John Ecker Explained

John Ecker
Height Ft:6
Height In:6
Nationality:American / German
Birth Date:12 October 1948
Highschool:University (Los Angeles, California)
College:UCLA (1968–1971)
Draft Year:1971
Career Position:Forward
Career Start:1971
Career End:1983
Years1:1971–1983
Team1:TuS 04 Leverkusen
Coach Start:1992
Coach End:1995
Cyears1:1992–1993
Cteam1:BG Bonn 92
Cyears2:1994–1995
Cteam2:Bonn
Highlights:As player

John Miles Ecker (born October 12, 1948)[1] is a German-American former basketball player and coach. He played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins under Coach John Wooden, winning three straight national championships from 1969 through 1971. Ecker played and coached professionally in Germany, where he also became a naturalized citizen in 1977. He also taught at a high school in Germany.

Ecker is married to German Olympic gold-medal winner Heide Ecker-Rosendahl. Their son, Danny Ecker, became one of the top German pole vaulters.

Early life

Playing basketball at University High in West Los Angeles, Ecker was named to the All-Western League Second Team in 1965.[2] As a senior, he averaged 20.7 points per game and was named to the All-Los Angeles City First Team. He was also named to the All-Western League First Team along with fellow senior teammate Bill Seibert.[3]

College career

Ecker was not a marquee player for UCLA.[4] Over three championship seasons, he played in nearly every game, though his playing time was limited and typically came when the outcome of the game was already decided.[5] [6] The skinny, 6feet reserve served as a backup at both forward and center.[7] [8] He is one of 14 players who won three National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) titles at UCLA under Coach John Wooden.[9]

Ecker entered UCLA as a walk-on without an athletic scholarship,[10] and was a starter on the freshman team in 1966–67. He was joined in the lineup by Seibert, his former high school teammate.[11] [12] The following season, Ecker redshirted and did not play. He made the 15-man varsity squad for 1968–69, and served as the team's third-string center.[13]

On the first day of practice in 1969–70, students at UCLA had scheduled a walkout to protest the Vietnam War. Ecker joined teammate Andy Hill, who was also a former high school teammate,[14] in requesting Wooden to cancel practice to support of the antiwar effort, but the coach refused.[15] With the graduation of three-year starting center Lew Alcindor (known later as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar), Ecker was promoted to second-string as starter Steve Patterson's backup.[16] [17] During the season, Ecker made a 4feet layup with five seconds remaining for a 72–71 win over Oregon State.[18] He had entered the game for a jump ball with 16 seconds left after Sidney Wicks had fouled out, and controlled the tip before making the winning shot.[7] [8] [19] UCLA finished the season 28–2, and won the national championship game over Jacksonville. At the annual team banquet after the season, Seibert delivered a speech that was highly critical of Wooden. Afterwards, the coach was determined to eliminate "all possible sources of trouble" from the team. He interrogated Ecker, Hill, and Terry Schofield, advising them to transfer from UCLA if they agreed with Seibert, but all three players insisted that they wished to stay.[20] [21] [22]

In 1970–71, Ecker made two free throws in the final seven seconds in a 57–53 win over Washington State. The team's top free throw shooter at 88 percent, he made the shots in place of an injured Schofield.[23] [24] The Bruins won their fifth straight national championship, and seven of the previous eight.[25]

Professional career

Ecker played in Germany for TuS 04 Leverkusen from 1971 though 1983.[1] He briefly returned to the U.S. for 15 months starting in 1974,[26] when he served as an assistant coach with UCLA.[27] Ecker later coached in Germany as well.[1]

From 1975 though 2010, he was also a high school teacher at Landrat-Lucas-Gymnasium in Opladen.[1]

Personal

Ecker met his wife, Heide Rosendahl, in 1971 on his third day in Leverkusen.[1] Rosendahl won two gold medals in track and field in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich.[28] They married in 1974 and have two sons: David and Danny, who became one of Germany's top pole vaulters.[1] [5] [29]

Ecker became a German citizen in 1977.[1]

Notes and References

  1. News: Grass . Siegfried . Leverkusener aus L.A.—John Ecker wird 65 . October 12, 2013 . Rheinische Post . de . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924150315/http://www.rp-online.de/nrw/staedte/leverkusen/sport/leverkusener-aus-la-john-ecker-wird-65-aid-1.3739967 . 2015-09-24 . live .
  2. News: Wilson. Wayne. Paul Hoffman Selected As Best Player On Helms' All-West Valley League Team. February 11, 1965. The Valley News. 48-B. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  3. Long Beach Poly's Chuck Moore & Trent Gaines Named Top CIF Basketeers For 1966. March 24, 1966. Helms Athletic Foundation. https://web.archive.org/web/20150807113135/http://library.la84.org/SportsLibrary/HELMS/Basketball/HelmsBasketballAnnual1966.pdf. August 7, 2015. live.
  4. News: Ecker . John . Former UCLA forward John Ecker remembers John Wooden, relates fondest memory of coach . June 27, 2010 . Sporting News . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924131417/http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-basketball/story/2010-06-26/former-ucla-forward-john-ecker-remembers-john-wooden . 2015-09-24 . live .
  5. News: Myers . Laura . Picking up more than splinters . June 13, 2010 . Los Angeles Times . https://web.archive.org/web/20151024165355/http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jun/13/sports/la-sp-wooden-role-players-20100613 . October 24, 2015 . live .
  6. News: Ecker's Tossess Tumble WSU. February 28, 1971. Independent Press-Telegram. S-1. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  7. News: Cumen. Stu. UCLA Has 3rd Squeak. January 12, 1970. El Paso Herald-Post. B-9. UPI. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  8. Kirkpatrick. Curry. It's More Fun Without Lew. February 2, 1970. Sports Illustrated. https://web.archive.org/web/20150807115115/http://www.si.com/vault/1970/02/02/554039/its-more-fun-without-lew. August 7, 2015. live.
  9. News: Crowe . Jerry . Kobe Bryant vs. Ron Artest is worth hearing . April 3, 2009 . Los Angeles Times . https://web.archive.org/web/20150529051810/http://articles.latimes.com/2009/apr/03/sports/sp-crowe3 . May 29, 2015 . live .
  10. News: Schrader. Loel. Ecker, Booker Give UCLA Lift. February 15, 1970. Independent Press Telegram. S-2. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  11. News: UCLA Unveils Alcindor Against Frosh Tonight. November 26, 1966. Independent. Long Beach, California. C-2. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  12. News: UCLA's John Wooden Sees Winning Times Ahead Even Without Alcindor. January 26, 1969. San Antonio Express. 8-K. AP. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  13. News: Coach Names 15-Man Bruin Cage Roster. November 10, 1968. The Valley News. 50-A. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  14. Book: Hill. Andrew. Wooden. John. Be Quick—But Don't Hurry: Finding Success in the Teachings of a Lifetime. 20. 2001. Simon & Schuster. 978-0743213882. August 7, 2015. hill_wooden.
  15. Book: Williams. Pat. Denney. James. Coach Wooden: The 7 Principles That Shaped His Life and Will Change Yours. February 2011. 53–4. Revell . 9781441214928. August 7, 2015.
  16. News: Reserve Ecker Keeps UCLA Atop Both Polls. January 13, 1970. Lebanon Daily News. 13. UPI. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  17. News: Candid Wooden Says Bruins Should Be Choice. November 25, 1970. Spokane Daily Chronicle. 12. AP. August 8, 2015.
  18. News: Ecker's Last-Gasp Shot Keeps No. 1 UCLA Unbeaten, 72–71. January 12, 1970. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. AP. 3-B. August 7, 2015.
  19. News: Shuyler, Jr.. Ed. Georgia Bulldogs Beat Tennessee Vols, 61–56. January 12, 1970. The Corbin Daily Tribune. 2. AP. Newspapers.com. August 7, 2015.
  20. Book: Davis, Seth. Wooden: A Coach's Life. 2014. Macmillan. 332–5. 9780805092806. August 7, 2015.
  21. Book: Smith, John Matthew. The Sons of Westwood. 2013. University of Illinois Press. 171–2. 9780252095054. August 7, 2015.
  22. [#hill_wooden|Hill, Wooden 2001]
  23. News: Bruins Win It At Charity Line. February 28, 1971. The Sun-Telegram. AP. B-2. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  24. News: Bruins Win Close Ones. March 23, 1971. The Iola Register. 8. AP. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  25. The Top 20. November 29, 1971. Sports Illustrated. https://web.archive.org/web/20150408060759/http://www.si.com/vault/1971/11/29/613930/the-top-20. April 8, 2015. live.
  26. News: Die Korbmacher. November 18, 1974. Der Spiegel. https://web.archive.org/web/20150807120959/http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/d-41651355.html. August 7, 2015. live.
  27. Web site: 2014–15 UCLA Basketball Media Guide . 2014 . UCLA Sports Information Office . 165 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150723043103/http://www.uclabruins.com/fls/30500/pdf/MBKB_15MG_FULL.pdf?DB_OEM_ID=30500 . July 23, 2015 . live .
  28. News: Superstar Slight Annoys Olympian. December 13, 1974. Wisconsin State Journal. Page 4, Section 6. N. Y. Times News Service. August 7, 2015. Newspapers.com.
  29. News: Waldbröl . Hans-Joachim . Mehrkampf im Herzen und Eierkocher zur Belohnung . February 14, 2007 . Frankfurter Allgemeine . de . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924195204/http://www.faz.net/aktuell/sport/mehr-sport/heide-ecker-rosendahl-mehrkampf-im-herzen-und-eierkocher-zur-belohnung-1407949.html . 2015-09-24 . live .

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