Jan. 31, 2014. The captain of the U.S. national soccer team and the winningest football coach in Southern Conference history highlight the league’s Hall of Fame class for 2014. The five individuals will be formally inducted into the league’s Hall of Fame on Monday, March 10, at the U.S. Cellular Center in Asheville, N.C., as part of the league’s basketball tournament. It is the conference’s fifth induction class of former athletes, coaches and contributors to the league’s 93-year history.
Inductees include Rushia Brown (Furman), Eddie Cameron (Duke), Clint Dempsey (Furman), Jerry Moore (Appalachian State) and Charlie Teague (Wake Forest).
“This year’s group of inductees represents another outstanding mix of athletes and coaches from recent years dating all the way back to the 1920s,” said Southern Conference Commissioner John Iamarino. “The history and success the SoCon has had in nine-plus decades are symbolized in the class of 2014.”
Student-athletes who competed for a minimum of two seasons in the Southern Conference were eligible for consideration, along with coaches and administrators who spent at least five years in the league. A pool of more than 250 candidates from the conference’s current and former member institutions were nominated for consideration. The pool of former student-athletes, coaches and administrators was cut down to 45 individuals, who comprised the final ballot. A voting panel of 20 media members and league administrators made the selection of the induction class.
ABOUT THE INDUCTEES
Rushia Brown, Women’s Basketball (Furman, 1990-94) – A four-time All-Southern Conference performer, Brown was the 1990 Freshman of the Year and the league’s Player of the Year in 1992. She was named to the league’s all-tournament team four times and helped the Paladins post a conference mark of 35-10 (.778) and win three regular-season championships. She holds 17 single-season and career records at Furman and her 2,169 career points rank third all-time in the Southern Conference. Brown was one of five finalists for the WBCA Player of the Year in 1994 and became the first SoCon player to play in the WNBA. Originally from Summerville, S.C., Brown is one of just two players in Furman’s women’s basketball history to have her jersey retired (No. 34). She was inducted into Furman’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999.
Eddie Cameron, Football and Men’s Basketball (Duke, 1929-45) – Cameron guided the Blue Devils to Southern Conference championships in both men’s basketball and football. From 1928-42, Cameron guided the Duke men’s basketball team to 226 overall wins, a mark that still ranks tied for fifth among all SoCon basketball coaches. Under Cameron’s tutelage, the Blue Devils won two regular-season championships (1940 and 1942) and captured three tournament crowns (1938, 1941 and 1942). From 1942-45, Cameron took the reins of Duke’s football program and won three straight Southern Conference championships from 1943-45. He posted an overall record of 25-11-1 in football, including a 15-1-1 mark in the SoCon. The football team finished the season ranked in the top 15 nationally in each of his last three seasons and capped the 1944 campaign with a 29-26 win over Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. Cameron served as Duke’s athletic director from 1951-72. The school’s home basketball venue was renamed Cameron Indoor Stadium in 1972.
Clint Dempsey, Men’s Soccer (Furman, 2001-03) – Dempsey began his career as the 2001 Southern Conference Freshman of the Year and was a three-time all-conference honoree. He earned All-America honors in 2002 and helped the Paladins win two Southern Conference regular-season championships and two tournament crowns during his time with Furman. A native of Dallas, Texas, Dempsey started 61 of 62 matches with the Paladins and finished his career with 53 points on 17 goals and 19 assists. Defensively, he helped Furman’s 2002 team string together 11 consecutive shutouts during the season. Dempsey was the eighth overall pick in the 2004 MLS SuperDraft by the New England Revolution. He played professionally in the English Premier League with Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur before returning to MLS with Seattle in 2013. Dempsey has appeared in more than 100 matches with the U.S. National Team and is the only American to have scored goals in each of the last two World Cup tournaments. In 2008, he was inducted into the Furman Athletic Hall of Fame.
Jerry Moore, Football (Appalachian State, 1989-2012) – The Southern Conference’s all-time wins leader, Moore posted an overall record of 215-87 at Appalachian State. Moore guided the Mountaineers to 10 SoCon titles and 18 postseason appearances and won three straight NCAA FCS national championships (2005-07). He was named the Southern Conference Coach of the Year a record eight times and earned the Eddie Robinson Award for the national FCS coach of the year in 1996. His Mountaineers won 26 straight SoCon games from 2007-10, the second-longest streak in league history. Under Moore’s guidance, Appalachian State players earned all-conference honors 257 times and received All-America distinction on 98 occasions. He also has the distinction of having coached back-to-back Buck Buchanan Award winner Dexter Coakely (1995-96) and back-to-back Walter Payton Award winner Armanti Edwards (2008-09). Prior to arriving in Boone, N.C., Moore spent time as head coach at North Texas and Texas Tech to bring his 31-year head coaching win total to 242, which is good for 15th all-time among Division I coaches.
Charlie Teague, Baseball (Wake Forest, 1947-50) – Teague led the Southern Conference with a .353 batting average in 1949 and was named the league’s Player of the Year. He was a three-time all-conference honoree and earned All-American honors three times with the Demon Deacons. During his time with Wake Forest, the Demon Deacons won the 1949 Southern Conference Tournament and advanced to the College World Series, where they lost in the championship game to Texas. In 1950, Teague was named MVP of the Southern Conference tournament. For his career, Teague hit .335 with 99 RBIs in 495 at-bats. Following a five-year career in professional baseball, Teague returned to Wake Forest as head coach in 1956. He was named to the Southern Conference’s 75th Anniversary Baseball Team. Teague was inducted into the Wake Forest Hall of Fame in 1980 and was enshrined in the National College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2010.
2009 Induction Class – Inaugural Year
Megan Dunigan, Women’s Tennis
Dick Groat, Men’s Basketball & Baseball
Sam Huff, Football
Charlie Justice, Football
Melissa Morrison Howard, Track & Field
Arnold Palmer, Golf
Adrian Peterson, Football
Frank Selvy, Men’s Basketball
Jerry West, Men’s Basketball
Valorie Whiteside, Women’s Basketball
2010 Induction Class
Everett Case, Men’s Basketball
Mary Jayne Harrelson, Women’s Track & Field/Cross Country
Fred Hetzel, Men’s Basketball
“Hot” Rod Hundley, Men’s Basketball
Banks McFadden, Football & Men’s Basketball
Wallace Wade, Football & Commissioner
J. Dallas Shirley, Special Contributor
2011 Induction Class
Dexter Coakley, Football
Lefty Driesell, Men’s Basketball
Regina Kirk, Women’s Basketball
Gen. Robert Neyland, Football
Vic Seixas, Men’s Tennis
Shannon Wommack, Women’s Track & Field/Cross Country
2012 Induction Class
Angie Barker, East Tennessee State
Percy Beard, Auburn
Jim Burch, Southern Conference
Dick Modzelewski, Maryland
Paul Scarpa, Furman
You must be logged in to post a comment.