University of San Francisco Athletics

Athlete All-American

Rod Bambach

Honors:
Men's Basketball (1947-1949)

Rodney Bambach was born on December 11, 1925 in Oakland, California and relocated to Walnut Creek, CA until his retirement in Brentwood. Rod was a military veteran who served his country in World War II in Italy and France. He attended the University of San Francisco where he lived his passion of basketball as a 6' 2" guard, and played on the National Champion Basketball team of 1949 (EastBayTimes).

Under the guidance of legendary coach Pete Newell, finished with a 25-5 overall record and ranked eighth in the Associated Press poll…a shocking December road sweep of highly-touted opponents La Salle, City College of New York and Bradley vaulted the upstart Dons into the national spotlight...the Dons went 12-3 down the stretch to earn an invitation to Madison Square Garden… Once in New York, the eighth-seeded Dons defeated Manhattan (68-43), Utah (64-63), Bowling Green (49-39) and Loyola of Chicago (48-47) to win the championship…behind Don Lofgran’s 17 points and Frank Kuzara’s 13, USF pulled away from Manhattan and advanced to face favored Utah…the Utes held a 63-62 lead with less than a minute to play but with five seconds remaining, Kuzara nailed a desperation 30-footer to give the Dons a stunning one-point victory…Joe McNamee finished with 20 points, Lofgran added 14 while Kuzara and John Benington added 12 each to lead a well-balanced attack…Bowling Green brought a 15-game winning streak into the semifinal game against the Dons, but Lofgran’s 24 points paced the USF to a 10-point victory…in the championship game against Loyola-Chicago, the Dons led 27-19 at halftime only to see the Ramblers tie the game at 47 with less than a minute remaining…with 40 seconds left, Ross Guidice was fouled and calmly sank his under-handed free throws to give USF a one point lead…Loyola repeatedly fouled the Dons in the closing seconds, but rules at the time stipulated the fouled team could refuse the free throw in favor on maintaining possession...the Dons eventually ran out the clock and secured its first national championship…Lofgran was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player…33-year old Newell one his first national championship and would remain at the school for one more season before taking the head coaching position at Michigan State…four years later, he returned to the Bay Area to coach at Cal…under his direction, the Golden Bears won the 1959 NCAA Championship (TheFoghorn).

Schedule

Athlete All-American

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Upcoming Events

Upcoming Event: Track and Field versus Bryan Clay Invitational on Apr. 16, 2026

Upcoming Event: Baseball at Portland on Apr. 17, 2026 at 6:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Beach Volleyball at Saint Mary's on Apr. 18, 2026 at 10:00 a.m.

Upcoming Event: Baseball at Portland on Apr. 18, 2026 at 3:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Baseball at Portland on Apr. 19, 2026 at 1:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Baseball at California on Apr. 21, 2026 at 6:00 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Beach Volleyball versus West Coast Conference Championship on Apr. 23, 2026 at TBA

Upcoming Event: Beach Volleyball versus West Coast Conference Championship on Apr. 24, 2026 at TBA

Athlete All-American

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