Dewey Corn closes in on 400 consecutive football games

Dewey Corn, an alumnus, never set off to accumulate a streak of this magnitude. But good health, good fortune and unwavering loyalty kept the 85-year-old High Point resident on track. 

In November of 1975, he went to an N.C. State football contest and just happened to attend the next 60 consecutive games. He then decided to see how long he could keep it up.

Thirty-three years later, Corn has attended 389 consecutive games of his alma mater -- a statistic that includes away contests and bowls.

"It just worked out that I was able to attend the games," Corn said. 

Even family tragedies have conspired to allow Corn to prolong his streak. Cornís brother died one year in October, but it just so happened that the funeral fell on an open date.

Coincidentally, the same thing happened when his mother-in-law passed away during another season. 

And in 2003, Corn refused to let his health deter his attendance. According to family friend Mark Bost, Corn didn't even let a pneumonia scare slow him down.

"I know for a fact that he came down with pneumonia right at the start of the season," Bost said. "He probably should have been in the hospital. But he didn't go to the hospital -- he went to Raleigh two weekends in a row."

Corn downplayed the incident and said his doctor would have classified it as a ìmild caseî.

"It didn't influence my activities all that much," Corn said. "I usually try to stay in top physical condition anyways. He told me not to exert, but to just continue my normal lifestyle."

The lifestyle

1946 was a big year for Corn. He enrolled at N.C. State on the G.I. Bill after spending three years in the Navy. He married Christine, his wife of more than 62 years, with whom he has two daughters. 

He witnessed his first Wolfpack football game --a win over Duke -- in Riddick Stadium. State, coached by Beattie Feathers, went on to an 8-3 season, earning a trip to the second annual Gator Bowl.

Corn graduated in 1949 and took a teaching job before returning to State in 1952 to complete his M.S. degree in agricultural education. 

Before 1975, Corn rarely attended more than two Pack football games a year.

"My children were young at the time and I had less time to spend on athletics and the need for more money to raise the family," he said.

Though Corn is a fervent football supporter, he never played the game himself. Instead, he invested his talents into baseball and softball. 

Corn has been a resident of the High Point, N.C. area for roughly 51 years, where he's known for his pitching prowess.

"At one time, I know he was a he was a pretty mean softball pitcher," Bost said. "He played for his church team for many years. I've heard a lot of comments from people that played softball with him that he was a pretty wily pitcher back in the day."

Corn has been a Wolfpack baseball fan for many years, attending several games and NCAA tournaments. He used to own State season basketball tickets, but decided to give them up because of the nature of the basketball schedule. 

Corn is also loyal to several organizations, including the Wolfpack Club and the Alumni Association, in addition to maintaining 46 years of perfect attendance at the High Point Civitan Club. 

The Streak

During his 33-year run, Corn estimates he has traveled roughly 30,000 miles. He's traveled as far as Tucson, Ariz. to Boston, Mass., and many places in between. 

Every home game, he makes the 95-mile trip from High Point to Carter-Finley, arrives early and sits in his seat in section 27. 

He doesn't tailgate, so he stops on the way home to get a bite to eat and saves his ticket stub, a tradition he started more than a few years ago. 

And when he joins his friends on ACC road trips, there's no need to look up directions.

"He knows exactly where to stay, exactly where to park and exactly how to get there," Bost said. "He's like a human GPS system."

All the travel cost has probably added up over the years, though Corn said he can't estimate the total cost. 

His daughter used to work for United Airlines and that allowed Corn to get discounts on some travel. He estimates that he doesn't spend more than $100 on any particular away game.

"Often times, if we double up with other fans, we split the cost," Corn said. "I don't want to get the figure too high because my wife is listening. And if it gets too high she may cut my allowance or she may bill me an amount that she could spend on clothing or something of that sort."

The moments

Corn has witnessed thousands of Pack players and seen hundreds of games during his 33 years of perfect attendance. But there are just a few select ones that stand out in his mind.

The games include a few that went down to the wire.

"I remember 20 years ago we were playing South Carolina in Carter-Finley and the game ended -- except South Carolina drew a penalty," Corn said. "We fired the ball into the end zone and our player caught it. We caught the ball after time had actually expired."

A similar phenomenon happened in a game against Penn State.

"We were playing the Nittany Lions at home once and we had about a one or two point lead," Corn said. "There was about three seconds to go and they kicked a fifty some yard field goal and won the game. That knocked us out of the Gator Bowl that year."