The Best of the Bears, Part 7: Cal's Top Athletes of the 1970s

Cal's swimming and water polo programs emerge as national powers

Photos courtesy of Cal Athletics

The 1970s showcased Cal’s emergence in Olympics sports while basketball continued its postseason drought and football provided a brief tease.

Often a home to elite track and field athletes, Cal now developed high-level success in the pool, both in swimming and water polo.

Midway through the decade, football rose up for two explosive seasons but they were followed by one of the most heartbreaking chapters in Cal sports history.

Here are our choices of Cal’s Athletes of the Year for the 1970s:

Eddie Hart / Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics

1969-70: EDDIE HART (track & field). An East Bay native, Hart was a double champion at the 1970 NCAA outdoor rack and field championships, winning the 100-yard dash in 9.4 seconds and anchoring the 440 relay to victory in 40.3 seconds, although the relay win later was nullified when teammate Isaac Curtis was ruled to be ineligible. Hart won the 100 meters at the U.S. Olympic trials, crossing with a hand-time mark of 9.9 seconds to tie the world record. An Olympic favorite, Hart became best known for missing his preliminary-round heat in the 100 at the ’72 Munich Games because his coach provided him with an outdated time schedule. He subsequently anchored the 4x100 relay team to a gold medal, equaling the world record.

*** More on Eddie Hart's world-record run and the disappointment of his 100-meter event at the Munich Olympics:

1970-71: JACKIE RIDGLE (basketball). A close call with teammate Phil Chenier, who went on to a 10-year NBA career. Ridgle, who was team captain as a senior, outscored Chenier 17.3 to 16.8 as the Bears put together a 16-8 overall record — their best since the Final Four year in 1960 — and finished in a tie for third in the Pac-8. Ridgle came to Cal from Arkansas, where he led his underdog high school team to a state championship to attract the attention of UCLA coaching legend John Wooden. Ridgle chose Berkeley and totaled 1,343 career points and scored at least 16.6 per game in each of his three seasons — the only Cal player to ever do that. Ridgle played one season with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Also: Phil Chenier (basketball), Ned Anderson (rugby).

1971-72: ANSLEY TRUITT (basketball). The senior center averaged 18.8 points and a school-record 13.2 rebounds to earn first-team All-Pac-8 honors. Truitt, who led the Bears in rebounding three straight seasons, finished his career with 1,384 points (still 16th all-time at Cal) and is second in program history with 940 rebounds, most ever in a three-year career. Truitt played briefly with the Dallas Chaparrals of the ABA, and later in the Philippines. Also: Sherman White (football), John Coughran (basketball).

Peter Schnugg, right, with coach Pete Cutino / Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics

1972-73: PETER SCHNUGG (water polo). Schnugg was NCAA Player of the Year and an All-American for the second straight season, leading Cal to a 25-1 record and the program’s first national championship. In 1980, Schnugg was a member of the U.S. Olympic team that boycotted the Moscow Games. Also: Steve Sweeney (football).

1973-74: DOUG HEALY (water polo). Healy was voted MVP of the NCAA tournament as Cal won its second — and second straight — national title. Healy was named to his second All-America team as the Bears compiled a 25-2 record.

1974-75: STEVE BARTKOWSKI (football & baseball). The senior quarterback passed for a school-record 2,580 yards with 12 touchdowns. Bartkowski had four 300-yard passing games in his career, three of them as a senior in 1974, when the Bears went 7-3-1. Also a member of the baseball team during his time at Cal, Bartkowski earned second-team All-America honors as a first baseball in 1973 from the American Baseball Coaches Association. He also landed a spot on the all-conference team and was the Bears' MVP that season, when he batted .329. Drafted with the 447th selection by the Baltimore Orioles in 1974, waited for football, where he was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1975 NFL draft. He played 12 seasons as a pro, throwing 156 career touchdowns, including a league-leading 31 in 1980.

Chuck Muncie enjoys a moment of joy on the sideline / Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics

1975-76: CHUCK MUNCIE (football). Muncie delivered one of the greatest seasons by a Cal running back in ’75, rushing for a then-school record 1,460 yards and 13 touchdowns as the Bears earned a Pac-8 co-title. He was a consensus All-American that season and finished second to Ohio State's ache Griffin in the Heisman Trophy voting. He set a school record with 15 games of at least 100 rushing yards, including a best of 207 yards vs. Oregon in 1975. The team's leading ground gainer three straight seasons, Muncie finished his career with 3,052 rushing yards and 32 TDs. Picked No 3 overall in the 1976 NFL draft by the New Orleans Saints, Muncie played nine pro seasons. A versatile back, he totaled 9,025 yards rushing and receiving and scored 74 touchdowns. Also: Steve Rivera (football), Ed Miller (track & field).

Joe Roth / Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics

1976-77: JOE ROTH (football). Statistics have nothing to do with why Roth occupies this spot. He was much better the season before, when he passed for 1,880 yards and 14 touchdowns, drawing attention as a 1976 Heisman Trophy candidate. Of course, Roth was healthy in ’75. As a senior, he silently played played through the schedule as cancer ravaged his body. His teammates did not know the battle he was waging, but Roth became an iconic Golden Bear by the way he navigated the season without complaint. He died Feb. 19, 1997, just three months after the season ended. He was 21. Roth is the subject of a 2014 documentary film, "Don't Quit: The Joe Roth Story." Also: Ted Albrecht (football), Ray Murry (basketball).

1977-78: PETER ROCCA (swimming). Rocca won NCAA titles in the 200-yard individual medley and the 400 medley relay, then repeated with victories in both events a year later. He captured silver medals in the 100 and 200 backstroke at the ’76 Montreal Games to become the first Cal swimmer to win an Olympic medal in 56 years. Also: Gene Ransom (basketball).

1978-79: GRAHAM SMITH (swimming): Smith captured the 100-yard breaststroke, 200 breast, 200 individual medley and swam on winning 400 medley relay to help Cal win its first NCAA men’s swim championship in 1979. Three years earlier, Smith swam on Canada silver medal-winning 400 relay relay at the Montreal Olympics. He set a world record in the 200 IM at the 1978 World Games. Also: Dan Salvemini (soccer).

Click here for Part 2 of the series: Top Cal athletes of the 1920s

Click here for Part 3 of the series: Top Cal athletes of the 1930s

Click here for Part 4 of the series: Top Cal athletes of the 1940s

Click here for Part 5 of the series: Top Cal athletes of the 1950s

Click here for Part 6 of the series: Top Cal athletes of the 1960s

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