1990 HOME
THE YEAR
A Lot To Talk About
Armed & Dangerous
Pursuit Of Glory
The Journey
As Expected
Back to Back to Back
The Last Word

"They (Wahoo) do belong among history's best Class B teams." -- Larry Porter, Omaha World Herald Sports writer

With the win secured, Ryan Eddie, Jason Glock, and Bernie Inbody leave the floor as Jeff Simons and the other subs come on.

As the GINW game ended, the Wahoo fans were already speculating on a fourth consecutive title.

Mike Dvorak cuts off his piece of the net.

Jason Glock became the first Wahoo player to be named to the "Super State" teams.

Randy Hoffman receives his medal.

The trophy sits on the floor as the championship team picture is taken.

The Last Word


“Three peat, three peat, three peat!” As the Wahoo regulars left the floor and the subs got their state championship game time, the crowd took up the chant. After the final buzzer, one by one, the Wahoo players clipped their piece of net and then accepted their individual medals. As a team, they stepped forward and hoisted the championship trophy over their heads. As they smiled for the cameras in the traditional post championship picture at center court, the chant changed to “back to back to back!” No matter how you phrased it, when this trophy took its place next to the previous two, the 1990 Warriors had lifted the Wahoo basketball program to a new plane of excellence, one of the few that had been able to win three consecutive championships.

Lincoln Journal Star sports writer, Ryly Jane Hambleton had laid it out at the start of the season -- the “triple crown” was Wahoo’s unless somebody took it away on the court. That hadn’t happened and the Warriors ended the season right where they started, the #1 Class B team in both state newspapers. And amidst much controversy, Wahoo finished the season as the #5 rated team in the Omaha World Herald’s All Class rankings. They joined the 1989 team with a perfect 26 - 0 record and exceeded their predecessors, putting up 88.3 points per game, best ever for a Wahoo team.

The individual awards for the 1990 Warriors began even before championship night had ended: Randy Hoffman was recognized as Class B 2nd Team on the KOLN Coaches’ All Star Team and Jason Glock was chosen to the first team (announced at half time of the championship game). Hoffman and Glock were also both cited as Class B All Tournament. When All Conference recognition was issued, Hoffman and Glock were on the first team, while Ryan Eddie was elected to the second team and Steve Volin, Bernie Inbody, and Troy Johnston received Honorable Mention. When the newspapers published their awards, Hoffman and Glock became the newest additions to the list of Wahoo’s All State players. Jason Glock became the first Warrior to ever be selected to the “Super State” team. Randy Hoffman was chosen to play on the South team for the Coaches’ All Star game. Jason Glock was chosen to play for the NBDA’s All-Star team that would play in Las Vegas in the summer. That spring, Mick Anderson received Coach of the Year honors from the Omaha World Herald.

Before most of those awards were announced, even before the 1990 trophy was grasped in their hands, some were thinking about 1991. Ryan Eddie said later that he was “just trying to let it sink in.” But amidst the on court celebration, had he looked to the stands, he would have seen the sign. A fan waved the placard -- “1988, 1989, 1990, ???” It was obvious that some were already expecting more. And while Coach Anderson said he’d like to step back, relax and think about what you’ve accomplished,” he also acknowledged that the expectations were not misplaced, noting that they obviously had some strong returning talent, and a reserve team that had also gone undefeated. That goal of a fourth consecutive championship had already been set before the Warriors, whether they liked it or not. Randy Hoffman expressed some relief after winning the title: “After it was all over, I felt like a lot of pressure had just been lifted. Everyone expected us to win this one. If we would have lost, it would have been a lot of disappointment.” Jason Glock acknowledged that the pressure wasn’t going away for the returning Warriors: “That (a fourth title) will be a nice challenge. The pressure we had on us this year just rolls over to next year.”

And there was another challenge on the Warriors’ plate. As a senior, Hoffman was able to joke about it -- “Win streak? I guess three games here in the state tournament is win streak enough.” Junior, Steve Volin couldn’t keep it out of his thoughts even as he tried to celebrate: “We’ve still got the win streak to get. Oh, who cares now? We’ve got everything we could ask for.” Regardless of those sentiments, the win streak stood at 64 games and the state record of 78 set by Filley in 1981 was definitely in sight -- the Warriors could get there in January of 1991. When asked about the prospect, Coach Anderson could already see some road blocks: “I don’t know how long it will last. We play Killer Kane early next December and have to go out to his place at Elkhorn Mount Michael. He’s going to have a nice team.”

There are some common words used when discussing state champions: “joyful,” “exuberant,” “gleeful,” “jubilant,” “exhilarated,” etc. Following the 1990 title, “pressure” was just as common. Randy Hoffman noted that “I know I got enough of the pressure this year. But I’m sure the guys coming back will get more. A lot more.” That certainly was the case. 1991 would be a season long quest to accomplish something no team had ever done -- win a fourth championship. But, in a sense, that quest really didn’t start until tournament time in February -- most teams could use the season to prepare for that challenge. The win streak put Wahoo under pressure each and every game. As the coaches and returning players faced that daunting pressure, it could have become a burden that would keep Wahoo out of the winners’ circle in 1991. But perhaps they took some encouragement as they looked at the seniors who had made it through 1990. With the net draped around his neck, Randy Hoffman’s face beamed as he reflected, “It feels good. I’ll be able to look back 10 or 15 years from now and realize I was on a team that won so many titles in a row.” Then, when the team retreated to the locker room that Saturday night, Coach Anderson addressed his team. It was as much a pep talk for the next year as it was congratulations on the title just won. As the coach acknowledged the “pressure,” his voice rose and he proclaimed, “we’re going to ride this baby out!”



SOUNDS OF THE TOURNAMENT
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"When you summarize everything, just the fact that we're mentioned in the Top 10 says a lot of things about our kids." -- Coach Anderson

In their final rankngs, both papers agreed that Wahoo was the top team in Class B.

"I want to take some time to enjoy this. When the time comes, we'll start working hard to win the next one." -- Steve Volin

"They (1991 team) have to do what we did all of this year .... we never looked past the team we were playing." -- Troy Johnston

"It's been fun. The streak's been fun; the championships have been fun." -- Coach Anderson


12/26/09