FOR BETTER OR WORSE, SHUMATE LEFT HIS MARK

Lore has it that Ron Shumate, in Cape Girardeau in 1981 to interview for the position of Southeast Missouri State University head men's basketball coach, took one look at ancient, tiny Houck Field House and told his wife:"Honey, if we can win here, we can win anywhere in America."Not only did Shumate win -- he won big.

So big that Southeast basketball became the hottest ticket in town.

So big that the Indians became one of the nation's elite NCAA Division II basketball programs.

So big that Houck became too small for the growing legion of Southeast fans. Ultimately, the Show Me Center was borne.

And so big that Southeast officials were able to contemplate a major move up to the Division I level for the school's entire sports program, which eventually took place.

When Shumate took over at Southeast, the Indians had just three winning records in the past nine years and were coming off a last-place finish in the old Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association.

Shumate led the Indians to the MIAA title his first season and later became the winningest basketball coach in Indians history, compiling a 306-171 mark from 1981-87.

At the Division II level, Shumate boasted a 235-76 record in 10 seasons, only once winning less than 20 games. Southeast made eight Division II tournament appearances under Shumate, reaching the national championship game twice.

Shumate coached the Indians during their first six seasons in Division I but managed just one winning record. He was fired following the 1996-97 season amid allegations of NCAA rules violations that resulted in the basketball program being placed on three years probation.