Special to The Citizen

There is no keeping a natural athlete down, something that John Cogar, a 2007 inductee of Auburn High School Athletic Hall of Fame, was able to prove over and over again in his career.

Cogar, a 1967 graduate of East High School, was a versatile athlete, competing in football and track and field over his four-year high school career.

In the fall of 1964, Cogar got the call up to the varsity squad after spending his freshman season with the junior varsity team.

During his sophomore year, Cogar also lettered in track and field, going to sectionals where he took second place in the sprint medley relay.

Due to health issues, Cogar missed his entire junior year but came back strong and healthy in his senior year.

And the timing couldn't have been better.

Cogar was a member of the first team Bob Adams would coach as a starting fullback, earning most outstanding fullback honors.

In the spring of 1967, Cogar again lettered in track and field and again finished second in the sprint medley relay.

His performance earned him a place in the Auburn Letterman's Club in both 1966 and 1967.

Cogar's performance on the football field also earned him the attention of many colleges, all eager to get him on their teams.

“I was recruited by numerous colleges, with full scholarship offers from Maryland, Holy Cross, UMass, etc., as well as trips and acceptance at five Ivy League schools,” Cogar said in his letter to the hall of fame.

In part because of the health problems that hampered his junior year, Cogar chose to attend the University of Rochester, where again he played football and track and field all four years of college, before graduating with a degree in biology in 1971.

Cogar was a starting halfback on the freshman squad and ran the 100, 220 and 440 relays, going undefeated on the freshman track team.

Cogar would continue this success into his sophomore year, winning bronze medals in the 110 and 220 and a gold in the 440 at the New York State College Division Championships.

As a junior halfback, Cogar proved that he was also incredibly skilled on the football field, breaking a University of Rochester record with 43 carries in one game for a total of 233 yards and four touchdowns.

During his senior year Cogar was nominated to be co-captain of the team.

“I was contacted be four NFL scouts with discussion of draft possibility if my senior year was as good as my junior year had been.,” Cogar said.

But during the second game of his senior year Cogar severely tore the medial collateral ligament of his knee and his football days were over.

But this still didn't stop his track career. Cogar went on to win silvers in the 100 and 220 and another gold in the 440 at the division championships that year.

The teams' sixth-place finish in the national finals earned them All-American honors and the teams' record of 41.4 still stands to this day.

“My senior year was not as good,” Cogar said. “As it took two to three years for my knee to come back. However, our 440-yard relay team remained undefeated in dual meet competition.”

Cogar went on to study veterinary medicine at Cornell, receiving his D.V.M. in 1975, before going on to open his own practice in 1978 in the Saranac Lake, Lake Placid region.

But Cogar did remain active in sports, competing with a local rugby team starting in 1977, playing for the next six years with a great deal of success.

It was also around this time that Cogar took an interest in bobsledding.

From 1978 to 1987, Cogar made the U.S. national team six times, competing in the world championship in 1978, 1983 and 1985.

Cogar was also in the Olympic trials in both two-man and four-man in 1980, 1984 and 1988.

Cogar said he narrowly missed making the team each time.

In 1988 after a severe crash, Cogar retired from competitive bobsledding.

Cogar also spent several years coaching the Saranac Lake High School girls' track team and was also a backfield coach for the varsity football team.

But no matter where his athletic prowess has taken him, Cogar has never forgotten Auburn.

“I am indebted and extremely grateful for the community of Auburn and all the coaches, teachers and teammates, all of which contributed to whatever professional or athletic success I have ever obtained,” Cogar said. “Auburn will always be home to me.”

If you go

What: Auburn High School Hall of Fame induction ceremony

When: 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 3

Where: Springside Inn

Tickets: Available at YMCA, Lewis Restaurant, AHS athletic office, Balloons Restaurant. Contact Dick Williams at 252-3618 for more details.