History
The Hoop Historians is a group of individuals who have a wide range of basketball backgrounds. The group includes former and present coaches, officials and supporters of the game of basketball. The group's alliance with attending the Final Four dates back to the early sixties in some instances, however, the group has collectively met annually at the Final Four site since the early 1990's, and formally became the known as the Hoop Historians in 2000. Through their love of the game, they have been an unofficial goodwill ambassador for the sport of basketball, by sharing their past experiences, renewing old acquaintances and meeting new ones, and continuing to promote the game through education and goodwill.
Timeline
March, 1999 - The group formally assembles with charter members: Brian Burmeister, Dorothy Kim, Surl Kim, John Mayberry, Dennis Mishko, Ted Reineking, Al Sack, Joe Spagnolo, Frank Wilson and Bruce Ziemer.
March, 2000 - The name Hoop Historians is first used and decided on by the membership.
March, 2001 - The first "unofficial" annual meeting of the Hoop Historians takes place in the Outback Steakhouse in Bloomington, Minnesota.
March, 2001 - The first Hoop Historians apparel, tan shirts, makes it appearance at the Final Four.
April, 2002 -- The Hoop Historians are mentioned in a sports article in the Atlanta Constitution Journal.
May, 2003 - The official newsletter of the organization, The Hoop Historian News, debuts.
March, 2004 - Al Sack becomes the first award recipient in attending his 100th Final Four game in San Antonio.
November, 2004 - The Hoop Historians enter cyberspace, as the website hoophistorians.com is launched.
March, 2005 - The group's Constitution is ratified and
adopted by the membership.
March, 2005 -- Ted Reineking receives the group's service award for attending
200 NCAA Tournament games.
July, 2005 - Hoop Historian Dennis Mishko is named to the Top 25 All-Time Coaches in the Scranton area by the Times-Tribune.
March, 2006 -- Brian Burmeister is recognized by the group for attending his fortieth consecutive Final Four.
March, 2007 -- John Mayberry is presented the Hoop Historians Ambassador Award for his years of contributions to the game of basketball.
March, 2007 -- Sports Illustrated photographer Rich Clarkson is the guest speaker at the Annual Meeting. A record six individuals are voted in as full members increasing the membership to 22.
April, 2008 -- Historians Fred Allman and Bill Carsley were recognized for their induction into their respective Hall of Fames.
April, 2008 -- The Daily Herald Newspaper ran an
article on the Hoop Historians on the
day of the National Semi-Final games.
April, 2009 -- The Hoop Historians are the lead news story on the Thursday night
news on WXYZ-TV in Detroit.
April, 2009 -- Coach Dennis Mishko is recognized with the Hoop Historians
Distinguished Service Award for his recent induction into the Keystone College
Hall of Fame.
April, 2009 -- The Annual Meeting is held in Windsor, Ontario Canada -- the
Historians first international event. Six new members join the Hoop
Historians, giving the group a record number 30 members.