Michigan Tech forward Bill Steele scores a goal against Harvard in a 1974 NCAA semifinal game against Harvard at the Boston Garden in Boston, (Photo courtesy of Michigan Tech University)

HOUGHTON — Michigan Tech Huskies National Champion and Sports Hall of Famer Bill Steele passed away on Friday, March 6, at the age of 73.

He was, perhaps, best known for his contributions on the ice for Michigan Tech.

A native of Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, where his family moved a year after he was born in Edinburg, Scotland, Steele played 145 games for the Huskies hockey team from 1971-75, tallying 151 points on 65 goals and 86 assists. He was an alternate captain on the 1975 NCAA Championship team and was named an Honorable Mention All-American that season.

Steele and the Huskies won the MacNaughton Cup as WCHA Champions in 1974, and he holds the Tech single-game record for assists with six in 1973 against Colorado College.

Bill was inducted into the Michigan Tech Sports Hall of Fame on Oct. 12, 2012, as an individual and again in 2016 with the 1975 NCAA Championship hockey team. He was on the ice earlier this season with his teammates, celebrating the 50-year anniversary of that accomplishment.

Bill earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration and graduated in 1975.

Bill played three seasons of pro hockey.

He was employed in the Copper Country, and coached the Lake Linden-Hubbell hockey team during the 1978-79 season.

While his hockey accomplishments were long, and his support of the Michigan Tech hockey program was well-known in the Copper Country, he was also a big supporter of other Huskies athletics programs.

“Bill Steele’s passing is felt deeply in the Michigan Tech community,” said Michigan Tech Vice President for Athletics and Recreation Suzanne Sanregret. “A proud Michigan Tech hockey alumnus and former player, Bill’s impact extended far beyond the rink.

“He was a passionate supporter of Michigan Tech football and many other Huskies athletic programs. Bill took great pride in being a Michigan Tech graduate and hockey alumnus, and his loyalty, generosity, and love for Huskies athletics will always be remembered.”

Working behind the scenes, Steele was instrumental in saving the football program. Current Huskies head coach Dan Mettlach was a quarterback for Michigan Tech at the time that former athletic director Rick Yeo announced that the university was cutting the sport.

“It was obviously out of nowhere,” said Mettlach. “Nobody had any idea that it was coming. It was around this time of year in 2003 when it happened. We showed up at 6 a.m. for a morning workout, and Coach (Bernie) Anderson let the team know that we were getting cut at that point. For about two weeks, guys were kind of in between in terms of are you staying here for school? Are you gonna try to go play somewhere else and get your education somewhere else?

“So, it was right back to high school recruiting. We were going on visits and seeing other places, many of those places in our own league, teams that we had played against up to that point. Then, we got the call from Coach Anderson on Friday or Saturday night, I can’t remember what it was, late that the team was getting saved. At that point, then you’re trying to get everybody back in the boat and get back going because spring ball was starting.”

Mettlach later found out that the program was saved by the incredible efforts of Steele and other alums.

“It was an odd time, but incredible to see the hard work that the alums, especially guys like Bill, and several others, that got together on the committee to reach out to people to get the funds to get the program back,” Mettlach said. “That was my first experience getting to meet Bill back then.”

Steele did not use his status as a former hockey player to draw attention to Michigan Tech, but rather his love of the university and the community it created. It was one of the things that made him approachable.

“As a player, you see those guys around the building, and obviously, (he was) very personable,” said Mettlach. “To be honest with you, I had no idea that at the time Bill was a hockey guy. I thought he was … I don’t know what I thought he was, but it was just awesome the way that everybody came together. Didn’t matter what sport you played here or whatever. They’re just supporters of Michigan Tech and wanting to see the football program stick around. To put that much time and effort into it was awesome to see.

“As I came back as a coach later on, I saw him at different events, had great conversations with him, and got to know him a little bit more on a personal level at that point.”

In the years that followed Steele’s efforts to save the football program, he continued to spend his time in the Copper Country, which often led to former Michigan Tech athletes running into him at places like the Portage Lake Golf Course. Mettlach was just one such former athlete who felt that Steele was one of the most approachable men they ever met in the Houghton area.

“(He was) just an incredible guy,” Mettlach said. “(He) loved Michigan Tech, and, obviously, donated plenty of his time to helping us stick around. We loved seeing him at the golf course the last couple summers and whenever he was around the building. (He was) just always an upbeat guy and I had incredible conversations with him.

“Even lately, seeing him at the golf course or whatever, it was a genuine conversation. Whether it was a two-minute deal or a half-hour, he was very personable, and seemed to care about what was going on in your life, what was going on with your family. (I) just always had meaningful conversations with him when I saw him, and (he) couldn’t have been a better guy.”