Clarence Blunk
Coach ⋅ Class of 1981
Blue Island High School
Originally from Hebron High School. His college was Whitewater State in Wisconsin where he learned to wrestle. He started his coaching career at Orfordville, Wisconsin, on to Roscoe, Illinois and finally to Blue Island where he began their wrestling program in 1935. This program was continued by Mr. Blunk until 1954 when he retired from active coaching. This position was then taken by his assistant Mr. Pete Willson, present the head coach at Wheaton College, himself a Hall of Fame member. During his tenure at Blue Island, Mr. Blunk produced a number of State Qualifiers, of which 13 placed, of those were State Champions. Names that would be familiar to those in the sport that he coached would be: Stan Strand; Kay Hutsell, Bob Foster, Wally Hess, Frank Strand, Bob Juarez, Jon Swalec, and George Benck. Men who, besides Pete Williams who worked with him were Elias George, now of Evanston and John Swalec of Libertyville. The State wrestled with a different format in those days, Mr. Blunks teams did win a number of South Suburban League Titles.