John's Journal Top 10 No. 8/ 108 Years Of Coaching For Rostbergs And Lundeen

This story, which is No. 8 on my list of favorite John’s Journal stories from the 2023-24 school year, involves three men I know well. They embody the dedication and positive impact of so many longtime coaches in Minnesota and around the country. This story was originally posted on Sept. 30.

A couple years ago, Grady Rostberg was in his usual spot during a football game at Hutchinson High School. The former head coach of the Tigers and current volunteer assistant was in the press box when he noticed a piece of paper being passed around and signed. He assumed it was some sort of petition.

“I didn’t know what it was for and I said, ‘Am I supposed to sign that?’ Somebody said, ‘No, get out of here.’ I found out later it was a petition to name the stadium after Andy and me.”

Grady, who became Hutchinson’s head coach in 1970 after several years at nearby Brownton, led the Tigers for 29 years. His son Andy took over as head coach and now is in his 25^th season. That’s 54 years of Rostbergs leading the football program, and a year ago the football stadium in Hutchinson was named after them.

Also in 1970, a young coach just out of college was named the first head coach of the first-year football team in Becker. Now in his 54^th year, Dwight Lundeen was honored when the Bulldogs field was named in his honor before the 2023 season opener.

The Rostbergs and Lundeen combine for 108 years of coaching high school football in Minnesota, and they continue to set a high standard. None of the three will be around forever, but their names will live on in the facilities at their schools.

“It’s been a little more emotional than what I thought,” Lundeen said. “The night of the ceremony was really neat, seeing coaches who were with me back in the ‘70s, players who were here 50 years ago.”

In Hutchinson, generations of kids had played at S.R. Knutson Field; Sever Raymond (S.R) Knutson served as superintendent of Hutchinson schools from 1940 to 1966. The stadium is now called Rostberg Stadium at S.R. Knutson Field.

In addition to a new name, Dwight Lundeen Stadium also was upgraded before this season with artificial turf, new lights and a new digital scoreboard.

The facility in Becker was formerly known as Eppard Field, named years ago for the beloved custodian at an elementary school. Its new name is officially “Eppard Field at Dwight Lundeen Stadium, sponsored by EMR.”

EMR, a Becker metal recycling business, made a donation of $300,000 to pay for the new scoreboard, and Lundeen asked Scott Helberg, chief operating officer of EMR, to attend a school board meeting earlier this year where he could be publicly thanked. Unbeknownst to Lundeen, a big announcement was made at the meeting.

While standing in the board room, Lundeen noticed his assistant coaches enter. Then he saw family members arrive. Soon, he learned that the stadium would bear his name. He was overcome with emotion.

“Before it happened, it was just one of those things, you do something long enough they’ll do something for longevity,” Lundeen said. “They kind of surprised me. It’s really pretty neat. I have really enjoyed it, I really enjoy coaching on the new field, too.”

Becker has played in 17 state football tournaments and owns three state titles, most recently in 2015 in Class 4A. Hutchinson has six state championships – three under Grady and three under Andy (two when Andy was the quarterback for his dad) – in 22 state appearances. The Tigers’ last title came in 2021 in 4A.

The growth of both schools can be seen in the classes in which they have competed. Becker was the Class C state runner-up in 1990, the Class B runner-up in 1994 and played in four Class 3A Prep Bowls as well as two in Class 4A. Hutchinson’s first state title came in Class A in 1983.

This year, both teams are in Class 4A and they resumed one of the state’s best rivalries Friday night in Becker. The Bulldogs came in with a record of 4-0 and the No. 1 ranking in 4A; Hutchinson was 3-1, ranked sixth and playing without a handful of injured starters at key positions.

Becker came away with a hard-fought 21-20 win in a game that started late because of lightning. Hutchinson fell short on a pair of two-point conversion attempts, played extremely hard and almost pulled off the upset.

The two teams didn’t play each other on a regular basis until 12 or 15 years ago, but now the respect on both sides is immense.

“We’ve been good friends for many, many years and they keep that great tradition going,” Lundeen said of the Rostbergs. “If it was any other team I feel we might have an edge in talent, but with Hutchinson you line up and you play four quarters of just crazy football, and that’s about the best way you can describe it. We have such a deep tradition of competing hard against each other.”

The first connection between the two families had nothing to do with football. In 1991 Lundeen, then Becker’s athletic director, hired Grady’s daughter Allison to coach girls basketball. Allison had been a star player at Bethel.

Allison is part of another strong Minnesota football tradition in her own home. Her husband is Chris Meidt, a 1987 Minneota grad who still holds several state passing records.

Over the years, Lundeen and the Rostbergs have always cheered for each other’s teams when they weren’t playing each other’s teams. When the Hutchinson stadium was dedicated last year, it was fitting that the Bulldogs were the visiting team. All three men are humbled by the honor.

“I think every time you’re standing there at an event, whether it’s football or whatever, and they say ‘Welcome to Rostberg Stadium,’ you think of things,” Andy said. “Holy buckets, all the years. I don’t think any one thing comes to my mind when I hear it, because it’s different every time. One time I thought, ‘My poor son (eighth-grader Graydon, named after his grandfather).’ A stadium with his last name on it. Poor kid. But it’s quite an honor, it is.

“Sometimes I think of my dad when I hear that. And he told me that when he hears it, he thinks about his son. And Dwight, what a deserving thing for him.”

--MSHSL senior content creator John Millea has been the leading voice of Minnesota high school activities for decades. Follow him on Twitter @MSHSLjohn and listen to "Preps Today with John Millea” wherever you get podcasts. Contact John at [email protected] or [email protected]