Major: Business
Hometown: San Francisco, CA
Career Highlights: Two-sport athlete; Four-year letter winner for Baseball; Four-year letter winner for Men's Basketball
Biography: Robert (Bob) Norton was born on Jan 5, 1939 in San Francisco. Norton was a two-sport athlete on the Hilltop. He graduated from Holy Name in 1952, and St Ignatius in 1956, where he excelled in football, basketball, and baseball. He attended University of San Francisco, where he continued his passion for basketball and baseball. He played one year of freshman baseball, and was a three-year starter for the varsity squad. He also played one year of freshman basketball, one year of junior varsity basketball, and was a two-year varsity basketball starter. During his senior season he averaged 5.1 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. His claim to fame at USF was that: he scored the first 2 points in the new USF gym.Â
Why Norton Chose USF: "I was a native San Franciscan, and a St. Ignatius graduate. I was offered a basketball scholarship, and USF was known for a great education."
Favorite USF Memories: "I have tremendous memories. I played with great teammates and coaches Ross Guidice (freshman basketball), Don King (JV basketball), Phil Woolpert (varsity basketball), and Dutch Anderson (varsity baseball)."
The USF Student-Athlete Experience: "I really appreciated the flexibility of coaches and professors at USF to make it easier on student-athletes."
Did You Know? Norton scored the first points ever at the new War Memorial Gym. On December 4, 1958 at the opening basketball game, Norton scored the first field goal for the Green and Gold.
Life After USF: Norton married his college sweetheart, a former USF cheerleader. He was employed at Watson & Meehan, a Cummins Diesel Engine Distributor, in San Francisco for forty years.
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