I remember when I moved from FL to IL around 77, at my new school the kids played “Butts Up” outside the school before it started.
Butts Up was like handball, jai alai and baseball. You threw a ball as hard as you could against a brick wall. As it rebounded, any kid would try to grab it cleanly and throw it again. If you muffed the grab, you had to run to the wall and touch it before another guy could pick up the rubber ball and blast you in the back with it. If the thrower missed you, then he had to run to the wall before he gets blasted.
Three drops/muffs, you had to go to the wall, butt facing the line of kids, and every kid got a free pitch as hard as they could to nail you.
The rumor was that the High School kids were using golf balls.
Oh my, I remember that! Sometimes we would play walk the plank version where you had to walk in front of the wall back and forth while they tried to peg you as hard as possible.