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Bells' Best: Former Bellarmine basketball star and longtime Los Gatos High School English teacher Jack Cody will be among the athletes inducted in the Bellarmine Athletic Hall of Fame ceremony on April 7 at Liccardo Center. Cody was the top scorer and rebounder for the Bells when they posted a 13-1 record in 1944.

Cody joins cast in Bells' Hall of Fame

Football team, athletes, coach to be inducted

By Dick Sparrer

Jack Cody didn't make the all-league team as a senior on the Bellarmine College Preparatory basketball team, but it wasn't his fault--there was no league that year.

Cody was a senior in 1944, and because it was during the war years and Americans were rationing gas and rubber, all Catholic League play was suspended.

It made sense. At the time there was no Archbishop Mitty or Valley Christian, so the Bells had to travel to schools in Vallejo, Oakland and all over the Bay Area to play their league schedule.

So in 1944, Bellarmine played an independent schedule, facing schools that included Los Gatos, Santa Clara, Lincoln and Palo Alto. And they were pretty good, too. The Bells posted a near-perfect 13-1 record, good enough to earn a place in the Bellarmine Athletic Hall of Fame

Now, two years after his team won that honor, Jack Cody has, too. The former Bellarmine Prep star will take his place alongside the greatest athletes and coaches in the school's illustrious history.

The 37th annual Bellarmine Athletic Hall of Fame ceremony will be held April 7 at Liccardo Center on the school's campus. A 5:30 p.m. reception and 7 p.m. dinner at 7 p.m. will be followed by the induction of Cody, John Blaettler (class of 1969), Mark Callon ('86), Jono Tunner ('86), baseball coach Don Ardissone and the 1977 football team.

"This obviously means a lot to me," said Cody of his induction. "It's been a long time since I played at Bellarmine. This is all thanks to a teammate of mine--it's very exciting for me."

Cody grew up in San Jose, not all that far away from the Bellarmine campus and attended St. Patrick's Grammar School, where he first started playing basketball.

He played four years of high school basketball at Bellarmine, helping the "130s" team to a Catholic League championship in his freshman year. He went on to play three years on the varsity, playing an independent schedule because of World War II.

"I was 6-foot-2, but I could jump pretty good and I was very tenacious," said Cody. "I led the team in scoring and rebounding my senior year. That was a tremendous team."

The Bells were so good in 1944 that in 2004 they won a place in the Bellarmine Athletic Hall of Fame as a team.

"Legendary coach Denny Heenan called this squad 'the greatest team' he ever coached," according to a Bellarmine press release, and "Cody was considered the heart and soul of the team."

Teammate Jim Vaudagna wrote, "[Jack] was our force under the bucket and outplayed every opponent he faced, many of whom were bigger and bulkier."

Cody went directly into the military after his high school graduation and spent two years in the Air Force, serving in the South Pacific.

"When I got back, like most GIs when they got back, I was not really interested in athletics," said Cody, who went on to earn his teacher's credential and master's degree at San José State University. He went on to teach English for 46 years at Los Gatos High School.

His basketball in the years following high school were limited to a few years as a high school basketball referee and a few trips to the court in faculty games. He continued his participation in sports, though, as the voice of the Wildcats. He has handled the PA chores for the Los Gatos football team since Helm Field opened in the 1950s, and still continues in that role.

Cody served on the Monte Sereno City Council from 1971 through 1986, including stints as mayor in 1973, '79 and '85.

Joining Cody as individual Bellarmine athletes to be inducted on Friday night will be John Blaettler, Mark Callon and Jono Tunney.

Blaettler earned four varsity letters in swimming and played for the first Bellarmine water polo team in 1965. He was a two-time All-American swimmer in the 100-yard breaststroke and the 200 medley relay. He defeated Olympic great Mark Spitz in a dual meet against Santa Clara. Blaettler was also an All-American in water polo, earning three varsity letters in the sport. He went on to play water polo and swim at UCLA.

Callon helped the Bells win league, Central Coast Section and Northern California cross country titles in 1985. He was a two-time individual league champion and his time of 15:03 is the third fastest ever recorded at the Crystal Springs course in Belmont. His time of 9:07.2 in the 3,200 meters recorded at the 1986 state track finals still stands as a school record. He went on to run cross country at Stanford.

Tunney was a two-year starter on the Bellarmine football team and as a senior was the league's most valuable linebacker and an all-CCS pick. He started at middle linebacker for Stanford, leading the team in tackles for three straight seasons, and finished his career playing in the Blue-Gray All-Star Classic.

Don Ardissone coached at Bellarmine from 1973 to 1987 and was the varsity baseball coach from 1979 to '87. His last three teams won consecutive CCS championships, and he was named the State High School Baseball Coach of the Year in 1987.

Bellarmine's 1977 football team, coached by Walt Arnold, posted an 8-2 record and outscored opponents 390-108. The Bells scored 40 or more points in eight games with quarterback Mike Jones throwing a school record 24 touchdown passes and Troy Forte and Bill Vogel catching nine TD tosses apiece.