Kansas State University - Royal Purple Yearbook (Manhattan, KS)

Page 24 text:

Sports Reflect Trend To Improve, Expand Perhaps most symbolic of the tradition of any school to those not directly associated with it is the story of its athletic program. Although Kansas State ' s sports competition began relatively late in the school ' s life, its growth and high quality have brought national attention to the campus. The birth of two major sports took place just before and shortly after the opening of the 1900 ' s. Football was the first major sport officially accepted when it came on campus in 1896. It was followed by the acceptance of basketball competition in 1904-05; then came several minor sports. Although not presently acclaimed for outstanding football teams, K-State has been the home of four Ail-American football standouts. The first of these was Henry Cronkite in 1931. It was 1934 when the school won the crown of the Big 6 in football. Basketball has brought far more focus to the school and justly so. Since the Wildcats, then called Aggies, won the Missouri Valley championship in 1917, they have proceeded to win 11 crowns. Five of these have been won in the past six years. Six All-Americans have received their recognition while wearing the K-State colors. The first of these was Frank Reynolds in 1917; the last, Bob Boozer who received the honor in both 1958 and 1959- The remaining sports should not be underempha- sized. Under the long-time leadership of Coach Ward Haylett, track has come to national prominence, pro- ducing record holders in many areas. Even baseball has had its glory. It was 1932 when Eldon Aucker, a Wildcat hurler, was named All-American. The broad expanse of the athletic program reflects the expansion of the University in every field. K-State now has teams competing in over a dozen major and minor inter-collegiate sports. Seated in the center of this KSAC basketball team of ' 06- ' 07 is Mike Ahearn in his first year of coaching at K-State. Ahearn was influential in greatly expanding and improv- ing the sports program. The fieldhouse is named for him. 20

Page 23 text:

Farm Machinery Hall, now in disuse, was the first building con- structed on the present campus. It served as a barn from 1872 until 1875, when it was trans- formed into the main building of the college. Not all work was mental for these early students at K-State and great pains were taken to see that the proper emphasis was put on agriculture. Required field classes were commonly accepted, if not appreciated, by all enrollees. Not to be confused with the sleek, high- powered convertibles of today is this form of transportation from an earlier period. Parking problems led to de- mands for more stu- dent ' s hitching posts. 19

Page 25 text:

Jamming the building to the roof to see the Cats in action, students find that Nichols Gymnasium is far from adequate. As emphasis on sports, particularly basketball, grew stronger, fans demanded that action be taken. Teams of the past played without the ben- efit of today ' s padded uniforms and headgear. Despite the poor field conditions and threat of bad weather, they faith- fully sought gridiron recognition for KSAC. 21