SpringfieldNewsSun.com

SPRINGFIELD — Behind every point scored, every yard gained at Wittenberg University, there was Joe Clayton.

With binoculars in hand and a rule book at his fingertips, he spent countless Saturday afternoons at Wittenberg's Edwards-Maurer Field. Sports Information Director Ryan Maurer said, as far as he knows, Clayton didn't miss a home football game in nearly three decades.

In addition, Maurer estimates that Clayton tracked statistics at close to 600 home men's and women's basketball games over the years.

Clayton never asked for or received a dime for his services. He was always a volunteer, and his death Monday, March 16, at the age of 47 after a short illness robs Wittenberg of one of its biggest fans, a walking history book for the athletic department.

"I always considered myself unbelievably lucky that somebody like Joe would want to be around," Maurer said.

Clayton, a Catholic Central High School graduate and Springfield resident, worked for many years on the News-Sun sports staff, writing and also taking phone calls from coaches to get scores in the paper. He left to take a similar job at the Dayton Daily News in 2001 and worked at the Assurant Group in Springfield until his death.

Maurer had recently hired Clayton to update Wittenberg's football statistics record book — a job made for Clayton.

"He sat there for four to five hours, combing through all those books," Maurer said. "I told him just to worry about the last few years. He said, 'I think there's lots of things that are wrong.' "

That was Clayton. If you're a fan, you may have never heard of him. He did all his work behind the scenes in the press box. But his fingerprints are all over the record books — literally in many cases.

"I don't think I could have done half the stuff I did without Joe's help," said Marty Bannister, Wittenberg's radio announcer from 1992-2005 and now an announcer on the Ohio State Buckeyes Radio Network. "He was as good as anyone in what he did. It was nice to know that he was sitting over there. You could turn to him and get any information you needed at the drop of a hat. I've been doing this for a long, long time, and I can't recall a guy who cared as much and was on the money as much as he was."

Visitation for Clayton will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday at Conroy Funeral Home. A Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at St. Joseph Church.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0351 or djablonski@coxohio.com.