Beloit College

Playing basketball at Beloit College exceeded my expectations.
 
On a cold November day in 1991, little did I know that my first visit to Beloit and my subsequent decision to attend the college would shape the rest of my life.
 
Basketball team manager and trainer Sudha Pavuluri guided my parents and me around the campus and allowed us to watch that day’s practice for the team. I seriously questioned whether I was good enough to be able to play and compete with the likes of Mark Sobczak, Jim Matel, Lance Randall and others. I saw a team that was tough, skilled and well coached and was playing at a very high level.
 
In an unforgettable experience, my very first collegiate home game was against the touring Russian national team. There was a packed, standing room-only Flood Arena crowd, and the emotions ran high when we won the game. On the next night, the Russians went on to beat Division 1 University of Wisconsin team in Madison; Beloit was supposed to be the Russians’ warm-up opponent!
 
While our teams were fortunate enough to have winning seasons during my four years on campus, that first season was probably the most memorable. We played games in Hawaii during the Christmas break in 1992, swept the series against Ripon College (That rivalry with the team and Coach Bob Gillespie probably deserves its own chapter!), won the North Division and the Midwest Conference championship and went on to host our second-round game in the NCAA tournament at Flood Arena.
 
I was blessed to have amazing coaches with different approaches throughout my basketball career. My high school basketball coach would scream at the top of his lungs. That actually gave me a lot of motivation. The more he screamed at me, the better I played.
 
At Beloit College, Coach Bill Knapton took a cool-and-calm approach. That forced me to adjust and become more self-motivating when getting ready for a game. In turn, that adjustment prepared me for life after basketball and college.
 
During my early years at Beloit College, I did not fully grasp that I was playing for a legendary coach who truly cared, talked with his players, asked for their opinions and created a true team atmosphere. And at that time, I did not understand the quality of my Beloit education.
 
Beloit College transformed my entire life, but I did not have that expectation when I first stepped foot on campus.
 
Relationships that I formed on campus and still have today stem from the liberal arts experience and the Beloit College basketball program. While it is true that basketball will always be an important part of my life, it was Beloit basketball specifically that would help define my life and my family.
 
Here, this story circles back to our team manager. My parents came to every basketball game, home and away, and my mom would bring care packages for Sudha. My parents fell in love with Sudha and would always say to me, “Why can’t you meet a nice girl like Sudha?”
 
I eventually took their advice and married Sudha in 2004. Now, Sudha Pavuluri Quamme serves on the board of trustees for the college, and we are both committed to its success and legacy. Beloit College helped forge our life together and will always be part of our family. And to think it all came about because Coach Knapton recruited a kid from rural Wisconsin to play for a legendary coach and a great basketball program.
 
Erik J. "Big Q" Quamme, Class of 1996
Beloit College Athletic Hall of Honor Induction Class of 2008