Famous Alumni

[SUPERBUNNY]

Had an interesting conversation the other night where we started talking about famous alumni from SDSU.

Since we are celebrating 125 years, it might be fun to list some of them! You can go anywhere from here and some people have really gone a long way!

Here's my small starter list:

Tom Daschle - Senate Minority Leader
Jim Langer - NFL Hall of Fame
Adam Vinatieri - Super Bowl winning kicker
Jerry Lohr - Wine

I'm more interested in hearing about alumni outside of athletics!

SUPERBUNNY

[Jacks99]

I believe Gov. Mike Rounds is an alum.

Don't recall the first name, but "Briggs" is a famous engine name.

[jackrabbit1979]

I believe Gov. *Mike Rounds is an alum.

Don't recall the first name, but "Briggs" is a famous engine name.

Stephen F. Briggs, co-inventor/devloper of Briggs and Stratton Motors.

[thebluehatman]

General Omar N. Bradley - Throughout the history of SDSU, several well-known dignitaries in the military have been associated with the SDSU Army ROTC program. One of the first and perhaps the best known is the late Omar N. Bradley, a five-star general. Bradley came to SDSU in 1919 as a captain in the Army. He died April 8,1981. At the time of his death, Bradley was the highest ranking military officer in the nation. He remained on active duty through an act of Congress which exempted five star officers from retiring. Bradley logged more that 69 years of active duty, the longest of any serviceman in U.S. History. Bradley led an army group of 1.3 million U.S. troops during World War II - the largest body of American soldiers ever to serve under one field commander. While on campus, Bradley helped coach the football team, which beat the University of South Dakota that year, and established the boxing and wrestiling programs on campus. Bradley left SDSU in 1920 to teach at West Point Military Academy. He has served as Cheif of Staff, and was the first chairman of the Joints Chiefs of Staff.

Douglas Forsyth - When meteorologists turn to the nation’s leading source of severe weather forecasting, they turn to Douglas Forsyth and his team at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Oklahoma. Weather warnings for the entire country originate here and with one of South Dakota State University’s most accomplished grads. In addition to establishing standards for weather tracking radar technology, Douglas Forsyth is working on a project that will speed information about severe weather systems and save lives.

Kevin Heronimus - Engineer and entrepreneur Kevin Heronimus turned his degree in Mechanical Engineering into one of the fastest growing companies in the country. LINE -X is a company that offers spray-on bed liners to truck owners. Heronimus is a 1985 graduate of SDSU from Sibley, Iowa. He currently resides in Huntsville, Alabama.

Just a couple other big name sdsu grads.

[rabidrabbit]

REIFEL, Benjamin, The first Sioux to serve in Congress, Ben Reifel was the son of a Lakota Sioux mother. His Indian name was Lone Feather.a Representative from South Dakota; born on the Rosebud Indian Reservation near Parmelee, Todd County, S.Dak., September 19, 1906; attended Todd County rural schools; B.S., South Dakota State College, 1932; M.A., 1949, and a Ph.D., 1952, in public administration, Harvard University; served in the United States Army as a lieutenant colonel from 1942 to 1945, with service in Europe; employed by the Department of the Interior since 1933, resigning as Aberdeen area administrator in the Bureau of Indian Affairs in March 1960; elected as a Republican to the Eighty-seventh and to the four succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1961-January 3, 1971); was not a candidate for reelection in 1970 to the Ninety-second Congress; was a resident of Estelline, S.Dak., and Largo, Fla., until his death in Sioux Falls, S.Dak., on January 2, 1990. The Badlands National Parks Visitor's Center, Interior, SD was renamed in his honor in May 1993.

[Jacks_NL]

From Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Dakota_State#Notable_alumni

Stephen Foster Briggs - inventor of the Briggs and Stratton engine
Tom Daschle - former Majority Leader of the United States Senate
David Gilbertson - chief justice of the South Dakota Supreme Court
Sandy Johnson - chief of the Associated Press Washington Bureau
Mike Rounds - South Dakota governor
Theodore Schultz - winner of the 1979 Nobel Prize in Economics
Adam Vinatieri - kicker for the NFL's Indianapolis Colts; formerly of New England Patriots

[jackrabit1]

Jarrod Emick, who won the 1993 Tony Award for best actor in a Musical for "Damn Yankees"
Steve Heiden, TE, Cleveland Browns

[1bunnies]

How about the Kurtenbach's and their little scoreboard company in Brookings.

[jacksfaninne]

Jarrod Emick, who won the 1993 Tony Award for best actor in a Musical for "Damn Yankees"
Not sure he's actually an alum, unless he came back to finish his degree. If I remember correctly, he left school early. But I certainly could be wrong.

[SUPERBUNNY]

Good stuff!

Had no idea about Omar Bradley!

SUPERBUNNY

[Ozark_Jack]

Is the BRADLEY armored fighting vehicle that has seen so much action and gotten a lot of attention in the various recent squirmishes in the desert named after Omar Bradley? If so, that would be very cool!!

[Haldersham]

How about the Kurtenbach's and their little scoreboard company in Brookings.


Alred I believe has all three of his degrees from other institutions, but he probably has several brothers and sisters that are alums. I worked with his nephew years ago, who told me there were something like 13 sibblings in Alred's family. Younger brother Frank, who was a great wrestler and football player is an alum. All of Alred children are alums. No question Alred has made an impact on SDSU and his heart is with us despite not being an alum. The co-founder Duane Sanders is an alum I believe and both were engineering faculty at one time.

[Haldersham]

I think our most interesting alum is Charles Coughlin. He played football before 1910 and when he graduated he went to work for Stephen Briggs. Besides giving us the money for the campanile, he also bought yellow football pants for the entire squad after the Wisconsin football win in 1935.

He is way before my time, but I am impressed. He could have forgotten that he came to SDSU from Carthage SD and forgotten SDSU as well, but he did not do this. I believe he spent most of if not all of his working career in Milwaukee.

[89rabbit]

Is the BRADLEY armored fighting vehicle that has seen so much action and gotten a lot of attention in the various recent squirmishes in the desert named after Omar Bradley? If so, that would be very cool!!

Yes it is.

[89rabbit]

Speaking of Military Alums, how about:

http://www3.sdstate.edu/Academics/CollegeOfArtsAndScience/MilitaryScience/Alumni/DistinguishedAlumni/DePuy/Index.cfm

General William DePuy

General DePuy was an officer of the highest ideals. His courage, sound judgment, and leadership produced military achievements of great value to his country. General DePuy's military career spanned 36 years and three wars. *. *. *.

. *. *. *He graduated from South Dakota State University with a Bachelor of Science in Economics. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Infantry from ROTC in 1941 and joined the 20th Infantry Regiment, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. *. *. *.

General DePuy became Deputy Commanding General, United States Continental Army Command in March of 1973 and later became the first Commander of the Army's Training and Doctrine Command. This new command had overall responsibility for the Army's training center and school system, the ROTC program, and combat and doctrine development. During his tenure, General DePuy set the Army on the course that ultimately, produced the winning teams during Operations JUST CAUSE and DESERT STORM. *. *. *. *(read more)

DePuy Military Hall on campus is named after him.

CPT Willibald C. Bianchi

http://www3.sdstate.edu/Academics/CollegeOfArtsAndScience/MilitaryScience/Alumni/DistinguishedAlumni/Bianchi/Index.cfm

. *. *. *Bill Bianchi enrolled at SDSU where majored in animal science and was active as an Army ROTC cadet and as a Jackrabbit football player. Upon graduation, Bianchi was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army. He requested foreign service in order to see action at the earliest possible date.

In 1941, Bill's first task was to convert Philippine natives into trained soldiers. Bianchi distinguished himself by transforming these natives into fearless jungle fighters.

The Congressional Medal of Honor was awarded to Bianchi after the famous Toul pocket on West Bataan on February 3, 1942. Bianchi volunteered to lead part of a rifle platoon that was ordered to wipe out two strong enemy machine gun nests. He was wounded early in the action when two bullets passed through his left and. He didn't stop for first aid, but discarded his rifle and began firing a pistol. He located a machine gun nest and silenced it with grenades. After being wounded a second time by two machine gun bullets through the chest, Bianchi climbed to the top of an American tank, manned its anti-aircraft gun, and fired into the strongly-held enemy position until he was knocked off the tank by a grenade blast. Bianchi's actions succeeded in weakening the Japanese position so that it was later captured by infantrymen with minimal effort.

Bianchi was captured with the main forces in the fall of Bataan on April 9, 1942. He was imprisoned with other troops for 24 hours without food or water, then started the infamous 65-mile death march from Mariveles to San Fernando. Despite hunger, thirst, and heat, Bianchi was up and down the line helping men, spurring them on, and sharing their burdens. *. *. *(read more)

COL Leo K. Thorsness

http://www3.sdstate.edu/Academics/CollegeOfArtsAndScience/MilitaryScience/Alumni/DistinguishedAlumni/Thorsness/Index.cfm

COL Thorsness was on a surface-to-air missile suppression mission over North Vietnam. COL Thorsness and his wingman attacked and silenced a surface-to-air missile site with ground-to-air missiles, and then destroyed a second surface-to-air missile site with bombs. In the attack on the second missile site, COL Thorsness' wingman was shot down by intensive anti-aircraft fire, and the 2 crewmembers abandoned their aircraft. COL Thorsness circled the descending parachutes to keep the crewmembers in sight and relay their position to the Search and Rescue Center. During this maneuver, a MIG-17 was sighted in the area. COL Thorsness immediately initiated an attack and destroyed the MIG. Because his aircraft was low on fuel, he was forced to depart the area in search of a tanker. Upon being advised that 2 helicopters were orbiting over the downed crew's position and that there were hostile MIGs in the area posing a serious threat to the helicopters, COL Thorsness, despite his low fuel condition, decided to return alone through a hostile environment of surface-to-air missile and anti-aircraft defenses to the downed crew's position. As he approached the area, he spotted 4 MIG-17 aircraft and immediately initiated an attack on the MIGs, damaging 1 and driving the others away from the rescue scene. *. *. *. COL Thorsness' extraordinary heroism, self-sacrifice, and personal bravery involving conspicuous risk of life were in the highest traditions of the military service, and have reflected great credit upon himself and the U.S. Air Force.

Colonel Thorsness flew 19 1/2 Wild Weasel missions over North Vietnam in the 357th TFS, was shot down in April 1967, became a POW in North Vietnam, and was released in 1973. *. *. *(read more)

For his action Col. Thorsness was also awarded the Medal of Honor.

Great Americans one and all and great SDSU Alums!

Go State! *:)

[89rabbit]

Here is a story on SDSU's newest General:

http://www3.sdstate.edu/SDSU/NewsDetail45702.cfm?ID=46,5257

Corbett receives brigadier general stars at SDSU ceremony

Keith Corbett’s life is richer these days and it comes with a shiny bright star.

In formal ceremonies on the South Dakota State University campus Wednesday, the longtime SDSU educator and military man received his stars as the state’s newest brigadier general.

“It’s a great honor,” said the one-star general. “I am so humbled by this, because I certainly would never have expected this 30 years ago.”

Corbett is the interim dean of the College of General Studies and is in his 30th year of military service. He graduated from SDSU in 1976 with a chemistry degree and received his commission from the Air Force ROTC program.

He became a transportation officer in the South Dakota Army National Guard in 1983, working his way to the rank of full colonel in 2002.

Brigadier general rank also carries the title of assistant adjutant general for the National Guard, meaning Corbett is responsible for troop readiness, training, mobilization exercises, recruiting and retention.

“Keith is a great person,” said Maj. Gen. Michael Gorman, a two-star general whom Corbett reports to and is an officer in the governor’s cabinet. *. *. *. *(read more)

Go State! *:)