John D. Delahanty, a former Lewiston High School standout athlete who did one tour in Vietnam as a U.S. Army intelligence officer, figures he is in good company with the rest of Auburn-Lewiston Sports Hall of Fame’s finest.

Delahanty played on three Lewiston High School football championship teams, beginning his sophomore year, in 1963, ’64 and ’65. He also put on the pads for Bowdoin College, where he majored in history and government before becoming a respected attorney like his brother — Thomas E. Delahanty II, United States Attorney for the District of Maine

His interest in sports began on the playgrounds and ball parks around Lewiston and Auburn.

“There weren’t really organized teams at the time, but the first organized team I was on was in middle school,” Delahanty said. “In the ninth grade, I played basketball, but I didn’t stick with it through high school.”

Basketball was not his forte, and he did run track at Lewiston and Bowdoin — but football was his first priority.

And Delahanty continues to make sports an essential part of his life.

“It was important because it was fun. You met friends playing sports,” said Delahanty, who played center, tackle and defensive end for Lewiston. “It was a way to be outside, and as you get on years, it is fun to watch — both high school and college, and pro sports, too.

Of course, Delahanty has a great deal of empathy for lineman, but he also moolighted as place kicker in high school and at Bowdoin, which expessed interest in the Lewiston graduate.

“They were interested in me, and so were several other schools, but my grandfather went to Bowdoin, and there was some family history, so I ended up at Bowdoin,” Delahanty said. “I followed the Androscoggin River down to Brunswick and played there.”

Still in the record books

Just like his career at Lewiston, the 1970 graduate from Bowdoin played tackle, some tight end and eventually made a name for himself as the Polar Bears’ record-setting placekicker. Delahanty is still listed in Bowdoin’s record books, too. He is third all-time for points scored in a game by a kicker with 11,  fifth among kickers for points in a season with 35, and second all-time among kickers for points scored, with 80. He also owns the second-longest field goal made in school history at 43 yards.

For a time, Delahanty considered playing in the NFL, but he also had an obligation to serve his country, and he did so as as a second lieutenant before being promoted to first lieutenant.

“At the time, I received a letter of interest from the Oakland Raiders, but at that time, George Blanda was the quarterback and also the kicker, and I was in ROTC at Bowdoin, and I had a (two-year )military obligation to serve,” explained Delahanty, who didn’t see action during his tour in Vietnam. “There was action all around, but I was never engaged in a firefight over there.”

After graduating from Bowdoin, Delahanty taught for a half a year at Lewiston High School before going to work for late Maine Sen. Edmund Muskie. His life took a different path when he decided to attend law school in 1975.

Now John D. Delahanty finds himself being honored for his exploits on the gridiron. He is proud to stand with other inductees like Bill Carrigan, who played and coached for the Red Sox, and Lewiston standout athlete and umpire Jim Taylor.

“Knowing the people who have preceded me, it is humbling,” Delahanty said. “Well, really, I had a lot of help along the way. If the backs didn’t score touchdowns, I wouldn’t be kicking extra points.”