Former Cal Poly Basketball Standout Theo Dunn Passes at Age 87
4/22/2022 1:29:00 PM | Men's Basketball
UPDATE (May 3): With service information at bottom of story
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Theo Dunn, one of Cal Poly's all-time great basketball players from the mid-1950s who once held four school records, passed away Friday, April 22, 2022.
Dunn was 87.
Born July 31, 1934, in Star City, Arkansas, Dunn moved to San Francisco with his family and participated in baseball, basketball, football and track at Galileo Academy of Science and Technology, earning All-City honors in basketball. He went on to play basketball at City College of San Francisco before transferring to Cal Poly in 1955.
"I had an offer to play at Oregon State and I went up there with (my coach) to check it out," Dunn said in an interview with Mustang Daily in 2005. "It rained every day I was there and I told myself that I couldn't walk around in wet shoes all day.
"I also got an offer from Arizona and when I went and checked it out, the gym was nice, but it was 112 degrees there and I couldn't stand the heat. I came to Cal Poly after that and the weather was ideal, so they set me up with a Grant A scholarship."
He was a major factor in the post, using his 6-foot, 6-inch frame en route to smashing four school records and twice earning All-California Collegiate Athletic Association honors.
His 442 points in the 1956-57 season inside Crandall Gym set a mark, as did his average of 19.2 points per game, his single-season total of 156 field goals, and his 13 free throws in a single game.
In 1957-58, Dunn's 293 rebounds led Ed Jorgensen's squad, highlighted by a 22-rebound effort against UC Santa Barbara. His 293 rebounds remain as Cal Poly's top mark for a single season while his 22-rebound performance against the Gauchos is No. 2 in the record book.
His collegiate career was interrupted by service in the U.S. Army, where his hoop and volleyball skills on USO tours wowed the crowds in Europe. He returned to the Mustangs in 1960-61, one year after his induction into the Gonzales, Calif., Basketball Hall of Fame.
Dunn was inducted into the Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996.
Dunn graduated from Cal Poly in 1964 with a degree in printing and engineering (now graphic communications). He served on the Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Fame selection committee for many years as well as the Athletic Director's Circle.
"It was quite an honor," Dunn said to Mustang Daily of his induction. "You have some great athletes in there. My family enjoyed it and they still talk about it.
"I really enjoyed coming to such a great academic university, where they had a philosophy, the learn-by-doing philosophy, that actually worked," Dunn added.
Dunn retired from Pacific Gas and Electric Co. in 1993 after 26 years of outstanding service, including 17 years as a tour guide for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant.
During retirement, he participated in basketball for the Senior Olympics and enjoyed taking part in various club activities with Kiwanis and the Masons.
A service will be held Tuesday, May 10, at Wheeler Smith Mortuary, 2890 South Higuera Street, San Luis Obispo, Calif., starting at 11 a.m., with burial to follow at Los Osos Valley Memorial Park on Los Osos Valley Road between San Luis Obispo and Los Osos.
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Theo Dunn, one of Cal Poly's all-time great basketball players from the mid-1950s who once held four school records, passed away Friday, April 22, 2022.
Dunn was 87.
Born July 31, 1934, in Star City, Arkansas, Dunn moved to San Francisco with his family and participated in baseball, basketball, football and track at Galileo Academy of Science and Technology, earning All-City honors in basketball. He went on to play basketball at City College of San Francisco before transferring to Cal Poly in 1955.
"I had an offer to play at Oregon State and I went up there with (my coach) to check it out," Dunn said in an interview with Mustang Daily in 2005. "It rained every day I was there and I told myself that I couldn't walk around in wet shoes all day."I also got an offer from Arizona and when I went and checked it out, the gym was nice, but it was 112 degrees there and I couldn't stand the heat. I came to Cal Poly after that and the weather was ideal, so they set me up with a Grant A scholarship."
He was a major factor in the post, using his 6-foot, 6-inch frame en route to smashing four school records and twice earning All-California Collegiate Athletic Association honors.
His 442 points in the 1956-57 season inside Crandall Gym set a mark, as did his average of 19.2 points per game, his single-season total of 156 field goals, and his 13 free throws in a single game.
In 1957-58, Dunn's 293 rebounds led Ed Jorgensen's squad, highlighted by a 22-rebound effort against UC Santa Barbara. His 293 rebounds remain as Cal Poly's top mark for a single season while his 22-rebound performance against the Gauchos is No. 2 in the record book.
His collegiate career was interrupted by service in the U.S. Army, where his hoop and volleyball skills on USO tours wowed the crowds in Europe. He returned to the Mustangs in 1960-61, one year after his induction into the Gonzales, Calif., Basketball Hall of Fame.Dunn was inducted into the Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996.
Dunn graduated from Cal Poly in 1964 with a degree in printing and engineering (now graphic communications). He served on the Cal Poly Athletics Hall of Fame selection committee for many years as well as the Athletic Director's Circle.
"It was quite an honor," Dunn said to Mustang Daily of his induction. "You have some great athletes in there. My family enjoyed it and they still talk about it.
"I really enjoyed coming to such a great academic university, where they had a philosophy, the learn-by-doing philosophy, that actually worked," Dunn added.
Dunn retired from Pacific Gas and Electric Co. in 1993 after 26 years of outstanding service, including 17 years as a tour guide for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant.
During retirement, he participated in basketball for the Senior Olympics and enjoyed taking part in various club activities with Kiwanis and the Masons.
A service will be held Tuesday, May 10, at Wheeler Smith Mortuary, 2890 South Higuera Street, San Luis Obispo, Calif., starting at 11 a.m., with burial to follow at Los Osos Valley Memorial Park on Los Osos Valley Road between San Luis Obispo and Los Osos.
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