Larry Wachholtz – North Platte
Athlete. Larry was a three-sport athlete for the North Platte Bulldogs (Class of 1963) and earned honors in all three. He played offensive and defensive back for two years, then switched to quarterback his senior year while continuing to play defensive back. When the Bulldogs won the state championship in 1962, Larry was a consensus […]
Ritch Bahe – Fremont
Athlete, 1971. The 1971 Fremont graduate picked up seven varsity letters in high school, two in football, three in basketball and two in track. Football honors included All State twice and All Conference twice, 1969 to 1970, and in 1970 was selected High School American both academic and athletic. Football found him running, catching, kicking […]
Dick Beechner – Lincoln High
CONTRIBUTOR As a player, coach, organizer, promoter and guardian of history, Dick Beechner has never been far from Nebraska high school athletics. An ultra-active member of the Nebraska High School Sports Hall of Fame Foundation Board of Directors, he has served as president and executive director of the organization that has strived to keep alive […]
Don Lee – Omaha
Contributor. The contribution sportswriters make to the understanding and enjoyment of high school athletics is immeasurable. One of the best was Don Lee, who spent 44 years covering sports as a reliable scribe for the Omaha World-Herald newspaper. He was present for 35 consecutive state basketball tournaments and 35 state track meets. Though his talents […]
Ike Mahoney – Omaha Tech
Athlete–A 1921 graduate of the Omaha High School of Commerce then situated at 17th & Leavenworth. Ike Mahoney deserves to be remembered for his athletic prowess, just as one of his high school classmates, Roman L. Hruska, is remembered for public service. Helping the boys of Omaha Commerce achieve an early Class A state championship […]
Chuck Mizerski – Lincoln Southeast
Coach. Chuck Mizerski masterminded a football powerhouse at Lincoln Southeast from 1979 to 2006. In that time, the Knights won 230 games, six state championships and three state runner-up trophies. He also coached at Plattsmouth and Granite City, Ill., compiling a career 274-81-1 record. A half dozen of his players went on to play in […]
George Pfeifer – Boys Town
Coach. After serving in the US Navy and completing college studies, George Pfeifer came “home” to Boys Town, his alma mater, early in the 1950’s and enjoyed an outstanding head coaching career in basketball and track, and helped with football. His Cowboy basketball teams won the Class A state championship in 1965 and 1966 and […]
Randy Reeves – Omaha Benson
Athlete. Randy Reeves, the 1966 Omaha World-Herald Athlete of the Year, excelled on and off the field. Reeves was the valedictorian of his class of more than 800 students and a National Merit Scholar. On the football field, he was a three-year starter for the Benson football team and received All-Metro, All-State and All-American honors […]
Zane Smith – North Platte
Athlete. Before graduating in 1979 Zane starred in football and basketball for the Bulldogs. He was selected All-Big Ten conference in basketball in 1978 and 1979 averaging 15.3 points a game. In the 1979 season he had an 81.9 free-throw percentage and led the team in rebounding and steals. In football he was All-Big Ten […]
Gene Suhr – Papillion-LaVista
Coach A motivator, innovator and a master builder of programs, Gene Suhr created a winning legacy on the football fields at Ord and Papillion. He compiled a 200-95 record over a 23-year head coaching career, which included 21 state playoff appearances. Suhr led Papillion-LaVista to undefeated state championship seasons in 1990 and 1996, with both […]
