The University of Oregon’s first basketball All-American was Edwin Russell Durno, who was born in 1899 on a farm near Albany, Ore.
After serving in World War I as an infantry sergeant, Durno enrolled at the University of Oregon. He not only was its first All-American, but also made the All-Pacific Coast Conference team three times. During his senior year in 1921, Durno led the Ducks to the conference title and earned a place in the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame.
He graduated in 1921 and coached the Medford High football team to an unbeaten season, scoring 345 points to its opponents’ 10.
Durno received a medical degree at Harvard in 1927 and began practicing medicine in Boston. While in the Medical Corps during World War II, Durno received a Purple Heart. He returned to Medford to practice medicine and served on the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners from 1947 to 1958.
In 1958, he won election to the Oregon Senate and in 1960 to the U. S. House of Representatives. After his political career ended, he returned to Medford and resumed his medical practice until his death in 1976.
Sources: "Edwin Russell Durno." Wikipedia. 28 Sept. 2016. Web. 19 Oct. 2016. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edwin_Russell_Durno>; 75 Years of Medford Football. Medford, Ore.: Gandee Printing Center, 1987. Print.
