Top of the Morning, Nov. 4, 2025

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Nov. 4—Serving as honorary captain for both teams at Saturday's playoff football game between host Monticello and Paris meant the world to 87-year-old Forrest Sawlaw.

"When he found out about it, he just cried," said former Monticello Mayor Chris Corrie, who pitched the idea to Monticello High athletic Dan Sheehan, who made it happen. "And he's a big burly, Marine Corps kind of guy and he just lost it. He was so happy."

A Paris grad (Class of '56) who earned a football scholarship to Kentucky, Sawlaw served as Piatt County sheriff for 24 years after moving to the area in 1978. He had sons play football for the Sages.

On Saturday, he took part in the pregame coin toss after a wonderful introduction by Monticello's public address announcer.

He enjoyed the game between his two favorite schools and seeing so many familiar faces. The Piatt County Sheriff's Office's Facebook post about Sawlaw's appearance drew countless tributes from near and far: "A special moment that brought his story full circle — from the football field in Paris to decades of leadership and service in Piatt County to the football field in Monticello"

"It was way more than anybody expected," Corrie said. "He had about 200 people come by after the coin toss to fist-bump him and say hi. It was just fantastic."

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