After Ohio State clinched the Big Ten championship with a 53-46 rout of Northwestern in 1946, victorious Harold G. “Ollie” Olsen told reporters that the team's performance was “Almost perfect,” he said, adding that he was “never perfect.” I'm more proud of it than any other ball club I've ever been involved with. ”
The victory was perhaps Ohio State's biggest ever on a hard court, and it was in front of a sold-out crowd of 22,822 at the old Chicago Stadium, the largest crowd ever to watch a basketball game at the time. It happened in This earned OSU an unprecedented third consecutive NCAA Tournament berth and capped off his three-year streak, arguably the most successful Buckeye in his basketball history up to that point.
Olsen called the upset a “highlight” of his coaching career. Then, when classes started in the fall, Ollie abruptly quit his job of 24 years.
Olsen built what had previously been a remarkably mediocre program into a nationally respected company. But Olsen's name has been largely forgotten from Ohio State's hard court lore, despite his reputation as a member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame's charter class along with some of the game's greatest luminaries.
Olsen was hired in 1923 to turn Ohio State into a consistent contender. The Buckeye Cagers struggled during their first decade in the Big Ten, winning only 34 of 103 games.
He was a two-time all-conference player at the University of Wisconsin and led the Badgers to two conference championships. He was a protégé of coach Walter Meanwell, whose innovative concepts moved basketball in ways never seen before. In the “Wisconsin System,” players moved in a cross pattern using screens to open up the floor. As coach, Olsen's Ohio State teams posted a winning percentage of .570 using the same offense.
talent evaluator
Russ Needham, sports editor for the Columbus Dispatch, said Olsen's greatest talent was “his ability to instantly recognize potential talent and develop it to its fullest potential.” Needham cited Mel Shaw and Johnny Miner, two players who were left out during tryouts under Olsen's predecessor. Shaw was “discovered” during a spring open gym workout introduced by Olsen. Miner caught Ollie's attention while playing an intramural game in the old armory.
Johnny Minor led Ohio State to its first conference championship. (Photo: Ohio State University Archives)
The 5-foot-8 Minor led the Buckeyes to their first conference championship in 1925. After an overflow crowd filled the Fairgrounds Coliseum to watch OSU's first All-American play, local scribes dubbed him “the Chic Harley of Buckeye basketball.” called.
Ohio State became more competitive under Olsen, and when Olsen had a roster full of talented athletes, his teams excelled. If one of those athletes were a talented center, the Buckeyes would be in contention for a championship ring.
The 1925 team was strengthened by a dominant big man named Harold “Cookie” Cunningham. Cunningham, a Mount Vernon native, was a gifted athlete who went on to play both basketball and football professionally after leaving OSU.
Wilmer “Bill” Hoskett Sr.'s career may be the best example of how well Oley's teams fared by having top players at the pivot. The Buckeyes thrived when the Dayton Stivers product was in the starting quintet. Unfortunately, his sophomore and senior seasons were cut short due to eligibility issues, and the team finished 9-9 and 8-12. During his junior year, his 1932-33 season, he was able to overcome his academic struggles and the Buckeyes finished with his 17-3 record and won the Big Ten crown.
Blush Buckeye Basket Tears
Of all the teams Olsen coached, the 1938-1939 team was one of the most fondly remembered by generations of OSU fans. When the season began, few felt that Ohio State was a serious title contender. The team thrived under the “unparalleled leadership” of Greenfield's scoring dynamo, captain Jimmy Hull.
Jimmy Hull was named Most Valuable Player in the first NCAA Tournament in 1939. (Photo: Ohio State University Archives)
“He had kind of an underhand, two-handed shot, but he was very quick,” assistant coach Jack Graff told Bob Hunter in his book Buckeye Basketball. “He faked a drive, stepped back and took a shot, and his accuracy from the outside was great.”
Despite starting the season 2-4, Hull boldly told reporters, “We're going to win the Big Ten Championship!” His confidence inspired a “fiery strength of camaraderie” among his teammates. The Scarlet Basketeers confirmed their captain's brave prediction and won an undisputed conference championship in what the Ohio State Journal called “storybook fashion.”
first march madness
There was a short squib in the magazine's coverage that said, “The Bucs and Big Ten champions could play in the tournament,” but few readers knew what that meant.
During his tenure, Olsen took on additional duties beyond coaching basketball. He has also served as a golf coach and as an assistant football coach. The role that best suited his skill set was working as the athletic department administrator at Lynn St. John.
He served on the NCAA's Rules Committee, which pushed for the elimination of jump balls after each player plays a basket. He helped create the rule that offenses had only 10 seconds to cross the ball over the midcourt line. But it was his role within the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) that helped Ollie change the course of college basketball.
In 1938, New York sportswriters organized the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) to crown a “National Champion.” Olsen and other members of the NABC were concerned about Eastern influence, particularly the credibility of “outside promoters” and the high profile of gamblers at matches at Madison Square Garden. Ollie felt that the NABC, backed by the NCAA, was the only legitimate authority to sanction such a coronation.
“The prestige of college basketball should be supported and demonstrated to the public by the universities themselves, rather than left to private advertising and business,” Olsen wrote.
Olsen made a convincing case and was appointed head of the newly created NCAA Basketball Tournament Committee. Olsen's committee decided to split the country in half, holding a four-team tournament in the east and west, with the winner of each tournament placed somewhere in the middle. Each of the eight regions elected its own representative. Most appointed committees of “experts” to select representatives, while others held play-in tournaments.
Although there was no automatic bid, OSU was the obvious choice as the 1939 Big Ten Champion. This put Olsen in the unique situation of being in charge of coaching while also coaching a team in its first NCAA Tournament appearance. Jimmy Hull recalled that although he and his teammates had no idea what the tournament was, he initially preferred to stay home and watch the upcoming Ohio High School Tournament.
The Buckeyes defeated Wake Forest in the first round, sending Villanova to earn a berth in the title game. However, Hull suffered a serious injury to his ankle against Villanova.
“It wasn't broken,” Hull later said. “But it would have been better if it had been broken.”
Olsen's mixed reaction to appearing in the championship game baffled his players. “He didn't have the attitude of a winning coach,” Hull said. Oley told his team that he found the situation “a little embarrassing.” When asked why he doesn't feel embarrassed about leading his team to the national championship game, he replied: “Guys, I'm the (tournament) chairman and my ball club wins here.”
name |
Role/years |
---|---|
lin st john |
Men's basketball coach, 1911-1919 |
Harold Olsen |
Men's basketball coach, 1922-1946 |
Ernie “Stilts” revival |
Men's basketball players, 1943-1945 |
neil johnston |
Men's basketball players, 1946-1948 |
fred taylor |
Men's basketball players, 1948-1950. Coach, 1958-1976 (became coach) |
John Havlicek |
Men's basketball players, 1959-62 |
bob knight |
Men's basketball player, 1959-62 (became coach) |
jerry lucas |
Men's basketball players, 1959-62 |
Tara Vanderveer |
Women's Basketball Coach, 1980-85 |
Gary Williams |
Men's basketball coach, 1986-89 |
katie smith |
Women's basketball players, 1992-96 |
Hampered by Hull's injury, the Buckeyes are looking forward to the “Thor'' due to their imposing frontcourt trio of 6-foot-4 forwards Rady Gale and John Dick, and 6-foot-8 center Urgel. They never had a chance to play against the Oregon State team known as the “Furs.” Slim” Winter Mute. Hull had a spirited performance, but contributed only 12 points, and Ohio State lost 46-33.
The match was a financial failure, as organizers had to offer tickets to Northwestern students just to increase attendance. The game cost him $2,531, an odd amount in the era of Bracketology, March Madness, and multibillion-dollar television deals, but the NCAA recognized the tournament's potential and I have accepted future financial responsibility.
Ollie led the Buckeyes, anchored by Hall of Fame pivot Ernie “Stilts” Risen, to the Final Four in 1944 and 1945, and their third straight appearance in 1946.
sudden departure
Olsen's slow fade into obscurity began when he left as coach of the Chicago Stags of the newly formed American Basketball Association.
His sudden resignation was rooted in the deep disappointment he felt upon learning he would not be replacing Lynn St. John as Ohio State's AD. Ollie always coveted the job and he expected to take over the management of the legendary sporting director once he retired. When it became clear that Dick Larkins would be St. John's successor, he decided that Ollie could not remain in Columbus.
Russ Needham estimates that he has “covered more Ohio State basketball games than any other writer,” and writes:
“Harold G. Olsen was a good role model for sports life in the community. It is a shame to see him go. It is unfortunate and inevitable that he will become embroiled in the unpleasant political situation that is rampant on campus. He has more friends in Columbus than he realizes, and they will be eager to see his continued success and wish him continued happiness.”
Olsen only played professional basketball for three years. He became Northwestern's coach in 1950, but health problems forced him to retire after two seasons. He died of a heart attack in October 1953, just months after his wife Emily died.
You can learn more about the early days of Ohio State football in the author's book Days of Yore: The Men of Scarlet and Gray. This book is available for purchase on his Amazon. You can follow his McQuigg on Twitter @dpmcquigg.