805Bruin's You Tube video on Coach Wooden's 99th Birthday
On his 99th birthday, 99 things about John Wooden
By Mike Penner
The Los Angeles Times
October 14, 2009 | 1:44 a.m.
In honor of John Wooden's 99th birthday, here are 99 things you may, or may not, know about the legendary former UCLA basketball coach:
1. He was born in Martinsville, Ind., on Oct. 14, 1910.
2. Wooden led Martinsville High to the Indiana state title in 1927 and runner-up finishes in 1926 and 1928.
3. As a boy, one of his role models was Fuzzy Vandivier of the Franklin Wonder Five, a basketball team that dominated Indiana high school basketball from 1919 to 1922.
4. He was a three-time high school all-state selection.
5. Wooden met his future wife, Nell Riley, at a carnival in July 1926.
6. They married in a small ceremony in Indianapolis in August 1932. Afterward, they attended a Mills Brothers concert to celebrate.
7. Wooden and Nell were married 53 years before Nell's death in 1985.
8. After high school, Wooden enrolled at Purdue, where he won varsity letters in basketball and baseball his freshman year and earned All-American honors as a guard on the basketball team in 1930-32.
9. He was a three-time consensus All-American.
10. Wooden was captain of Purdue's basketball teams in 1931 and 1932 and led the Boilermakers to two Big Ten titles and the 1932 national championship.
(for 11-99, go to The Los Angeles Times)
May God continue to bless you, Coach. You are truly an inspiration to us all.
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