 1969 Steelmen (7-3), whose seniors won 15 straight home games.

For his strong, precision-like technique on the line in that fine ’69 season, Ray also was named to berths on the Associated Press All-Ohio, All-Buckeye Conference, All-Northeastern Ohio District, Plain Dealer Dream Team and the Cleveland Call & Post All-Star honor squads. He also garnered mention as a Prep All-America in several national publications.

“Ray was always respectful of others and he, in turn, led by example,” said retired LHS football-track mentor Doug Thompson, who disclosed he enjoyed his best two-year career coaching composite in the two sports with Ray in command. “Whether it was in the classroom, on the football field, or standing in the track shot put or discus circles, Ray’s leadership ability, especially with his younger teammates, stood out. He definitely showed the way for others with his personality, hard work and dedication — Ray was just a fine young man.”

Ray, whose 1970 shot put of 56-10 still stands as the all-time LHS record, led the Steelman spikers to two straight Class AA District cinder crowns with 56 and 76 points in 1969 and 1970, a modern school record.

Lorain, with senior Felton winning the shot put, also claimed the 1970 Buckeye Conference team runnerup track trophy, narrowly losing the title to Sandusky at Mansfield, where the Blue Streaks won the day’s mile relay finale to pass LHS with the deciding points.

Burly Ray, the only double winner in the 1970 District meet with 56-10 shot and 151-10 1/2 discus marks at Ely Stadium, went on to win the Mansfield Malabar AA Regional shot put championship and finish seventh in the state meet after barely fouling on a hefty toss which would have given him third place at Columbus.

Teaming with eventual LSHF inductee Kurt Schumacher and Cory Cunningham on three-man shot and discus relay teams in 1970, Felton, coached in his specialties by assistant Gene Kennedy, also paced the Steelmen to first or second-place finishes in major weights relays at Lorain George Daniel Field, Sandusky Strobel Field and Cleveland West Tech Field, among other track aerial launching pads.

Retired LHS Athletic Director-Lorain Sports Hall of Famer Ed Cinniger said: “I’ve seen a lot of kids come through the halls of Lorain High over the years, but he (Ray) made a real impact on me. He was a tremendous football player who was also very responsive to the sport of track, school activities and his studies, excelling in all of them.

Coach Ron Chismar of Canton McKinley High tapped Ray to play for his North squad in the 1970 Ohio North-South All-Star summer series, but Felton decided to skip the game to concentrate on his future grid career and studies at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill.

A three-year letterman during the pre-freshman-eligible days at Northwestern (he was personally recruited by Wildcat head coach Alex Agase, an ex-Cleveland Brown), Felton was a regular on better-than-usual Wildcat teams that posted respective 6-4, 7-4 and 4-7 overall records at Evanston, Ill.

With Felton breaking in as a sophomore offensive guard in 1971, Agase’s scrappy Wildcats surprised for second place with six victories in the Big 10 Conference race behind Michigan’s Wolverines, who later lost the Rose Bowl to Stanford.

Following his senior college season when he received All-Academic grid honors in the Big 10, the scholarly Felton, who graduated from Northwestern with Merit Achievement recognition in 1974 (business law major), went on to receive additional education at the General Motors Institute.

Felton then began his professional career as a management trainee with General Motors, proceeding to work his way up the ranks to the position of District Manager for GM’s Chevrolet Motors Division in the DuPage County area of Illinois. He succumbed to an unexpected heart attack at age 35 on May 28, 1987 in Darien, Ill.