Seasons
SEASON: 14 | YEAR: 1962
HEAD COACH: PAUL E. FOSS
Game 102 | January 9, 1962 | Woody Hayes, Murray Warmath
Minnesotans owed a lot to Ohio State in 1962. The Gophers Rose Bowl victory would not have happened if the Ohio State faculty senate had not voted 28-25 against sending the conference champion Buckeyes to the Rose Bowl. The faculty feared an "overemphasis on football." Hayes, in his 28 years as head coach at Ohio State, won 13 Big Ten championships and five national titles. While Hayes winced, Warmath said Minnesotans owed a vote of thanks to the Ohio State faculty senate.
(LtoR) Back row: Jarv Tew, Don Knutson (physician); Front row: Murray Warmath, Woody Hayes
Game 103 | January 19, 1962 | Sam Mele
His name wasn't really Sam. It was Sabath Anthony Mele, and he just went by the three initials. Mele took over from Cookie Lavagetto in midseason of 1961 and lasted until midway through the 1967 season when he was replaced by Cal Ermer. The highlight of his career was the American League championship and World Series appearance of 1965. His career managing record with the Twins was 524-436.
Game 104 | May 4, 1962 | Otto Graham
A basketball and football All-American at Northwestern, Graham quarterbacked the Cleveland Browns to great success from 1946-1955. He coached at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy from 1959-1963 and the Washington Redskins from 1966-1968. A member of both the college and pro football Halls of Fame, Graham played in the championship game all10 years he played for the Browns and the single year he played pro basketball for the Rochester Royals.
Game 105 | August 14, 1962 | Ralph Houk
Houk succeeded the legendary Casey Stengel as manager of the New York Yankees in 1961 and led the team to three straight American League titles and World Series championships in 1961 and 1962. Following a stint as the Yankees general manager, he returned to manage the team from 1966-1973. His final job in baseball was as an adviser to the young Minnesota Twins general manager, Andy MacPhail, whose father, Lee, was one of Houk's best friends from his years with the Yankees.
Game 106 | September 12, 1962 | Early Wynn
A member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, Wynn won exactly 300 games as a pitcher and won the Cy Young Award in 1959 at age 39. Always a favorite of the Griffith organization where he got his major league start, Wynn returned to the Twins and was a pitching coach from 1967-1969.
Game 107 | October 12, 1962 | Hugh McElhenny
A member of both the college and professional football Hall of Fame, McElhenny was an elegant running back who earned the nickname of "the King." Fans of the new Vikings franchise were thrilled when he became available to the team via the expansion draft. Nearing the end of his career, McElhenny played for the Vikings for two years and was the first Viking player to be named to play in the Pro Bowl.
Game 108 | October 26, 1962 | Ken Yackel
Often mentioned along with Bud Grant, Noel Jenke and Dave Winfield, Yackel was one of the greatest athletes in University of Minnesota history. A graduate of St. Paul Humboldt High School, Yackel lettered three times in both hockey and baseball and twice in football for the Gophers. Just out of high school in 1952, he helped the U.S. Hockey Team to a Silver Medal in the Oslo Olympics. He played briefly for the Boston Bruins in 1959 and was named to the U.S.Hockey Hall of Fame in 1986.
Game 109 | November 29, 1962 | Joe Garagiola
A native of St. Louis, Garagiola parlayed a mediocre major league baseball career into a highly successful career as a broadcaster, speaker and master of ceremonies. He was a 30-year baseball commentator for NBC, working with Curt Gowdy, Tony Kubek and Vin Scully. He served as a panelist on The Today Show from 1967-1973 and later hosted a number of celebrity game shows.
Game 110 | December 10, 1962 | Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, Fred Schaus
The Lakers had moved to Los Angeles in 1960, but they still had many fans in this area. Baylor was the team's star when it moved, and he was quickly joined by top draft pick West as a new Laker dynasty began to build. Schaus left college coaching for the Lakers after the 1960 season to join his West Virginia star Jerry West. He coached the Lakers for seven years before moving to a front office position and later coaching at Purdue.
(LtoR)Back row: Charlie Pyle, Jarv Tew (physician); Front row: Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, Fred Schaus