Cross & Crescent

The concept of brotherhood is a fairly simple one. A few people get together, become friends, and work as one toward the accomplishment of some common goals while undergraduates. They are bonded by their ritual and philosophy.

Although their interests extend outward as they pursue their majors, participate in other activities and make friendships beyond the Fraternity, they continue to support each other with acceptance and encouragement. Eventually they will leave college and the chapter, taking with them the relationships they have developed. And each year the more successful chapters will replenish the lifeblood of a brotherhood with new members of the highest quality.

So how did Lambda Chi Alpha do it in its earliest years?

In the early 1900s Lambda Chi Alpha had no competitive advantage. We were the new kids on the block. We had no reputation, no tradition, and no alumni. Our competitors — the Betas, the Dekes, PsiU, the Alpha Delts, SAEs, and Sigma Chis — had chapter houses, popularity, large chapters, wealthy alumni, and established rituals.

Why would anyone want to join a new and unknown organization, especially if you had been successful academically or athletically in high school? I’m not sure we can reach consensus on the answer.

What history teaches us is that Lambda Chi Alpha was successful.

In celebration of our upcoming centennial anniversary, we will pay tribute to some of our most notable brothers from different industries and eras. This month we want to recognize some of our most distinguished alumni from the sports world.

Football

Dr. Leonard Charpier (Illinois 1918) was the first Lambda Chi to play professional football for the Chicago Cardinals in 1921. He later went on to attend medical school at the University of Chicago and became a surgeon.

Maurice Witherspoon (Washington & Jefferson 1922) was selected for Walter Camp’s All-American team in 1915, and was chosen to be the captain of the Washington & Jefferson football team for the 1916 season. Instead of remaining for another year, he left college and joined the U.S. Navy to serve in World War I and World War II as a chaplain. The Witherspoon Award, established in 1981, is named after him, and is awarded annually to a chaplain in the Armed Services for “demonstrating a unique commitment to Bible reading and/or encouraging Bible reading in a special way.”

Dr. Abe Mickal (Louisiana State 1935) was a first team All-American and was selected for Sports Illustrated’s silver anniversary team and is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame. Mickal chose to attend medical school and subsequently dedicated his life to his community. Ultimately, he became the long-term chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Louisiana State University Medical Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Our most celebrated football player and athlete of our first half-century was Charley Trippi (Georgia 1944). Even today, he is rated as the 20th best college player ever by ESPN. As was true of the majority of athletes of the 1940s, he served in the armed forces during World War II and then returned to college. He was awarded the Maxwell Trophy (1946), emblematic of the best college football player and signed a contract for $100,000 (an unheard of amount in those days) with the Chicago Cardinals. In 1947, the Cardinals became world champions, and Trippi was later inducted into both the College Football Hall of Fame (1959) and the Professional Football Hall of Fame (1968).

Our best known football player of the modern era is Fred Biletnikoff (Florida State 1965). He played with one team, the Oakland Raiders, and was the Most Valuable Player in Super Bowl XI. He retired as a Raiders coach in 2007 after 18 years. He is also a member of both the College (1991) and Professional Football Halls of Fame (1994). The Fred Biletnikoff Award is awarded annually to the best wide receiver in college football.

Basketball

In 1922, Henry P. Iba (Westminster 1927) became a member of the Westminster basketball team, and also a member of Theta Kappa Nu Fraternity. He would later enter the coaching profession and in 1934, after stints at two other colleges, he became the head coach at Oklahoma A&M University (Oklahoma State University). By the time he retired in 1970, his teams had won back-to-back NCAA titles in 1945 and 1946, and secured 655 victories in those 36 seasons. In 1964 and 1968, Iba was the coach of the U.S. team in the Olympics that won the gold medal, as well as the 1972 team which refused to accept the silver medal as a result of controversial officiating at the end of the gold medal game. He is a member of six halls of fame, including the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame (2007).

One of Iba’s players on the 1964 team was Larry Brown (California-Los Angeles HON). Brown would go on to achieve unparalleled heights as both a college and professional coach. A few years after being a member of the 1968-1969 ABA champion Oakland Oaks team, he began his professional coaching career as the head coach of the Carolina Cougars. In the 1980s, he spent five years as the University of Kansas’ head coach, leading them to the NCAA title in 1988. Returning to the pro ranks, he led the Detroit Pistons to the NBA title in the 2003-2004 season.

Rick Pitino (Massachusetts 1974) began his coaching career in 1978 at Boston University. Since then he has led three different teams to the NCAA Final Four with the University of Kentucky winning in 1996. He is currently the head coach at the University of Louisville.

Baseball

Baseball is considered America’s game and Lambda Chi Alpha has been a part of it since Alvah Elliott (Wisconsin 1915) played with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1919.

Six years later, Gordon Stanley “Mickey” Cochrane (Boston 1925), who had played five sports at Boston University, began the 1925 season as the starting catcher with the same team. By 1934, when he had been traded to the Detroit Tigers, Cochrane had played in three World Series, winning in 1929 and 1930. As the player-manager of the Tigers he played in two more World Series, winning in 1935. Although critically injured when hit by a pitched ball playing with the Tigers, he served in the U.S. Navy in World War II. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1947 and is still considered one of the greatest catchers of all time.

The Chicago Cubs were blessed with outstanding players from the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s, three of whom were Ferguson Jenkins (Illinois State HON), Ron Santo (Illinois State HON), and Billy Williams (Illinois State HON), and all of whom were initiated by our Illinois State University chapter. Jenkins played with four teams during his Hall of Fame (1991) career, winning the Cy Young Award in 1971. Williams played with the Cubs for 16 years and was selected by the Sporting News as the player of the year in 1972. After retiring as a player, he became a coach and hitting instructor and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987. Santo played with the Cubs for 14 years and is now a broadcaster for the team.

Two Lambda Chis, Cliff Chambers (Washington State 1942) and Larry Dierker (California-Santa Barbara 1967), each pitched a no-hitter during their careers. Chambers pitched his on May 6, 1951, against the Boston Braves and Dierker pitched his on July 9, 1976, against the Montreal Expos. Dierker also was a two-time all-star and served as the manager of the Houston Astros from 1997 through 2001, guiding them to four 1st place finishes.

Other Sports

Axel Gravem (California-Berkeley 1917) was described as a breezy Californian with unfailing optimism. Prior to graduating in 1918, he was the captain of the tennis team and among the 20 best amateur tennis players in the United States. Gravem was Lambda Chi Alpha’s first Rhodes Scholar and became the captain (president) of Oxford University’s tennis team while studying in England. He served in World War I with the U.S. Expeditionary Forces and, after graduating from Oxford, practiced law until his retirement.

In 1935, Gardnar Mulloy (University of Miami-FL 1938) became the school’s first student to receive a tennis scholarship — and organized and coached the university’s first team. Later he helped build its first tennis stadium. During World War II, Mulloy was in the U.S. Navy, commanding an LST-32, a tank landing ship, and was awarded two battle stars. In a tennis career that lasted into his 90s, Mulloy played on the U.S. Davis Cup team and won four U.S. Open doubles titles, as well as a doubles championship at Wimbledon.

Hydroplane racing is synonymous with the name Bill Muncey (Rollins College 1953). This type of event involves racing hydroplanes on lakes and rivers at speeds between 130 and 160 miles per hour. Muncey is regarded as the greatest racer in the history of this sport. During his racing career he won eight Gold Cups, seven U.S. National Championships and four World Championships. He has been inducted into three halls of fame, including the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2004.

Non Players

Playing a sport isn’t a prerequisite to having a major impact on the industry. Bill Rasmussen (DePauw 1954) turned being fired as an employee for the World Hockey Association’s New England Whalers into a creative opportunity. He and his son Scott - who had been fired at the same time - created a 24 hour, seven days a week, worldwide sports network known as the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, better known as ESPN. Today, ESPN is part of our sports lexicon, reaching 100 million homes in the United States and 150 countries.

The name Dr. James Beckett (Southern Methodist 1970) is not familiar to most Americans, but mention Beckett Publications and you will begin to get nods of recognition. Beckett Publications is the publisher of 15 magazines, and the privately-held corporation is considered the go-to source of information for sports collectibles enthusiasts.

In 2005, Brett Yormark (Indiana 1988) was hired away from his position as vice president of corporate marketing for NASCAR to become the president and CEO of the New Jersey Sports Network, parent company of the New Jersey Nets. While at NASCAR, he completed a $750 million, 10-year contract that changed the name from the Winston Cup Series to the Nextel Cup Series.

Olympics

In 1956, three members of Lambda Chi Alpha won Olympic medals. Charles T. Butler (Brown University) formed the first intercollegiate bobsled club while at Brown and also played on the football team. For the 1956 Olympics, he was part of the four-man bobsled team that captured the bronze medal.

One of Butler’s sled mates was Arthur W. Tyler (Michigan 1937) who continually upgraded the quality of his sleds through scientific testing. He and Butler achieved their greatest success at the International level winning the gold medal in the four-man sled in 1959, the bronze medal in the two-man sled also in 1959, the silver medal in the two-man sled in 1957, and the bronze medal in the four-man sled in 1957.

John D. McKinlay (Boston 1956) won the silver medal in fours without coxswain in rowing at the 1956 Olympics.