University of Minnesota Athletics
A Great Day for Wrestling... on the Golf Course
6/30/2015 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
With more than 150 friends and fans on-hand at Southview Country Club in West St. Paul, Gopher Wrestling hosted its 28th Annual Golf Classic on Monday afternoon. While the event is focused on raising critical funding for the wrestling program, it also offers the opportunity to celebrate the incredibly passionate people who support the program and the wrestlers who invest time, sweat and blood to help ensure the Maroon and Gold represents greatness on the mat. This year, the event honored wrestlers from Minnesota's 1977 team.
For the first several hours on Monday afternoon, the sun beamed brightly on Gopher fans. Those fans, divided into a field of 36 teams, navigated the challenging but beautiful terrain at Southview, with the winning foursome finishing the day with a score of 13-under in the scramble format tournament. Back in the clubhouse, participants were eligible for door prizes associated with performances - good and bad - at each hole on the course, as well as raffle and silent auction items. The proceeds contributed by those who participate in the event go entirely to fund the most pressing needs of Gopher Wrestling in the coming years.
Following a buffet dinner, three-time All-American Larry Zilverberg stepped to the podium and offered some of his memories about the 1977 team, for which he served as an assistant coach. Nearly four decades ago, the 1977 squad set the standard for Gopher Wrestling, finishing as runners-up in the Big Ten and fourth in the NCAA Championships. That fourth-place finish was the best in the historic, 34-year tenure of head coach Wally Johnson, and remained the best in Gopher history until J Robinson's Gophers finished third in 1997.
"That team really started it all and helped make Minnesota the elite program it's become," said Robinson during Monday night's program.
After a strong finish to the 1975-76 campaign, the '77 team entered the season with heightened expectations, ranked No. 9 in national preseason polls. The Gophers finished the regular season 16-7 , setting up a second consecutive runner-up finish at the Big Ten Championships. Six Gophers - the same six who would go on to represent Minnesota at NCAAs - turned in top-three performances at the conference meet, headlined by Mike McArthur (118) and Evan Johnson (190) winning individual titles.
Johnson entered the NCAA Championships as the defending national champion while McArthur had just one loss heading into the tournament after finishing third the year before. It was expected that both would perform well and they delivered, finishing as runners-up at their weights. Perhaps the biggest surprise of that tournament - for any team - was Pat Neu (134), an unseeded entrant who put together a tremendous run and claimed the 1977 national title. In addition to that trio, Jim Menne (158), Jim Lunde (167) and Tom Press (177) all not only reached the national stage after strong performances at Big Tens, but each won at least one match - a total of six wins combined - to contribute to the team's score and position the U of M for a top-five finish.
Minnesota's full roster for that season included: Brian Ayers, James Becker, Terry Berthiaume, David Brancale, Ronald Brown, Anthony Cecere, Steve Egesdal, Jonathan Friedlieb, James Hansen, Jeffrey Hermann, Victor Janowiec, Bruce Johnson, Evan Johnson, Michael Kalmon, Gene Kostreba, Jon LaFleur, Joe Lief, James Lunde, Michael McArthur, James Menne, Patrick Neu, Mark Obrycki, Paul Olson, Thomas Press, Kenneth Saba, Robert Schandle, Rick Schiefelbein, Bryon Schroeder, Gene Shaw, Joseph Zemien, Daniel Zilverberg.
Initial planning for next year's Gopher Wrestling Golf Classic has already begun. Don't miss your opportunity to support your favorite wrestling team and be a part of all the fun. Stay tuned to GopherSports.com and follow Gopher Wrestling on Facebook and Twitter for the latest news on next year's tournament as the event date draws closer.
