Former Coach Wrangles With Snake As Big As Any In SE Ind.

By Mike Perleberg Rod Ballart captured this abnormally large black rat snake at his farm in Ohio County on Monday, July 6. Photo courtesy Rand Ballart. (Ohio County, Ind.) – It might be one of the largest snakes ever caught in Eagle Country. Rod Ballart is well known as an Indiana Football Hall of Fame coach who led East Central High School to the 4A state championship in 1994. He can now add “giant snake slayer” to his list of accomplishments. Ballart was working on his Ohio County farm on Monday afternoon preparing to move a small shed building. He opened the door to the shed and was greeted by a large black rat snake coiled up and just as surprised to see him. Was Rod scared? “No. I hunt quite a bit,” he says. “There’s quite a few people out there who snakes just scare them to death. I’m not one of them.” Deciding that he didn’t want to move the shed with a big snake slithering around inside, Ballart grabbed a frog gig and speared the creature. He carefully placed it in a wood crate. The snake remained alive for more several more hours before he finished it off. Ballard claims the reptile measured close to 11 feet long. According to the National Wildlife Federation, black rate snakes – which are non-poisonous – are typically between 3 ½ to 7 feet long. “Everybody has told me that’s the biggest snake they have ever seen,” Ballart says. “Every time I show the picture peoples’ eyeballs get about as wide as they can get.” Ballart later discovered another black snake, presumably a female, hiding in the same shed. It was only about five feet long.