Sharm Scheuerman

Sharm Scheuerman, a member of the 1954-56 University of Iowa Hawkeyes basketball ""Fab Five,"" and who became the youngest head basketball coach in NCAA Division I history at the age of 24, died yesterday. He was 76 years old. Coach Scheuerman had lived with prostate cancer, which spread to his bones, for seven years. Perhaps because of his healthy, athletic lifestyle, the Midwest basketball legend suffered few symptoms other than minor fatigue until this summer. Last December, he had chosen to stop chemotherapy treatments because he'd ""had enough."" He passed away peacefully in his home August 30, with his wife Kathy by his side. He spent his final weeks receiving visitors who came to say goodbye and taking phone calls from as far away as Spain. Scheuerman was a man of faith and believed that God blessed him with a life full of opportunities to have a positive impact on others. He maintained his role as president of Basketball Club International (BCI), a nonprofit goodwill and outreach organization that supports integrity, character, and faith within professional and youth basketball communities, until Spring 2010. Sharm and Kathy Scheuerman founded the organization in 2004. Sharm Scheuerman was born May 16, 1934 in Moline, Illinois. He attended Rock Island High School, where he lettered in basketball, baseball, and football. While he was a 1952 All-State Quarterback in Illinois during his senior year, Scheuerman attended the University of Iowa on a full scholarship for basketball. He continued to play baseball and lettered in each sport concurrently for three years. Under basketball coach Bucky O'Connor, he was part of the Iowa Hawkeyes' ""Fabulous Five,"" an all-sophomore group of starters who finished second in the Big Ten in 1953-54, then swept the conference to win consecutive Big Ten championships in 1954-55 and 1955-56. As seniors, the Hawkeyes finished second in the nation, only defeated by Bill Russell and his San Francisco Dons. Scheuerman's number was retired in 1980, along with the numbers of his ""Fab Five"" teammates: Carl Cain, Bill Logan, Bill Seaberg, and Bill Schoof. Scheuerman's nickname in the press was ""The Iceman"" because of his ability to keep his cool under intense court pressure. Upon graduation in 1956, Scheuerman married Karlen Sutton and took a position as an assistant baseball coach and assistant basketball coach at the University of Iowa. When Coach O'Connor was tragically killed in a car accident in 1958, Scheuerman was promoted. At 24, he became the youngest head coach in NCAA Division I history – just a few months younger than Bobby Knight was at his own appointment. In 1960, Scheuerman received third place for NCAA Basketball's National Coach of the Year. Scheuerman continued to coach at the University of Iowa until 1964, when he began working in the commercial real estate industry. He and Karlen had three children (Tom, Greg, and Jamey) and were divorced in 1975. From 1966 to 1980, in addition to his commercial real estate business, Scheuerman was also a color commentator for Iowa Basketball on WHO Radio. He also founded the Iowa City Young Life chapter in 1966 with three other community leaders. In 1975, Scheuerman was inducted into the Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame. From 1980 to 1985, he was an analyst with Bob ""Oh My"" Hogue on KWWL-TV when Coach Lute Olson's famed Hawkeyes team began appearing on regular telecasts. Sharm Scheuerman married Kathy Miller in 1981. Together, they moved to the city of Denver, Colorado in 1985. Until 1991, Scheuerman was involved in commercial real estate in Colorado. He was then invited to join the Athletes in Action organization as the head coach and general manager of the primary basketball team. He continued in that role until 2003. In 1995, Scheuerman was asked to serve as the assistant coach for the USA Basketball Team as they headed to the Pan Am games in Argentina. In 2000, he was inducted into the Quad Cities Basketball Hall of Fame. Since 2004, when he founded Basketball Club International (BCI), Scheuerman frequently took BCI's professional-level team, BCI Edge, overseas for national tournaments and across the U.S. for youth sports and leadership clinics. He was a strong mentor, and sometimes a kind of father figure, to many young and professional basketball players. Over the last year, Scheuerman penned a book based on his experiences as a kid, as a player, and as a coach. He recently completed the manuscript. Step Up Your Game: A Playbook for the Next Generation Hero is expected to be published this year by Advantage Media Group. He is preceded in death by his parents and his younger brother, Tom. He is survived by his wife Kathy, his daughter Jamey, his sons Tom and Greg, and his grandchildren, Grace and Will. He is remembered by so many. Family and friends will gather in celebration of Sharm's life on Thursday, September 9, 2010 at 3pm, at Greenwood Community Church, 5600 East Belleview Avenue, Greenwood Village, CO. A reception will follow at Glenmoor Country Club, 110 Glenmoor Drive, Cherry Hills Village, CO. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations to support BCI's Basketball Plus camps and clinics for kids. Donations may be made at www.bciedge.org/contribute or mailed to: BCI 1880 Arapahoe Street, Suite 2112 Denver, CO 80202 re: Sharm's Memorial Fund