A Column For A Good Doobie
Written by: Andy Herr on July 31, 2025
For most of you, this is a site and space that you have grown accustomed to reading about high school hoops, most specifically the Lancaster-Lebanon League scene in particular. Rest assured, so long as it’s still up and running, the premise of this site will never deviate from what made it great and self-sustaining for 25, now going on 26 long and proud years of existence. That’s undoubtedly what made it great in the first place and helped contribute to its staying power while it has traversed down a litany of different pathways. Most successful, some not so much.
But, as most of you also well know, while the site started by Dell Jackson back in 1999-2000 might have originally staked it’s claim in being somewhat simple, perhaps sterile even, in that it was based on the black and whiteness of presenting stats, standings, schedules, and everything in between for the L-L basketball scene, there was far more to it than just that just nuggets and info once you dug a little deeper. To quote the man who started it all, “this all grew so much bigger” than even he could’ve imagined. So, bear with us, bear with me, as I try and explain to you — and him I suppose — as to what this site truly means beyond being so much more than just a hyperlink.
As is the case with most friends, Dell and I grew to have our own little inside lingo and terminology. For instance, like almost always calling Cocalico by its oft-butchered pronunciation (coke-a-leak-co). Fair warning, but I don’t see myself retiring that anytime soon FYI. Another term we had was “good doobie.”
What is a good doobie? You won’t find it in Webster’s necessarily. Essentially, it’s someone who’s heart is the right place, means well, and doesn’t have any sort of hidden agenda lying beneath the surface.
To those who were fortunate enough to come spin inside Dell Jackson’s orbit, regardless of the hat you knew him to best wear considering he fulfilled a variety of different roles, you know such a description of a person is the epitome of the pot calling the kettle black.
I’ll take a guess here…”I’m here with Ed Berryman. Hey buddy. L-S, league champs, place is going wild. What are your first thoughts?”
Now, who am I and were exactly do I come into this? That’s a good question. Without a great answer.
As someone who grew up going to L-L League games as a little dude, I was hooked almost right from the beginning. So let me take you back to what was just a normal afternoon while home alone from school on summer break.
There’s one day in particular that sticks out. On this day, after the likes of myself Jerry, Dustin, Perry, Akeem, Miles, Niquan (I was a huge McCaskey fan is what I’m driving at here) won what was probably our 37th state championship at the time out on the driveway, I went upstairs and went onto the internet while on the quest for even more information since it was fresh on the brain.
I don’t remember what result it was on Google. Maybe it was Yahoo? DeJazzd? I digress and it doesn’t really matter. Either way, I saw something I never had seen before in scrolling, so I clicked on it.
It wasn’t a ton mind you, but it was enough for what this junkie was seeking. Here was a roster of McCaskey. And a schedule with results. And not just them. But here’s Hempfield. There was Ephrata. Warwick too. I scoured the crap out of that thing and all it had to offer. The next state title game waiting outside would have to wait.
Now, you gotta understand. This is the early 2000’s internet we’re talking about here. Yes, the world was starting to get smaller by that time, but even this seemed a little too on the nose. It’s almost like this was something designed just for me. Looking back, oddly enough, I guess it kinda was.
Dell With Future Hoop Heads In Training
Fast forward a bit. I somewhat begrudgingly turned in my McCaskey fandom for that of a Warwick Warriors’ jersey during my high school years (he said in jest). That was the first time my name ever appeared on this website I stumbled upon a couple of years earlier called LLHoops.com while a member of the roster. Fast forward even further and I’m now sitting at a cubicle one day at my first real job out of college and I see a Twitter post from the LLHoops account essentially asking if anyone had any interest in going out to games. Well, I already was. One of the first I remember especially in this nomadic period of mine was the 2013 league semis of Donegal and McCaskey. So that was a plus. I already had a historical vested interest with some (check that, very little) street cred and name recognition within the league itself from my playing days. That’s another plus. And I’d like to think I kind of knew how to write since I was sports editor of the Warwick school paper for two years and got accepted into Nebraska’s journalism school. Although maybe that says more about them than it does me. Anyway, I sent something back and got a hit.
Admittedly, while I figured I would considering the initial premise of the question posed, I wasn’t sure what to expect waiting on the other end. Maybe it wasn’t an “empire” per se, but this was something that had a presence. Would this be the type of thing where the metaphorical gates out front would have barbed wire with big, burly security dudes waiting at the main gate? Shockingly enough, no. Honestly, if there would’ve been anything, it probably been more of a sign that said, “Hey, do us a solid and take off your shoes before entering please.” That was Dell Jackson.
Always About The Brand Recognition
I forget the original “Hey how ya doin” type things involved when it came to meeting and exchanging names and info. That stuff comes and goes. What I do remember though oddly enough was that we worked separately for quite a bit. Like maybe even upwards of a year I want to say? Correspondence would be found trading stories and game wraps from afar and conversating over Twitter. Finally, one night after one of the games up at Giant Center, we eventually met face-to-face at the hockey boards and was asked if I wanted to come tomorrow and do a game with him down on the floor.
I’m pretty sure Hanover was playing Columbia I want to say? Forgive me, this was all a blur. I was a little too geeked out from just a few hours earlier being asked the opportunity of getting down on the floor at this place. Remember that dude out on the driveway from earlier? There were a ton of arenas where the imagination had the game be played no doubt, but either old Hersheypark Arena or Giant Center probably stole the show in terms of make-believe venues played. Again, we were approaching like 40 state titles as I said.
At Warwick, we had what I believed to be two golden opportunities to play there at Giant Center during my time on the JV/Varisty ranks, both of which we promptly peter ’ed down our leg within the span of like five days. Not that I’m still sour grapes or anything about that obviously as you can tell. But now, now that I was back in the league somewhat in doing something under the LLHoops umbrella, this was the next best thing. Dell had essentially allowed me to check off a bucket list item from my youth in a very simple way. In fact, I was so nervous that I even wore long pants for the occasion– a deviation from my usual schtick of wearing shorts year-round. To this day, there are no better feeling on my sports calendar than when the road after getting in the car leads to Giant Center. In fact, I still wear pants on those days. If you know me, there is no greater amount of reverence I can physically show you than by not wearing shorts to your occasion.
Andy, Dell, And Bruce Badgley Hard At Work (Or Hardly Working) At Giant Center
Kirk Neidermyer, Bruce, Dell, And Mark Palczewski At Giant Center
Since then, there’s been so much I owe Dell a huge debt of gratitude to for over the years. Tangible things I can thank him for. Things like two trips to see Duke play (Thanks again, Brother Jon). One of which was basically first row at Cameron Indoor. That was really cool. And yes, I acknowledge and apologize if I may have unintentionally offended some die-hard Dukies reading by only calling that experience along the lines of “cool” considering you yourself would likely crawl over broken glass to make a similar trip there one day. Things like his website opening the door for a feature story to even be written about me (Thank you, Jeff Falk). For God sakes, I even have my name come up on Amazon as an author for helping Dell on his cherished 50th anniversary book detailing the L-L League. He was right. This really did blow up way bigger than he – and I — had thought.
Dell And Andy At Nebraska/Maryland In 2020
Dell And Andy At Cameron Indoor For Virginia/Duke In 2022
There are of course the other things I can’t possibly make equal to him. Chief among them, having what was essentially that blanket opportunity asked to the Twittersphere that I took him up on morphing and blossoming into what I feel is a now deep-rooted personal identifier of mine in being that other LLHoops guy. That has in turn exposed me to a circle of friends that I truly consider dear and hope that will be lifelong. It’s a great circle to run in let me tell ya. For that, there is no amount of currency or unit of measure that could possibly be made compatible.
Dell With Former Student Turned Media Colleague, Turned Co-Author, John Walk
Andy, Dell, and Mike Gross going out for the traditional post-Giant Center grub and debrief
Now, before you start to roll your eyes up there and think, “Oh great. Another puff piece written about me,” just to make sure you’re paying attention, I’m going to tell everyone a story about you that that I know I never actually told you. I hope that’s alright with you. I’m not exactly sure why I never mentioned this to you before in the years we knew each other, but I think it might be as good as time as any to help bring some much-needed levity to what has felt to be a very heavy time.
We actually met each other before we met each other. Well, sorta. Allow me to explain.
It’s January 21st, 2006. It’s a Saturday afternoon. The return game of a home-and-home series we at Warwick were fulfilling against your Donegal team from the year prior. I’m pretty sure by now that the Donegal coach is the guy running that site I have bookmarked, LLHoops.com. We were supposed to play back in December. It got snowed out. Your friend, the late Dave Porter, Mr. Tornado Alley, was there snapping pictures for his site. I so wish the gallery from that game still existed. At one point during the game, your star player, Shane Woodman (Sorry Shane for putting you on blast here), was so irked at the amount of fouls being called that he physically walks off the court, into the locker room, and then actually leaves the gym with his duffle bag in a fit of frustration a couple minutes later. Needless to say, I’m a little bit blown away by this witnessing this whole thing go down. Then, ever the player’s coach, you promptly tell the officials something I will never forget which sealed the deal on it all. “No wonder he’s leaving. Look at how you’re calling the game!” Talk about making one helluva lasting first impression. Rest assured, as someone who has seen somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,000 basketball games in his life, I still to this day have not heard another coach somehow perfectly navigate and toe that fine line between being unintentionally funny while shall we say, kindly, getting your point across to your friends, the boys in stripes, with just enough venom. Thought you’d get a kick out of that.
TJ Eck And Dell Working A Livestream Together
Now, this is where things could start to get a little rough. Maybe where the face gets a little hot and puffy, the bottom lip starts to quiver, breathing gets a little choppier. It might be because I’m getting near the end of doing what I’ve always done for you—writing pieces on the site you started…. I’m not exactly sure who I’m going to call on the drive home from games anymore after being asked, “Whatcha see tonight?” I guess that’s on me to try and figure that out… I know this year was hard. You were so looking forward to celebrating your site’s 25th anniversary leading in. The fact that this all began in that week sandwiched right between Media Day, the unofficial start of the season, and the literal start of the season, makes any plausible explanation involved here forever impossible to comprehend. You’d mention that you felt guilty and like you weren’t doing enough. To which I’d have to talk you off the ledge and say, “You know, I’m pretty sure you’re allowed a pass here, big guy.”
I know there isn’t much I can necessarily promise here, but I’ll try.
I promise I’ll do what I can to help keep this candle lit as long as I can. Maybe there’s another younger version of me out there eagerly invested. You already know this too, but I won’t half-ass it. As we always agreed, no sense in doing it if you aren’t going to use your entire posterior. And if it’s alright, I’d like to stay in touch with the family. For as gracious and welcoming as they’ve been to me without any sort of prior prejudice these past few years, I feel that’s the absolute least I can do for them.
I guess most of all, I’m just thankful. Thankful I stumbled on your site what might be 20-some years ago now to the date. Thankful you gave me an opportunity and welcomed me in. Thankful you didn’t let this whole thing get the best of you this year to where you were still able to get out and go to games while also being able to see and receive some of your deserved flowers from everyone. Thankful that the last time we saw each other we ended things just right without any loose ends with, “We’ll talk soon.”
Oh, and one more thing real quick…. Although your coaching record might leave a little bit to be desired (c’mon, you know had to get one last jab in on ya), save a spot for me. I wanna be on that team.
Rest easy, boss. Take comfort in knowing that you created something that deserves to be celebrated and appreciated. Even if it ended up exceeding anything you first thought possible.
Luv ya, bud
-Andy
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