Gulsvig Remembered
The Concordia College community is mourning the loss of legendary coach Edwin “Sonny” Gulsvig who passed away at his home on Thursday, March 13. He was 79 years old.
If you would like to share stories of your memories of Sonny Gulsvig please post them below.
Hello!
I decided to create a page for memories of Sonny after listening to all the wonderful stories at the memorial gathering and memorial service. After processing all the great information about all the people that Sonny touched, I came to the conclusion that the stories shared were the fabric of the Concordia athletic tradition. They tell the story of Cobber sports and all the wonderful people that played the games and helped make the college one of the best places to receive an education and grow as a person.
I hope that you will feel compelled to write one, or many, of your memories of Sonny so that we can build a body of work that will help other people understand how terrific a man Sonny was and all the great people that have come through the doors of the college and have put on the maroon and gold. It will also help future coaches, players and administrators keep the spirit of Concordia athletics burning bright!
Once you have typed up your memory on the page hit the submit button. I will then receive the entry and post it on the site.
Thank you for your help!
Jim Cella
Concordia Sports Information Director
Where do I start?
I attended many Cobber basketball games as a youth with my family or friends. Sonny was easy to watch. His passion for competing, constant instruction during the games and his players’ response made watching the games time well spent. Sonny would allow me to shoot baskets on one of the side baskets during his team’s practices. I don’t know if it was because one or both of my parents were on the Concordia faculty during his tenure or if I just grew on him because I shot around all the time and he just figured I was his buddy. I am hoping it was because I was his buddy. During a break in practice he would sometimes ask me how things were going or if my shot was going in. He really connected when I was a little guy. I would always go and shake his hand after the basketball victories. I adored the man!
When it was my time to attend Concordia I asked for Sonny to be my advisor. When I played football for the Cobbers I was astounded by the quality of coaches we had on staff. Think about it: coaches Christopherson; Nick; Rice; Langsdorf; Grinaker and our man Sonny. What a coaching staff! Without a doubt, the envy of the MIAC in the late seventies and early eighties. They seemed a very tight knit group and we knew they had been through the battles together prior to us. Sonny coached the offensive line. Line calls at the line of scrimmage during the QB cadence when no other team did this (don’t know if that was Jake, Jim C, Bob or Sonny). I remember the well-oiled machine every Cobber offensive line seemed to be. They just physically manhandled people and Sonny really made a fuss over his linemen in practices. Not to say he wouldn’t let people know if he thought they could do better. Coach Chris (as did Jake) and Sonny liked that strong running game and ball possession. Get a lead, turn things over to the defense and the kicking game. Wear people down and score again late in the game.
Sonny also made a point to check in with injured. One day after practice Sonny made my week simply by checking in the training room where my ankle was severely sprained. I can still see him and hear him when he told me how to treat it, that I would be alright. He cared but would often add to anyone within ear’s distance, “You can’t make the club in the tub”. If he sensed sluggishness or a tired group prior to practice we would all hear, “Fire in the hole, let’s go”! Sonny really knew how to motivate young men. The man could put the fear of God in you - but then the next moment, or the next day, he had everyone in stitches because of something funny he said or did.
Sonny remembered everyone’s names after we all graduated and moved on. I’d see him at Cobber games, high school games or at the Cobber golf tourneys and he knew and recalled everyone by name and nickname. I thought he could walk on water. He will be sorely missed. The man was a legend. I think I’ll drop in and watch the Spuds play next season so I can watch Chuck coach and realize maybe the apple did not fall too far from the tree.
I was lucky enough to know Grandpa Sonny as a coach and a Grandpa.
I have mostly heard the coaching stories from others and I know what an impact he has had on people.
We have a special family full of love for sports. His positive, encouraging attitude has helped make me the person I am today. He was such a wonderful Grandpa (and Great-Grandpa)…from pancakes at the lake, coming to all my own games, and always telling us how much he loved us.
His “sonny-isms” and memories will stay with me always!! I love you Grandpa!!
What a wonderful Grandpa!
There are many who aren’t as fortunate as myself to have known their grandpa or know them as well as I did. Some of the best memories are his pancakes at the lake, the countless hours he spent watching my games, the booming “Gulsvig’s” I would hear after one ring on the telephone, and of course the look in his eye when he saw my son (great-grandson Tyden).
I find myself wanting to tell him who the new Men’s Basketball coach is (as he always loved the new gossip!) or calling him to tell the scores of the baseball double-header.
I thankfully have no regrets. I spent a lot of time with him, I told him I loved him every time I saw him (if not more than once
), and I rubbed his soft, fuzzy hair every time I gave him a kiss.
He was not just a legendary coach, he was a legendary grandpa. I guarantee that my son will know Papa Sonny as well as I did because his memories will be talked about often in our house.
I’m a ‘67 Cobber graduate, played a little baseball with Sonny.
My memories of Sonny are simple and to the point. Sonny was a fun and knowledgeable sports fan, who always took time to reminisce and ask about “life”. I guess the reason we didn’t need a public address announcer at our games was “the voice” was all we needed!
What FUN we used to have trying to stump Sonny with sports trivia questions, it made our Spring baseball trips to Nebraska and other road trips “memorable”. For the record, Sonny’s sports mind was really quite impressive, the best minds on our team failed to stump him, he remembered championship games, who was traded for whom, anecdotes, and of course, was a much sought after emcee for many sports related events.
I’ll miss Sonny, he was a unique personality who will always be remembered by me as a principled man who lived his entire life with the “thrill of competition” as a guiding light. RIP Sonny!
E Paul Lian
Scottsdale, AZ
Sonny was my Dad’s coach and he absolutely loved him.
I wanted to post the link for the very nice video tribute that the people at Wright Funeral Home put together for Sonny. Click on the link below to view the tribute.
Sonny Gulsvig Video Tribute
My wife, Glady, and I have kept in touch with Sonny and Marcella over the years, having great visits over lunches and dinners or drinking coffee in their home.
Sonny was our quarterback when I played football at Concordia between 1947 and 1949. I was the center and “hiked” the ball. For almost every play, I would turn around to Sonny and asked him a question. “Jake’” wondered about this action so one day at practice he asked Sonny what “Hoover” (my Concordia nick name) was saying to him when he turned around. Sonny replied,” Hoover can’t remember the count that we hiked the ball on” I was concentrating on blocking my opponent that I just didn’t remember the count. I don’t know how I ever graduated from Concordia when I couldn’t remember the count in those few crucial seconds. Thank goodness I had Sonny for my Quarterback.
I shall never forget him. Goodbye, Sonny.
I played offensive line and basketball for Sonny for 3 years. From mid-August until the end of February I was at daily practice or games with him. It was never a dull moment. The funny little sayings he had - “There’s a lot of ball game left,boys” when time was running down and we were struggling to catch up; “Cardinals win” when we made a field goal during football practice; “That’s a home run in a silo” when a punt went straight up in the air; “Don’t sell the farm” when he wanted you to keep working; and “Take your job seriously but don’t take yourself seriously” are all things I have told my kids and their teams when I was coaching them. They still make me laugh when I hear them.
I was there when Sonny threw his billfold on the floor at St. Thomas and said, “Did they pay you? We can pay you, too” after a bad call at the end of the game took the game away from us.
The last time I saw him was in February at the last regular season basketball game. Kris, his son, and Mark Askerooth (Freckle) (he had nicknames for everyone) met me at the game. We played basketball together for Sonny. At half-time we went to talk to Sonny who was seated at the end of the gym. He said, “If we had Palmer (Paul Peterson) and Dyno (Darwin Kreft) (the other starters from 76-77) we could suit up. I think we could beat either of these teams.” I am sure he believed we could.
Sonny called me a traitor when my kids went to Gustavus and played sports there. It was in good fun, I think.
I always knew he would be at the game when I went to Cord. I looked forward to getting the business from him.
Sonny and Finn were Cord sports to me. I am sure right now they are cooking up some trick to play on someone. I miss them both.
I believe I was the last media outlet to interview Sonny for a TV sports report on his legacy and his son Chuck’s. The one thing that surprised me was that very little, to no footage existed of Sonny coaching on the sidelines. He finished at a time when the reel-to-reel film was in play, and quite frankly, the media rarely thought to shoot footage of the coach on the sideline anyway. I was fortunate to get his help for the story, and it seemed Sonny was very pleased to be recognized again.
I saw him a couple weeks after the story ran, and he said he was happier for Chuck to get the extra exposure than for himself. He didn’t think anybody cared who he was anymore. I told him otherwise- to which he replied in his quick wit– “That’s the good thing about being my age. Anyone who thought I was a lousy coach is either dead or has alzheimers!”
For the short time I knew Sonny, he was sharp, quick with a joke, and I could tell he cared about his family. Most evident of all, he truly loved the game of basketball.
Sonny was a true icon of Concordia Athletics, but as all great teachers and coaches do, he taught more about himself than any of the sports he coached. He was a Christian man who instilled in his players the qualities of hard work, loyalty, perseverance, and competition. And he taught those qualities with a gleam in his eye, a fire in his belly, and a smile on his lips.
I remember when Don Larson (now the Track Coach at NDSU) was inducting John Mutschelknaus into the Concordia Athletic Hall of Fame. He paused before the introduction to thank the Concordia Coaches in the audience who had mentored him in his early coaching days at Concordia. He said “I’ll never forget getting ready for my first road trip with student-athletes, Sonny Gulsvig walked into my office and handed me a copy of the Ten Commandments and a $10 bill.” “Don,” he said, “try not to break either one!”
I’ll miss Sonny’s jokes, his loyalty to Concordia and the soft heart underneath the sometimes gruff exterior. I, as many others have said, see him having coffee and talking about Pete Rizmo with Finn.
We will miss him.
Concordia just won’t be the same without Sonny around. I will always remember Sonny’s booming voice. Sometimes you didn’t know if you should be scared of it or not!
One of the special things I will always remember Sonny for is that he helped teach me how to tape ankles. I was the volleyball and women’s basketball manager for 4 years, and so I put the knowledge he gave me to good use!
The memorial service was a wonderful tribute to an outstanding man. People are lucky to have known him. He will be missed.
Of all the things that Sonny did for his players, one was the fact he spoke with honesty and integrity, whether you liked it or not it was the truth.
He always had more faith in your abilities than you did especially when things were bad. You seemed to have the faith when things were good but he had it all the time.
He epitomized energy, love, faith, teamwork and a need to stretch you when you needed stretching and pull the reigns tight when you were out of control .
If he had been in the business world, he would have been a millionaire many times over. But the coaching/teaching world is was more valuable than any amount of money. God used him to his utmost, so that we were pushed to get our 100% tuned in.
I will never live a day when a “Sonnyism” does not make my participation in this world a better place. I’m thankful I listened.
Sonny Gulsvig Tribute
Jim Hausmann Remembers:
Anyone who knew Sonny knows he always gave his best effort and challenged you to do the same. His interest in students and inspirational personality made him a mentor to many.
His influence as a mentor was demonstrated time and again when hiring new admissions counselors during the 33 years I worked at Concordia. The nature of the business of interpreting Concordia to prospective students meant we usually hired newly graduated Cobbers. With significant turnover in these positions, we often added two or more staff members each year and so the number of hires amounted to scores of graduates.
A standard question to all candidates was, “During your years at Concordia, what faculty member, staff member, fellow student, janitor, secretary or other person at the college was most important to your personal development?” It was no surprise to me that of the male candidates participating in athletics, fully two-thirds or more said Sonny Gulsvig was their mentor.
On a more personal front, Sonny taught me a very valuable lesson during my student days at Concordia. There were many two-sport athletes at that time. This was particularly true of football and basketball. I participated in both as a freshman in 1957-58 where I had significant contact with Sonny on the field and the court. This continued with football in the fall of 1958, but after the season I concluded that I should concentrate on football and academics so I did not report for basketball practice.
While walking past Sonny’s office a few weeks later, his booming voice called me into his office where he said, “I don’t know if I can respect someone who simply walks away from a challenge (basketball) without talking to the coach?” He was, of course, right. No matter that even the most casual observer would have concluded that my potential contribution to the varsity program would be, at best, minimal.
While I have throughout my life had occasion to abandon some endeavors, Sonny’s teaching moment of nearly 50 years ago has stuck with me and I have never since quit anything without explanation to those with whom I was involved.
My older brothers Nate and John and sister Katie were the Cobber athletes in our family, and they knew Sonny well. My brother Paul and I sang in the choir. Still, every time we ran into Sonny at the field house or on campus, he would greet Paul and me with “Hi Hanson”. He was particularly kind to my grandmother Marie.
He was a great ambassador for Concordia.
I remember spending my sophomore year of football at Moorhead High School with Coach (Chuck) Gulsvig and Grandpa Sonny. He was always a great man with lots of wit to include in our day. I will never forget earning a new nickname from Grandpa Sonny as I ran 350’s at the end of practice: “Hey! here comes Ol’ Stump Daddy! With those stumpy little legs just pumpin’!”
My two most vivid memories of Sonny were both football related.
No.1 - I was a freshman and we were running scout punt team against the varsity punt return team. Apparently Sonny had said “do not tackle the return guys” ( I don’t know how I didn’t hear him). Anyway, I was a freshman and wanted to impress the coaches so I ran down the field as fast as I can and just creamed the return guy. Sonny who was 40 yards away, who I could hear as if he was standing next to me said “who was that, who tackled him when I said not to?” There were a few mumbled replies then he said, “Brown, don’t you listen. We said don’t tackle the return guys. But good hustle anyway.”
No.2 - I was the head football coach at Leeds, N.D. and I had asked Sonny to come up and be our guest speaker at our football banquet. He was standing behind the podium and using the microphone, which of course he didn’t need. He then said to the audience, “I am sure Coach Brown can attest I don’t need this thing.” He then proceeded to speak to the audience for the next 25 minutes about a Special Olympics meet he had just worked at in Moorhead. I will never forget him talking to the audience about those Special Olympians and the special way he communicated with people.
Sonny was a special coach to me, as were all of the football coaches I had at Concordia. He was someone who I used as a role model to develop my coaching style.
I have very fond memories of Sonny, he will be truly missed.
Sonny will always be one of those bigger than life personalities that helped frame my Concordia experience.
I believe we all will carry some Sonny one-liners with us. In football when we would have a big hole opened up by the line only to have us in the backfield fumble the ball Sonny would yell out, “Operation was a success but the patient died!”… or encouraging the offensive guards to be “nifty” when they pulled.
Baseball was no different. When pitching he would yell, “get out of the hot sun Bergie” - even when it was barely above freezing. Or, “he hit it with a cornstalk” when a batter hit it off the handle. Another was, “you could pay eight bucks and you wouldn’t seen it played any better,” when one of the team would make an outstanding play.
Even later when I was done with my medical training and was the team physician for MSUM for a few years. Sonny saw me and quipped, “how’s it going with the liberals?” And once I was back in a similar position with Concordia he said, “you finally found the right sideline, Bergie!”
Lots of good memories from a man I will never forget. We all take a part of Sonny with us.
Others have said it so well…Sonny was a wonderful person.
I’m compelled to add to the list of Sonny one liners. The one I remember the best, because he was always yelling it at me was, “Weida, you are so slow you are going to have to spit to see if you are moving.” And of course there was the duck walk.
I was hired by Concordia College in the summer of 1991 to fill the vacancy in the coaching staff when Sonny retired. “Vacancy” is not really the right word; neither is “replace” or “opening”. When Sonny retired there was this great void like an endless cavern that could never be filled – It would be like an ant standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon holding a flake of mud on its back and saying: “so you want to fill this hole, huh!”
Sonny would come by my office almost every week and start the conversation with: “How’s it going kid, how do those Gusties, or Oles or Pipers look?” There was never a moment when Sonny made me feel like I wasn’t a part of the Cobber family. Weather I was on the football field or baseball diamond Sonny’s presence let you know that the Cobber family was greater than one man, one team or one moment; and being a part of it was something to be treasured. I am sure his life’s savings were given away in Quarters; he seemed to have an endless supply for the kids in the field-house. His selfless example of commitment, generosity and servant leadership have left an indelible mark on everyone he touched.
There was an old guard at Concordia when I was there, Finn was the elder statesman and Sonny was the Sergeant-at-Arms. They bridged the gap of Tradition into the present and reminded you how important it was to “Believe” in the magic of that tradition.
I remember working late one night when the choir was practicing in the field-house for Christmas Concerts. The gym was dark, except for the rehearsal stage and I left my office walking quietly down to the hallway that exits to the pool area. As I approached near the bleachers, I was startled to see Sonny sitting there in the dark. I didn’t expect to see anyone and when I caught his presence it “spooked” me real good, he looked like a ghost. He said: “Hey kid, putting in a little overtime tonight?” I couldn’t even answer before he said: “They’re pretty good aren’t they?”, referring to the choir. Being so startled about all I could muster for an answer was a simple: “Yeh!”
He told me I should get home to my family and I walked out of there thinking to myself that I had just spoken to someone so important that only Charles Dickens could have created – The Cobber Spirit.
I remember the first time I met Sonny. I was working for the Wadena radio station and we use to broadcast 10 Cobber games because they had the Peterson twins from Henning.
What a class act he was, always had a smile on his face and something nice to say to you. Little did I know that years later I would be broadcasting the St.Olaf Ole’s and looked forward to every trip to Moorhead and being able to visit with Sonny.
Last December when I was all set up I looked in that east end of the floor and there was Sonny with that big smile on his face.
We chatted for a little while and he said, “Mike you better get back to that table and go to work.”
I have had the honor to meet a lot of coaches in the MIAC over forty years and there will never be another Sonny Gulsvig. I will cherish his friendship forever.
Mike Morrissey
Faribault MN
On the Monday before the Dragon game, Sonny was a little testy about the effort of our team. The Cobbers had won the previous 18 games against the team from the, “other side of the cemetery.” He wanted to be sure this team didn’t lose. He spoke about the tradition of the game, how people from across the country would call he and Bobby Nick to find out if the Cobbers beat MSU. His voice got louder and louder and all of the sudden, he stood on a table in front of the entire team, and in that great voice, “I tell you what men, if we lose to the Dragons, it wouldn’t be the end of the world…..but it will be pretty damn close.”
I was lucky enough to have played football under Sonny and then coached with him at Pelican Rapids. I still remember when he needed some bags for a blocking drill and he wanted to get the attention of the student manager. In a voice that was probably heard in Erhard, he bellowed, “Bellhop, we need some bags over here.” From that day on the student manager was called, “Bellhop” by everyone.
My favorite story was the day that we had a player that was a pretty good running back, but he wasn’t always making good choices off the field. On one blazing hot afternoon practice, we ran him about 5 plays in a row. He came back to the huddle and started to cough without stopping, doubled over, face beet red. Again, with that distinctive sense of timing, he waited until it was quiet, and he boomed, “Anderson, you better switch to filters.” The laughter from the team didn’t stop for 3 minutes.
I read about the many Gulsvigisms in these commentaries and I think someone ought to write a book.
It could be the sequel to I PLAYED FOR JAKE. If someone writes it, the title might be, ” I KNEW SONNY AND SONNY KNEW ME”.
As I read these comments, I reminisce and can proudly say, ” I knew Sonny and Sonny knew me.” When he knew you, he remembered you and something about you and your family. He legitimately cared about you and he was extremely perceptive.
In 1965, my sophomore year, Sonny saw that I needed more personal guidance; and he fulfilled that need by convincing me to be his basketball manager, statistician and go-for. He somehow knew my economic situation and without words he solved both of these problems with having me join him each and every afternoon. Now he had me in football practice, basketball practice and baseball practice. After two years, he must have felt that I was going to turn out OK, so he turned me loose from the managing, but he still knew me, he still checked on me and he let me know he cared for me.
During these years, I learned about family by watching a very busy man be a father to Penny, Chris and Chuck. I learned mentoring skills by watching an experienced man guide a new freshman basketball coach and a novice manager. I learned what every great leader lives with, disappointment in defeat and humility in triumph.
I learned a life-long lesson from Sonny. Character and competence are both important, but if you can only have one - it is character that counts.
Sonny Gulsvig was a great coach. A coach that I’ll never forget. But Sonny “Goose” Gulsvig was a better person. I only hope that some day I have lived my life like Sonny Gulsvig and have earned the same respect and reverence exemplified in these commentaries.
After reading all the other replies, which are all very well said, I have to put in my two cents worth !! After all Sonny was the man who gave me the name which more people know me by than my actual birth name. When I was 6 years old Sonny walked by Reid and I sucking down all the lemonade put out for the football players after practice and yelled out “I see the lemonade kid is back at it” and the rest is history !!
Playing for Sonny was an experience that can, and will, never be able to be duplicated !! He not only taught you how to play the game but taught you how to play the game with class while teaching you a few of life’s lessons along the way !! Sonny was always able to turn something bad (a loss, an error or a strikeout) into a positive learning experience which I’m sure many guys who played for Sonny can relate. Sonny was also gifted with some “magical hands”, he had a way of making two slices of dry bread, a slice of bologna, an apple and a hard boiler taste like a five course meal at the Ritz Carlton. For those of you who didn’t follow that - that is what we got on the road for a meal between games of our baseball doubleheaders !!
The stories could go on and on !!
A true legend that will always be remembered !!
Concordia has lost its greatest ambassador.
I played basketball for Sonny from 1965-1968, and of course those years are filled with wonderful memories. But what sticks out in my mind was his caring and concern for you after you left Concordia. He was extremely kind to my mother and went out of his way to inquire how I and my two brothers and sister were doing (Yes, we all graduated from Concordia). His curiosity was genuine, and his sense of humor always brightened my mothers’ day. From talking to other alumni, they often shared the same type of story.
Sonny will be missed by all who knew him.
Like all before me I also have many fond memories of Sonny. I thoroughly enjoyed him as a professor and for a number of years I became a colleague of his. I was known as “Slapshot” to him and each day when he would greet me it was always, “So slapshot, what do you know today?” We had many talks over the years about the team, wins and losses, and teams to beat, but he always made it a point to talk about the players. He made me realize very early in my career that they were the lifeblood of anything that was going to happen, be it success or failure. It was about their journey and making sure it was an enjoyable experience. I can guarantee that all who played for Sonny, or knew him, had an enjoyable experience.
I want to share a small story about Sonny when he took our hockey team down to the Thanksgiving tournament. I think Al was sick with pneumonia so Sonny volunteered to take us to the November event. It was my freshman year and I could not play in the first half because I had attended the University of Regina. I went along as a stickboy, to lend a hand with anything I could do to help and to cheer on my teammates. We had a great freshman class, a few solid transfers and realized soon enough that with good senior leadership we could be a pretty special group. Anyway, it was Sonny’s first time coaching hockey. In our first game I think we played St. John’s and they were taking it to us pretty good. Shots on goal were about 18 to 3 after the first period and Randy Penny had stood on his head making saves (0-0 game). As we sat in the locker room catching our breath and reeling from being dominated, Sonny walks in for a little pep talk. He wondered why we were standing around our zone so much and then said, “you know, Barker (our goalie Randy) has our end so the rest of you get down to the other end and score some goals. Stop worrying about our zone so much, Randy has got that covered, look at what he’s doing already!”
Barkers eyes were as wide as they could go. Sonny had just given the team the leeway to open up the game even more and I think he thought, oh boy now I’m going to see some rubber. Sonny finishes with “Now lets go and make your momma’s proud.” We won that game. I think Sonny is still at a 100% winning percentage for hockey at 2 wins and no losses. He used to let me know that stat quite a bit over the years
Sonny was one of the greatest mentors this school will ever see. He always had something to say and most of the time it came at a crucial time for the person he was talking to. (Even though he may not have known it, he could always pick your spirit up with a jest or a few words).
Sonny - you definitely will be missed.