Two Former Gators Inducted into Florida Sports Hall of Fame; Lochte Honored
Tuesday, May 24, 2005 | General
Two elite members of the University of Florida athletics family were inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg as a part of the 31st annual Florida Sports Hall of Fame Induction ceremonies. Nicole Haislett Bacher and Danny Wuerffel were enshrined during the ceremony, while junior men's swimmer Ryan Lochte (Daytona Beach, Fla.) was recognized as the Florida Amateur Athlete of the Year.
The Florida Sports Hall of Fame added a total of seven new inductees including Haislett Bacher and Wuerffel. Joining the Gator duo was Mike Martin, Pete Sampras, Deion Sanders, Howard Schnellenberger and Payne Stewart.
The seven new inductees were selected from a panel of the Hall of Fame Foundation Board of Directors, Task Force Tampa Bay, the Florida Sportswriters Association and the Hall of Fame members. Each inductee must meet one of the following criteria: a Florida native, attended a Florida school or have lived in the state while achieving and/or maintaining a career of excellence in athletics. Also each nominee must have a sports career that has spanned a minimum of 15 years or have been retired from that endeavor for at least one year.
Haislett Bacher and Wuerffel became the 34th and 35th Gators to be inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame and join Michelle Akers, Ruth Alexander, Red Barber, Andy Bean, Otis Boggs, Scot Brantley, Norm Carlson, Jimmy Carnes, Rick Casares, Charles Casey, Tracy Caulkins, Wes Chandler, Cris Collinsworth, J. Rex Farrior, Forrest Ferguson, Don Fleming, Ray Graves, Marcelin Huerta, Walter Mayberry, Tom McEwen, Steve Melnyk, Nat Moore, Bob Murphy, Stephen O'Connell, Dick Pace, Newton Perry, Dick Pope, Jr., Al Rosen, Steve Spurrier, Charlie Tate, Gen. James A. Van Fleet, Dale Van Sickel and Jack Youngblood.
Haislett Bacher, a St. Petersburg native, won three gold medals in swimming at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. The 1997 UF graduate was owns seven NCAA individual championships in addition to 12 Southeastern Conference individual titles. During her UF career Haislett Bacher became the only Gator swimmer to ever earn the SEC Female Swimmer of the Year title all four years while also earning the SEC Female Athlete of the Year in 1993 and 1994. She led Florida to four SEC team championships and racked up 28 All-American honors, which is tied for the most by a UF swimmer men's or women's. Haislett Bacher garnered the Florida Female Amateur Athlete of the Year in 1993 and 94, while also earning back-to-back Ben Hill Griffin Awards that are given to the top male and female athletes at the University of Florida.
Wuerffel quarterbacked Florida to the 1996 National Championship and won the Heisman Trophy in the process. The Fort Walton Beach native also led the Gators to four straight SEC championships and earned Academic All-American honors in addition to his two All-American selections as a player. His awards included the Davey O'Brien, Johnny Unitas and Walter Camp Player of the Year awards. In his collegiate career, Wuerffel racked up 10,875 yards passing (fifth-most in collegiate history at the time) and 114 touchdown passes (second-best in collegiate history at the time). In his junior and senior campaigns he led the nation in passing efficiency, touchdown passes and became the second quarterback in NCAA history to throw for more than 35 touchdowns in back-to-back years. He retired from the NFL in 2004 and now serves as Director of Development for Desire Street Ministries in New Orleans.
Lochte, a 2004 Olympic gold and silver medalist, became the first Florida men's athlete to earn the prestigious Florida Amateur Athlete of the Year award. During the 2004-05 season, Lochte earned the NCAA Swimmer of the Meet, SEC Swimmer of the Year, the SEC Commissioner's Trophy for collecting the most points at the SEC Championships, the U.S. Open High Point Award and the Ben Hill Griffin Award presented to the top athlete at the University of Florida. In the pool this season, Lochte eclipsed two American, three U.S. Open, three NCAA, nine SEC and 10 Florida records en route to winning two individual national championships and a relay title at the NCAA Championships, while adding three SEC individual crowns and four relay titles in February's SEC Championships meet.
The Florida Sports Hall of Fame is dedicated to preserving, honoring and promoting knowledge of the tradition of excellence that is manifested through the individuals inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame and through the history of sports in Florida. The Hall of Fame web site can be found at www.floridasportshalloffame.com.
The Florida Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2005 Biographies:
• Martin has coached Florida State's baseball team for the past 26 years compiling a record of 1,386-468-4 and a .747 winning percentage that ranks second among active coaches and the seventh best all time. He moved into sixth place for all-time victories this season passing USC legend Rod Dedeaux. His teams have appeared in 25 consecutive NCAA regional tournaments and 12 College World Series. They have also played in a Super Regional every year since the format was adopted.
• Sanders is considered by many to be the greatest athlete ever to play for FSU. The Ft. Myers native lettered in three sports as a Seminole (football, baseball, track). Twice a consensus football All American (1987-88) he won the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's best defensive back (1988). During a 12-year NFL career "Prime Time" was selected for seven Pro Bowls and won Super Bowl rings with San Francisco and Dallas. He also played center field for Atlanta and Cincinnati and is the only athlete to play in both a Super Bowl and World Series.
• Sampras was born in Washington, D.C., but trained at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton and lived in Tampa during his most productive years. He holds the record for most wins in Grand Slam events with 14 (seven Wimbledon, five U.S. Open, two Australian Open), and was the world's No. 1 ranked player for six consecutive years. He retired in 2000.
• Schnellenberger has been part of four collegiate national championships. His 1983 Miami Hurricanes won that school's first title, defeating Nebraska in the 50th Anniversary Orange Bowl. In addition, Schnellenberger has also been part of seven NFL playoff teams and was part of two Super Bowl championship staffs. He helped the 1972 Miami Dolphins to the NFL's only undefeated (17-0) season. Today, Schnellenberger is building another winning program at Florida Atlantic, taking the Owls to the Division I-AA semifinal game in 2003.
• Stewart was a major player on the PGA Tour when a tragic plane crash in 1999 took the lives of Stewart, 42, and five others. The longtime Orlando resident had 11 Tour victories and his three major championships included the 1989 PGA Championship and the1991 and 1999 U.S. Opens. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2001.
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