Bucknell University Athletics
Celebrating the Legacy of Coach Dick Russell
2/1/2007 7:00:00 AM | General
Feb. 1, 2007
LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Bison Club, the Bucknell Department of Athletics & Recreation, and the Swimming & Diving programs partnered together to host a reunion weekend in early January to honor former coach Dick Russell. The event was a great success as more than 60 alumni returned to campus and shared time with the Hall of Fame mentor.
For more than a quarter century, the name Dick Russell was synonymous with Bucknell Bison Aquatics. From 1968 until his retirement in 1994, he coached the Bison men's swimming team to 154 dual-meet victories and won 11 conference championships. He also founded the Bucknell water polo team in 1977 and coached that program for 10 years, compiling an outstanding 223-68-4 record while winning four Eastern championships and earning five NCAA bids.
The first Bucknell coach to win 100 or more games in two different sports, Coach Russell was named a Master Coach by the Collegiate Swimming Coaches Association in 1978. He was inducted into the Bucknell Athletics Hall of Fame in 1997. As a co-founder of what is now the Collegiate Water Polo Association, he was an initial inductee into that organization's Hall of Fame in 2002.
The weekend began with a reception on Friday evening at Uptown, the on-campus night club located in the basement of Swartz Hall. As the evening wore on, times from races gone by got better and better! Coach Russell and his wife, Mary Lou, enjoyed catching up with so many former student-athletes.
On Saturday the day got under way with some action in the pool. About a dozen alums got in a morning workout (well, sort of) in Kinney Natatorium. Later that afternoon the alumni group attended the Bucknell swimming and diving meet with Army and Colgate, cheering the current teams on to a split against their Patriot League foes. Following the meet, there was a buffet dinner on the concourse of Sojka Pavilion.
The weekend closed with some comments from current Bison mentor Dan Schinnerer and the Hall of Famer himself, Coach Russell, in the McGee Room. Coach Schinnerer laid out his vision for the Bison swimming and diving program before introducing Coach Russell. Prior to his remarks, the department presented Coach with a color print of Kinney Natatorium which was signed by all the guests in attendance.
It is safe to say that Coach became just a wee bit sentimental and emotional during his speech, which was interrupted numerous times by standing ovations.
On Sunday morning a few brave soles (Margaret '93 and Dietrich Conze '94, Dan Richards '78 and Peter O'Keeffe '72) made it to the pool for open swim, wrapping up a very enjoyable weekend.
