Marv Rasmussen - Inducted 2010

A key player on the Claremont High football team that set a national six-man record with 61 consecutive wins, Rasmussen was a standout basketball player at Northern State and an outstanding prep basketball coach as well.

The 6-2 1/2, 175-pound Rasmussen was all-state in football his last two seasons under Bill Welsh and played on teams that went 72-1. In basketball, he scored 1,991 points, twice was all-state and led the Honkers to the 1954 state "B" tourney. He was a standout hurdler and shot putter in track and was second at state in the shot put as a senior.

At Northern under Bob Wachs, he was a four-year starter, helping the Wolves win conference titles all four years and reach the NAIA national tourney three times. Said to have one of the quickest first steps in school history, he could drive to the basket against any defender. In his last game, he shot 27 free throws, which still is an NSU record for a non-overtime game. He finished with 1,102 points in his NSU career. He was second-team all-conference as a junior and first-team as a senior. He also played 1 1/2 years of football but because of injury concentrated on basketball.

Rasmussen started coaching in 1959 at Alexandria. He coached there four years, guiding the Beavers to the 1963 state "B" title. The Beavers, led by John Thomas, went 53-1 and won another state title after he left. He then coached two years at Webster, setting the stage for the Bearcats, led by Clyde Hagen, to win the 1966 state "A" title the year after he left. He started the basketball program at Aberdeen Roncalli in 1966. In his third year there, the Cavaliers qualified for the state "A" tourney.

After four years at Roncalli, he went into banking for 16 years, then moved to Oregon, where he managed a hardware company for 19 years. Upon retirement, he and his wife, Geri, moved to Langford.

After 35 years away from active coaching, Rasmussen was recruited to coach the Langford Lions. He coached Langford for four years. Like Alexandria and Webster, he again left the cupboard full as the Lions went to the state "B" tourney the next two years.

He was inducted into the Northern State Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.