Tag: Marshall College

June 15, 1960: Educator W.W. Trent Dies

Educator W. W. Trent died on June 15, 1960, at age 82. Having served as state superintendent of schools for nearly a quarter-century, Trent was known to legions of West Virginia schoolchildren for his scrawled signature on their report cards.

The Nicholas County native went to Marshall State Normal School (now Marshall University) and Columbia University before rising through the teaching ranks to become secretary of the West Virginia Education Association, editor of the influential West Virginia School Journal, and president of Broaddus College and Alderson-Broaddus College for six years.

After becoming state superintendent in 1933, Trent implemented the new county unit system in public schools. An outspoken defender of teacher interests, he fought off several attempts to check his powers and played a key role in the racial integration of West Virginia schools.

He was also a formidable Democratic politician. He won reelection to superintendent five times and, on several instances, garnered more votes than his party’s candidate for governor. His long political career came to an end after Dwight Eisenhower and the Republicans swept the state in the 1956 election.

February 28, 1909: Athlete John Zontini Born in Boone County

John Zontini was born in Boone County on February 28, 1909. To this day, he’s considered one of the greatest athletes in West Virginia history.

He was nicknamed the “Sheik of Seth” because of his great football career at Sherman High School, located at Seth in Boone County. His 1929 rushing average of 27 yards per carry remains a state high school record. In 1931, he also set the state javelin record with a throw of 172 feet, one inch.

In his freshman year playing football at Marshall College (now University), he rushed for 865 yards, and his season of 9.5 rushing yards per carry is still a Marshall record. Choosing a pro baseball career, Zontini played outfield for the Charleston Senators.

He later moved to eastern Virginia, where he died in 1981 at age 72. The “Sheik of Seth” was inducted into the West Virginia Sports Writers’ Hall of Fame and the Marshall University Athletics Hall of Fame. Sherman High School named its football facility Zontini Field in honor of John Zontini and his brothers, Red and Louis, who were also star athletes at the school.

June 26, 1936: NBA Hall of Famer Hal Greer Born in Huntington

Basketball hall of famer Hal Greer was born in Huntington on June 26, 1936. In the early ’50s, he was a standout guard at Huntington’s segregated Frederick Douglass High School. Coaching legend Cam Henderson recruited Greer to play for Marshall College—now Marshall University.

In 1955, not only did Greer break the color barrier at Marshall, he became the first African-American athlete to play for a traditionally white college in West Virginia and one of the first in the South. During his three-year career at Marshall, Greer scored nearly 1,400 points and posted an incredible 54-percent field-goal rate.

He went on to star in the NBA for the Syracuse Nationals and Philadelphia ’76ers, leading the Sixers to a national championship in 1967. When Greer retired in 1973, he held the NBA record for most games played and ranked in the top ten in points scored and field goals made. He was later inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and named to the NBA’s list of the 50 greatest players in league history. In 1978, the city of Huntington renamed a major thoroughfare in Hal Greer’s honor.

February 5, 1890: Cam Henderson Born in Marion County

Coach Cam Henderson was born in Marion County on February 5, 1890. He grew up in Harrison County before attending Glenville State College, where he played football, basketball, and baseball. In 1923, he started a successful 12-year run as head football and basketball coach at Davis and Elkins College. Then, in 1935, he moved on to Marshall College.

In 1947, Henderson guided Marshall’s basketball team to a national NAIB title. He played the tournament with only eight players due to budget restrictions on travel. Later that year, his football team went 9 and 2 and played in the New Year’s Day Tangerine Bowl. Henderson actually missed the bowl game because he was coaching the Thundering Herd basketball team in a tournament in Los Angeles.

He resigned as football coach after the 1949 season and stepped down as basketball coach in 1955. He died the next year at age 66. Henderson is still Marshall’s all-time winningest basketball coach. And the university’s basketball arena is named in his honor. Today, he’s often credited with pioneering the fast break and 2-3 zone defense in basketball and the double-wing offense in football.

June 26, 1936: NBA Hall of Famer Hal Greer Born in Huntington

Basketball hall of famer Hal Greer was born in Huntington on June 26, 1936. In the early ’50s, he was a standout guard at Huntington’s segregated Frederick Douglass High School. Coaching legend Cam Henderson recruited Greer to play for Marshall College—now Marshall University.

In 1955, not only did Greer break the color barrier at Marshall, he became the first African-American athlete to play for a traditionally white college in West Virginia and one of the first in the South. During his three-year career at Marshall, Greer scored nearly 1,400 points and posted an incredible 54-percent field-goal rate.

He went on to star in the NBA for the Syracuse Nationals and Philadelphia ’76ers, leading the Sixers to a national championship in 1967. When Greer retired in 1973, he held the NBA record for most games played and ranked in the top ten in points scored and field goals made. He was later inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and named to the NBA’s list of the 50 greatest players in league history. In 1978, the city of Huntington renamed a major thoroughfare in Hal Greer’s honor.

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