Ginn, Ralph
Born July 23, 1907, in Lenox, Iowa. 1925 Lenox H.S. grad. 1931 Tarkio (Mo.) College grad. Was South Dakota State football coach from 1947-68, compiling a 113-89-9 record. In his 22 years at SDSU, his teams won nine conference titles, including back-to-back-to-back titles twice (1953-55 and 1961-63). He coached Brookings High School from 1944-47, going […]
Glanzer, Burnell
The 1971 Freeman High and 1975 University of South Dakota grad was one of the most successful boys basketball coaches in state history, guiding Armour (and Tripp-Delmont/Armour) to a 617-209 record in 37 seasons. He was just the third South Dakota boys basketball coach to reach the 600-win mark. He led Armour’s Packers to a […]
Greeno, Rich
Born near Amherst, S.D. 1946 Langford HS grad. 1950 Northern State grad. A cross country and boys track coaching legend at Lincoln High in Sioux Falls, Greeno’s coaching career spanned six decades. He coached at Lincoln from 1968-90. The Patriots won 11 state cross country titles, including all but one in the 1970s, and the […]
Greeno, Rollie
The 1944 Langford High and 1950 Northern State grad coached the Milbank football team to 44 consecutive victories before embarking on a 37-year coaching career at Jamestown College. The Amherst native began his coaching career at Wessington Springs from 1950-56, coaching four sports with great success. His football teams there were 37-9-3, including a 27-game […]
Haensel, Wayne “Hawkeye”
A 1954 graduate of Walnut Grove High School (MN) and a 1959 graduate of SDSU, Haensel was an All-American, all-conference, three-year starter, and senior co-captain for the Jackrabbits, helping SDSU secure three North Central Conference Championships with a 23-11-2 record during his tenure. Drafted in the 25th round of the 1958 NFL Draft by the […]
Hansen, Elmer
Born June 13, 1905, in Kanaranzi, Minn. Luverne (Minn.) HS. 1930 Morningside College grad. Hansen was one of the state’s most successful track coaches, winning 12 state titles in his 21 years as head coach at Washington High. The Warriors’ nine consecutive state titles from 1953-61 is the best such streak in state history. While […]
Hawk, Max
Born March 19, 1933. 1951 Wessington Springs HS grad. 1957 Northern State grad. The winningest prep football coach in state history (284-78-2), Hawk coached Yankton for 30 years, ending with a perfect season and state Class 11AA title in 1994. He coached Scotland for eight years starting in 1957 before coming to Yankton in 1965. […]
Withorne, Steve
Steve Withorne arrived at Dakota Wesleyan University as a promising basketball prospect. He met all expectations, and then proved his versatility when he went out for football and excelled. Withorne earned four letters playing basketball, served as a tri-captain in 1973 and received honorable mention recognition to the 1973 all-conference team. He was instrumental in […]
Baker, Don
Don Baker graduated from Scotland High School in 1950 and the University of South Dakota at Springfield in 1954. He earned 12 letters in college at USD-S in football, basketball, and track & field. He was all-conference in football and basketball and was one of the SDIC’s top distance runners. He was also a multi-sport […]
Barnes, Don
A 1962 graduate of Notre Dame High School in Mitchell and a 1970 graduate of USD, Barnes is arguably South Dakota’s greatest tennis coach and one of its longest-tenured high school coaches, regardless of sport. His tenure with the Sioux Falls O’Gorman boys’ and girls’ tennis teams is marked by extraordinary achievements, including over 1,000 […]