This article was prepared by Sports Information Director Tim Petermann in 1973 and included in the 1974 UW-Eau Claire football yearbook. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Blugolds' 1963 championship team.
 


This fall marks 10 years from the pinnacle of Eau Claire State football success.  The Blugolds of Coach Jim Rice were coming off the school's first undefeated campaign in 40 seasons ready to embark on another title trek in 1964, which would be the first back-to-back championships in school history.

The players from these teams, most of whom played on both title teams, will be holding their 10-year reunion during Homecoming weekend this year.  They have remained a closely-knit group over the years as they were when they played together a decade ago.
 

Wisconsin was still in a football craze 10 years ago.  The Green Bay Packers had won Divisional Titles in 1960, 1961 and 1962 and World Championships in 1961 and 1962.  The Wisconsin Badgers had won the Big Ten and gone to the Rose Bowl following the 1962 season.  The 1963 season was the last winning season for the Badgers.  So when the Blugolds won the titles in 1963 and 1964, there was a lot of state-wide attention from fans who enjoyed following good football and had been provided with some talented teams at every level of competition.

Historically, the United States was recovering from the shock of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in November of 1963 and acclimating to the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson.  The Vietnam War and U.S. intervention in Southeast Asia was beginning to increase.

The period around 1963 and 1964 was a transitional period in college football from the two-way performer to the one-way specialist because of the free substitution rule.  Not many of the Blugolds went both ways although some were pressed into action because of injuries.  Dave LaViolette might have been the last Blugold to go both ways, playing offensive halfback and defensive safety.
 

Two names from that era are very familiar because they still hold many Blugold records and both were signed by the professionals and had a shot at big-time football.  They were quarterback Jim "Moving Van" Van Gorden and big end Gerry "Jugger" Gendron.

Van Gorden was and still is the only Blugold football player to have been named to the NAIA All-American first team at the conclusion of the 1964 season.  He led the NAIA in total offense that year, averaging 259 yards per game, 25 yards per game more than his nearest rival.  He later was signed as a free agent by the Green Bay Packers and Gendron signed with the Miami Dolphins and later was acquired by the Detroit Lions.

Although Van Gorden and Gendron grabbed a good share of the headlines, the Blugolds were blessed with considerable talent up and down the lineup.  Four Blugolds were named to the All-Conference team in 1963 and five in 1964.  In addition to Van Gorden and Gendron, they included defensive end Gene Golden both years, defensive halfback Dave LaViolette in 1963, center Chuck Emerson in 1964 and guard Pat Page in 1964.

Another nine Blugolds were considered All-Conference material by a number of coaches and were accorded Honorable Mention behind their teammates.  They included tackle Ken Hoffman, fullback Ray Cheyka, guard Jerry Geurink, linebacker Marv Hietpas, linebacker Ken Biegel, defensive back Dennis Rivers, defensive back Pat Fraley, defensive end Don Betthauser and offensive end George Bowman.
 

Despite having a majority of the same players on both teams, the two titles were annexed in completely different manners.  Defense carried the Blugolds to an undefeated 7-0 season in 1963 while the offense sparkled in a wild 1964 season that saw the Blugolds come from behind four times en route to their 7-2 season mark.

The 1963 team still holds the modern-day record for fewest points allowed per game.  The team gave up just 61 points, an average of 8.7 per game.  The 1964 team holds the all-time scoring record of 213 points in a season, an average of 23.6 points per game.
 

Jim Pickett, current sports editor of the La Crosse Tribune, was the Blugold writer for the Eau Claire Leader and Telegram during those championship seasons.  He summarized the 1963 season in the following report: "Strong passing, both offensively and defensively, along with the ability to make a key play at the opportune time, sparked the Eau Claire State Blugolds to their greatest football season in the school's history.

"Statistic-wise, one wonders how the Blugolds went unbeaten.  But, taking a closer look, it was a series of little things that added up "big".

"The Blugolds' passing offense and defense would have to rate the key factors if any had to be chosen.  The Blugolds led the conference in both departments.

"Van Gorden, only a junior, set a number of school records, many of which will never be equaled, but his real worth was his presence on the field.  Van Gorden drew the respect of his fellow players and inspired them to come up with the big play when needed.

"Eau Claire's outstanding defensive secondary, which held opponents to just 52.5 yards per game, was headed by halfbacks Pat Fraley and Dennis Rivers and safety Dave LaViolette.

"The offensive backfield which gave the Blugolds good balance to go along with Van Gorden's passing, gained 1,001 yards.  Freshman fullback Ray Cheyka was the big gun with 321 yards backed by LaViolette at left half with 231 and Van Gorden with 196.

"Although they were the big three, four other backs played key roles in various games throughout the season.  Rivers filled in for Cheyka and gained 55 yards; Eddie Krcmar, a freshman from Nekoosa, started the final game of the season against Superior and led the team in rushing, and scored both touchdowns; Jim Trotzer, a kicking specialist, took over for the injured Van Gorden at quarterback and led the Blugolds to a 12-7 win over Stout by passing for both touchdowns; and George Dahlem, a freshman quarterback, rolled up 53 yards in just seven carries.

"Two other key performers in the backfield were slot backs Bruce Emberson and Larry Drott.  Both were used as running backs, both caught six passes and both scored a touchdown.

"The interior line also did its part.  Tackles Ken Hoffman and Tom O'Connell, guards Ken Biegel and Pat Page and center Chuck Emerson opened big holes for the Blugold backs and also turned in some outstanding open field blocking.
"The defensive line, although it gave up big yardage, was tough when it needed to be.  The unsung defenders were led by Hoffman, Dick Olson, Brian Zordell, and Gerry Geurink at the tackles, Harry Duranceau at middle guard and Biegel, Marv Hietpas, Mike Bell and Cheyka at linebackers.

"Some of the minor statistics which helped pave the way to success were pass interceptions, extra point kicking, fumbles and fumble recoveries and punting.

"The Blugolds picked off 12 enemy passes and five of them eventually resulted in touchdowns.  Blugold defenders also recovered 12 enemy fumbles and four of them were turned into scores.

"On the other hand Eau Claire had eight passes intercepted, but only one led to a touchdown.  The Blugold backfield set an unofficial school record by losing only five fumbles all season.

"Punting and extra point kicking were also big items in the Blugolds' bag of tricks.  In the final two games, Blugold punting ace Gendron, kicked five times inside the opponent five-yard line and three times the Blugold defense held and the offense went on to score a touchdown.

"The extra point kicking of Trotzer also proved a vital factor, deciding at least two games.  Trotzer, who kicked 12 of 16 attempts, provided the margin of victory in Eau Claire's 14-12 upset of Whitewater in the opening conference game of the season and his two placement boots would have forced Superior to score three touchdowns to Eau Claire's two in order to win.

"Scoring-wise the Blugolds only bowled over one opponent, but they held a comfortable margin in nearly every game going into the final stages.

"Only in the season's opener when the Blugolds bounced Winona, 27-8, did Rice's crew win by more than one touchdown.  However, Eau Claire managed to have at least a 12-point lead going into the final quarter of four games.

"The Blugolds 1963 performance is impressive, but it is even more impressive for the fact that only four seniors are on the squad and that two starters were sidelined in the opening game."

For the veteran Blugold fan, the 1964 season probably provided more excitement than any other season in school history.

The Blugolds were seventh in the conference in defense but didn't need that much defense as the offense ran away with all the honors.  The Blugolds averaged 375 yards per game, almost 100 yards per game more than any other WSUC team.

Van Gorden led the conference in passing and total offense.  Ray Cheyka led the conference in scoring with 66 points on 11 TDs while Van Gorden was runner-up with 48 points.  Gerry Gendron, George Bowman and Larry Drott were 1-2-3 in pass receiving.  Cheyka and Van Gorden were fifth and sixth in rushing and Dennis Rivers led the conference in kickoff returns.

Four players combined to set 27 individual statistical records.

How did the news media describe the 1964 season?  Clyde Schubert of the Minneapolis Tribune wrote, "A full account of how Eau Claire won this year's Wisconsin State University Conference football championship would read like a fiction thriller, but the fact remains – Coach Jim Rice's Blugolds have their second straight title.

"On Oct. 17, Eau Claire edged previously unbeaten River Falls, 34-28, in the final 16 seconds.  Last Saturday, it happened again—Rice's club overcame a 14-point deficit in the last nine minutes, slipping past Whitewater, 37-33, on a touchdown with 16 seconds left.

"Key to the Blugold success has been senior quarterback and passing wizard Jim Van Gorden, who last week had a total offense yardage of 442 and leads the NAIA statistics in that department.  He threw five TD tosses against Whitewater, including three to George Bowman in the fourth quarter to pull out the decision.

"According to Stout coach Max Sparger, who saw the game, Van Gorden 'was just another ball player in the first half, then all of a sudden he went crazy.  It was hard to believe.  He couldn't do anything wrong.  Boy, I'd trade four tackles and two guards for him.'

"The Eau Claire whiz, who wore tennis shoes because of a bad knee, had a 40-yard touchdown run called back."

Evans Kirkby of the Milwaukee Journal wrote: "Perhaps indicative of the type of football by which Eau Claire won the title this fall was the alertness of back Dennis Rivers of Cornell on the next to last play of Saturday's game.  Eau Claire was two points behind as the play started.  Rivers took a pass from reserve quarterback Gregg Zastrow of Wausau and dashed 55 yards downfield but 15 yards from the winning touchdown was surrounded by a group of would-be Whitewater tacklers about six yards from the sidelines.

"The quick-thinking Rivers dashed for the sidelines, made it, and stopped the clock with 16 seconds to go.  On the next play, quarterback Jim Van Gorden of Eau Claire returned to the line-up and tossed a 15-yard scoring pass to George Bowman of Eau Claire that won the game."

Jim Pickett quotes Jim Rice after the Whitewater win: "'We had it when the chips were down.  When the going got rough, we got rougher.  You just can't say enough for this bunch.  Everyone thought we were licked, but they wouldn't quit.  They're real champions.'"
 

Pickett's account of the Whitewater game begins like this:

"Incredible!  Fantastic!

"Eau Claire State's Blugolds battled back with three touchdowns in the final five minutes to wipe out an almost insurmountable deficit and with the odds against them won a second straight Wisconsin State University Conference football title at Carson Park Saturday afternoon.

"The comeback was THE GREATEST ever witnessed at Carson Park as the Blugolds battled like champions, with the odds against them, to take all the marbles.

"The winning touchdown came with just 16 seconds remaining and it came in the same fashion as the previous two in the final quarter, after Whitewater had taken a 33-19 lead with just 8:56 left in the game."

The Whitewater victory came only a few weeks after the Blugolds had won their 11^th straight conference victory over River Falls in a similar fashion.  Bob Schabert of the St. Paul Pioneer Press recorded it this way:

"If Jim Van Gorden ever decides to run for a public office in Eau Claire or the surrounding territory, he will probably win in a landslide.

"That is if he shows the same kind of determination and fortitude as he displayed to some 5,200 Eau Claire State football fans at Carson Park Saturday.

"The 185-pound senior quarterback guided his Blugolds' football team to a sensational come from behind 34-28 triumph over previously unbeaten River Falls State in the Blugolds' homecoming game.

"The victory was snatched from the Falcons in the final 16 seconds on a five-yard scoring pass from Van Gorden to George Bowman after the Falcons had taken a 28-27 lead with 2:37 remaining in the game."

The week before the River Falls game, the Blugolds had rallied from a 12-0 deficit to defeat Superior, 14-12.

The Blugolds did win several games with ease that year.  In fact, they clobbered their first three conference opponents before Van Gorden started writing the storybook finishes.  The Golds dumped Oshkosh, 26-7; routed Stout, 51-20; and laced La Crosse, 25-14; before coming from behind in four of the final five games to win the title.

It was the kind of season still remembered by those who witnessed the games even over the lapse of one long decade.  Congratulations to the champs.