Jasper’s Big Three

When Cyril Birge, 93, walked into the gathering of noted athletes, coaches, officials, and sportswriters in Huntingburg in 2008, they all stood to gather round and greet him. The annual meeting of this group was dubbed The Legends. But those there knew Cyril was the legend among legends. They stood for no one else.

That stunning show of respect I saw is why Cyril could easily be considered the grandfather of Jasper sports. His exploits as a player and referee gave him recognition even beyond Indiana, as he connected with John Wooden, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Bobby Plump and the 1954 “Milan Miracle” that spawned the hit movie “Hoosiers.”

Cyril’s sports trail extended further through his son, Jerry Birge, a noted sportswriter and broadcaster who helped Larry Bird to the extent that Jerry said, “Bird told me he owed me one.” As sports editor of the Dubois County Herald, Jerry led a promotional campaign that landed Bird a spot on the 1974 Indiana Basketball All-Star team. 

So, it’s as if Cyril was ordained to be part of a long-running Jasper sports story that defied belief. But the first chapter was a heartbreaker that still reverberates in Jasper over 90 years later.   

As basketball and baseball teammates, Cyril and Eddie Rottet were the best of friends at Jasper High School from 1930 to 1934.

A case could be made that the success of their teams, and the statewide attention it brought to Jasper, jumpstarted the city’s love affair with their local squads. With no college or professional team nearby, the exploits of the town’s teenagers took center stage.

Rottet garnered a lot of attention as the star shortstop, cleanup hitter and captain of Jasper’s 1933 American Legion baseball state champions. Rottet had two of Jasper’s six hits in their state semi-final win, and two of the team’s five hits in their 8-2 title win over defending state champion East Chicago. The team had Rottet receive the state champion cup on their behalf, which is now displayed in the Dubois County Museum. The state Legion athletic committee also presented Rottet a rare gold star honor roll award for being a five-year player. The champions returned from the state tourney to a fire truck ride through town, likely the first ever for a local sports team. They were greeted by a cheering crowd of over 1,000, a pretty big deal for a population of about 4,000. It was finally something to cheer about in the middle of the Great Depression.

The cheers grew even louder in 1934 when Rottet and Cyril starred on a Jasper basketball team that still holds the school’s all-time best record of 29-2. That year became both a triumph and a tragedy for the ages. That team won Jasper’s first-ever regional, earned the first-ever Final Four appearance, and came within one referee’s misstep from likely winning a state championship. It proved Jasper could play with the big boys.

As basketball sophomores, Cyril and Rottet were complemented by classmate Johnny Steffen. They soon became known as “The Big Three” throughout town. The three friends even slept in the gym at times on weekends so they could get in some extra shooting practice. Cyril recalled that the janitor, Bob Hoffman, left open a door or a dressing room window so the three could sneak in. They were never kicked out. Ironically, Cyril and Hoffman would later become 5^th Street neighbors, would both become noted basketball referees, and would both become Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame inductees. Plus, their sons, Jerry Birge and John Hoffman, were starters on Jasper’s 1957 basketball semi-state runner-up team.

In his 1995 autobiography, Cyril wrote, “Early in the 1932 season after practice, Coach (Tom) Rea took the three of us (Cyril, Rottet, and Steffen) to the side and (said), ‘We are going to the state tourney before you three graduate.’ At that point, Jasper had won only one sectional (1922) in the tourney’s 19-year history. As juniors in 1933, “The Big Three” led Jasper to that long-awaited next sectional championship, and also a landmark first-ever victory over Washington, a sweet 31-19 verdict in the regional. Washington was a perennial power, having won the state in 1930.

So Jasper was earning respect, and basketball fever grew hotter in 1934 when the town’s other high school, the Jasper Academy, closed its doors and moved to Illinois. That move freed up two Academy players, Bill Carnes and Tony Berger, to provide the Wildcats even more firepower.  

(The next book excerpt will take a closer look at the 1934 season.)   

Greg Eckerle is providing excerpts of his book, “Cat Tales: Jasper Sports Stories,” for publication in the Dubois County Free Press. Mr. Eckerle can be reached at gregeckerle@twc.com