The Rockford School District?s inaugural Hall of Fame class includes three state championship teams, an NCAA All-American and a former NFL player.
It truly is the best of the best of RPS sports history.
?We feel this is long overdue, to showcase the rich history of athletics in the Rockford Public Schools,? said Mat Parker, director of athletic activities and program development. ?And because this is the first class that is going to be inducted, it?s extremely prestigious.?
The district will honor its first Hall of Fame recipients Feb. 23 at the first Champion?s Ball. The fundraiser for school athletics and the Rockford Sports Coalition will be staged at the Radisson Conference Center.
Ten local media members, coaches and former Rockford athletes selected the honorees last month: two athletes, two teams, one coach and one service award winner.
?Because there?s such a large number of deserving inductees, this is going to be a fun event for many, many years,? Parker said.
Athletes: Jerry Latin (East football and basketball), Lisa Coole (Guilford swimming)
Latin was a football and basketball star for the E-Rabs in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He rushed 190 times for 1,325 yards for the 1970s conference championship team from East and went on to play college football for NIU. He spent four years in the NFL, gaining 560 yards as a halfback for St. Louis and Los Angeles. Latin lives in Rockford and is active in youth football leagues.
Coole, a 1993 Guilford graduate, won four state swimming titles, ranking No. 1 in the nation as a senior in the 100-yard butterfly. The 1993 NIC-9 Female Athlete of the Year swam for University of Georgia, where she was a 26-time All-American and the 1996 NCAA champion in the 100 butterfly. She also finished sixth in the event at the 1996 Olympic Trials. Coole died in an automobile accident in 1998; she was 23.
Teams: 1974 East football, 1955-1956 West boys basketball
The E-Rabs won the Class 4A state football championship with an undefeated record, and at least four of the team members went on to play professional football and several others played Division I college football.
The West basketball teams that won back-to-back state championships will be inducted together. Both went 29-1 in an era when there was only one state champion. It was the last state championship for a Rockford boys basketball team. The 1955 team is famous for scoring six points in one second to beat Elgin for the title.
Coach: Alex Saudargas (West boys basketball)
The man who led the West teams to their titles compiled a 435-198 career record. West advanced to the state tournament under Saudargas five times ? in 1949, 1955, 1956, 1967 and 1973 ? won the titles in 1955 and ?56, and placed fourth in 1967. Saudargas died in 1999 at the age of 82.
Service award: Genelle Samuelson
The former teacher and coach was well-known for re-establishing sports in Rockford?s middle schools, for helping launch the youth basketball REBA program, and was a pioneer for women?s sports in the 1970s. Samuelson died of cancer in August at the age of 68.
Honoring these recipients will be a highlight of the Champions Ball, which will feature a presentation by Ben Holmstrom, a former all-state Guilford basketball player.
Emily Tropp: 815-987-1385; emilytropp@rrstar.com; @emilytropp
Champions Ball
What: Fundraiser for Rockford School District athletics
When: 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23
Where: Radisson Conference Center, 200 S. Bell School Road, Rockford
What to expect: Semi-formal dinner, drinks, dancing and live music. Emceed by WROK?s Steve Shannon. Inaugural Hall of Fame inductions. Presentation by former all-state Guilford basketball player Ben Holmstrom. Live and silent auctions.
Cost: $50/person, $350 for a table of eight. Includes admission to the East-Auburn boys basketball game at 2 p.m. at Rock Valley College
Tickets: 815-489-7264, ext. 16362
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