Beloit College

Memories of Beloit College Basketball
 
When I came in 1980 I was the Associate Dean of Students, from 1981-83 in ‘84 I was the Director of Field Experience Programs; Dean of Students from 1984 to 1991; 1991 to 2011 Dean of Students and VP for Student Affairs; 2011-2017 Executive Advisor to the President; 2017-present, Executive Advisor to the President-Emeritus.
 
Shortly after our arrival to Beloit College in 1980, I was exposed to the unique and exciting tradition of Beloit College Buccaneer Men’s Basketball under the leadership of the legendary coach, Bill Knapton. We, meaning my wife Cathy and sons Jeremy and Ryan, like so many fans in Beloit, stood in line to get in the Fieldhouse to see the Bucs play smart, competitive and always entertaining basketball against some of the best teams in the Midwest. The Fieldhouse was always packed, loud and definitely not the most fun environment for visiting teams. Our whole family enjoyed the spectacle of very enthusiastic fans and great basketball!

What I remember most was the teamwork, hustle and never give-up attitude by those early teams who regularly competed for the Midwest Conference Championship. And what has impressed me most over the years is the success those players have had in their personal and professional lives. Almost every one of the players I got to know personally, athletically and academically have gone on to be community leaders, highly successful businessmen, professionals including doctors and lawyers, CEO’s, educators, coaches, sports writers and public servants. Getting to know them individually and collectively, and maintaining contact with many of them, and Bill Knapton, remains one of my most cherished outcomes of a career at Beloit that spanned 37 years.

But my love of Beloit Basketball included the “Lady Bucs” who were equally competitive and successful under several different coaches including Mimi Walters and Kristi Straub. Like the men’s teams, the women’s teams were just as competitive, talented, hard-working and dedicated to being outstanding student athletes, a term that really describes Beloit’s commitment to the concept of “student--first, athlete—second.” Like the men, Beloit’s women have gone on to very successful lives of “purposeful consequence” to use the term that most aptly describes the outcome our student athletes experienced following graduation. I could not be more proud of each and every one of these individuals and teams, and all they have accomplished both during and following their time at Beloit.

What unites the generations of Beloit College basketball players is a commitment to excellence both on and off the court, hard work, competitive spirit, intelligence, teamwork and coaches like Knapton, Walters and Straub who helped them develop into highly successful and productive adults. A liberal arts education at Beloit seeks to educate the “whole person” and, from my vantage point as an educator for 37 years, Beloit College basketball has been highly successful in accomplishing this goal. Go Bucs!!