Bowling Green State University Athletics
Centennial Season Look Back: Landis Leads Falcons – 1925-35
November 25, 2015 | General, Men's Basketball
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Bowling Green, Ohio – Throughout the 2015-16 Bowling Green State University men's basketball season, the BGSU athletics department will take a look back at each decade over the men's basketball program's history as part of the Centennial Season celebration leading up to the Centennial Game on Jan. 23, 2016 versus Kent State.
Landis Leads Falcons – 1925-35
The second decade of men's basketball saw one big change during the 10-year period, as the Normals or Teachers changed their name to the Falcons in 1927. Ivan Lake (Class of 1923) suggested the nickname after reading an article on falconry. Lake, the managing editor and sports editor of the Sentinel Tribune in Bowling Green at the time, proposed the name change because it fit headline space and because falcons were "the most powerful bird for their size and often attached birds two or three times their size."
The period from 1925-35 on the court however was one of consistency as Paul Landis took over the program in the 1925-26 season and was at the helm of the program for the next 17 years. BGSU registered six winning seasons from 1925-26 and tallied double digit wins four times, including a program high 12 wins in 1926-27.
Over the 10-year period, Landis and the Normals/Falcons recorded an overall record of 83-75, including 10 wins in 1925-26, 12 victories in 1926-27, 10 wins overall in 1930-31 and 10 wins again in 1933-34.
The Falcons had a number of players receive all-conference honors for the first time in the program's history. As a member of the Northwest Ohio Conference, the Falcons had 14 different players earn All NW Ohio Conference honors from 1926-31 headlined by Hayden Olds earning first-team honors in both 1926 and 1927, Art Brand picking up first-team recognition in 1926 and second-team accolades in 1927, and Bob Fries picking up honorable mention recognition in 1926 and first-team honors in 1927.
In 1934-35, Paul Shafer went on to earn All-Ohio Conference honors when he led BGSU with 9.9 points per game on the year.
All NW Ohio Conference / All-Ohio Conference
1925-26
Carl Bachman (1st), Hayden Olds (1st), Franklin Skibbie (1st), Art Brand (1st), Homer Moscoe (HM), Bob Fries (HM)
1926-27
Hayden Olds (1st), Bob Fries (1st), Wilbur Miller (2nd), Art Brand (2nd), Volney Markle (HM), Herb Fish (HM)
1930-31
Stuart Hyatt (1st), Kenneth Gill (1st), Doyt Perry (2nd), Ralph Yoder (3rd), John Swearingen (3rd), George Thourot (HM)
1934-35
Paul Shafer (AP-HM)
Hall of Famers
The era also saw a number of future BGSU Hall of Famers take the court during that time in Howard Filiere, John Hartman, Fred Marsh, Hayden Olds, Doyt Perry, Frankin Skibbie, as well as Coach Landis who wrapped up his time on the sidelines in 1941-42 and was inducted into the BGSU Hall of Fame in 1966.
Filiere, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1969, was an outstanding coach at Cleveland Lincoln High School for 27 years after being one of the Orange and Brown standout athletes from 1926-29. At BGSU he won 10 letters in three sports and won the Brown Award (most valuable player) in baseball in 1928 and basketball in 1929. In football he was an all-Northwestern Ohio Conference end.
Hartman, a 1966 inductee, came to BG in the fall of 1931 from Napoleon High School, and won his freshman numerals in track and lettered one year in basketball in 1934-35. In the 1934 Ohio Conference track meet, Hartman won the 220-yard dash and took fifth in high hurdles. Hartman was also BGSU's first track athlete to complete the 100-meter dash in 10 seconds.
Marsh transferred to BGSU in 1929, after beginning his collegiate career at Dennison University. He became the starting guard on the 1930 Falcon football team that went undefeated with a 6-0-2 record and lettered on the 1930-31 league champion basketball team. During the 1931-32 season, Marsh started for the football team and lettered for the basketball team. He returned to BGSU in 1940 as the freshman football and basketball coach, while handling all of the football scouting. He started the BGSU golf program in 1941. After serving in the Navy, Marsh returned to BGSU in 1949 and became an assistant football coach, freshman basketball coach, and head golf coach. Marsh was inducted to the BGSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1985.
Olds, who was a member of the 1922 football team, was a reserve member of the basketball squad. As a sophomore, Olds was the backup center, behind team captain Bob Younkin when he gained his first monogram on the court. In 1924, he was the lone returning veteran on the tennis team. After taking the 1924-25 season off, Olds returned to the gridiron as the starting center in football, leading the Normals to the NW Ohio Conference championship. Olds had a fine junior year on the hardwood, as the Normals won their second straight championship. The 1925 tennis team, led by Olds, was once again undefeated. The 1983 inductee served as the captain of the football, basketball, and tennis teams his senior year. He was named to the All-NW Ohio Conference first-team in both 1925-26 and 1926-27.
A three-time letter winner and second-team All-NW Ohio Conference honoree in 1930-31, Perry was inducted into the BGSU Hall of Fame in 1971. Perry posted a career record of 77-11-5 in 10 seasons as the head football coach at Bowling Green and was inducted into the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame in 1988. The quarterback in 1932, he was the head coach of the Falcon teams that won five MAC championships between the years of 1955-64. The 1959 team was the National College Division Champions. He also served as the university's athletic director from 1965-70. As of 2011, the Falcons still play their home games inside the friendly confines of Doyt Perry Stadium.
Skibbie was an outstanding student-athlete in football, basketball, baseball, and tennis. He was a catcher on BG's first championship team, while captaining the 1921 Northwestern Ohio Conference championship football team. He was named to the All-NW Ohio Conference first-team in 1925-26. A 1964 inductee Skibbie went on to serve three terms as Mayor of Bowling Green, while teaching at Bowling Green High School for 38 years.
A graduate of Cleveland Lincoln High School, Coach Landis was a four-sport performer at Oberlin College from 1919-23. Landis came to Bowling Green in 1925 as head basketball, track, and cross country coach, as well as an assistant football coach to Warren Steller. He coached the Falcon basketball teams for 17 season, winning two Northwestern Ohio Conference championships. Landis took over the baseball team in 1926, while still coaching the tennis teams as well. He posted an overall record of 156-133 as the head coach of the men's basketball team and was elected to the BGSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1966.
Year-by-Year Breakdown
| YEAR | RECORD | HEAD COACH | CAPTAIN | LEADING SCORER |
| 1925-26 | 10-3 | Paul Landis | Arthur Brand | Carl Bachman – 12.7 ppg |
| 1926-27 | 12-7 | Paul Landis | Hayden Olds | Hayden Olds – 8.9 ppg |
| 1927-28 | 9-7 | Paul Landis | Wilbur Miller | Marvin Steen – 11.2 ppg |
| 1928-29 | 6-11 | Paul Landis | Lloyd Jump | Lloyd Jump – 7.1 ppg |
| 1929-30 | 5-11 | Paul Landis | Erwin Price | Ross Cox – 8.9 ppg |
| 1930-31 | 10-5 | Paul Landis | Stuart Hyatt | John Swearingen – 7.1 ppg |
| 1931-32 | 6-12 | Paul Landis | Wilbur Miller | Lewis Miller – 6.5 ppg |
| 1932-33 | 9-5 | Paul Landis | Ralph Yoder | Thurl Shupe – 8.5 ppg |
| 1933-34 | 10-5 | Paul Landis | Wilbert Thomas | Paul Shafer – 7.7 ppg |
| 1934-35 | 6-9 | Paul Landis | Kenneth Weber | Paul Shafter – 9.9 ppg |
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