Roger S. Penske/Lehigh Athletics Hall of Fame
Hamer, Ed
Ed Hamer
- Induction:
- 2001
- Class:
- 1959
Ed Hamer was not known for his flashy style or overpowering ability to pin opponents. He was a stingy competitor with a big heart and an enormous array of accomplishments. He left everything on the mat including a national championship and a pair of EIWA titles. After graduation, he carried his passion for sports onto the sidelines as a coach and satisfied his hunger for competition on the golf course.
“As a teammate and friend, Ed Hamer was good-natured, generous and fun-loving,” said Dr. Joseph Gratto, Hamer’s former teammate and fellow Lehigh Hall of Fame member. “The term ‘laid back’ had not gained currency yet back in the late 50’s, but ‘laid back’ was the word for Ed.”
The winter of 1958-59 was quite a year for Hamer. He lost his first dual match of the season after suffering an injury to his rib cage prior to the match with Cornell. But, Hamer won his next 18 matches and soon found himself with a 34-5 overall record. He won a second EIWA championship and found himself in the finals of the NCAA Tournament. He went on to win the NCAA Championship that year and became the first and only wrestler in the history of the NCAA Tournament to that date to knock off two defending national champions en route to a title.
“As a wrestler, Ed was blessed with the gift of unusually good balance, which he used to his advantage in many ways, but principally to make himself a devastating rider who was seldom reversed and very difficult to escape from,” added Gratto. “He was a very patient and deliberate wrestler who tended to control his matches and force them to be wrestled on his terms. He was a good strategist who judged well what he could probably do against any given opponent. Luck didn't have much to do with results in Ed's matches. Ed learned the value of conditioning and often in matches he would reveal a speed and explosiveness late in the match which provided the margin for success.”
Most famous for his accomplishments as a grappler, Hamer was a member of Lehigh’s golf team in 1960 and eventually became an amateur golfer over the years. He won multiple club championships at a variety of different clubs and in 1994 qualified for the United States Senior Amateur Tournament, but was unable to compete due to injury.
During the mid-1960’s Hamer served as an assistant wrestling coach, varsity cross country coach and head golf coach for the Brown and White. He later went on to coordinate Junior Olympic Wrestling tournaments and coach youth wrestling. After his coaching days at Lehigh, he became the owner of Hamer Building Supplies from 1965-71 prior to becoming a sales representative for the Pennsylvania House of Furniture and Harden Furniture.
In 1989, Hamer was introduced into the Pennsylvania State Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame and in 1990 was inducted into the Clearfield County Regional Chapter of the Pennsylvania Hall of Fame. Hamer and his wife Judy have five children, Christopher, Michael, Wendi, Jill and Tim.
“As a teammate and friend, Ed Hamer was good-natured, generous and fun-loving,” said Dr. Joseph Gratto, Hamer’s former teammate and fellow Lehigh Hall of Fame member. “The term ‘laid back’ had not gained currency yet back in the late 50’s, but ‘laid back’ was the word for Ed.”
The winter of 1958-59 was quite a year for Hamer. He lost his first dual match of the season after suffering an injury to his rib cage prior to the match with Cornell. But, Hamer won his next 18 matches and soon found himself with a 34-5 overall record. He won a second EIWA championship and found himself in the finals of the NCAA Tournament. He went on to win the NCAA Championship that year and became the first and only wrestler in the history of the NCAA Tournament to that date to knock off two defending national champions en route to a title.
“As a wrestler, Ed was blessed with the gift of unusually good balance, which he used to his advantage in many ways, but principally to make himself a devastating rider who was seldom reversed and very difficult to escape from,” added Gratto. “He was a very patient and deliberate wrestler who tended to control his matches and force them to be wrestled on his terms. He was a good strategist who judged well what he could probably do against any given opponent. Luck didn't have much to do with results in Ed's matches. Ed learned the value of conditioning and often in matches he would reveal a speed and explosiveness late in the match which provided the margin for success.”
Most famous for his accomplishments as a grappler, Hamer was a member of Lehigh’s golf team in 1960 and eventually became an amateur golfer over the years. He won multiple club championships at a variety of different clubs and in 1994 qualified for the United States Senior Amateur Tournament, but was unable to compete due to injury.
During the mid-1960’s Hamer served as an assistant wrestling coach, varsity cross country coach and head golf coach for the Brown and White. He later went on to coordinate Junior Olympic Wrestling tournaments and coach youth wrestling. After his coaching days at Lehigh, he became the owner of Hamer Building Supplies from 1965-71 prior to becoming a sales representative for the Pennsylvania House of Furniture and Harden Furniture.
In 1989, Hamer was introduced into the Pennsylvania State Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame and in 1990 was inducted into the Clearfield County Regional Chapter of the Pennsylvania Hall of Fame. Hamer and his wife Judy have five children, Christopher, Michael, Wendi, Jill and Tim.
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