Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 1991
Sheldon Harden arrived at Cal Poly in 1948 to start his coaching career and retired from teaching in 1987. Coach Harden elevated wrestling at Cal Poly from an intramural program to the intercollegiate level. He devoted his time and energy until the sport was recognized as the best on the West Coast by winning the Pacific Coast Intercollegiate Wrestling Championships in 1957 and 1958.
Sheldon was also an assistant football coach and was named head coach of that sport in 1962, following the ill-fated 1960 plane crash involving the football team returning home from a game in Ohio. Sheldon was a survivor of the crash and received praise for his heroic efforts to save several team and staff members.
Sheldon, who passed away in 2005, lived in San Luis Obispo. He was an emeritus professor of physical education and he enjoyed traveling and spending time with his four children and grandchildren. In May 2002, he was inducted into the California State Wrestling Hall of Fame.
