This morning I went into the industry-sponsored website “Brokercheck” because I was curious about one item – an anniversary date for one of my employment stints at a no-longer in business investment firm. It was a little shocking to be reminded in big, bold print that I had 33 years of experience and am licensed in 33 different states. The Big 33! You didn’t realize I had been around that long? I started very young.
My curiosity stirred, I pulled up the same information on my business partner, Peter Weintraub. Brokercheck indicated that he too had the big 33 years of experience and was licensed in 17 states. Interestingly we both had zero disclosures, meaning we each had a clean record in this sometimes not so clean industry. I was a little bit proud of that statistic.
The Big 33 is also the name for a great high school football game played in Pennsylvania each year. This annual tradition pits the best high school football players from Pennsylvania against the boys from Maryland. This year was a defensive showpiece, ending in a 9-6 victory for Maryland.
I learned about the Big 33 from a college friend who played in the game. Back then, it was the best of Pennsylvania versus the best of Ohio. Bob, who played lineman, was one of the big, tough, sturdy types from the Scranton area. He was proud to have represented the Commonwealth, but I can’t recall if Pennsylvania was victorious that year or if Ohio wound up on top. Back then, Pennsylvania and Ohio were big football powerhouses, and this remains true today.
Traditions like this game are wonderful, in my opinion. In this case, it serves as a capstone event for skilled players from neighboring states. Other traditional football games exist at the high school level – Thanksgiving day games or neighborhood rivalries like the Abington versus Cheltenham game go back decades.
Curiously enough, my partner Peter went to Cheltenham High School. I went to Abington. We’ve never been to the game together though. Maybe some day. We’ll both cheer for a good game.
Ralph McDevitt July 18, 2018
Opinions expressed in the article are those of the author and are not necessarily those of Raymond James. All opinions are as of this date and are subject to change without notice. The information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee that the foregoing material is accurate or complete. Investing involves risk and investors may incur a profit or a loss.
