March 4, 2005
History of the SCHL Champion's Cup
The SCHL was founded in 1994. The first tournament/championship took place at the open-aired Slapshot facility in Houston. Texas A&M University won what would become the first SCHL championship, beating the University of Texas. Due to money and time constraints, the fledgling league was unable to provide a trophy to the Aggies. In it's place, a cardboard cutout of the cup was provided as a temporary award. Soon after the tournament, the first SCHL Champion's Cup, and what is currently the B Division Champion's Cup, was awarded to the TAMU squad.
From the SCHL's inaugural season to 1999, the Cup had been housed with it's season winner. Despite the barrage of celebration and changing of hands, the Cup remains a time-honored part of the SCHL and a long-lasting icon of league growth and prosperity.
The Division I and Division II cups were custom made by Crown Trophy in Plano Texas in 1999. The pure silver cups were made in England and were specially ordered and shipped for the SCHL. The cups are solid silver and hand-made. The hardwood bases vary in height and are constructed to hold the names of over 30 years worth of SCHL champions. Each season, a new set of names is added to a silver plate affixed to the side of the wood base, similar in fashion to that of the famed Stanley Cup. In all, each Champion's Cup has a value of over $1500. The true value, however, is in the quality of the names inscribed on its sides. A trophy is only as good as the people who win it.
As a past participant, I did have the chance to get my name engraved on the side of a Champion's Cup. My time as a player passed and the opportunity passed with it. I now sit and watch the games from the stands and wonder with envy. Yes, the SCHL Champion's Cups are not the Stanley Cup and to compare them would not be realistic, but to most participants in the SCHL, the Cups are the pinnacle of a hockey career and a fond memory of college.
The next time you pass one of the Cups, take a moment to think about the previous champions whose names are engraved eternally on the side of those majestic cups, and then think about all the players that fell short of winning that championship game. The winners are a select group and deserve the utmost praise for their achievement, but the Cups are only as good as the players that have won it, or maybe more importantly, the uncelebrated players that lost trying.
- Jim Helmbrecht
SCHL Executive Director
From the SCHL's inaugural season to 1999, the Cup had been housed with it's season winner. Despite the barrage of celebration and changing of hands, the Cup remains a time-honored part of the SCHL and a long-lasting icon of league growth and prosperity.
The Division I and Division II cups were custom made by Crown Trophy in Plano Texas in 1999. The pure silver cups were made in England and were specially ordered and shipped for the SCHL. The cups are solid silver and hand-made. The hardwood bases vary in height and are constructed to hold the names of over 30 years worth of SCHL champions. Each season, a new set of names is added to a silver plate affixed to the side of the wood base, similar in fashion to that of the famed Stanley Cup. In all, each Champion's Cup has a value of over $1500. The true value, however, is in the quality of the names inscribed on its sides. A trophy is only as good as the people who win it.
As a past participant, I did have the chance to get my name engraved on the side of a Champion's Cup. My time as a player passed and the opportunity passed with it. I now sit and watch the games from the stands and wonder with envy. Yes, the SCHL Champion's Cups are not the Stanley Cup and to compare them would not be realistic, but to most participants in the SCHL, the Cups are the pinnacle of a hockey career and a fond memory of college.
The next time you pass one of the Cups, take a moment to think about the previous champions whose names are engraved eternally on the side of those majestic cups, and then think about all the players that fell short of winning that championship game. The winners are a select group and deserve the utmost praise for their achievement, but the Cups are only as good as the players that have won it, or maybe more importantly, the uncelebrated players that lost trying.
- Jim Helmbrecht
SCHL Executive Director