1979 BASEBALL INDUCTEE DWIGHT ADAMS How could a man who was kicked off his Parlier High School team twice, involved in a car accident that gnarled his left hand, and suffered a skull fracture when hit by a baseball in spring training end-up as a successful twelve-year pitching coach of the Los Angeles Dodgers? It…
1978 HALL OF FAME CO-FOUNDER INDUCTEE JOHN VOENES John G. Voenes was a remarkable person. Voenes, the son of Goodfellows Grill owner George Voenes, was the first Fresno State Alumni Executive Director in 1947, a job that he held for three years. The close-cropped hair, big smile, engaging personality, and strong work ethic served the…
1978 BASEBALL INDUCTEE VICTOR LOMBARDI Victor Lombardi was born in Berkeley, but moved to Tulare at an early age. Though small in stature, he became one of the finest high school pitchers in the Valley. The late Hall of Fame coach Pete Beiden recognized the potential of this 5’7″, 150-pounder at Tulare High School and…
1978 FOOTBALL INDUCTEE JAMES JOHNSON Golf and fishing are his favorite pastimes now, but any long-time San Francisco 49ers follower remembers James “Jimmy” Johnson as one of the great defensive cornerbacks in the history of the NFL. Johnson played sixteen seasons with the Niners and was ushered into the NFL Hall of Fame in 1994.…
1978 TRACK & FIELD INDUCTEE CHARLES L. GEER This pioneer educator and coach was a native of South Dakota, but came west and graduated from Stanford University. Geer was connected to the Coalinga school system from 1911 until 1921. In 1971, the athletic grounds at Coalinga High School were dedicated as the Charles L. Geer…
1978 FOOTBALL INDUCTEE SAM BOGHOSIAN When Sam Boghosian left the Fresno County Hospital at twelve following an eleven-month struggle with polio, his doctor gave him a grim prognosis: “You will always walk with a limp and you will never run.” Even though his right calf is an inch and a half smaller than his left,…
1977 BASEBALL INDUCTEE GLENN WRIGHT Glenn Wright’s nickname was “Cap” after he moved to Fresno following an eleven-year major league baseball career. However, the Archie, Missouri native was called “Buckshot” when he starred at shortstop for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Brooklyn Dodgers. Wright was on the World Series champion Pirates in 1925. Pittsburgh was down…
1977 HORSE RACING INDUCTEE EDDIE TAPLIN Eddie Taplin was-and still is-the only jockey to be inducted into the Fresno Athletic Hall of Fame. The native of lowa moved to Fresno at a young that age and began his riding career at the tender age of seventeen. Taplin galloped on the riding circuits in this country,…
1977 BASEBALL INDUCTEE JACK L. SHEPARD Jack Shepard was not only an outstanding high school, collegiate, and major league catcher; he was also extremely intelligent. His pitching teammate, Jake Abbott had high praise for his late Roosevelt High colleague. “Without a doubt, Jack Shepard was the best high school hitter I ever saw,” Abbott said.…
1977 SPEED BOAT RACING INDUCTEE JOHN KOVACEVICH Born and raised in Fresno, John J. Kovacevich was one of the few locals to make a name in the sport of speed boats and hydroplane racing. The Fresno High School graduate was the state leader for nearly ten years in Class ‘F racing runabout and Class ‘F’…