The late Roger Vertefeuille, center, with his wife, Carol, left and Windham High’s Brian Crudden at the 2010 Connecticut Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
Wethersfield’s Roger Vertefeuille, a Hall of Fame coach and the first coach of the varsity wrestling team at Bulkeley High School in Hartford, died on June 28, 2022, at the age of 88.
For nearly a quarter century, Vertefeuille coached three sports at Bulkeley – wrestling (1968-94), cross country (1971-93) and boys track and field (1971-94). His track and field team won the Class L state championship in 1976.
A physical education teacher at Bulkeley, Vertefeuille was an outstanding wrestling coach. He coached five All-American wrestlers, nine State Open champions and 13 Class L state champions in his 26 years as coach.
His Bulldogs finished second in Class L in three consecutive seasons — 1977, 1978 and 1979. Bulkeley was also third at the State Open in 1972 when the Open was the only statewide tournament. According to the Hartford Courant, his Bulldogs won 252 matches in Vertefeuille’s career, captured 10 Capital District Conference (CDC) championships and won 19 city titles in competition with rivals Hartford Public and Weaver.
Vertefeuille was inducted into the Connecticut Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2004 and the Bulkeley Hall of Fame in 2016.
His Bulkeley Hall of Fame summary said that “Roger known as the energizer bunny. Roger was a master teacher for teaching the fundamentals of wrestling to young men who did not have any experience in the sport prior to coming to Bulkeley High. Roger could train and mold any novice athlete in wrestling and by his senior year, Coach V could develop him into a state champion, New England champion or high school All-American.”
Vertefeuille told the Hartford Courant in 1979, “We have tough, hard-nosed street kids here. With a little skill and the proper attitude, they can become good wrestlers.”
He was recognized as wrestling coach of the year by the Connecticut High School Coaches Association in 1980.
Hall of Fame wrestling coach Roger Vertefeuille at the Bulkeley High Hall of Fame induction in 2016. (Photo courtesy Bulkeley HIgh School )
Vertefeuille did not wrestle as a youngster but learned about the sport from Dr. Edward Meyers at Penney High, according to the Hartford Courant’s Ginny Apple.
“From the first day of practice, he sets an atmosphere of camaraderie that the wrestlers warm to almost immediately,” Apple wrote in a 1977 story about Vertefeuille and the Bulkeley program. “In a typical Vertefeuille fashion, the jovial coach said, ‘Right from the beginning, they don’t have to tackle my name. They call me Coach V.’
Vertefeuille told Apple, “I haven’t had any trouble relating to the kids. I can’t quite figure it. Even when we have kids with less athletic potential, we still manage to bear a certain amount of pride.”
Roger Vertefeuille was born on November 18, 1933, to his late Ann-Marie and Lucian Vertefeuille. Roger grew up in Hartford and attended Bulkeley where he was an exceptional athlete. He played on Bulkeley’s undefeated 1950 football team and played baseball for the legendary Babe Allen.
Bulkeley High coach Roger Vertefeuille in his coaching days in Hartford. (Photo courtesy Bulkeley High)
Vertefeuille served in the U.S. Air Force and fought in the Korean War. After serving in the military, he attended UConn and graduated with a degree in physical education.
Vertefeuille is survived by his wife, Carol (Bezzini) Vertefeuille. He was predeceased by his two twin sons; Brandon and Brett.
He leaves behind his sister Jeannine Robitaille and her deceased husband Edmund, his nephew John and his wife Linda Robitaille and nephew Phillip Robitaille, his niece Arlene Degan, Sharon Baxter and her deceased husband Beau, followed by five great nephews, one great niece, and one great nephew.
Expressions of sympathy or fond memories can be left under Roger’s obituary from NewkirkandWhitney.com.
