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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 11, 1987)
1 Wednesday, March 11, 1937 Daily Nebraskan Page 9 'Boosie9 principal TT TT TTT r BOW UiJib BF)ieS8 By Stew Magnuson Senior Reporter Cale Hudson pulled out the yellow, brittle newspaper clippings dated March 20, 1954. In the photo, high-school girls with hornrimmed glasses celebrate with boys in crew cuts and basketball jerseys. Thirty-three years ago this month, the Milan, Ind., High Indians beat a team from school several times its size in the Indiana State High School bas ketball finals. It was the first and last time a tiny school knocked off a big city giant. The legendary game inspired the movie "Hoosiers," and Cale Hud son, then Milan High principal, is now a professor of educational administra tion at UNL Unlike Nebraska's high-school bas ketball tournaments, Indiana doesn't split the teams into divisions based on enrollment. All 721 schools entered in 1954, rgardless of how well they played during the regular, season. Over three weekends, the 721 teams were elimi nated to four. In 1954, the Milan team, led by second-year coach Marvin Wood, cruised through the sectionals and regionals to face their first large school, an all black Indianapolis team featuring future National Basketball Association star Oscar Robertson Milan's Bobby Plump led the Indians to a 65-52 victory and their firt trip to the finals. After beat ing another large team from Terre Haute, they faced Muncie Central High School for the title. Central had won the state championship four times and had twice as many students as there were people in Milan. Certainly this was the classic Cinderella-Rocky story. Muncie Central's team was taller and bigger, but in the Cin derella fashion, Plump hit a last-second jump shot that won the game 30-28 and earned Milan and Plump a place in histoiy. ! To this day, people still talk about the Milan legend. "People who follow basketball still talk about Milan as a big thing," Hud son said. "Everybody loves the 'little one' to beat the 'big one.' It doesn't happen too often, but when it does, as By Mark Derowitsch Staff Reporter One might say that it is by accident that Nebraska women's track team has its top high jumper. Tammy Thurman, a junior from Fre mont, was originally a long jumper when she was in eighth grade. Until she wandered over to where some of her teammates were high jumping, that is. From that point on, the long jump has been long forgotten. Thurman "I was a long jumper, but one day I was messing around and I went over to the pit and started high jumping for the fun of it," Thurman said. "I just started doing it. I had no form or anything, so I just did what I had to do to get over the bar." The "accident," which occurred al most seven years ago, proved to be a big plus for the Huskers. Thurman quali fied as a freshman and sophomore for Jumio people remember it a long time." It was Hudson's first year as a prin cipal. The principal from the year before left with a "nervous breakdown," he said. Hudson's job was to "keep things as normal as possible," which was not an easy task after Milan made it into the finals for the first time and the press started showing up at the school. "Hoosiers" is based on the Milan experience. The Cinderella story of the fictional town of Hickory is the same, but the story is fiction, Hudson said. "First of all, the principal was a lot better-looking, and he didn't have any heart attacks," Hudson joked. Coach Marvin Wood was also quite different from the character played by Gene Hackman, Hudson said. "Wood was very soft-spoken," he said. "I don't think he ever said a curse word in his life, He was church-going person and a real disciplinarian. He once suspended some kids for missing a curfew by five minutes and he never had any of (Hackman's) problems.' The movies scriptwriters also made the Milan team look like more of art underdog than it was.: The kids were awestruck as they entered Butler Aud itorium in the movie. All but one of the players, however, had competed in seven games there the year before, and Wood had played college ball at Butler University. "They were all seasoned players by that second year," Hudson said. "It was nice to say they were 'country hicks' all awestruck, but actualy, they were a pretty sophisticated bunch of young men. They wren't as corn pone as the movie made them out to be." "Hoosiers" captured the basketball fever and intensity well, Hudson said, and he thought the film was "very entertaining." Hudson hasn't seen Wood or the players since a reunion in the late 50s. He is invited every year to a get together one week after the Indiana State Basketball Tournament, but he never has had time to go back. Hudson also was invited to the pre miere of "Hoosiers" in Indianapolis but couldn't make it to that, either. M the NCAA outdoor championships and the national indoor meet last season. But she failed to place at nationals either year. This season Jhurman qualified for nationals during the first meet of the season. She tied her own Big Eight Con ference record in the meet by clearing 6-0 12. Nebraska assistant coach Bob Cer venka said Thurman will do well this year at nationals. "She qualified the first meet of the year by jumping 6-0 12," Cervenka said. "And at nationals this year, the starting height will be 5-1 1 14, so odds are that she will place. The object is to get to the national meet. Once you get thre, anything can happen." Thurman said she was surprised that she qualified so early for the NCAAs. "Over Christmas I still didn't have an approach," Thurman said. "I was kind of in a state of panic because I thought I wasn't going to get it all straightened out for our first meet. Even going into that meet, I still wasn't feeling really confident with my ap proach at all. I was surprised, that's the only way I can put it." Even though Thurman failed to place in her first two attempts at the NCAAs, she is optimistic that she can place this season. "It's possible that I will place since there doesn't seem to be very many jumpers this year," Thurman said. "Usual ly they have prelims and finals, but this year they just have the finals. "My goal is to place alter no height ing twice," she said. Thurman, who has one more year of eligibility after this season, said she needs to improve in some areas. hope V X s 4 Cale Hudson, the former principal of Milan, Ind., High School, looks through newspaper clippings from March 20, 1854, the day after the Milan Indians defeated Muncie Central High School In the finals of the Indiana State Boy's Basketball Championships. The game was the inspiration for the movie "Hoosiers," which is playing in theaters all over the country. Hudson is now a professor of educational administration at UNL. ; ' 5 ; f ' fs ' ' . . I. . ; i "Vi jj i : it: :, :;,.;. Paul VonderlageDaily Nebraskan