Football, Baseball Alumni Celebrate Events on March 29
Former Nashville singer Sam Wooden ’07 rounds out the day in song at Puff’s
Buena Vista University hosts a pair of special days for football and baseball alumni student-athletes and their friends and families on Saturday, March 29.
First, alumnus Trent Burley ’08 has put out a call for Beaver football alumni to join him for a daylong series of events on campus and in Storm Lake. Burley, who is a member of the Hershberger Gridiron Golf Classic and a backer of the Building Champions campaign, seeks to have football alumni come to campus to join him in the following schedule of events:
• 9 a.m., watch a current spring football practice with Head Coach Austin Dickinson ’10 and his staff;
• Enjoy lunch at noon while visiting with student-athletes on the current BVU team as well as parents/guardians of current high school football players attending a Junior Visit Day;
• At 1 p.m., tour the original locker room spaces in Siebens Fieldhouse and learn a bit more about plans to expand and renovate locker rooms, including a football locker room to be named for the late Coach Jim Hershberger;
• Wrap up the day by socializing at Puff’s while enjoying music from Sam Wooden ’07, an attorney from Dubuque who embarked on a career in music in Nashville following his BVU graduation. Wooden is a member of the BVU Alumni Association Board of Directors.
“I’m also fired up about the direction of BVU as a whole and want to let others know about the strides were making through the Building Champions campaign to expand and upgrade facilities used by our student-athletes. It is great to see construction taking place on a campus that’s growing.”
-Trent Burley, 2008 BVU graduate
“I’m really excited about the work Coach Dickinson is doing to grow Beaver football, and I want all of us who played for BVU to let him know how we’re backing him,” said Burley. “I’m also fired up about the direction of BVU as a whole and want to let others know about the strides we’re making through the Building Champions campaign to expand and upgrade facilities used by our student-athletes. It is great to see construction taking place on a campus that’s growing.”
To learn more about the special football alumni day on March 29, RSVP by March 15.
While football players are convening on campus, BVU baseball celebrates its annual Alumni Weekend as the Beavers host Nebraska-Wesleyan. The Beavers face the Prairie Wolves in the opening game of the three-game set at 6 p.m. on Friday, March 28. The Beavers then host Nebraska-Wesleyan in a doubleheader at the BVU/Storm Lake High School Baseball Field, as games are slated for 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Alumni are free to attend and cheer on the Beavers while connecting with their teammates as well as current Beavers and Coach Steve Eddie ’00 MSE ’07 and his staff.
Between games on Saturday (around 3:30 p.m.), Coach Eddie will ask that alumni baseball players be recognized on the diamond as he presents the Beaver Baseball Diamond Award to this year’s recipient, Quinn Hildman ’02.
“Quinn is a great recipient of the award this year because he has remained connected to our baseball program in a lot of ways,” said Eddie. “Quinn continues to check on our team throughout the season. He attends alumni events and is a faithful giver to Beaver baseball through the BV Club.
“Quinn, who played basketball and baseball during his playing career, has also hired some of our student-athletes for internships and often visits with other players about their careers, specifically those in computer science; all of which means so much to us. We are thrilled to honor Quinn this season,” Eddie concluded.
Coach Eddie began presenting the Beaver Baseball Diamond Award a few years ago as a way to help recognize baseball alumni who continue to connect with one of the strongest baseball programs in the American Rivers Conference.
Following the day’s activities, baseball alumni are encouraged to gather at Puff’s to socialize, reconnect, and listen to the music provided by Wooden. For more information, contact Sarah Johnson, BVU Director of Alumni Engagement, at 712.749.2647 or email JohnsonS2@bvu.edu