By Tom Ables
(Editor's Note: Tom Ables may be San Diego State's No. 1 fan. He served as the school's first publicity director for athletics and also served as the Sports Editor of the Daily Aztec. He is a member of the Aztec Hall of Fame. Ables has seen over 600 Aztec football games in person.)
Having been involved "up-close-and-personal" with Aztec football since 1946, which makes this my 57th season, doesn't make me any smarter or more knowledgeable than other Aztec fans. It just means that I've seen more games, and have more wonderful memories. (OK, maybe some of the memories aren't quite as wonderful as the others!)
Strictly from longevity, I guess, I've been invited to look back and share some of those memories with you as we enjoy the 2002 season of Air Craft.
For starters, I'd like to reminisce about one of my all-time favorite Aztec coaches. No, not Don Coryell; we'll get to him later. Right now, I'm remembering Bill Schutte, maybe the most under-appreciated coach we ever had.
Bill, a San Diegan who played college ball at Idaho, took over as Aztec head coach in 1947, after serving as a defensive coach at Kansas State. People are often too quick to judge, and there were a lot of people muttering about "defense" and "K-State."But Bill proved 'em wrong. His first Aztec team went 7-2-1, including a 32-7 blowout win over BYU, who had a touted QB named Rex "The Ice-Man" Olsen. (How often do we clobber BYU?)
By 1951, Bill's Aztecs were a scoring machine, outscoring opponents 386-134, while going undefeated 10-0-1. The 27-27 tie with heavily favored Arizona State was hardly a blemish. They were led by Whizzer White (no, not the Supreme Court justice, but an equally talented back). The Aztecs countered with Art Preston, who proved more than a match.
That '51 team won the CCAA championship and played in the Pineapple Bowl (and, yes, that's a game I missed). On that same Bill Schutte team was Ed Ricketts, a defensive back who intercepted 12 passes, still the Aztec record. (The year before, Freddie Bates intercepted seven).
Our sharp, left-handed quarterback was Jesse Thompson. Today, people would say Jesse was "too small," but he was our big man who threw for more than 1,300 yards, with 13 touchdowns and only five interceptions.Another name to remember from that '51 team was Skeet Quinlan. After starring for MCRD, he came to San Diego State where he averaged 20.7 yards on punt returns, still second-highest all-time. He went on to a successful career with the Rams.
In 1953, Bill showcased running back Norm Nygaard, who averaged 7.1 yards per carry - equal to Marshall Faulk's best season average.
Another Aztec quarterback during Bill's career was Leon Parma, now a successful San Diego businessman who has remained a loyal Aztec supporter. Other names that leap to mind from the Schutte era: George Brown, Leo Heaton, Tom Dahms, who went on to NFL success as both a player and coach, Bob Tomlinson, Jack Kaiser, George Coleman, Keith Curry, Jim Erkenbeck, Bennie Edens, Bob Conklin, Lloyd Cassady and many other good athletes I apologize for not mentioning. Oh, I should add Lyle Hufford, a team manager, who earned a letter as a very good placekicker.
Coaching staffs in the '40s and '50s were not quite what they are today. Bill had help from Carl Benton, who also coached freshman basketball; Harry Broadbent, the Aztec wrestling coach when it was a big-time program; Charlie Smith, better remembered as our long-time baseball coach and also head basketball coach. That was about it, as I recall.
Typical of Bill's sense of loyalty: when he was replaced by Paul Governali in 1956, Bill stayed on as an important assistant.
Ask anyone who played for Bill Schutte (whose brother George was a top football official for years), and you'll discover the same genuine affection that I feel for him ? and maybe a smile at some of Bill's idiosyncrasies.
Wrapping this up, I can only hope that my memory is as accurate as I think it is! And I hope that it gives you an appreciation for some of the good things about Aztec football from a half-century ago.