Reusse: 1960 was a most impactful year for Minnesota sports (March 26: Our "Hoosiers," Edgerton, win state tourney)

[BleedGopher]

per Pat:


March 26: Our "Hoosiers," Edgerton, win state tourney

The Edgerton basketball team was celebrated back home the Monday following its championship, getting a ride on the town fire engine.
The "Greatest Game Ever" label can be debated for Colts-Giants in 1958. What isn't worth arguing is that Minnesota has had a high school event to challenge the madness created by Edgerton, with 94 students in the top four grades, winning the state basketball tournament.

A monthlong playdown for more than 500 high schools. One class. For boys, with Title IX a dozen years in the offing.

As described above, 1960 was the meeting of what we had long embraced fanatically (including the state tourney) and what would become our sports future.

Edgerton defeated Chisholm 65-54 in Thursday night's semifinal session in Williams Arena. Attendance: 18,436.

Edgerton defeated Richfield, the Twin Cities power, 63-60 in overtime in Friday night's semifinal foul fest. Attendance: 18,812.

Finally, Edgerton defeated Austin, a perennial state power, 72-61 on Saturday night. Attendance: 19,018.

Four Dutchmen made the 10-player all-tournament team: Dean (Deuce) Verdoes, Darrell (Swish) Kreun, LeRoy (Slug) Graphenteen and Dean (Pee Wee) Veenhof. Bob Wiarda was the solid fifth starter.

Years later, Slug was standing in front of the Edgerton trophy case, with a reporter, plus Swish and Deuce, and said: "I saw that movie, 'Hoosiers,' and I said, 'That's our story.'"

1960 was a most impactful year for Minnesota sports

The Twins, the Vikings and the Gophers (baseball and football) were ready to host celebrations in 2020, in honor of the huge happenings that took place in Minnesota's sports world 60 years ago. Edgerton's Dutchmen would have been extolled once again. Then came COVID-19, the 60-year celebrations...

www.startribune.com

Go Gophers!!

 

[golf]

This is truly an amazing feat, so credit due. From a fan's perspective, would be great to go back to those one class days. Pat consistently brings this up in his columns so wouldnt be surprised if it is his all time fave sporting event.

 

[Some guy]

This is truly an amazing feat, so credit due. From a fan's perspective, would be great to go back to those one class days. Pat consistently brings this up in his columns so wouldnt be surprised if it is his all time fave sporting event.

Honestly would be nice.

Would love HS football went to 4 classes instead of the current 7. Played 9 games and only half the teams made the playoff...
All of a sudden a 5-4 season with a playoff appearance would seem like a great accomplishment rather than a 5-3 season where you lose the first playoff game to be 5-4 and everyone sees it as a failure.

Would’ve been fun to have the minnehaha teams in the big basketball playoffs

 

[golf]

Honestly would be nice.

Would love HS football went to 4 classes instead of the current 7. Played 9 games and only half the teams made the playoff...
All of a sudden a 5-4 season with a playoff appearance would seem like a great accomplishment rather than a 5-3 season where you lose the first playoff game to be 5-4 and everyone sees it as a failure.

Would’ve been fun to have the minnehaha teams in the big basketball playoffs

From a player/coach perspective i can see the multiple class option as preferred. From a fan's perspective, would greatly increase fan interest i would think if a one class system.

 

[Some guy]

From a player/coach perspective i can see the multiple class option as preferred. From a fan's perspective, would greatly increase fan interest i would think if a one class system.

Yeah. It really depends on class. I follow high school football a lot more than basketball. But I know a lot of 6a teams would much rather there be fewer classes.

anoka has a schedule with 6 of the top 20 teams in the state every year in 8 games.
Even if they manage to go 3-5...they get beat in the first round of the playoffs...finish 3-6 and everyone thinks it’s a terrible year.


would be nice to build a system where something other than the final 4 can be seen as a major accomplishment. In high school football, unless you make it to US Bank stadium most community members see it as a bad year.

 

[builtbadgers]

For those hard core basketball fans there is a book by Greg Guffey called The Greatest Basketball Story Ever Told the is the true story of Hoosiers, how truly remarkable it was. Really enjoyed the movie but the facts of who all the characters really were is far greater. Have never been a fan of the medal for everyone disease. That so many states went to multi class tourney's is pathetic in my opinion.

 

[go4rob]

I can remember that State Tournament VERY well. I think the whole State was listening or watching. Growing up in SE MN, we watched on the Rochester TV station that I think was linked in to WTCN in the Twin Cities with Frank Beutel doing the play-by-play. What an era of Minnesota sports. I also remember listening to CCO for the broadcast of the Gopher/Iowa football game that year. There was tremendous build-up for that clash at Memorial Stadium with Iowa and Minnesota both being undefeated and ranked in the top 5 in the nation, and no TV for the game. The play-by-play announcer for WCCO in 1960 was Dick Enroth, with color commentary by Halsey Hall and Bernie Biermann. What a day that was.

 

[Otis]

Richie Olson, coach of the Edgerton basketball team, was my middle school Phy Ed teacher and the Virginia High School Athletic Director. (he had kind of flamed out as a coach by then)

He threw a basketball at me as hard as he could when I told him to "lighten up" for chewing out my friend for not running hard.

What really, REALLY, pissed him off was, I caught it.

 

[Holy Man]

Richie Olson, coach of the Edgerton basketball team, was my middle school Phy Ed teacher and the Virginia High School Athletic Director. (he had kind of flamed out as a coach by then)

He threw a basketball at me as hard as he could when I told him to "lighten up" for chewing out my friend for not running hard.

What really, REALLY, pissed him off was, I caught it.

He would be suspended if not fired for such behavior today. Probably for the better, but the old ways do offer lots of lore.

 

[Some guy]

For those hard core basketball fans there is a book by Greg Guffey called The Greatest Basketball Story Ever Told the is the true story of Hoosiers, how truly remarkable it was. Really enjoyed the movie but the facts of who all the characters really were is far greater. Have never been a fan of the medal for everyone disease. That so many states went to multi class tourney's is pathetic in my opinion.

I don’t mind it in numbers based sports. We can’t have just 1 class for football.

I don’t understand why we wouldn’t for basketball. Create an environment where something short of the final 8 is still a successful season

 

[Otis]

He would be suspended if not fired for such behavior today. Probably for the better, but the old ways do offer lots of lore.

It's not like I said anything to anyone about it. I even served my hour of detention without complaint.