Micah Friez

F.P. Wirth may have taught history for a living, but he also created it on the hardwood.

One hundred years ago today, Bemidji State Teachers College explored a new venture for the very first time: fielding a basketball team.

The days of ragtag rosters are long gone now. In Jim Stone’s two-decade tenure, the Beavers have risen from a bottom-level program to national power.

When local sports fans hear that a game is at “The Chet,” chances are they know exactly where to go. But often lost in the convenience of the nickname is a knowledge of the stadium’s namesake.

An 85-year-old telegram, names like “Jack Frost” and “Soup Graves,” and a basketball team from Harlem combine for one crazy tale.

With over two dozen athletic programs and a century to work with, Bemidji State has had its fair share of oddities pile up.

Hjalmer “Jolly” Erickson became a do-it-all coach for Bemidji State Teachers College after he first stepped on campus in the 1930s, earning the nickname “Mr. Athletics” with 17 years of experience on the Beaver sidelines.