We here at HoopsHD cannot stop talking about Tim Miles…but he has a long way to go to catch Walt McPherson for the most wins in San Jose State history. Walt played several sports at San Jose State, then became basketball coach at his alma mater, and retired in 1960 with more than 250 wins. He was elected to the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame in 2006 and passed away in 2013. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with 1 of Walt’s longtime friends (Dan Glines) and 1 of his former players (Carroll Williams) about all of his accomplishments. Walt was born exactly 106 years ago on December 5, 1916, so we take this time to reflect on his life/legacy.
McPherson went to college at San Jose State where he played football/baseball/basketball: which sport was he best at, and which 1 did he enjoy the most? Dan Glines: I think that he enjoyed basketball the most but he coached a bunch of other sports as well. Carroll Williams: He was a very fine football player before my time. Everyone told me that golf/badminton might have been his best sports as he got older. I would play badminton against him during lunchtime and only beat him once in 3 years! He also ran the table against us 1 night at a pool hall…even though he was a very religious guy.
He became basketball coach at his alma mater in the early 1940s but left for a few years during WWII to serve in the Navy: what impact did the war have on him either on and off the court? DG: He was a strong Christian man and a loyal guy who passed those values onto his players. A lot of coaches went to training school but did not head overseas to battle. CW: I never talked to him about the war, but we would never smoke/drink in front of him because we did not want him to think anything bad about us.
He won a national title in 1948 as coach of the school’s golf team: what did it mean to him to win a title? DG: He was such a humble guy that he would never brag about that but he was a really good golfer. CW: I was gone by then, but I know he would not talk much about himself so I am sure that he gave all of the credit to his players.
After retiring from coaching in 1960 he served as athletic director/PE director: how did he like those gigs compared to being a coach? DG: He had enough of coaching by that time in his life since he had to coach many different sports during the year. CW: He was the definition of a “gentleman” and a wonderful person. I went to San Jose State because of him and his personality: he was a guy who I wanted to play for.
He also served as commissioner of the West Coast Athletic Conference: how did the role of conference commissioner back then differ from the same job in today’s era? DG: There was not as much pressure with such a job back then, but it would not have affected him because he was such a mild-mannered guy. San Jose State was a small school until WWII, at which time the student body expanded to about 20,000. CW: He was more of a facilitator. The conference was purely basketball back then so he would assign officials and handle the scheduling: it was more of a part-time job.
In 2003 the school’s basketball floor was renamed Walt McPherson Court: what did it mean to him to receive such an outstanding honor? DG: His worst swear words were “holy tickle!” so he was not concerned with excesses because he was a down-to-earth person, but I am sure it meant a lot to him and he was proud of that. CW: It was an honor that we were all proud of and probably long overdue. He would just smile when people would praise him and was a wonderful family man.
He passed away in 2013: when people look back on his career, how do you think that he should be remembered the most? DG: He was a great coach and a great human being. He was self-conscious about receiving honors because he was such a unique person. I never heard him say a bad word about anybody and was a very forgiving person. CW: He had a model temperament and was a very patient guy, so when he got mad during a timeout he would say, “holy snickeltau!” He influenced me to become a coach. I think that he should be remembered as a wonderful teacher, both of basketball and life experiences. I remember him counseling all of his players on various matters. When I got a coaching offer I told him about it and he told me to consider a variety of factors because he had high aspirations for me. He wanted me to wait because something better would come along…and he was right.