Nestled deep among the archives at Fort Scott Community College is a photo of the school’s 1994-95 basketball team.
The photo features a handful of faces familiar to local sports fans.
Korey Lankton went on from FSCC to coach at Crest and Southern Coffey County, where he’s now the head football coach. John Bahney was a Marmaton Valley High star, the same high school former FSCC student coach Travis Nelson attended.
A closer look reveals another face of a former Greyhound, who has made his mark in the world of comedy.
Jason Sudeikis, known for his work on “Saturday Night Live” and in such movies as “Horrible Bosses” and “Meet The Millers,” also was a wiz on the hardwoods, and played for Fort Scott.
Lankton recalled Sudeikis as a smooth shooting left-hander.
“He could hit from about anywhere, and he was pretty quick,” Lankton said. “His only problem was his body size. He’s filled out now, but he really didn’t have the size to keep up with the bigger college players.”
Even then, Sudeikis was known for his quick wit, Lankton said.
“Oh, he was hilarious,” Lankton said. “He’d have us rolling in practice.”
Nelson agreed, recalling one trick in particular, in which Sudeikis could seamlessly dribble from one end of the court to the other while bouncing the ball off his knee — all without breaking stride.
“At the end of practice, we’d make a big circle in the middle of the floor and everyone would start dancing,” said Nelson, who now works for an engineering firm in Austin, Texas. “The goal was to get our coach to dance, but until then, the players would take turns. Jason could hold his right foot with his left hand, then jump his left leg up and over the leg he was holding. He was always cracking jokes, or putting a humorous spin on everything. He was pretty good at basketball, too.”
Sudeikis attended high school in Overland Park before joining FSCC.
After college, he began performing at a comedy club in Kansas City before moving to Chicago, where he eventually joined the Second City’s National Touring Company.
He was hired as an “SNL” sketch writer in 2003, and became a featured performer on the show two years later.
His 10-year affiliiation with “Saturday Night Live” ended this spring, when he announced he was leaving the show.
“It’s funny, because I didn’t even realize he was on the show until I saw his picture on a billboard,” Lankton said. “It’s been years since I’ve watched ‘Saturday Night Live.’”
Nelson is thrilled to see Sudeikis thrive in the entertainment world.
“Jason was always nice to everyone he met,” Nelson said. “I never saw him get upset or have a cross word with anyone. We had some good times at FSCC and I’m happy he’s doing what he wants now and that it’s working out for him.”
Sudeikis remains an avid sports fan, regularly attending University of Kansas basketball and Kansas City Royals baseball games.
Comedian’s humble beginnings included playing hoops in SEK
