Congratulations to Tom Osterberg

Have spent these past few weeks helping a friend move across the country from Washington, DC to Washington state.  This adventure coincided with the start of a new school year, at which time the activities office at the high school announces the new inductees for the BHS hall of fame. The categories are fairly self-explanatory.  The "Pioneers" extend back to the early days of high school athletics, roughly one-hundred years ago.  The "Veterans" include those who are our age and a little older. "Male" and "Female" are somewhat younger than we are, and recognize the contributions that girls have made to the athletic arena.  "Athletics Department Staff" could include coaches, athletic directors, secretaries, or anyone who has been a strong and giving supporter of Bobcat athletics.

At our recent reunion, it was noted that our class was superbly talented academically and athletically. That excellence was again reaffirmed by the selection this year of Tom Osterberg to this  Hall of Fame.  Tom joins Lee Colburn and Jim Kortan as members of our class who have been selected for their achievements during their tenure as students of BHS.  This is the press release that was recently issued:

 

Bobcats Name Hall of Fame Inductees

Brookings High School will induct five members to its Sports Hall of Fame during half time of the Bobcat football game on Friday, September 16.  Kick-off at Dana Dykhouse Stadium on the South Dakota State University campus is at 7:00 p.m. for the game against the Sioux Falls Lincoln Patriots.

The BHS Activities Department will host the inductees and their families and friends at a reception prior to the game in the Bobcat Commons at Brookings High School.  The general public is encouraged to attend this meet-and-greet social from 5:00-6:15 p.m.

The inductees were selected because they demonstrated exemplary accomplishments in educational sports as either student-athletes or members of the athletics department staff at Brookings High School.  The 2016 Class of the Bobcat Sports Hall of Fame includes one inductee in each of five categories.

Pioneers

Nason Fishback (1949)

Veterans

Tom Osterberg (1969)

It appears that Tom's picture is a colorized version of his black and white picture from our senior annual.
Male

Matt Krogman (1993)

Female

Eva Nsereko (1992)

Athletics Department Staff

Steve Berseth (1972-2011)


 

Another press release states:

Bobcats Name Hall of Fame Inductees

Brookings High School will induct five members to its Athletics Hall of Fame during half time of the football home opener on Friday, September 16.  Kick-off on the South Dakota State University campus is at 7:00 p.m. for the game against the Sioux Falls Lincoln Patriots

Backyard Grill and the BHS Athletics Department will host the inductees and their families at a reception, at the Brookings High School Commons prior to the game.  The general public is invited to this meet-and-greet social from 4:30pm-6:00p.m.  The menu is a pull pork sandwich, baked beans, chips and water for $7.00.

 In addition, there is a short individual biography of each inductee.  The reason it has to be rather short is that is has to fit on the plaque that each individual receives.  In addition, an identical plaque is placed in the high school "Hall of Champions," the area that holds the numerous athletic awards, trophies, and championships that BHS has accumulated over its long and storied history.  Tom's biography is as follows:  

Tom Osterberg (1969)

Tom Osterberg was quick, elusive and difficult to defend.  Osterberg was honored twice as Bobcat MVP in football, and received All State recognition as a halfback (averaging 6.2 yards per carry), defensive back and kick and punt returner.  He lettered three times in basketball on talented BHS squads, capped by the 1968 Cats winning the State "A" Championship.  In the title game, Tommy scored 20 points, making all 12 of his free throw attempts.  He served as Co-Captain for the Cats as they went 20-3, and returned with the 1969 State "A" Runners Up trophy.  BHS also won both the 1968 and 1969 ESD titles with a two-year record of 24-4.  Osterberg received both All Tournament and All State recognition as a junior and senior.  He was also a class officer and member of the Homecoming Royalty.  Osterberg played baseball and football at South Dakota State.

 If baseball had been a school-sanctioned activity, as it is now, Tom would probably have been all-state in that sport, also.  He was a key player in our Teener team that went to the National Tournament in Hershey, PA, in 1965.  After high school, he played amateur baseball for many years for Brookings and Madison, where he taught and coached for about 35 years.  His love for baseball extended to slo-pitch softball, where he was a member of numerous "Spies" championship teams in the 1970's.  To this day, he continues to play the sport that he loves.  The rules are somewhat different for the older generation, but he still has that same competitive spirit that made him a stellar athlete and performer on the field, on the gridiron, and on the court.

During our high school days, there was a professional basketball player named Oscar Robertson.  He was an outstanding player at all levels (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Robertson,  http://www.thebigo.com/main.php).  His nickname was "The Big O."  Understandably, because Tom played the same position, and both had names with "O", Tom came to be called "The Little O."  When we search through old copies of The Brookings Register, we frequently come across that nickname in the sports pages. 

Much more could be said, but it was my privilege to be on the same basketball teams with Tom, Lee, Jim, Joe Jensen, Bob Adams, Barry Howe, Bernie Hendricks, Jim Arndt, Steve Hayes, Bob Ishmael, Steve Hayes, Jim Kessler, Doug deBoise, Larry Boggs, Bob Kallemeyn and many others.  Our baseball team had the likes of Dan Sterud, Randy Hofer, Tom Bozied, Don Tordoff, Jim Arndt, Loyd Beneke, Tim DeWitt, Doug deBoise, Barry Beuhler, Phil Trautmann, Chip Kabrud, Walt Osterberg, and Bernie Hendricks.

If any of you can make it to the festivities on September 16, we would love to see you there.  Congratulations, Tom, for a well-deserved honor.