Northern State Athletics Hall of Fame
Kretchman Coaching Award – Bob Olson, B.S. ’77 in Teaching, M.S. ‘80
Bob Olson’s ascension in the Northern State University athletics program took its final step in the summer of 1999 as the former men’s basketball coach took over for the retired Jim Kretchman as the school’s athletic director. Like Kretchman, Olson brings to the office a unique knowledge and experience of Northern athletics that can only come from being a former athlete, coach, instructor and administrator for the university. An Aberdeen native, Olson attended NSU in the mid-1970s and played collegiate basketball for legendary coach Bob Wachs. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Northern in 1977 and would return two years later to serve as a graduate assistant under Wachs while earning a master’s degree in 1980. When Coach Wachs retired Olson was selected as NSU’s 19th men’s basketball coach in 1985. For the next 14 years, Olson led NSU teams to national prominence at the NAIA and NCAA II levels, compiling a 305-129 career record and coaching 27 all-conference players, five NAIA All-Americans, one NCAA II First-Team All-American and eight Academic All-Americans. NSU made five NAIA National Tournament appearances, making championship runner-up campaigns in 1994 and 1995. The program’s success was seamless as NSU made the move up from the NAIA ranks to NCAA Division II for the 1995-96 season. The Wolves earned national post-season berths in their first four seasons under the new umbrella, highlighted by a North Central Region Championship and Elite Eight berth in 1997-98. Bob and his wife, Cheri, are the parents of daughter Stephie. Stephie and her husband Tim Hanigan have one son, Colton.
