Bold Adaptations 1903 – 1923

1903

Brother Felix Hoffman Rebuilds The College

Brother Felix rejected the early bids to rebuild as too high. He returned to Charles Sanger, who had worked for the College before, and he returned a bid of $50,000. Construction began on September 19th and on March 19th, all the buildings were completely finished. Total cost of the construction was $52,000 for all three buildings with another $25,000 going towards the most modern equipment available.

Brother Felix, faced with construction costs of the new buildings, turned to the alumni for financial assistance. It was the first time the alumni had been asked for a donation.

1908

SSC Alumni Association Formed

SSC graduates who returned applications before June of 1908 became charter members of the SSC Alumni Association. Charles Engle became the first Alumni Association President.

1915

Forster Commagere – First Full Time Coach

Coach Commagere put Saint Stanislaus on the athletic map of the South. A coach for all seasons, he trained student athletes in football, baseball, basketball, track, and cross country. During his 13 years as a head coach at SSC (1915 – 1928) he brought many honors to the school with his championship teams in the four major sports. Coach Commagere was among the first to be inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in May of 1972.

1916

The Rock-A-Chaw Name

Coach Commagere put Saint Stanislaus on the athletic map of the South. A coach for all seasons, he trained student athletes in football, baseball, basketball, track, and cross country. During his 13 years as a head coach at SSC (1915 – 1928) he brought many honors to the school with his championship teams in the four major sports. Coach Commagere was among the first to be inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in May of 1972.

In 1916, the newly organized Saint Stanislaus varsity football team became known as the Rock-A-Chaws. Credit for the name belongs to Brother Macarius Pierce, SSC principal, who organized a Rooters Club in 1916 to cheer for the team.

Rock-A-Chaw comes from an old Choctaw word meaning devil grass and it refers to the pesky little sand burrs that abounded on campus before the lawns were cultivated. For years College students removed the cockleburs from their playing fields where the prolific prickly weeds sprung up naturally in the sandy soil that was ideal for them.

Along with the name, the school also changed their colors to red and black. When student athletes organized the Saint Stanislaus Athletic Association in 1903, they chose as their colors pink and green. When Saint Stanislaus started to compete against other teams in basketball and track, pink and green were not considered appropriate colors for male sports team. In 1915, Saint Stanislaus changed tits school colors to red and black.

1923

Sacred Heart Statue Dedicated

Standing at the main entrance of Saint Stanislaus College since 1923, the huge bronze statue of the Sacred heart commemorates the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart by Rev. Andre Coindre in Lyons, France on September 30, 1821.

1923

SSC Changes To High School College Prep

Following World War I, most high schools added two grades, ending with the twelfth. Better students then went on to college. The Saint Stanislaus college dress was no longer a final degree and the faculty had designed courses to prepare students for further studies. While keeping the title Saint Stanislaus College, the school would grant high school diplomas instead of college degrees as it had since 1871.

1924

Brother Berchmans Roy Begins SSC Sports Dynasty

By 1924, ninety-five percent of SSC’s 300 students took part in organized athletics. Winning became such a tradition that finding opponents soon became problematic.