Nocona’s Number One Football Fan

 By a member of the 1967 Indian Football Team

See the barbershop memorabilia here.

All mammals, especially primates, enjoy grooming themselves and getting groomed by others.  It is an instinctive but pleasant bit of hygienic necessity.  At the top of the animal pyramid, humans have taken grooming to an all time level of fastidiousness.  The masculine symbol for grooming is the local barber shop.  Old style barber shops offer a no frills cut at a fair price that takes only 15 minutes.  But in this short period of time, the client comes out refreshed, relaxed, better looking and more informed on all the latest gossip and sports news.

The barber shop in this story may be one of the last male bastions in town.  At the exact point where Clay Street runs abruptly into HWY 82, the little shop rests just a few feet from one of the two traffic lights in Nocona.  The small building painted with school colors of orange and black was once owned by the personable Calvin Duckworth, and is now owned by the equally interesting character Wayne Jacobs.  Wayne was a Nocona Indian player in the 1980s and knows a great deal about the history of Nocona football.

This shop also caters to children because the sooner young boys breathe the barbershop ambience, then the sooner they will become good paying customers.  Older customers respect the presence of tenderfoots by toning down their rhetoric to include less controversial subjects and adjectives.  By the way, Wayne still holds to the tradition of giving a youngster a coin for the bubble gum machine.

Jacobs has turned the barbershop into a home for Nocona Indian football memorabilia.  Arguably, Wayne may be Nocona Indian Football’s number one fan. We will learn more about a few of the items decorating the shop shortly, but for now let’s reflect on how this establishment has catered to local men for many years, and how it has doubled or even tripled its masculinity rating (if there was is such a thing) with the addition of its new gridiron décor.

Of the local men who visit the barber shop, the mindset seems to be sheer the hair short. Preference for short hair could be a cultural phenomena or even an economic decision; however, the shorthaired style is back in fashion, or perhaps it never left fashion in this part of the country.  The few local men that still wear helmet hair would probably not frequent this establishment anyway even though real football helmets adorn just about every part of the shop.

Regardless, in Wayne Jacob’s establishment, men can lose their shag while at the same time reminisce about many of their macho experiences with football, which is the right-of–passage for Texas high school boys.  Football is the common denominator that unites men both young and old in this small Texas town. 

This semi-men’s club on any fall Saturday morning can dissect the Friday night football game with the help and expertise of several dozen grand stand coaches all needing a trim.  Wayne usually gives the program critics little fuel for their fire, while stressing those positive aspects of the game. Gripers usually tone down their ranting because they know the barber behind them does not really want to hear Saturday morning second-guessing.

The Saturday morning mood after a big game is like a bipolar disorder, very high after a victory, but very low after a loss.  After consecutive wins, the small shop is noticeably floating a few feet about the surrounding pavement because of all the high spirits reliving last night’s game.  When clients are not talking about the current crop of NHS footballers, they are reflecting on the glory of past performers.  This is how Wayne’s aspirations to decorate his shop with football equipment puts all his customers in such a “Friday Night Lights” inspired euphoria on an early Saturday morning.

Wayne’s collection started with one football helmet that was donated by a former NHS player and now the collection has grown to include photos, jerseys, and a signature wall.  Before local tax players blow their lids, remember that many coaches allow senior players to buy their equipment at a nominal price as mementos.

Wayne has now set aside the eastern wall of his establishment for ex-players and supporters to sign their names. His “signing wall” has attracted approximately 100 signatures, including some of the Nocona Indians’ finest athletes going back to the 1940s and 1950s.

While die-hard football supporters like Wayne Jacobs are not hard to find in Nocona, his love for the game has certainly taken on a life of its own.  Wayne is looking to get more donations of equipment in the future, as he scouts for possible sources. Certainly, if anyone has Nocona football memorabilia, the Number One Football Fan of Nocona would like to acquire it.