Four individuals will be inducted into the 2023 Cedar County Sports Wall of Fame during the Cedar County Fair on Sunday, July 16, at noon on the Family Foods Stage in the Custom Builder’s Pavillion.
Individuals are Darrell Burmeister, a 1973 graduate of Bennett High School, Jerry O’Rourke, who moved to Tipton in 1975, Tom Penningroth, a 1985 graduate of Tipton High School, and Chris Weih, a 1992 graduate of Bennett High School.
Burmeister was a multi-sport athlete at Bennett before embarking on a successful coaching career at Bridgewater-Fontanelle and Nodaway Valley, after Bridgewater-Fontanelle joined with Greenfield in 1995. From 1984-2021, Burmeister compiled 603 boys’ basketball victories, including a Class 2A championship in 2006. Other state tournament appearances came in 2005, 2007, 2012, 2013, and 2015. His Wolverines had conference winning streaks of 71 and 58 games, and five times his teams entered postseason play with undefeated records. In 1995, Burmeister began coaching cross country at Nodaway Valley, with the Wolverine boys winning state titles in 2002, 2015, 2016, and 2017. The girls team won a championship in 2009.
O’Rourke played in the Tipton slo-pitch softball league for 47 years and was commissioner of the league for 41 years. A 1971 graduate of English Valleys High School, O’Rourke moved to Tipton four years later, working for Don Hargrave, Fred’s Chevrolet, and Stueland Automotive before buying the local Ford dealership from Don Wehde in 1987. O’Rourke also sponsored a softball team for more than 30 years, longer than any other business.
Penningroth was a key component to Tipton winning Class 3A state track and field championships in 1983, 1984, and 1985. He won two individual state titles in the 3,200 run and two as a member of 4×800-meter relays. A three-time state qualifier in cross country, Penningroth placed fifth as a sophomore, runner-up as a junior, and third as a senior. Penningroth continued his cross country and track and field career at the University of Northern Iowa, where his indoor mile time of 4:07.54 stood as a school record for 10 years.
Weih was a multi-sport athlete for the Bombers, earning most of his acclaim in basketball. He scored 988 career points (sixth on Bennett’s all-time list), including 442 as a senior (third on Bennett’s all-time list for points in a season). Weih also pulled down 544 career rebounds (second in Bennett history), with a school-record 266 in a season as a senior in 1991-92. After high school, Weih attended Black Hawk Community College for three seasons before enrolling at Coe College. He led the Kohawks in scoring in 41 of the 44 games he played and was named fifth-team All-America in 1997. Weih finished his Coe career with 984 points and 409 rebounds.
The Cedar County Sports Wall of Fame was formed in 2008 and is under the control of the Cedar County Historical Society. To nominate for the Wall of Fame, contact committee members Mike Bixler, Pat Kedley, Verl Lekwa, Jeff Linder, Darren Miller, Gene Schroeder, Bruce Seehusen, Derek Sawvell, or Mike Quinlan.

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Jerry O’Rourke is one of the inductees into Cedar County Wall of Fame 2023.