He went on to help the Michigan Panthers win the first USFL title and later spent two seasons with the Green Bay Packers. He led East to a state basketball title as a junior. He was also a track standout who won a state title in the shot put in 1950. He played those sports and baseball at Wisconsin, where he remains the school’s only nine-time letterman since 1927. At Horlick, she also played tennis and ran track, winning state titles in the 400 and 400 relay as a senior when the Rebels won the team title. No youngsters: No one on the list graduated in the 2000s. Our picks, listed in alphabetical order below, were revealed Thursday night at the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame ceremony, and the group also will be honored at the Journal Sentinel High School Sports Awards show May 7 at the Pabst Theater. He committed to Wisconsin to play football and baseball but signed with the Texas Rangers after being drafted in the fifth round. Robert “Rocky” Bleier, Appleton Xavier, 1964: He is known most for his exploits on the football field, where he was a two-time all-state selection who didn’t lose a game in his final three seasons. News articles are written weekly about important High School Football events in Wisconsin. Are we looking for an all-time great who did it in one sport or someone who didn’t reach those heights but was a three-sport athlete and all-state in two of them? Sonja Henning, Racine Horlick, 1987: The Rebels standout wrapped up her prep basketball career as the state's all-time scoring leader with 2,236 points and then went on to become an All-American at Stanford, where she started on the Cardinal's 1990 national championship team. The last non-Big Six team to win the Non-Public 4 state title was Holy Cross of … College and professional success: Each of our selections went on to have great success after high school. What kind of players would we honor? David Greenwood, Park Falls, 1979: He earned 12 letters at Park Falls, where he won six state track and field titles, including four straight in the high jump. Mark Stewart can be reached at mstewart@journalsentinel.com or on Twitter at MarkStewartMJS. He was best known, however, for his work on the gridiron, where his play earned him a place with Ameche and Bleier as first-team running backs on the Journal’s Team of the Century. Pat Richter, Madison East, 1959: The Purgolders great was a high school All-American in football and basketball. Thousands of athletes. Lancaster and Stratford lead the way, having each won seven state titles in 38 years. All rights reserved. Past state football champions from Central and Eastern Wisconsin. That eliminated someone like Pewaukee’s J.J. Watt, a superstar in the NFL who blossomed after his prep days, but kept in play anyone who may have fallen from grace later. Greenwood was so talented in football that the universities of Wisconsin and Michigan waged a recruiting war for his services before he selected the Badgers. BELVIDERE, Ill. (WTVO/WQRF) -- The glory days for Belvidere High School were in the early to mid-90s. Special thanks to former Journal Sentinel writer Cliff Christl. © 2020 www.jsonline.com. 17 Shadow Creek preview, Follow your favorite high school teams and players, Explore and purchase photos of your local teams, MaxPreps 2015 Wisconsin preseason baseball Fab 5, presented by the Army National Guard, MaxPreps 2015 Wisconsin preseason softball Fab 5, presented by the Army National Guard, MaxPreps 2014-15 Wisconsin preseason boys basketball Fab 5, presented by the Army National Guard, MaxPreps 2014-15 Wisconsin preseason girls basketball Fab 5, presented by the Army National Guard. The 1950 Kenosha team is considered one of the finest in state history and it was fueled by Ameche, who had 821 yards and 18 touchdowns in 102 carries as a senior. The Iron Horse, who won the 1954 Heisman Trophy at Wisconsin, was voted the all-time top player when the Milwaukee Journal revealed its Team of the Century in 1993. 1. MaxPreps is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. No. He was also an all-state selection in basketball and a standout in track and field. Menasha: 2014 (D2) Seymour: 1985 (D3) Waupaca: 2006 (D3), 2008 (D3) But now that we’ve come to a consensus, it is clear that we as a group valued certain things. He played baseball for two seasons and hit .600. Alan Ameche, Kenosha, (graduated in) 1951: A three-year varsity player, the fullback really shined his final two seasons when he earned all-state distinction. Bay Conference. A future four-time Super Bowl champion with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Bleier was a first-team running back on the Journal’s Team of the Century. He was also an all-state football player who rushed for more than 4,200 yards and had 20 interceptions. She won 10 individual state track/cross country titles and was the first girl to win four state cross country championships. Multi-sport athletes: While many of our picks are best known for one sport, they also excelled at others, though perhaps not to the level of their No. The Bucs won back-to-back state championships in football … The Bucs won back-to-back state championships in football … There have been a lot of all-time great caliber athletes who have come through the state during that time, but the panel gave more value to athletes whose accomplishments have stood the test of time. Michael Bennett, Milwaukee Tech, 1998: As a freshman, he won the 200 meters to help the Trojans win the Division 1 state title.