Linfield football sideline parkas thanks to former Wildcat players

This is a story about sideline parkas for the Linfield football team.

But, to get to the story’s conclusion takes mention of three Linfield football teams, three different Wildcat head coaches, three games, three states and three different seasons.

We start with the final game of 1981. Ad Rutchman was coach. Held Thanksgiving Thursday, Nov. 26, in Klamath Falls, Ore. "Kyle Tarpening connected on a 34-yard, third quarter field goal to push Linfield College to a 10-7 win over host Oregon Tech on (Thanksgiving) Thursday in (the NAIA District2) Oregon Bowl III," reported the Nov. 27, 1981, Oregonian.

It was Ad’s “100^th collegiate triumph for Linfield … in 132 games over 14 seasons…,” says the Nov. 27 Eugene Register-Guard.

One of Linfield's players was Jon Girod, father of current Linfield footballer Jeremy Girod. Jon recalls the cold. The Oregonian says the game was played after "two inches of snow deposited on the field in a Wednesday night storm."

Jon says Linfield players "woke up to unexpected snow on the ground—we all froze our tails off" during the game. Weather Underground records Klamath Falls’s low temperature that day as 29 degrees.

Next, the final game of the 2003 season. Held Saturday, Dec. 6, it was in Collegeville, Minn. Linfield, coached by Jay Locey, lost 31-25 to host St. John's in the NCAAD3 football national playoff quarterfinals. Weather Underground says it was about 28 degrees there that day. Linfield players on the sidelines wore red football parkas borrowed from McMinnville High School. See Wildcatville photo.

And, finally, to Whitewater, Wisc., for a 2013 NCAAD3 football quarterfinal game. On Saturday, Dec. 7, Linfield, coached by Joe Smith, lost to host University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, 28-17. Temperature is recorded in game statistics as 6 degrees. One of the Wildcat fans at the game was Jon Girod. See Wildcatville photo.

Jon says, "I attended the St. John's game with Steve Hoge and Gary McGarvie, both former Linfield football players and friends of mine. We all were underdressed much like the Wildcats might have been if they didn't have the McMinnville jackets.

"I thought we as alumni should help. Steve and I worked together to get parkas for the team (several years ago). We had some funding help from Gary, Steve Lopes and Tim Nacrelli. Other than Gary, we all played in the 1982 game in Klamath Falls with snow on the ground. That was the inspiration to outfit our Wildcats properly on the sidelines in cold weather games."

Jon attended the 2013 Whitewater game and saw first-hand the Wildcats using parkas funded through work he helped spearhead.

That a wrap on this story.
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Thanks to Linfield Sports Info for scanning cover of 1981 "Oregon Bowl III" football game printed program. See same cover scan as well as scan of an inside page (starting lineups) here.