From the archives: Football players, coach and dean perished when ‘Gold’ plane fell

Wichita State experiences the worst disaster in the history of American college football, as told in 1970.

Where have all the flowers gone? The tear-filed eyes of this young lady at Memorial services for those killed in last week's tragedy express the shock and emotion felt by much of the Wichita community. More than 12,000 people came to Cessna Stadium Monday night to pay tribute to those who died. Oct. 9, 1970.

This story was originally published in The Sunflower on Monday, Oct. 5, 1970.

Wichita State University fell victim to the worst disaster in the history of American college football Friday as a game-bound plane carrying twenty-six members of the Wichita State football team, head athletic officials and some of the most ardent Shocker fans crashed into a Colorado mountainside while trying to cross the Continental Divide.