The Legend of Ritenour Wrestling

Ace’s Boys 
by Dennis Williams

You can’t be a jockey if you weigh 250 pounds. You can’t play offensive tackle if you tip the scales at 100 lbs. However, regardless of your height, weight, or build, you can compete in the sport of wrestling. Between 1941 and 1970 a group of high school athletes of all shapes and sizes came together and competed more successfully than any other team in Missouri before or since. These were the young men of the Ritenour High School Wrestling program.
 
During that 28-year period, the Huskies never finished below fourth place in the state. Included in their incredible run were 14 straight state championships (the second most nationally) and 5 additional second place finishes. This era produced more than 60 individual state champions, including the 4-time winner Ray (Buzzy) Berkfeld. No other Missouri school can even come close to matching these marks.
 
Much of the program’s success can be attributed to one remarkable family; the family of Willard and Isabel Grubbs, also known as “The Grappling Grubbs Boys.” Starting in the 30’s with their oldest boy, Bill, several generations of Grubbs boys and their cousins wore the orange and black singlets that became the symbol of Husky dominance. Willard and Isabel became fixtures on the scene, hauling team members to meets and even helping to sew together old long johns to make practice uniforms. In all, seven members of the family won state championships, and several went on to wrestle at colleges such as perennial power Purdue and the University of Missouri. Jack Grubbs qualified for the Olympic Trials and came one match short of making the U.S. team for the 1960 Rome Olympics, where the world was introduced to a brash young boxer from Louisville with the unusual name of Cassius Clay. For their accomplishments, the family has received many honors, including election to both the National Wrestling and Ritenour Halls of Fame.
Ritenour wrestling coach, John (Ace) Moore

Just as important to the program was Hall of Fame coach John (Ace) Moore.
 
Moore, after whom the current high school field house is named, was a thin, serious man who was a true believer in the gospel of hard work and that practice makes perfect. Coach Moore’s word was law, and if you were going to wrestle for him you had better be on the same page. His practices were legendary for both their length and intensity, with a heavy emphasis on cardiovascular fitness. His boys were not going to lose a match because their opponent was in better shape. 
 
Proving you were tough enough to wrestle for  Moore was a rite of passage for hundreds of young men, and they felt it made them part of an elite fraternity. Their great success made the brutal workouts and the strict diet easier to swallow.  Moore’s wrestlers used his lessons in toughness as a springboard to success in many fields throughout later life and many of their individual journeys are worthy of their own columns.
 
Times were different in the 40’s and 50’s and the Ace’s wrestlers competed for camaraderie and fun, as well as the respect they received for being champions. It is sport at its purest. They didn’t do it for fortune, fame, or 15 minutes of YouTube notoriety. I’m sure they didn’t think someone would be writing about them a half century later. I like to think the men who wrestled on these teams, some of whom are now in their 80’s, look back on those times as golden. I hope they can laugh about how hard the practices were and I hope they take the time to exaggerate a little when they describe them to friends and family, just like most of us do when we spin yarns about how tough we were during our ball playing days. One thing they can’t exaggerate is how great those teams were. The record speaks for itself. So the next time you see a fellow in the area who may be up there in age but still has fire in his eye, you better show some respect and stay on his good side. That man just might be one of Ace’s Boys.

23 comments:

  1. Can you give any information about the picture of the 10 wrestlers shown at the beginning of this article (year, names, trophies won, etc)?

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    1. The wrestler second from the right on the top row is Robert Hunter. He was my grandfather.

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    2. Sorry, for the way late response. I just re-posted this story on line today and noticed your comment. Please contact Doug Bray, who is the Communications Director at Ritenour. I believe he provided me with the picture above and may be able to help you.

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    3. My Uncle was James D Frechman he was a 4 year state champion 1951-1954.

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  2. I only knew Mr. Moore as one of the Principles at Ritenour HS. If it wasn't for him I don't believe I would have graduated. He let me know I was falling behind in my Sophmore year and if i didn't pick it up, I would not graduate. Thank you sir.
    Tim Smith (82')

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  3. My dad was a wrestler at Ritenour Senior High School. His name was Manford Crawford. He graduated in 1955 or 56. He won two state championships at the 132 weight class. my dad looked up to Mr Moore like a father figure. I graduated from Ritenour high school in 1977. Mr Moore was a principal at the high school when I graduated. I got to know him very well. He truly was a very great man!

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  4. A friend of mind just sent this article regarding Ritenour wrestling and John Moore, the coach I knew all my life, really. Growing up without a Father, he was a great role model and mentor to me. As were the guys in this picture. The team in the picture is the Ritenour YMCA team. In the back row are , l. to r., Uncle Jack, Cousins Bob and Jim Grubbs. Holding trophies are, on l., Uncle Lee (who died in April of last year), and on right, Uncle Norman and to the left, Uncle Dean. Bob turns 90 on April 14. Dean is in his mid 80's.
    I still have the trophy Lee is holding.
    This is why I never learned to play basketball.
    http://rockroadreporter.blogspot.com/p/aces-boys-by-dennis-…

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    1. I was wondering if you could share Bob's address with me. Our family went to church with him and his family for decades. I'd love to send him a birthday card. Natalie Tull

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    2. My dad too wrestled under Coach Moore at Ritenour and was a state champion, as well (1957). He went on to wrestle for Purdue and then coached wrestling at Hazelwood West until his 1992 retirement. Every name that you have mentioned is familiar to me. His name was Stan Henderson.

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  5. I remember the name Manford Crawford. He wrestled with my Uncle Lee Grubbs who graduated in 1955. That was in the middle of the 14-year championship run.

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  8. The year was 1950. To the right of Lee Grubbs is Ray "Buzzy" Bergfeld, who was the second person in Missouri history to take 4 state wrestling titles in high school. The first was Vernon "Hap" Whitney of Normandy, who went on to coach me and my cousins, Barry and Jay Roades at the University of Missouri. Norman Grubbs, front right, is probably holding the Most Valuable Wrestler trophy which was awarded in each tournament. This was the Ozark AAU Tournament, which was organized for years by the Grubbs family, led by my grandfather, Willard "Pop" Grubbs. When the MU team returned from the Big 8 Tournament after driving through the night in 1966, I awoke the next morning that March to find Hap Whitney sitting on the edge of my bed. "Pop died last night"", he said. The family put on the Ozarks tournament the following weekend, as usual.

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  9. Wow, does this bring back memories. I graduated in 1970. The night of the State Championship the police had to stop letting fans in due to the size of the crowd. We found an open window in the locker room and snuck in. I did my student teaching under Ray "Buzzy" Bergfeld in 1973 at Wedgwood Elementary in the Ferguson-Florissant school district.

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  12. My brother was a state champion in 1972. One great match. He won with seconds on the clock. I took third and still loved the sport i had cousins to follow state champs as well. The name is in a style of wrestling. Our Greco family were loyal wrestling people

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  13. Is Coach Moore in the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame, if not, he should "BE"!!! He should be a "LEGEND"!!! DE OPPREEO LIBER!!!

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  14. My father, Steve Orr wrestled in the late 60s and won a few state championships.

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  15. My father, Steve Orr wrestled in the late 60s and won a few state championships.

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  16. My father, Steve Orr wrestled in the late 60s and won a few state championships.

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  17. My father, James (Jimbo) Marsden ('57) was also state champion wrestler. How many times did I hear, "perfect practice makes perfect play".

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