Plans Underway for Annual Hershberger Gridiron Classic
Head Coach Austin Dickinson eager to connect eras of Beaver football players, families, and more.
Buena Vista University football alumni and supporters are asked to mark their calendars for July 21 as the Annual Hershberger Gridiron Classic plays out at beautiful BVU Lake Creek in Storm Lake.
“I can’t wait to meet and share stories with dozens of our great football and BVU alumni who gave of themselves as student-athletes and now continue to support an incredible cause, the Jim & Floy Hershberger Football Endowment,” says Beaver Head Football Coach Austin Dickinson, a 2010 graduate who played football during his four years as an undergraduate.
Dickinson was hired as BVU Head Football Coach in December. He and his staff have hit the ground running with intentions to put the best team on the field with student-athletes who will work hard while coming to know those who created a Beaver football tradition highlighted by conference champions, All-Americans, and winners on and off the field who competed for the Navy & Gold before building successful careers.
“I’m humbled and honored to be able to direct a program that pays homage to late great leaders like Jim and Floy Hershberger who worked each day to help build Buena Vista,” says Dickinson. “I’m surrounding myself with great people who will continue to work hard, dedicating themselves to doing all we can for our great University and its people.”
“My parents loved Buena Vista and were very happy raising their family in Storm Lake, just one block from campus. I’m honored to return each summer to play in a tournament named for them. I know it means a lot to me, my teammates, and the student-athletes who came before us and after us. It’s also a lot of fun.”
Mike Hershberger, 1991 BVU graduate
The Hershberger Gridiron Classic was founded by Coach Joe Hadachek as the BVU Gridiron Classic in the late 1990s. Coaches Steve Osterberg and Jay Anderson renamed it in honor of BVU’s all-time winningest football Head Coach, the late Jim Hershberger, who amassed a sterling record of 121-61-1 and three league titles in his 20 seasons at the helm. Hershberger eschewed opportunities to climb the football ranks during his career, preferring instead to work with Beaver student-athletes in a winning program he and his assistant coaches molded.
“My parents loved Buena Vista and were very happy raising their family in Storm Lake, just one block from campus,” said Mike Hershberger, an all-league defensive back who graduated in 1991. “I’m honored to return each summer to play in a tournament named for them. I know it means a lot to me, my teammates, and the student-athletes who came before us and after us. It’s also a lot of fun.”
Twenty-two teams teed off in 2022 to support the endowment, which serves a variety of efforts within the football program. Former Hershberger Era players Dan Phillips ’77, Doug Thompson ’81, Brad Jones ’77, Keith Kerkhoff ’77, and the late Tim Anderson ’83, among others, have planted the seeds for the Hershberger Football Fund with their gifts. The tournament serves as a fundraiser for this cause.
In addition to golf, Kerkhoff, a former Beaver All-American, conducts a popular live auction to complement online and silent auctions. BVU alumni will serve as hole sponsors and several fun-and-game novelties will be held, including a pair of “beat the pro” par 3 competitions pitting four-person teams against Dickinson and BVU President Brian Lenzmeier.
“The Hershberger Gridiron Classic is one of our signature BVU alumni events each year,” said Lenzmeier. “Football letterwinners and Beaver supporters from well over a half-century will come together to share memories while having a great time as they get to know more about Coach Dickinson, an accomplished former Beaver student-athlete we are thrilled to have directing our program.”
The 2023 event starts at 7 p.m. July 20 as President Lenzmeier hosts a free barbecue at the McCorkle House, where he and wife, Betsy, reside. Former BV defensive back Mike Pertzborn ’74 and his family offer pontoon rides on the lake that evening. The Hershberger Gridiron Classic officially commences with a shotgun start at 11 a.m. July 21.
Click here for registration information. For additional details, contact BVU Director of Alumni Engagement Sarah Johnson at 712.749.2647 or email johnsons2@bvu.edu.