HISTORY OF COYOTE FOOTBALL Coyote Football - A Tradition of Winning Winning football games has long been a tradition at the University of South Dakota. With an all-time record of 504-469-36 (.517), South Dakota has earned 10 conference titles and has qualified for the NCAA postseason playoffs four times (1973, 1985, 1986 and 2006). The program has had 22 conference MVPs, produced 233 first-team all-conference performers, 126 academic all-conference honorees and 48 All-Americans. The Coyotes played their first-ever game to a 6-6 tie with Agricultural College (SDSU) and then posted an 11-0 win over Yankton College in 1889. From 1889-1900, USD was 16-7-5, including a 6-5 win over Nebraska. South Dakota’s lone unbeaten and untied season, a 9-0 season in 1902 under head coach A.H. Whittemore, who took over from Ralph Norton, USD’s first head football coach, ranks among the greatest sports teams ever at USD. Whittemore, a Coyote Sports Hall of Famer, built the early foundation for Coyote football success. The 1902 squad led by Whittemore held all nine opponents without a point. In all, his teams went 37-21-6 during 10 years at the Coyote helm. Rev. James Henderson’s 1912 team had a 5-1 record, including a 10-0 win over Minnesota and a close 7-6 defeat to Michigan. Both schools now compete in the Big Ten, one of the top NCAA Division I football conferences in the country. The 1912 team is recognized as one of the greatest in South Dakota history. Some of the all-time greats of South Dakota gridiron history played during this period, including Ray Brooks, T.R. Johnson, Grover Potts, Frank McCormick and Paul Sheeks, all members of the Coyote Sports Hall of Fame. McCormick, a native of Wagner, became the first South Dakota native to play pro football, joining the Akron Indians for the 1920-21 seasons. He later gained fame as athletic director at Minnesota. Darwin Inman Memorial Stadium was constructed in the 1920’s and hosted USD’s first Northern Central Conference football championship in 1927, the sixth-year of league competition. V.E. Montgomery coached that first championship team, which was captained by Maurice Clancy, and included All-NCC halfback Arnold Crockett, all Coyote Hall of Famers. One of the most successful periods in Coyote football occurred during the brilliant-coaching era of Harry Gamage, who led USD back to the top of the NCC in 1938. Led by All-American tackle Les Lane, the squad cruised to the NCC title and allowed just two points, a safety on a bad center snap, in five conference games. Gamage, who coached 18 years (1934-41, 1946-55) won the most games (82) and the most NCC titles (four) in school history. He led USD to three unbeaten NCC seasons in 1938, 1947 and 1951. After returning from World War II, Gamage coached the 1947 team to an NCC title, behind the play of All-American Howard Blumhardt. In 1951, the Coyotes again won the NCC by winning seven straight games, including six in a row in the NCC after losing its opener versus Marquette. Joe Salem of Sioux Falls took the regins of the Coyote Football program in 1966. After two seasons, Salem led South Dakota to a 9-1 mark in 1968 with the only loss being against national champion North Dakota State. Salem’s 1973 team was the first Coyote squad invited to the NCAA Division
Tony Higgins (left) and Jerry Gilinsky (center) celebrate after South Dakota defeats Troy State, 42-28, in the NCAA Division II semifinals at the DakotaDome in 1986. USD advanced to the title game, falling to North Dakota State, 27-7, at Florence, Ala.
Darwin Inman Memorial Stadium was the home of Coyote football from 1924 to 1978, and saw more than 130 USD victories on its grounds. II playoffs, falling at Boise State, 53-10. In 1978, new head coach Bernard (Beanie) Cooper led USD to its first outright NCC title since 1951, with a 5-0-1 record. When Dave Triplett took over in 1979, USD did not win any conference championships, but their success arguably matches any team in Coyote history. The Coyotes became one of the nation’s top programs as they compiled a 43-17 record between 1983 and 1987. Triplett, who left USD second to Gamage in wins with 70, led his team to a 10-3 record in 1985 and received an invitation to the NCAA Division II playoffs. USD, which had been ranked No. 1 in the country for the initial six weeks of the season, lost in the semifinals to NDSU, 16-7, at the DakotaDome. In the first round, USD defeated Central State of Ohio, 13-10, in double overtime. A classic, that game was the first NCAA Division II football playoff game played at the DakotaDome. The 1986 Coyotes’ squad broke 23 school records, rolling to an 11-3 record. Splitting its first four games, they embarked on a nine-game winning streak that ended in a 27-7 loss to NDSU in the NCAA Division II title game. In 1986, the Coyotes became just the fourth NCAA Division II school to play for the national championship in both football and basketball. The 1986 title game pitted two teams from the NCC for the first and last time ever in Division II. Coyote football experienced a quick turnaround when head coach Ed Meierkort arrived in 2004. That USD squad went 9-2 and broke 27 school records en route to a tie for second in the NCC with a 4-2 mark. Brian Alderson was named an All-American, while Tim Schellhammer was honorable mention. Both were named to the All-NCC squad, along with Stefan Logan, Chris Mikkelsen, Cody Butler and Paul Tschetter. The 2004 team finished 9-2 and 4-2 and second in the NCC. In 2005, the Coyotes won its first NCC title since 1978 and was a team that ranked in the top 20 in three different polls throughout the year, including as high as third in the D2football.com poll. The Coyotes, despite leading the nation in total offense (583.3 ypg) and points per game (49.7) and defeating three ranked teams, were denied a playoff berth. USD broke or set 66 school records in the 2005 season and Coyote quarterback Wesley Beschorner, finished as runner-up in the Harlon Hill Trophy race as the NCAA Division II Player of the Year. In 2006, USD rolled to a 9-4 record and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs. The Coyotes’ playoff berth was their first since 1986, and USD recorded a thrilling 31-28 overtime win over Northwood (Mich.) in the opening round before falling to Grand Valley State. By 2007, USD won 23 straight home games, a streak that started in 2003. During that streak Meierkort was responsible for 22 of the 23 victories. In 2008, USD finished 6-5 during its first year of transition to NCAA Division I competition. The Coyotes recorded a 42-20 win over Southern Utah in November to record their first win over an FCS foe. South Dakota faced a difficult schedule in 2010, opening the season at FBS for Central Florida. The Coyotes then pulled off one of the biggest wins in program history with a 41-38 win over Minnesota on Sept. 11, 2010. The game earned South Dakota national recognition on outlets such as ESPN.