DULUTH — The University of Minnesota Duluth athletic department has established a new award in honor of Dale “Hoagie” Haagenson, the Bulldogs’ Hall of Famer and assistant equipment manager who died on Feb. 17 at the age of 65.
The Dale “Hoagie” Haagenson Award will be presented annually to the UMD student-athlete who displays the same qualities and character Haagenson did during his life as the longest serving volunteer in the history of UMD Athletics.
“Hoagie was a fixture on the bench, sideline or dugout of almost any UMD event,” wrote former UMD women’s assistant soccer coach Kelly Grgas-Wheeler, a longtime friend of “Hoagie” who now serves exclusively as UMD’s director of athletic communications and media relations.
“He loved Bulldog Athletics and was here through the good years and the hard seasons. Hoagie was loyal, committed, served others and worked hard every day. But most importantly, he served others selflessly and with so much joy.”
UMD men’s hockey senior defenseman and captain Joey Pierce was the inaugural recipient on Monday during the 2026 Bulldog Awards on the UMD campus.
Pierce was particularly close to Haagenson, having first met Hoagie while in high school playing for the Hermantown Hawks.
Pierce grew up in Ely before moving to Hermantown for high school, while Haagenson was a native of Babbitt before coming to Duluth and joining the Bulldogs in 1981.
Pierce often brought Hoagie to Amsoil Arena for practices and on gameday throughout his four seasons at UMD.
“This program means so much to me,” Pierce said following his last game at UMD — a loss to Michigan in an NCAA regional final in March in Albany, New York. “The guys I’ve been able to play with, I’ve become best friends with just about every single one,” Pierce said.
“There’s not many places where every single day you go and show up, you know you’re doing it for something bigger than yourself. I don’t know if I’ll ever find that again. I’m so grateful for having that here in Duluth. This group is special, this program is special. I hope I left it in a better place than I found it.”
