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The University of Utah Athletics
Whittingham Inducted Into Utah State Games Hall
6/28/2005 12:00 AM | Football
June 28, 2005
CEDAR CITY, Utah -- The Utah Summer Games announced Thursday the induction of four prominent Utah athletic pioneers into its 20th Hall of Honor, which will take place at a banquet prior to the Opening Ceremonies next Thursday, June 16. The USG will induct into the Hall current Utah Jazz Hall of Fame play-by-play announcer Rod Hundley, first-year University of Utah head football coach Kyle Whittingham, former Ricks College women's volleyball Hall of Fame head coach JoAnn Reeve and southern Utah sportswriter Gary Webb.
"This year's inductees into the Utah Summer Games Hall of Honor are deserving in every way of this distinction," said USG Executive Director Kyle Case. "We are excited to welcome them into our Hall of Honor and look forward to the induction ceremony."
Whittingham served as a Ute assistant coach for the past 11 seasons and was the defensive coordinator for the last 10 campaigns. In his tenure on the Ute staff, Utah has compiled an 86-41 overall record and played in six bowl games, winning five of those contests. Last season was the finest ever at Utah, as the Utes ran the table, going 12-0, and became the first non-BCS team to play in and win a Bowl Championship Series game with a 35-7 Fiesta Bowl triumph over Pittsburgh. Whittingham served as co-head coach in that Fiesta Bowl victory. The Utes' perfect season resulted in final rankings of No. 4 (Associated Press) and No. 5 (ESPN/USA Today Coaches). Whittingham has coached 10 players who have gone on to play in the National Football League, including first-round pick Luther Elliss (Detroit, 1995) and second-round selection Andre Dyson (Tennessee, 2000).
Whittingham was a defensive force as a player at Brigham Young from 1978 to 1981, where he earned first-team all-Western Athletic Conference and WAC Defensive Player of the Year honors in 1981. He went on to play professional football for two seasons in the United States Football League (USFL) and one season with the NFL's Los Angeles Rams.
Hundley, who was inducted into the Utah Broadcaster Hall of Fame in 2004, has been the sole radio and television voice of the Jazz franchise for 31 years, beginning in 1974 in New Orleans before moving to Utah in 1979. "Hot Rod" has called nearly 2,600 games in his career and was the recipient of the Annual Curt Gowdy Media Award from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003, becoming the first broadcaster from Utah to be honored by the Hall. Prior to his career with the Jazz, Hundley spent two seasons as a broadcaster with the Los Angeles Lakers and worked five seasons for the Phoenix Suns, while he also announced games for CBS television.
Hundley was a three-year all-American at West Virginia, where he earned the nickname "Hot Rod", for his flamboyant playing style. Hundley was the first pick of the 1958 college draft by the Minneapolis Lakers and was a two-time all-star before retiring following the 1962-63 season. In 1982, he was named to the NCAA's silver anniversary all-America team, an award given to former collegiate athletes who achieve success in life after their basketball careers. He is also a member of the West Virginia state Hall of Fame and a 1992 inductee of the West Virginia University Hall of Fame.
Reeve began her coaching career at Ricks College, now BYU-Idaho, in 1973 and wasted little time making an impact as she led the Vikings to the 1974 NJCAA national championship in just her second season on the bench. Reeve, who went 909-283 (.762) in 27 seasons at the helm, won nine region titles overall and placed second on six other occasions. Meanwhile, the Vikings never posted a losing record in her tenure and had won at least 30 matches in 16-straight seasons, while her 1990 club reached the NJCAA title game.
Reeve has coached 12 all-Americans, including eight first team selections, and was named the 1996 AVCA/Tachikara West Region Coach of the Year for junior college/community college women's volleyball. In 1998, she was inducted into the NJCAA Volleyball Coaches' Association Hall of Fame. Reeve also coached badminton, tennis, softball, track and field and basketball in her career at Ricks College, which began in 1970 after she graduated from BYU. She has also served as a chairperson of the WICAC volleyball committee and is a member of the AVCA.
Webb has been a fixture at southern Utah sporting events virtually all of his life and writing about sports has been his passion, including covering the Utah Summer Games. Webb has competed in six USG events, but has written over 300 stories and columns about USG athletes and their accomplishments. He has also covered over 40 different USG events and has penned stories about USG athletes as young as five-years-old and as old as 91. The Webb family has helped sponsor the Utah Summer Games/Owen Webb Memorial Bowling Tournament for the mentally and physically disabled athletes over the last four years.
Webb has also served as the beatwriter for Southern Utah University and local prep athletics in his nine-year tenure at The Spectrum/Daily News.
The Utah Summer Games Hall of Honor Banquet will be held in the Gilbert Great Hall, located in the Hunter Conference Center on the SUU campus. A reception will kick off the festivities at 5:00 p.m., followed by the banquet at 5:30 p.m. The honorees will then move on to the Opening Ceremonies, which begin at 8:30 p.m. at SUU's Eccles Coliseum. To RSVP for the banquet, contact the USG offices at (435) 865-8421.
This year the Utah Summer Games celebrates its 20th anniversary by offering over 50 different sports including basketball, volleyball and tennis.
-UU-
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