VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Local composer writes his second act on the basketball court
Elliot Pototsky: If you saw this man at your local gym, you wouldn’t think the first time he picked up a basketball was at 56 years old.
Dan Godfrey: I start to get in this mode where I might as well be in my teens again. Then I just forget about it and have a good time.
Pototsky: Godfrey goes to Syracuse’s Barnes Center every week, a tradition that started with an old friend many years ago.
Godfrey: I’d be the last kid picked for anything in recess and all of that. So, I’m kind of healing that when I play basketball.
Pototsky: Godfrey goes to Syracuse’s Barnes Center every week, a tradition that started with an old friend many years ago.
Bob Lee: He would see me going to the gym, and he’d see me bouncing a basketball. One day, he came up to me and said ‘I’d really like to do that too and get into it,’ and I said, ‘Well, sure, anytime you want, come on.’ And he said, ‘Alright,’ and I think the next day or the day after he was there and we went to the court and started playing.
Pototsky: As a nationally recognized music composer, Godfrey noticed that there were some similarities between his favorite profession and his new favorite sport.
Godfrey: Just making the connection between basketball and composing seems kind of odd, but really there is a connection there in terms of how the physiology and the neurology interact.
Pototsky: And he had no problem interacting with his new favorite teammates.
Milroy Stanislaus: He just comes over and goes, ‘Do you guys want to play?’ All of us were shocked because none of us actually thought we’d be playing against Dan.
Pototsky: At 76-years-old, Godfrey is proving that Father Time is just another defender to beat.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — For most people, picking up a basketball for the first time at age 56 would seem unlikely. For Dan Godfrey, it became a life-changing passion.
Today, 20 years later, the retired 76-year-old can still be found on the basketball court at Syracuse University’s Barnes Center, proving that age is just another obstacle to overcome.
“I start to get in this mode where I might as well be in my teens again,” said Godfrey, who served an eight-year term as chair of the music department at Northeastern University, following multiple roles at Syracuse University. “Then I just forget about it and have a good time.”
Basketball was not always a part of Godfrey’s life. In fact, the Skaneateles resident says sports were often a source of frustration growing up.
“I’d be the last kid picked for anything in recess and all of that,” said Godfrey. “So, I’m kind of healing that when I play basketball.”
His basketball journey began thanks to a friendship with fellow player and Syracuse University staff member Bob Lee, who remembers Godfrey approaching him after seeing him head to the gym.
“One day, he came up to me and said, ‘I’d really like to do that too and get into it,’” Lee said. “I said, ‘Well, sure, anytime you want, come on.’”
Beyond the physical benefits, Godfrey says the game connects with another lifelong passion. As a nationally recognized and active music composer, he sees similarities between creating music and playing basketball.
“Just making the connection between basketball and composing seems kind of odd, but really there is a connection there in terms of how the physiology and the neurology interact,” said Godfrey.
His enthusiasm has also helped him build friendships on the court. Fellow pickup player Milroy Stanislaus recalls being surprised when Godfrey first asked to join a game.
“All of us were shocked because none of us actually thought we’d be playing against Dan,” said Stanislaus.
For Godfrey, every game is a reminder that it is never too late to discover something new.