Wright, Margie

1999 COACHING-SOFTBALL INDUCTEE MARGIE WRIGHT Margie Wright was the first Fresno State coach to bring home a National Collegiate Athletic Association title, leading the women’s softball team to the championship in 1998. With dozens of conference, regional, and NCAA achievements to her name, Wright holds a place in ten Halls of Fame and broke the…

Hunt, Erv

1999 TRACK & FIELD INDUCTEE ERV HUNT Erv Hunt played in the NFL and coached track and field for the Cal Bears for thirty-one years, setting a record for most coaching wins. Hunt established an international reputation as a coach and landed a prestigious assignment in 1996: the head men’s track and field coach for…

Hudler, Rex

1999 BASEBALL INDUCTEE REX HUDLER One of the best all-round athletes to hail from the Fresno area, Rex Hudler had a full-ride football scholarship waiting at Notre Dame, but chose baseball, drafting out of high school and signing with the New York Yankees. The 1978 Bullard High graduate played thirteen years on a six major-league…

Ellard, Henry

1999 FOOTBALL INDUCTEE HENRY ELLARD After a record-breaking career as a receiver for Fresno State, Henry Ellard soared to the top of the National Football League, leading the Los Angeles Rams in receiving nine out of the eleven seasons that he played for them. The Rams selected Ellard in the second round (32nd pick overall)…

Amaral, Bernice

1999 SOFTBALL INDUCTEE BERNICE AMARAL Bernie Amaral, the first female field manager of a world champion women’s softball team-guided the Fresno Rockets to three world titles and three second place finishes.The San Leandro High School graduate played third base for the 1938-39 World Champion Alameda girls’ softball teams. During World War II, she played on…

Lourenco, Wende Ward

1998 SOFTBALL INDUCTEE WENDE WARD LOURENCO Wende Ward Lourenco was one of the greatest pitchers to play for Fresno State and helped put the Bulldogs on the map when they played on a dinky field with no fences and few bleachers. The Tulare Western High School athlete helped pitch Fresno State University into the 1982…

Lewis, David

1998 FOOTBALL INDUCTEE DAVID LEWIS David Lewis was an All-Pac10 quarterback whose college career included leading Stanford University to victory in one of sports’ greatest traditions, the Big Game football rivalry between Stanford and the University of California, Berkeley. In the 1964 match-up, Lewis, a sophomore, completed five of eight passes for 92 yards as…

Hannah, Jack

1998 COACHING-BASEBALL INDUCTEE JACK HANNAH Jack Hannah was a two-sport athlete at Fresno State and pitched six seasons in the minor leagues, then went on to coach Hoover High School to two Valley Championships in baseball. The son of a ranch foreman, Hannah was also a modern-day cowboy who later formed the Sons of the…

Bryson, George

1998 SPORTS BROADCASTING INDUCTEE GEORGE BRYSON There was a little bit of Dizzy Dean in the makeup of the flamboyant actor, comedian, and radio-TV announcer, George Bryson, who was born in Missouri and grew up watching the St. Louis Cardinals. The “Ole Cottontop” as he was affectionately nicknamed, had the same folksy style of delivery…

Walts, Butch

1997 TENNIS INDUCTEE BUTCH WALTS Butch Walts, one of Fresno’s greatest tennis players, starred at Bullard High School and the University of Southern California. The Association of Tennis Professionals ranked him as high as #16 in singles in 1978. His decade-long career included victories over tennis greats such as John McEnros, Ilie Nastase and Guillermo…