Missouri State

RICK SUCHENSKI
Football, 1976-79
Inducted February 10, 2001

Rick Suchenski was a standout offensive guard in four seasons with the football Bears from 1976 through 1979, and was a starter in the last 37 games of his 42-game MSU career. Playing in the first four years of Rich Johanningmeier's tenure as the Bears' head coach, Suchenski was part of a freshman nucleus which entered the program when Johanningmeier came to MSU and produced a 26-16-1 record over four years including the Bears' final MIAA championship in the 1978 season. Suchenski came to MSU from Mascoutah, Illinois, and moved into the Bears' starting lineup midway through his freshman season to earn all-MIAA honorable mention selection. Suchenski started every game each of his final three seasons at MSU and was on the all-conference second team as a sophomore with all-league first team honors in both his junior and senior seasons. He was one of four Bear gridders to earn All-America honorable mention from the Associated Press in 1979. Suchenski earned an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship at the conclusion of his MSU playing career and upon his graduation in 1980.