John William "Brick" Breeden (January 4, 1904 – August 13, 1977) was a

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

coach and player. He was a player from 1926 to 1929, and the head coach at

Montana State College Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana, United States. It enrolls more students than any other college or university in the state. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's d ...

(now University) in

Bozeman Bozeman ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. The 2020 United States census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it Montana's fourth-largest city. It is the principal city of the Bozeman, Montan ...

from 1935 to 1954. Born in Oyer, Missouri, Breeden moved to

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

with his family in 1918, and they settled in Bozeman two years later. He graduated from Gallatin County High School in 1925 and then attended Montana State College. As a star basketball player, he helped lead the Bobcats to the

Helms Foundation The Helms Athletic Foundation, founded in 1936, was a Los Angeles-based organization dedicated to the promotion of athletics and sportsmanship. Paul H. Helms was the organization's founder and benefactor, funding the foundation via his owner ...

national championship in 1929. Breeden was also student body president and a member of

Sigma Chi Sigma Chi () International Fraternity is one of the largest North American social Fraternities and sororities, fraternities. The fraternity has 244 active undergraduate chapters and 152 alumni chapters across the United States and Canada and has ...

fraternity A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...

. He returned to the university in 1933 and was an assistant for two years. He coached Montana State to a record and one NCAA tournament appearance, in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

. After stepping down as head coach in 1954, he was the athletic director, then the career placement director until retirement in 1971. After MSU, Breeden was a

state senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...

for one term (1972–1974), but did not pursue a second due to health concerns. He died at his Bozeman home of natural causes at age 73 in 1977; the

Brick Breeden Fieldhouse The Brick Breeden Fieldhouse is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the western United States, located on the campus of Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana. It is the home of the Montana State Bobcats of the Big Sky Conference; the primary v ...

at MSU was named in his honor in 1981.

Head coaching record

References

External links

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Legendary Locals of Bozeman
' – Brick Breeden {{DEFAULTSORT:Breeden, Brick 1904 births 1977 deaths Basketball coaches from Montana American men's basketball players Basketball players from Missouri Basketball players from Montana Montana State Bobcats football coaches Montana State Bobcats men's basketball coaches Montana State Bobcats men's basketball players Sportspeople from Bozeman, Montana Montana state senators Basketball coaches from Missouri American athlete-politicians 20th-century members of the Montana Legislature