Eureka College Legend Dave Darnall Turns 80

EUREKA – Today, Friday, March 18, 2022, Eureka College legend Dave Darnall is celebrating his 80th birthday.

In his honor, we're taking a look back at his outstanding career and accomplishments 'neath the elms.

Darnall, the winningest coach in Eureka men's basketball history, has been an integral part of Eureka's storied history for almost five decades.

He was the Eureka head coach for 20 seasons, amassing a 383-151 record and a .717 winning percentage.

During the last five years of his tenure, Eureka was ranked No. 4 among the winningest NAIA basketball teams and No. 8 during his final 10 years. Darnall won five Prairie College Conference titles and led his team to District 20 tournament play 13 times. Eureka also won the 1994 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference title.

He is most well-known, however, for leading his team to the 1994 NAIA Division II National Championship in his final season at the helm of the program. The Red Devils won a school-record 27 games en route to claiming the title with a 98-95 overtime victory over Northern State (S.D.) at Montgomery Fieldhouse in Nampa, Idaho.

Eureka came into the tournament as an experienced squad, having made it there three seasons in a row, but the Red Devils were seeded sixth in the 24-game tournament and were far from a favorite in field.

And yet, the Red Devils managed to put together a magical run.

Eureka upended defending national champion Willamette (Ore.) in the second round to advance to the Final Four. The Red Devils then had to take on the tournament's host, Northwest Nazarene (Idaho), in the national semifinals and earned a 16-point victory.

The last hurdle to clear was the previous year's runner-up, Northern State. The Red Devils did it by overcoming a five-point deficit in the final three minutes of overtime.

"We beat the defending national champion, then we beat the host school, and then we beat the defending runner up," Darnall told Scott Heiberger of the Journal Star in Peoria. "My God, how can you imagine that? Don't ask me how or why, but I believe some things are just meant to be."

The 28th anniversary of winning the national championship was earlier this week.

After the season, Darnall was voted NAIA Division II National Coach of the Year, and he received Coach of the Year honors from NAIA College Sports Magazine and the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association.

Darnall was named Prairie College Conference Coach of the Year four times and was selected as the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association coach of the Year four consecutive years through 1994. He was also selected Tri-County Male Coach of the Year in 1993 by the Greater Peoria Sports Hall of Fame.

He is a member of the Eureka College Athletics, the Illinois State University, the Illinois Basketball Coaches Halls of Fame and the Greater Peoria Sports Hall of Fame.

In 2016, Eureka College dedicated the court of the newly-renovated Reagan Athletic Complex to Darnall.

In addition to his coaching success, Darnall also made a tremendous impact as a mentor for more than 25,000 kids who attended his summer basketball camps.

Since retiring from coaching, he has worked at Eureka in various capacities, including as a professor, camp director, recruiter and advancement associate. He remains a dedicated supporter of the College to this day.

From Eureka College, happy birthday, Dave, and thank you for everything!