Track Celebrates 50th Anniversary of NCAA Title
3/11/2015 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
Head Coach Tom Botts, Steve Herndon, Cal Groff, Gene Crews, Robin Lingle, Earl Denny, and Charlie Brown (Savitar,1966)
COLUMBIA, Mo. - With the arrival ofthe eve of the NCAA Championships' 50th Anniversary weekend, the Mizzou Tigers are given a unique opportunity to look back at how it all started. 1965 marked the first ever NCAA Indoor Championships meet, and the five Tigers who traveled to Detroit, Mich., for the event would depart with an honor held by few - as NCAA Team Champions. They are one of only two teams in Missouri history to hold that distinction, with the other being the Tigers' baseball program who won the title in 1954.
Entering the meet on the heels of a Big Eight Conference title, senior Robin Lingle ('65), junior Gene Crews ('66), and sophomores Charlie Brown ('67), Steve Herndon ('67), and Earl Denny ('67), once again out-matched conference competitor Oklahoma State for the NCAA crown. The five Tigers scored a total 14 points, overcoming Oklahoma's 12 point tally to claim the national team title.
"It was when the teams were smaller, so we brought five guys and all five scored," Herndon said. "It was a lot of fun, the meet is hard to forget. It was a great season and I still remember it."
"It was a great experience, a great sense of accomplishment and pride, knowing that I was part of a team that won the very first national championship for indoor track," Denny said.
Guiding the Tigers in his 24th year at Mizzou was the legendary Tom Botts, who would mentor eight conference championship teams, 96 individual conference champions, 23 All-Americans, five national champions, and two U.S. Olympians during his 31-year tenure at Missouri. The Mexico, Mo., native was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1977, the Drake Relays Hall of Fame in 1979, and the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1983.
"He was a true gentleman and a competitor," Herndon said of Botts. "He was quite a guy. Those were four of the best years of my life."
Denny also had kind words to say of Botts, "[he] was a quiet man, very reserved and had the respect of all his athletes. It was a great experience for me, learning from him and [Assistant] Coach Bob Teel. They expected you to excel and give it your best."
Of Botts' five national champions was Robin Lingle, who helped lead the Tigers during the 1965 championship meet with his first-place finish in the 1000m run. Lingle became one of the 27 NCAA Champions to come out of Mizzou, crossing in 2:09.90. Lingle would go on to set an American and Collegiate Record in the event, crossing in 2:07.30 at the 1965 USTFF Championships in Milwaukee, Wisc. on March 15, 1965. Lingle also madethe roster for two NCAA Outdoor Championship meets, placing fifth and third in the 1500m run in 1964 and 1965, respectively.
Also scoring points on the track was sophomore Charlie Brown, who timed through in 6.20 for the 60-yard dash for fourth overall. Brown, who also doubled as a running back for the Tigers football team, would go on to play for the New Orleans Saints where he became the first in the team's history to return a punt for a touchdown. Brown was inducted into the Mizzou Hall of Fame for both football and track in 1995.
Moving into the field events, junior Gene Crews placed third in the shot put with a top toss of 58-0, earning an All-American honor. Crews would return to the Championships in 1966 and place fourth with a best throw of 59-0.50. He would also qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in 1966, placing fifth with a mark of 60-6.50.
The pair of jumpers, sophomores Earl Denny and Steve Herndon, started and ended the weekend for the Tigers. Denny kicked things off, scoring some of the first points for the black and gold with his fourth place finish in the broad jump (24-1). Ending out the competition, and clinching the team win for Mizzou, was Herndon, who placed fourth in the high jump with a top bar of 6-8. Herndon also qualified for the 1966 NCAA Outdoor Championships in the high jump, where he took fifth with a best bar of 6-8.
"Everything was waiting for the high jump to finish to tell who won," Herndon said. "Robin Lingle ran up to me and asked what place I got, and he said it was enough to win the national championship. So it was down to me scoring in that event. I'll never forget that."
For their successes both on and off the track, all five of the 1965 NCAA Champions were inducted into the Mizzou Hall of Fame in 1995. In the years since, 13 more Tigers have added their names to the list of National Champions to go through the University of Missouri. This year, three more athletes will look to join their company, as junior Markesh Woodson and seniors Kearsten Peoples and Jill Rushin prepare for the championship meet in Fayetteville, Ark. (March 13-14). Among the many supporters cheering these three on from around the country are two members of the 1965 team, Earl Denny and Steve Herndon, who offered a few words of wisdom to the young Tigers looking to continue their legacy.
"They're going to do well. They just need to stay relaxed and not tense up," Herndon said. "As Coach Botts used to say, just stay in the now. Don't think too far ahead."
"Stick to your routine," Denny added. "Stay focused and don't let any outside distraction interfere with your goals. Go Tigers!"
All three Tigers enter the meet ranked in the top ten of their respective events, including a national leader in Peoples, who through the seventh-best mark in collegiate history for the weight throw during the final meet of the regular season (22.84m / 74-11.25). Peoples also sits in tenth in the NCAA rankings for the shot put (17.03m / 55-10.50), just behind teammate Rushin, who holds the fifth-best mark this season with her lifetime best toss of 17.61m (57-9.50). Woodson is currently sixth in the NCAA after hitting a new PR, and Missouri School Record, in the 60m dash at the SEC Championships (6.58).
For the latest on your Tigers, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter @MIZ_TrackField.
Players Mentioned
