Vidal, Gene
Born April 13, 1895, in Madison. 1912 Madison HS grad. 1916 USD grad. 1918 West Point grad. He participated in the 1920 and ’24 Olympic Games. At Antwerp in 1920, he finished seventh in the decathlon. He had sprained his right wrist in a car accident just before the Olympics, and any event that required […]
Weber, Dale
Dale Weber was a 1957 Delmont High School and 1961 Yankton College graduate. He was a multiple sport athlete in high school and college. Weber retired from high school basketball officiating in 1995 after a 30-year career and working more than 2,000 games, including a combined 34 boys’ and girls’ state tournaments and 21 state […]
Schwartz, Gary
An all-state football player at Wessington Springs, Schwartz was thinking about playing the sport in college. All that changed in a flash at the 1962 Howard Wood Dakota Relays. The 6-foot-1, 185-pounder’s discus throw of 190 feet, 7 1/2 inches was the best prep throw in the nation at the time that year and broke […]
Scott, James
Born April 23, 1888, in Deadwood. Scott’s family later moved to the Standing Rock Reservation west of Mobridge and then to Lander, Wyo., where he attended grade school and high school. Scott is one of the few big-leaguers ever to return to the majors as an umpire. He also was the first major-leaguer to leave […]
Smith, Gene
Born and grew up in Thomas, SD. 1947 Watertown HS grad. 1952 Huron College grad. Perhaps the greatest basketball player in the history of Huron College, Smith was one of the first South Dakotans ever drafted by an NBA team, taken by the NBA champion Minneapolis Lakers in 1952. Despite the complete loss of two […]
Templeton, Kim
A graduate of Miller High School in 1972 and Black Hills State University in 1976, Kim Templeton distinguished himself as an all-state basketball player and helped lead the undefeated Miller boys’ basketball team to the 1972 State A title. Despite Miller being the smallest school in Class A at the time, Templeton’s leadership propelled them […]
Tays, Jim “Slim Jim” & “Jumping Jim”
1950 Gettysburg/1954 USD graduate. Won 18 letters as one of SD’s best all-time basketball players and high jumpers — 4 TF letters, 4 BB and 3 FB at Gettysburg and seven (4 track and 3 BB) at USD. Left USD as its second leading scorer in history and “the greatest high school and college high […]
Retzlaff, Pete
Ellendale (N.D.) High School. 1953 SDSU grad. In 11 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles (1956-66), he played in five Pro Bowls and set Eagle records for most passes caught in a season (66) and career (452) and most receiving yards in a career (7,412). He scored 47 touchdowns. Tied with Baltimore’s Raymond Berry for most […]
Schemmel, Jeff
Jeff Schemmel was the first South Dakota native to run a sub four-minute mile (3:59.4), running for Kansas State on June 1, 1974. He was a four-time track NCAA DI All-American who anchored K-State’s distance medley relay team to the 1975 NCAA championship. He won five Big 8 Conference individual track titles and helped KSU […]
Scherr, Jim
Born July 27, 1961 in Eureka. 1980 Mobridge HS grad. 1984 Nebraska grad. On and off the mat, Scherr has been a champion of the sport of wrestling. He competed in freestyle wrestling at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, finishing fifth at 198 pounds (twin brother Bill won bronze at 220). He […]