Chester Giermak

Infobox NCAA Athlete
name = Chet Giermak


college = The College of William & Mary
conference = Southern "(present day CAA)"
sport = Basketball
jersey = 32 (retired)
position = Center
nickname = Spider
career_start = 1946
career_end = 1950
height_ft = 6
height_in = 6
weight_lb =
nationality = USA
birth_date = May 25, 1928
birth_place =
highschool = Lindblom High School

Chester Frank "Chet" Giermak was an All-American college basketball player for the William & Mary Tribe men's basketball team from 1946-1950. [http://www.swem.wm.edu/beta/flathat/issues/fh19500307 William & Mary "Flat Hat" student newspaper; March 7, 1950 issue] . Accessed April 2, 2008.]

High school

Prior to matriculating at The College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, Giermak attended Lindblom College Preparatory High School in Chicago, Illinois, where he was a four year stand-out center on the basketball team. [ [http://www.swem.wm.edu/beta/flathat/issues/fh19491213 William & Mary "Flat Hat" student newspaper; December 13, 1949 issue] . Accessed April 2, 2008.] In 1945, Giermak's senior year, he led Lindblom to the semi-finals of the All-Chicago high school basketball tournament and earned Second Team All-City for the center position. [http://www.swem.wm.edu/beta/flathat/issues/fh19470204.pdf William & Mary "Flat Hat" student newspaper; February 4, 1947 issue] . Accessed April 2, 2008.] In April 1945, Chet enlisted into the Navy, where he spent the next 14 months serving as a corpsman.

College of William & Mary

After arriving on William & Mary's campus in September 1946, one year removed from high school, Chet Giermak was not a heralded basketball prospect. He began his collegiate career as a walk-on player, asking for a uniform from varsity coach Dick Gallagher (whom he later credited with teaching him "the finer points of the game"). [http://www.swem.wm.edu/beta/flathat/issues/fh19480203 William & Mary "Flat Hat" student newspaper; February 3, 1948 issue] . Accessed April 2, 2008.] He made the junior varsity team but did not stay on it long. During the team's first intra-squad game, Gallagher noticed Chet's ability and immediately promoted him to the Tribe's varsity team.

Over the next four seasons, Giermak was consistently the nation's top scorer or close to it, using his lanky frame and deadly hookshot to amass a myriad of points. He recorded back-to-back seasons during his junior and senior years where he averaged 20+ points (21.8 & 20.8, respectively). [http://www.tribeathletics.com/files/mbb/2008/MediaGuide/0708mbbguide(91-102)low.pdf 2007-08 W&M men's basketball media guide] . Accessed April 2, 2008.] On January 13, 1949, Chet scored 45 points against the University of Baltimore, establishing a new Blow Gymnasium record. [http://www.swem.wm.edu/beta/flathat/issues/fh19470118.pdf William & Mary "Flat Hat" student newspaper; January 18, 1949 issue] . Accessed April 2, 2008.] This total set the all-time Virginia state collegiate mark, plus the national, conference and state individual single game marks for that 1948-49 basketball season. All of those records have since been broken. Seton Hall University's coach and basketball legend John "Honey" Russell once praised Chet's abilities by noting, " [t] his Giermak is better than Tony Lavelli."

Chester Giermak's 111-game career and its achievements earned him a spot into the William & Mary Hall of Fame. He is ranked among the all-time statistical leaders in many categories, and some of Giermak's more notable accomplishments include: [ [http://www.gmu.edu/org/vasid/VaSID-records/VaSID-rec-mbb-D1.htm VaSID Div. I Men's Basketball Records] . Accessed April 2, 2008.]
*4 years All-State
*3 seasons All-Southern Conference
*2 years as team captain
*Numerous All-America honors
*2,052 career points (school record)
*740 single season points in 1948-49 (school record)
*His jersey number (#32) was retired years later

In the 1950 NBA Draft, the Rochester Royals selected Giermak as their ninth pick in the 4th round (45th overall) [ [http://www.databasebasketball.com/draft/draftyear.htm?lg=N&yr=1950 1950 NBA Draft on Basketballreference.com] . Accessed April 2, 2008.] Though he was drafted, Chet never made the team's final cut and thus never played in an actual NBA game.

References