California University of Pennsylvania Athletics

Nowadays it’s almost customary for a basketball player to score over 1,000 point during his college career. But doing it back in the early 1950’s when there were less than 20 games a season was unusual.

This didn’t stop center/forward Richard Makernik from reaching that milestone, though. He finished his Vulcan basketball career with 1,317 career points, which ranks him eighth on the all-time scoring list.

Majernik came to California in September of 1951, but Cal wasn’t his first choice.

“I was originally supposed to attend Washington & Jefferson on a scholarship, and it didn’t work out. So, I came down to California,” said Majernik, who is a member of the second class of the hall of fame.

After beginning his schooling, Majernik was asked by the basketball coach to transfer to W&J and play, but he decided to stay at Cal.

Majernik also chose to try out for the Vulcans. He was a walk-on player who ended up becoming a four-year starter after a couple of games his first season.

“The coach evidently thought that I was a good prospect. I started to develop a jump shot and became very proficient at it,” Majernik said.

During his four-year career, Majernik was chosen to the All-State Teachers College First Team in 1954 and the Second Team in 1955. He was also honored as the Pittsburgh Press Player of the Week in February 1955 for scoring 88 points in three games.

Majernik averaged 22.5 points during his junior year and 21 points in his senior season. He said that he was mainly a power forward and center and a good rebounder and foul shooter.

In 1955, Majernik graduated from Cal with a degree in biology and a teaching certificate. “I loved my undergraduate years at California,” Majernik said. “They were the best years of my life.”

Majernik only ended up having the summer off because that felt he got a job teaching biology at Brownsville Area High School.

After working for one year, Majernik was drafted into the army and spent about two years in active duty with over a year stationed in Germany in the combat engineer outfit.

“I was able to complete my college education without being drafted. They did draft fellows in my class who didn’t maintain a high grade-point average. As long as you were in the upper half of your class, they deferred you,” Majernik explained.

Majernik returned to Brownsville after the service, and in 1960 he became the assistant basketball coach, a position that he held for 15 years.

In 1963 under Majernik’s direction, the Brownsville basketball team won the Section 10 title and were the Fayette County champions, but lost in the finals to Norwin in the Pitt Fieldhouse.

“I coached the JV’s, and I did not have a first-five but two first-fives,” Majernik said. “There was keen competition among the junior varsity to excel so that they would be ready to start Friday night as a unit.

“We let the team that had the best practice and scored the most points start Friday night,” he continued. “After a quarter or so, we would let the second team go in. We would substitute as a unit.”

Majernik also explained that running the program this way worked well with the fast break. He said that the substitutions gave the team new legs when the fatigue set in. In 1986, Majernik retired from Brownsville. He took advantage of the early retirement offered to him by the state and the school.

“I enjoyed teaching very much, and I also liked coaching,” Majernik said. “I liked to work with young people, and after 31 years, I retired.”

Majernik now spends a lot of his time hunting, fishing and traveling. His daughter Karen lives in the Palm Beach area of Florida, and he visits her often during the winter months.

Majernik also has a son, Derek, who is a senior at Cal majoring in accounting.

Being selected as a member of the second class for the hall of fame is something that Majernik said came unexpectedly, but he believes that it is a wonderful thing.

“During my years of teaching, I’d always think back on my earlier years in college and playing sports, and once that was finished with, it just seemed like it would be over,” Majernik said. “Now with this Hall of Fame, it brings you back on campus and makes you feel like you are part of the university life again.”

Dick Majernik was a dominating basketball post-player for the Vulcans from 1951-55 and, along with Roger Hotz, gave Cal hoops a decade of post-playing excellence. Majernik concluded his collegiate playing career with 1,317 career points, which was the most in school history at the time. He is still ninth among all Cal career-leading scorers.

A four-year starter, Majernik averaged 21 points a game as a junior and 22.5 points a game as a senior. Majernik helped the 1954-55 Vulcans compile a 12-7 overall record, and the dozen wins constituted a school record at the time. After his junior season, Majernik was a first-team All-State Teacher's College selection and a second-team All-State pick following his senior season. "All-State" status back in the 1950's consisted of all district schools from all of the different NCAA levels. Majernik was also named Pittsburgh Press Player of the Week in February 1955 after scoring 88 points in three games.

Originally from Slovan, Pa., and a graduate of Burgettstown High School, Majernik was a biology teacher at nearby Brownsville Area High School for 31 years, where he was also the assistant basketball coach for 15 seasons. Majernik and his wife, Carol, still reside in Brownsville and the couple has two children - Karen and Derek.