Mike Funderberg
Sept 16, 2021 11:53:56 GMT -6
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Post by catfanatic on Sept 16, 2021 11:53:56 GMT -6
Saddened to note the passing of Wildcat great Mike Funderberg early last month in Breckinridge.
Trackfan may fact check me on this but, Mike was a highly regarded player out of Breckinridge when he enrolled at ACU in the late 70’s, and played a key leadership role on Coach Ted Sitton’s teams, as evidenced by his recognition as a member of ACU’s all 1980’s decade team. However, while I didn’t recall it being his final game as was mentioned in his obituary, I do recall the second game of his senior season as one of the best games I ever witnessed.
ACU hosted Northwestern State in September 1982 @ Shotwell. Northwestern State had a particularly impressive team for things they’d done, and would do. As I’m Trackfan will recall, several NSU football players also ran track and, in fact, had startled the college scene by winning the NCAA D-I’s championship’s 400-meter relay title in Austin the prior spring. In particular, two of those four were NSU’s wide receivers. Further, one of them, Mark “Suoer” Duper, enjoyed a long NFL career catching Dan Marino passes for the Miami Dolphins. That was pretty easy to do after he spent college catching Bobby Hebert’s passes at NSU, prior to Hebert moving to the NFL where he played for the New Orleans Saints. Lastly, while I don’t recall much about him from the ACU game, one of NSU’s defensive lineman was a HS friend of Hebert’s by the name of Ed “Geaux Tig-ash’s” Orgeron. However, as impressive a bunch as Northwestern State’s Demons were, the Wildcats were better.
In a game involving high-powered offenses, it turned out to be relatively low scoring which turned on a defensive stand whichever pitted the veritable “irresistible force” against the immovable force epitomized by one Mile Funderberg. In particular, NSU, leading 17-13 and driving for the TD that would otherwise prove insurmountable, faced a 4th and short on ACU’s side of the field with minutes to play. A dive into to middle of the line, by whom I don’t recall, was met by Funderberg and at least ten other Wildcats to deny the Demon, and give the ball to ACU’s offense, led by the most aptly named ACU QB ever, Loyal Proffitt.
However, as the pile cleared, Funderberg lay motionless on the field. Medical personnel were summoned and, as Mike was checked, rhe offensive players, led by Bob Shipley, knelt in prayer nearby. After several minutes, Funderberg was lifted onto a stretcher and taken off the field by ambulance, but, not without a thumbs-up acknowledgment of the crowd and the driver being told to leave despite, as I understood, Mike telling the driver to stay in the end zone so he could watch the finish.
And, what a finish it was as several too-far-back-to-recall plays led the Wildcats to a game-winning TD pass from Proffitt to current ACU Board of Trustees member, Arthur Culpepper, with no time on the clock.
Obviously, while the TD pass was the winning score, the Funderberg-led defense authored the winning play in one of ACU’s biggest ever wins. At 59, Mike wasn’t old. More importantly, his accomplishments as a Wildcat were memorable.
Trackfan may fact check me on this but, Mike was a highly regarded player out of Breckinridge when he enrolled at ACU in the late 70’s, and played a key leadership role on Coach Ted Sitton’s teams, as evidenced by his recognition as a member of ACU’s all 1980’s decade team. However, while I didn’t recall it being his final game as was mentioned in his obituary, I do recall the second game of his senior season as one of the best games I ever witnessed.
ACU hosted Northwestern State in September 1982 @ Shotwell. Northwestern State had a particularly impressive team for things they’d done, and would do. As I’m Trackfan will recall, several NSU football players also ran track and, in fact, had startled the college scene by winning the NCAA D-I’s championship’s 400-meter relay title in Austin the prior spring. In particular, two of those four were NSU’s wide receivers. Further, one of them, Mark “Suoer” Duper, enjoyed a long NFL career catching Dan Marino passes for the Miami Dolphins. That was pretty easy to do after he spent college catching Bobby Hebert’s passes at NSU, prior to Hebert moving to the NFL where he played for the New Orleans Saints. Lastly, while I don’t recall much about him from the ACU game, one of NSU’s defensive lineman was a HS friend of Hebert’s by the name of Ed “Geaux Tig-ash’s” Orgeron. However, as impressive a bunch as Northwestern State’s Demons were, the Wildcats were better.
In a game involving high-powered offenses, it turned out to be relatively low scoring which turned on a defensive stand whichever pitted the veritable “irresistible force” against the immovable force epitomized by one Mile Funderberg. In particular, NSU, leading 17-13 and driving for the TD that would otherwise prove insurmountable, faced a 4th and short on ACU’s side of the field with minutes to play. A dive into to middle of the line, by whom I don’t recall, was met by Funderberg and at least ten other Wildcats to deny the Demon, and give the ball to ACU’s offense, led by the most aptly named ACU QB ever, Loyal Proffitt.
However, as the pile cleared, Funderberg lay motionless on the field. Medical personnel were summoned and, as Mike was checked, rhe offensive players, led by Bob Shipley, knelt in prayer nearby. After several minutes, Funderberg was lifted onto a stretcher and taken off the field by ambulance, but, not without a thumbs-up acknowledgment of the crowd and the driver being told to leave despite, as I understood, Mike telling the driver to stay in the end zone so he could watch the finish.
And, what a finish it was as several too-far-back-to-recall plays led the Wildcats to a game-winning TD pass from Proffitt to current ACU Board of Trustees member, Arthur Culpepper, with no time on the clock.
Obviously, while the TD pass was the winning score, the Funderberg-led defense authored the winning play in one of ACU’s biggest ever wins. At 59, Mike wasn’t old. More importantly, his accomplishments as a Wildcat were memorable.
