Clar Lilevjen - Inducted 2004

Born May 3, 1914 in Appleton, Minn. Appleton HS. U of Minnesota. A teacher-coach-administrator in South Dakota for 40 years, Lilevjen always had his students and athletes in mind. He was executive director of the South Dakota High School Activities Association from 1977 until he retired in 1979. Lilevjen first coached and taught at Belle Fourche for 18 years and was athletic director at Watertown for 12 years before joining the SDHSAA as an assistant executive secretary in 1969. He served in that capacity until becoming executive director in 1977. He did much to promote the sport of wrestling in South Dakota. While on the staff of the SDHSAA, he served on the National Football Rules Committee, and the National Federation of State High School Associations bestowed their Award of Service on him. He also received the Distinguished Service Award from the SDHSAA. Lilevjen was respected by his fellow coaches as evidenced by the fact that he served as president of both the Black Hills Conference and the Eastern South Dakota Conference as well as the South Dakota chapter of the American Association of Health, Physical Education and Recreation and the South Dakota Coaches' Association. He is a member of the South Dakota athletic directors and coaches' halls of fame. At Minnesota, Lilevjen was an end on some outstanding Gopher football teams in the mid-1930s.