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Brigham Young High School History
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BYA, BYH Athletic Battles
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In 1896 the first BYA football team in 1896 played the University of Utah three times, and also the Elks, the Crescents, the YMCA of Salt Lake City, the Wheel Club of Denver, and Westminster College. The team included, back row, left to right: Eugene McArthur, BYA Athletic Association president; Heber Larsen, A. D. Miller, Dave Hyde, Alma Carbine, Walter Hasler, manager; middle row: Nephi Otteson, Jesse LeFevre, Orville Larsen, Hans Poulsen, John Peterson, Andrew Peterson; front row: Albert Fillerup, Sam Hinckley, Ben C. Call, and Frank Cox.
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Brigham Young Academy's founding principal, Karl G. Maeser, focused on academics and did not include school sports for his high school students. Principal Maeser's term ran from 1876 to 1892. His goals were to teach integrity, honor, and scholarship combined with spirituality, and his ideals prevailed through to the end of the school in 1968.
In 1892, Dr. Maeser's successor as BYH high school principal was Benjamin Cluff, Jr. Principal Cluff had studied at the University of Michigan where he had seen first hand the benefits of school sports as a healthy complement to academic life. He encouraged student participation in athletic pursuits. In March of 1893 the student newspaper The Normal noted the formation of an athletics club at the Academy.
Initial contests were intramural games between high school classes, and each year a BYA Field Day spotlighted baseball and track & field events. The athletic fields were located at such places as a resort on the shores of Utah Lake, and later on the Upper Campus, on land situated where the Joseph Smith Building was later built.
Competitions with other schools and independent athletic clubs began in baseball in 1891, football in 1896, track & field in 1899, and basketball in 1900.
The football teams struggled in their early years, fighting opposition from both more experienced teams and Church leaders who were unsure about endorsing football with its many injuries, rowdy crowds and boisterous yelling.
After the son of a member of the LDS General Board of Education for Church Schools died as a result of football injuries, and the son of another General Board member was maimed for life from the same cause, football and indeed, all school sports at Church academies were called into question, with the various academy principals arguing in favor of sports programs.
The General Board finally decided to let each academy's board set policy for its own school. Most boards took a moderate stance, like the Salt Lake Stake Board that allowed athletics, but specified that football be excepted "as a barbarious brutal exercise not to be dignified by the title of a game". By December 1900 all semblances of organized football had been excluded from the BYA sports program, and remained so until 1920.
Nationally, dozens of athletes were dying following football scrimmages each year. The Church academies were not the only schools of that era that chose to ban football because of injuries and deaths.
Basketball proved to be the strongest team sport at the school, and at the Y, this sport started out as a women's game.
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BYA Women's Basketball Championship Team of 1900. Pictured are E. Kimball, manager, left, with Ovena Jorgensen, Serepta Sevey, Maud McArthur, Nora Jorgensen, Aretta Snow, Ethel Crane, and M. R. Gates.
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The Academy and High School produced a number of fiercely competitive athletes over the years, and many were honored as all-state competitors. In every decade, dozens of talented sports stars went on to play for university teams.
The most accomplished athlete in early BYH history was, indisputably, Alma W. Richards, BYH Class of 1913. He was an example of how BY coaches mixed high school students with collegiate students in individual and team sports.
In 1912, as a junior in high school, Alma Richards won an Olympic gold medal in Finland for his high jumping, and that was just the beginning of his spectacular athletic career back in the States.
In 1926 Coach Frosty Richards first dubbed BYH athletes and teams with the name "Wildcats" and the name stuck for 42 years, until school history came to a close. (The annual yearbook was also called the "Wildcat", and the school newspaper was usually titled the "Y'ld Cat".)
BYA and BYH often had a lower enrollment compared to the other schools they faced in athletic competition -- usually with only 60 students in each high school senior class, including boys and girls. Nevertheless, the school was consistently well represented in athletic competitions.
In 1940 BYH played six-man football, and battled in a championship game to a tie, sharing the Utah State Championship with Parowan. Coach Dave Crowton, BYH, in a show of sportsmanship, ceded that title to Parowan because of a brief and unavoidable BYH substitution violation in a previous game.
BYH moved back to 11-man football in 1943. The job of manning a larger football team year after year was always a challenge for BY High coaches, but the courageous Wildcats fielded full teams that won many hard-fought games.
BYH battled to second place finishes in 1940, 1941, and 1959 in state football championship games.
Many singular honors were won by BYH tennis team members in annual competitions. In golf, various athletes participated and excelled, including Bob Swenson, who tied for top honors in the State in 1948.
The record of basketball accomplishments is particularly noteworthy. The teams in every decade from the 1900s to the 1960s were tough and pulled off many upset victories.
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In Class B competition, the BYH basketball team took the Region and then BYH's first State basketball championships in 1948, and 1949.
Harold Christensen, Class of 1949, played on both State championship basketball teams, and also lettered in football -- he was quarterback -- baseball, track and tennis, the only BYH athlete to letter in five sports. He received All American honors in basketball, and went on to have a distinguished record of achievement at BYU and for the rest of his life. There is much more to know about him; suffice it to say that he was the all-time, all-around top athlete in modern times at BYH.
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In 1952, BYH placed second in state basketball competition.
The 1960s were filled with winning regional titles. In 1962 the Wildcats took Consolation at State.
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In 1963, the BYH basketball team, coached by Courtney Leishman and and Jed Gibson, took the State Class B Championship, and received the high honor of being recognized with the Region 7 Sportsmanship Trophy.
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In 1967, the BYH basketball team won the Region IV Class A title.
In baseball, the Wildcats won the Region title five times: 1957, 1958, 1959, 1965, and 1967. For an eyewitness account of the 1967 season, click here.
It was the goal of all BY High teams to demonstrate integrity, good sportsmanship, a strong competitive spirit and a determination to meet every challenge that faced them, in the spirit of Principal Karl G. Maeser's teachings from 1876 to 1892.
You are invited to enjoy an exciting visit to BYA~BYH sports over a span of more than 70 years by looking at newspaper clippings and stories linked below:
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Members of the 1897 BYA football team included, reclining: Albert Fillerup, left, John A. Johansen; seated: Bert Miller, Frederick Ewell, John Judd, Dell Brown, David Hall; standing: Frank Cox, Bayard Mendenhall, David Hyde, John Petersen, William M. Hughes, Orvil Larson, and Jesse LeFevre.
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The 1909 Brigham Young High School baseball team included: top row: George Brooks, John Hunter, Aldous Dixon, Wyman Berg; middle row: Bert Richards, George Foster, Hugh Baxter; bottom row: Lloyd E. Woods, Lynn Baxter, and Orrin Wilson.
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The 1920 BY High football team. We have a list of the twelve men who faced Logan High in a playoff game (see article). This list has not been matched to the photo. Swenson [Reed?], left end; Dickson [Fred Dixon?], sub. left end; Anderson [Hugh?], left tackle; Bowman [Lyman Brown?], left guard; Jackson [Elwood R.?], center; Hatch [Victor?], right guard; Bench [Dean?], right tackle; Peterson, right end; McIntosh [Donald?], quarterback; Pine [Thomas or Mark Pyne?], left halfback; Chamberlain, right halfback; and Partridge [Truman], fullback. [Salt Lake Telegram, November 21, 1920]. [See also 1921 Banyan.]
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1920 Football Team on Track to State Championship Derailed by Logan High
1920 Football Season Banyan Recap; First Season When Football Returned to B. Y.
1921 ~ 1930 1924 Basketball - BYU Juniors Play BYH Varsity and Defeat Them
1924 Basketball - BYU Sophomores Play BYH Varsity and Defeat Them
1926 Basketball Team Leagueless, After Laying Off for Several Years, Trying to Demonstrate Success to Win an Invitation to Play in a League
1926 Basketball - "Frosty" Fred Richards,BYU Senior & BYH Alumnus, Appointed BYH Coach
1926 Basketball Team Formed and Admitted to Alpine Divison
1926 Basketball Team Named "Wildcats" and BYH Basketball History Begins
1927 Basketball - Assessment of First Ever BYH Basketball Team
1927 Basketball - 1928 Season Districts Established by the Executive Committee of the State Board of Control of High School Athletics
1928 Basketball Team Meets American Fork - BYH Not Regarded as a Dangerous Outfit
1928 Basketball Team Loses to American Fork, Not Expected to Defeat Next Opponent, Pleasant Grove
1928 Basketball Team Under Coach Joe Buys Has Strongest Team in Several Seasons (Skip boxing cartoon)
1928 Tennis Team Favored to Win State Tennis Tournament
1928 Tennis - Aldy Smith and Wilson Booth Win State Doubles Championship; Kent Johnson Wins Singles Crown at BYU Invitational
1931 ~ 1940 1931 Basketball - Dick Thorn Appointed Basketball Coach ~ Replacing Coach Weldon Monson
1931 Basketball Team Finished 2nd Last Year, Looks to Be a Strong Contender This Year
1932 Basketball Contest Between BYH and Provo - BYH Has Preseason Wins, But Has Slight Disadvantage
1932 Basketball Team Defeated by Provo
1932 Basketball Team Defeated by Lehi
1932 Basketball Team Defeats Lincoln with a Basket by Tom Eastmond in Final 10 Seconds
1932 Basketball Team Falls to Pleasant Grove
1932 Baseball Team Upsets American Fork
1932 Basketball Team Pulls Off Sensational Victory Over Provo - Now Tied for 2nd in Alpine District
1932 Basketball Team Upset by Lehi, Nudged Out of State Playoffs
1932 Basketball Loss to Lehi a Thriller Nonetheless
1932 Basketball Team Bounces Back to .500 By Whipping Lincoln; Next Up, Pleasant Grove
1932 Basketball - Pleasant Grove Barely Ekes Out a 36-35 Win Over BYH
1932 Basketball Team Upset by American Fork In Final Game of BYH Season
1932 Women's Drill Team to Participate in BYU Relay Carnival Event
1932-1933 Basketball - Cyprus Downs BYH in Pre-Season Practice Game
1933 Tennis Team Coach T. Earl Pardoe Announces Formation of Utah County High School Tennis League
1933 Tennis - Tennis League Formed With 2 Divisions; BYH Has 2 Teams, One in Each Division
1933 Tennis Team Plays Bingham Netters Away From Home
1933 Tennis Team Defeated by Wasatch Academy 3 Matches to 2
1933 Basketball - BYU Varsity Features Former BYH Star, Dick Grimmett ~ Grimmett Excels Against Utah
1933 Basketball Team Defeated by Granite, Next Faces Nephi in Provo
1933 Basketball Team Defeated By Nephi in Preseason Practice Game
1933 Basketball - Sports Editor Analyzes Nephi and BYH Squads
1933-1934 Basketball League Season Schedule Listed; First Up, Provo at BYH
1933 Basketball Team, Vastly Improved, Barely Beaten by Springville 47-45 in Preseason Game
1933 Basketball Team Plays Nephi is a 2nd Preseason, Game, Loses Again
1933 Basketball Team Defeat by Defending Champions, Granite High School
1933 Tennis Champions, Grant Holt & Bill Pardoe, Doubles, BYU Invitational
1934 Basketball Team, Coached by Buck Dixon, Loses Nip and Tuck Game to Pleasant Grove, 20-28
BYH Basketball Team Defeats Lincoln Soundly ~ BYH Climbs Out of Cellar
1934 Basketball Team Upsets American Fork
1934 Basketball - Reed Oldroyd One of Top Scoring Players in Alpine District
1934 Basketball Team Defeated by Lehi
1934 Basketball Wildcats Rally to Beat Traditional Rival, Provo 33-32
1934 Basketball Wildcats Rampage Against Lincoln
1934 Basketball Team Defeats Lehi
1934 Basketball - Lehi, Loser to BYH, Defeats Provo, Loser to BYH, to Win Alpine District Title
1934 Tennis Team One of Three High Schools to Compete in BYU Invitational Tournament
1934 Basketball Team Defeats Davis in Preseason Game
1934 Basketball Team Falls to Granite, Defending State Champions, in Preseason
1934 Basketball Team Triumphs Over Springville in Preseason Warmup
1934 Basketball Team Defeated Again by Granite, This Time in Provo Just One Week Later
1934-1935 Basketball Season League Play Set; BYH to Play Lehi in Opener
1934-1935 Basketball Team Analyzed in Detail by Sports Writer; Wildcat Basketball Emphasized Because BYH Does Not Play Football
1935 Basketball Team Wins 7 of 10 in Preseason; Starts League Play in January
1935 Basketball - Defending Champion Lehi Defeats Strong BYH Team
1935 Basketball Team Defeats Lincoln in Away Game
1935 Basketball Team Triumphs Over American Fork
1935 Basketball Team in Tie for 2nd Place
1935 Basketball Forward, Booth, One of League's Top Scorers
1935 Basketball Team Favored in Upcoming Game with Pleasant Grove
1935 Basketball Team Gains Victory Over Pleasant Grove
1935 Basketball Forward Booth Third in Individual Scoring
1935 Basketball Team To Tangle with Provo in Intercity Rivalry Tilt
1935 Basketball Team Falls as Provo Ekes Out 29-24 Victory
1935 Basketball Team Must Face Unbeaten First Half Winner, Lehi
1935 Basketball Game with Lehi Moved Up One Night
1935 Basketball Team Loss Leaves Lehi Still Undefeated
1935 Basketball Team Tramples Lincoln in Runaway Victory
1935 Basketball Team Defeats American Fork in a Solid Win
1935 Basketball Team Defeats Pleasant Grove ~ Margin of Victory, 1 Point
1935 Basketball Team to Face Provo Again
1935 Basketball Team Third in League Play with 5 Wins, 4 Losses
1935 Basketball Team Whips Provo, 40-32 ~ Breaking 1st Place Tie Between Lehi and Provo
1935 Coaching Staff at BYU Largest in History of Y Sports; Some Coaches Have Assignments at BYH
1935 BYU Coaching Staff Enlarged; Fred W. "Buck" Dixon Continues as BYH Coach
1935 Tennis Team - Pardoe and Booth Are District Doubles Champions
1935 Track & Field - Oldroyd Qualifies for State Meet in Broad Jump
1935-1936 Basketball Game Schedules Set for Alphine and Nebo Districts
1936 Basketball - Provo Sinks BYH in Opener
1936 Basketball Teams Defeated by American Fork
1936 Basketball Team Nosed Out by Pleasant Grove for 3rd Loss
1936 Basketball Team Wins 1st League Game by Handing Lincoln Its 4th Straight Loss
1936 Basketball Team to Play Lehi
1936 Basketball Team Battles Lehi to a Tie, Then Falls 22-21 By a Free Throw
1936 Basketball - American Fork Favored to Defeat BYH in Upcoming Contest
1936 Basketball - Undefeated American Fork Downs BYH
1936 Basketball Team Holds Commanding Lead Over Pleasant Grove, Winning 38-28
1936 Basketball Team Noses Out Lincoln for 3rd Victory in 9 Games
1936 Tennis Team Wins Second Place Behind Provo
1938 Tennis Team Defeats Springville
1938 - Graduated BYH Basketball Star Don Snow Reports for BYU Football Camp
1938 Football - Spectacular Six-Man Football Preview Contest Between BYH and Lincoln
1938 Football - Six-Man Games Scheduled with Spanish Fork and Weber High
1938 Basketball Team Defeated by One Point by Provo
1938 Basketball Team Loses to Roosevelt Rough Riders
1938 Basketball Team on Barnstorming Tour Loses Badly to Alterra
1939 Basketball Team Opens League Play Against Lehi on January 6th
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1940 Six-Man Football Team Preps for Championship Games
1940 Six-Man Football Teams, BYH & Parowan, Battle in Snow to 6-6 Tie on Thanksgiving Day
1940 Six-Man Football Championship Game Described in Detail
1940 Six-Man Football Team Ties in Championship Game, But Forfeits to Parowan; Parowan Lauds Sportsmanship
1940 Sports Recap Explains Six-Man Football Tie and Forfeit
1940 Basketball Team -- Don Hansen is Tallest Center
1940 Multi-Sport Coach Dave Crowton's Record
1940 Tennis Star Huish Wins State Title
1941 ~ 1950 1941 Basketball Victory Puts BYH Two Games Ahead in Region Title Battle
1941 Basketball Team Puts Alpine Division Title on Ice by Defeating Pleasant Grove 43-40
1941 Basketball Team Wins Region, Enters State Tournament for the First Time in 20 Years
1941 Basketball Tournament: Dixie Faces "Too-Tall" BYH Players
1941 Baseball Team Plays First Season Ever
1941 Tennis Team Ties Lincoln Team
1942 Basketball Team Comes From Behind to Defeat North Summit; Rally Led by Don Hansen
1942 Basketball Team Loses to Lehi in Key Game
1942 Basketball Team in 3-Way Tie for Second Place
1942 Tennis Team - 3 BYH Players Win Top Places
1943 Football Team Plays First Year of Eleven-Man Football
1943 Basketball Team Comes from Behind to Upset Lehi
1943 Basketball Team Falls to Manti High School in Preseason Game
1943 Tennis Team, Defending Nebo District Champions, Trounce Provo High Tennis Team
1943 Baseball Team Falls to Provo in Opener
1943 Baseball Team Upsets Payson
1943 BYH Honors Top Athletes
1944 Baseball Team Builds for 1945
1944 Basketball Team Faces New Season Challenges
1945 Basketball Seeks Intra-City Clash with Provo
1947 Golf Team First to Enter State High School Golf Tournament
1947 Coaches Dixon and Crowton at BYH
1948 Football Team Best Ever - Photo of Harold Christensen, Quarterback, Jae Ballif & Norm Christiansen
1947-1948 Basketball - Coach Dave Crowton Analyzes Team's Strengths, Weaknesses
1948 Basketball First String Plays Only First and Third Quarters Against Springville
1948 Basketball Team Overcomes Granite, Harold Christensen Sparkles
1948 Basketball Team Qualifies for State Tournament the Hard Way; Face Uphill Battle If They Are to Win
1948 Basketball Photo of Starting Five Before State Tournament
1948 Basketball Team Wins Overtime Game, Beating American Fork
1948 Basketball Team Wins State Class B Tournament
1948 Basketball Team Finishes in Top Spot
1948 Basketball All-State Center, Harold Christensen, on Top of University Recruiters' Lists; Coach Crowton Needs a Vacation after Overtime Wins; Christensen Accepts Team Trophy
1948 Basketball Champions Honored by Provo City
1948 Basketball's Harold Christensen Named to Deseret News All State Basketball Team ~ Harold Christensen & Tom Karren Win All-State Honors
1948 Basketball Coach Dave Crowton Leaves BYH Job for BYU Position
1948 Tennis Players at BYH Win
1949 Tennis Team's Bob Kirkpatrick Wins Singles Title at BYU Invitation Meet
1948-1949 Basketball Defending State Champs to Play Springville
1949 Basketball Competition Fierce at Half-Way Point
1949 Basketball Team Defeats Murray High in Second Round of State Tournament
1949 Basketball Team to Face Cyprus, Defending State Champions, in Semi-Final Round
1948 & 1949 BYH Basketball Teams are State Champions and Win Respect
1949 Basketball - Victory Rally Honors BYH Wildcats - Photo: Harold Christensen, Tom Karren & Kent Broadhead
1948-1949 All Sports: BYH's Christensen Tops Epic Era at Provo School - Letter's in 5 Sports
1949 Basketball - Christensen Named One of Top 24 High School Basketball Players in Nation
1950 Basketball Team Defeats Park City High in First Round of State Tournament
1950 Tennis Team's Max Eggerten Wins Singles Title at Snow Invitational Meet
1951 ~ 1960
1951 Basketball Star, Vern Whatcott, Graduates and Stars on Military Basketball Team
1952 Football Quarterback, Dave Kimball, Wins "Prep Star of the Week" Honor
1952 Basketball Star, Tommy Karren, Plays Forward on BYU Varsity Team
1952 Tennis Team Wins Doubles at Snow Meet
1959 Baseball Team Champs of Region Seven
1961 ~ 1968 1963 Football Teams Wins Opening Pre-Season Game with Park City
1963 Basketball Team Defeats South Summit in First Round of State Tournament
1963 Basketball State Champions Honored
1966-1967 Basketball Team Led by Bergeson Twins Beats Uintah Utes 63-51
1967 Baseball Star, Hard-Hitting Loren Duke, Plays in August All-Star Team ~ [See Dallan Olson story]
1968 All Teams Complete Last Season - BYH Era Ends ~ End of Article - Sports Focus
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Cheerleading has occupational hazards |
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