George Pasero wrote about
Linfield winning the NAIA DII national football championship in his 12/16/1982
“Pasero Says” sports column in the Oregonian.
Linfield won the game,
played 12/11/1982 at McMinnville High School’s Wortman Stadium, 33-15 over
Missouri’s William Jewell College.
The column headline ‘Cooper
is helping Blazers pound the backboards’ and opening paragraphs deals with the
Portland Trail Blazers. However, most of the column is about Linfield. Here’s
the text:
“Linfield at random:
Accepting the NAIA championship trophy at midfield with the school’s president,
Charles Urmston Walker, was a spry little man wearing a Camellia Bowl jacket.
That’s as in Camellia Bowl 1961.
“It was, of course, Harry Leslie
Dillin, Linfield’s president emeritus. As if his pleasure wouldn’t quit, well,
no one had it coming more. It was Dillin, who, when Linfield faced the
retirement of one of its early great people, Henry Lever, turned to former
Linfielders Paul Durham and Roy Helser … and then Ted Wilson and Ad Rutschman. (Durham, Helser and
Rutschman are Linfield grads. Wilson graduated from Eastern Oregon College.)
“ ‘What a fine history has
been recorded in the intervening years,’ he said. ‘I’m glad to have been a bit
of it for nearly 52 years.’ ”
“Harry was shocked as
anyone, maybe more, when William Jewell scored on its first play of the game. ‘Oh,
no,’ he said. ‘That’s what happened in the Camellia Bowl when Pittsburg State
(Kan.) went all the way on the opening play.’ Linfield didn’t really recover
then, losing 12-7.
“This time, the Wildcats
eased Dillin’s worries in a hurry, with a tying touchdown on only three plays.
On the sideline, the new thinking was simply, as defensive tackle Steve McAllister
said, ‘We’ll get it back; the whole attitude was positive.’ It was that way all
year for this Linfield team with a difference.
“McAllister is convincing
evidence that size can be over-rated. Imagine a defensive tackle who weighs
only 180 pounds. Well, that’s the sophomore from Albany – and all he did was
make two interceptions and a jarring tackle to cause a fumble … all of which
was enough to get him voted defensive MVP.
“Durham, now retired and
living in Hawaii, after serving as director of athletics at U-Hawaii for seven
years and in the school’s college of education for six more, is part of the
Linfield pipeline from Hawaii.
“And so far former Linfield
players now coaching in Hawaii – Hugh Yoshida, Tony Ah Yat and Al Wills among
them.
“Mike Riley, Rutschman’s
defensive chief, has been called a ‘veteran coach.’ Huh, at age 29?
“The sharp, personable Riley
has been with Rutschman six years now. And he apprenticed under Mike White at
Cal and Hugh Campbell, the Grey Cup monopolitizer, at Whitworth. He has lived
football all of his life, however. His father, Bud, twice an assistant at OSU,
now again is in Canada as coach of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
“So why does he stay at
Linfield?
“Because: ‘It’s a heckuva
job. To me, Ad is one of the greatest people and coaches around. And appreciate the way he runs his show.
“ ‘ I like it a lot here,
and I just take it one year at a time. I don’t set goals … like, five years
down the road I’d like to be coaching at such-and-such a place.
“ ‘ We don’t have a lot of
frills here. People make this place. And we just seem to have a special group
of kids.’
“It was a neat touch when
Linfield and William Jewell players were introduced alternately and run to
midfield to slap hands to kickoff. Fans were mystified, though, by WJ players
make a motion as though throwing something to the ground. Indeed, they had
something in their fists – Missouri dirt. MJ wanted to be the host team, but
denied that, brought some ‘home ground’ to play on.
“Besides all the plaudits to
the team, more are due to Linfield and McMinnville for a superior job of
staging the playoffs and championship game.
“Some wondered why the game
wasn’t moved to a bigger stadium. Well, the NAIA’s Steve Veal said the
organization wanted it in “the community,” where it would be most appreciated.
Surprisingly, the NAIA paid the bills better this year than in many past. In
fact, there had been some talk of dropping the Division 2 playoffs because of
the cost of the long trips. McMinnville’s reception of the game and the good
attendance ended that talk. Moreover, the NAIA got a plus – if perhaps at too
small a price – in the televising of the contest.”
#
Wildcatville comments
== The last paragraph of
Pasero’s column relates to Portland’s KATU-TV, which KATU-TV televising the
game live.
== In this column, Pasero
says, "It was Dillin, who, when Linfield faced the retirement of one of
its early great people, Henry Lever, turned to former Linfielders Paul Durham
and Roy Helser … and then Ted Wilson and Ad Rutschman." To clarify:
--In 1939, William Everson,
Linfield president (1938-1943), named Wayne Harn, then a Linfield assistant
football coach and head men's track coach, as the college's head football
coach. Harn succeeded Henry Lever, who remained as Linfield as athletic
director, football assistant coach and coached other sports.
--Harn coached Linfield's
1939 football season before, in 1940, being called to U.S. Army active duty
service as a member of the Oregon National Guard. Lever coached Linfield
football in the 1940, 1941 and 1942 seasons. Linfield did not have football
during 1943, 1944 and 1945 due to World War II and its aftermath.
--Harn returned from the
service in 1946 and was head football coach in the 1946 and 1947 seasons. Harry
Dillin (1943-1968) was Linfield president and Lever was its athletic director.
On Jan. 27, 1948, Harn resigned as Linfield head football coach because,
according to the Oregonian, he planned to enter "private business in
McMinnville."
--On March 20, 1948, Paul
Durham, Linfield grad and then a coach at Portland's Franklin High School, was
named Linfield's head football coach and he signed a contract at the college.
Durham's first season as Linfield head football coach was 1948.
--On May 28, 1949, it was
announced that Durham would succeed Lever as athletic director and continue as
head football coach. Lever was
concluding 18 years of service to Linfield as its athletic director and as a
coach.
……….
Photo of Linfield President Charles U. Walker and Linfield President Emeritus Harry L. Dillin taken by Wildcatville
at McMinnville High School’s Wortman Stadium on 12/11/1982.
…………..
Looking back: Linfield vs.
William Jewell nat'l championship football game in McMinnville on 12/11/1982
Photos from the Wildcatville
Archives: 'Cats win 1982 NAIA Nat'l Football Title
