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LEROY BURRELL
As the World
Record holder in the 100-meter dash, Leroy Burrell holds one of the most
coveted records in track. But being the fastest man in the world doesn’t
always translate to being the most successful sprinter on the circuit.
Burrell will be 29 at the time of the Atlanta Olympics, a veteran of the
sprint wars. Still, he has never won an individual gold medal at Worlds or
Olympics.
Growing up in Lansdown,
Pennsylvania, just 20 miles from Carl Lewis’ hometown of Willingboro, New
Jersey, Burrell had dashed 10.43 and leaped 24.2.5 as Pennsylvania prep. His
robust build countered any image of disability—legally blind in one eye. An
abysmal failure at other sports, he was cut from the junior high baseball
squad three years in a row, and his football experiences were nearly as
poor. In track, he produced. As a senior, he scored 40 points in the
Pennsylvania state meet, leading his school to the tile (the second place
team scored only 36).
Burrell came to Houston with some
tabbing him as the “next Carl Lewis,” a title he has come closer to living
up to than any of Tom Tellez’s other recruits. The potential came out in his
first year, with a leap of 26.0. Then came the most serious injury of his
career. At the Southwest Conference championships, he landed badly in the
long jump pit and tore his anterior cruciate ligament. He endured major
reconstructive surgery on his left knee, along with a year of intensive
rehabilitation.
Healthy once more, Burrell ended up
making it to the 1988 Olympic Trials in both the 100 and long jump; he
didn’t make the finals in either event. He ascended to the top ranks of the
sprinting world in 1989. In 1989 Leroy ran and won big with a 9.4. He ranked
5th in the world in the dash, and the same year did his best long
jumping ever. At the NCAA meet in Provo, he flew out to 27-5.5, placing 2nd.
In 1990, Burrell ranked as the
world’s top sprinter, winning the overall Grand Prix title. He also turned
heads when he beat Michael Johnson to win the Southwest Conference 200
title. He blasted the furlong in 19.61. No one has ever run faster. He
followed up as strongly the next year, again ranking No.1 despite taking
silver to Lewis at the World Championships. Burrell’s time at Tokyo,
stunning 9.88, topped the World Record of 9.90 won the USA title on
Randall’s Island.
Seemingly in perfect position for
the Olympic year, Burrell could not stay on top. At the Trials he ran 10.10,
making the team but just missing the win, Dennis Mitchell finished first in
10.09. In the Barcelona final, Burrell was charged (many believe unfairly)
with a false start. When the real race got off, he reacted to the gun more
slowly than anyone in the field. He ran only 10.10, far behind Linford
Christie’s golden 9.96.
However, he received his third straight
relay gold in a Worlds/Olympics when he brought the stick home in 37.48,
after equaling 37.40 in the heats.
CAROL LEWIS
Carol Lewis graduated from
University of Houston in Houston Texas with a degree in Journalism. She also
has a B.A. in Radio & Televison.
She was a member of the
1978,1988,1991 U.S. National Track & Field Team, a member (Long Jump) on the
1980, 1984, 1988 U.S. Olympic Team. And a member of the U.S. National 2-man
bobsled team in 2002-2003.
American Outdoor ranked her number
one in 1982, 1983 & 1983. Number one ranked American Indoor in 1981, 1983,
1984 & 1985. Number three ranked in the world in 1983 and number four in
1984. She was the champion in the U.S. Olympic Trials in 1984. She won the
Bronze Medal in the World Athletic Championships in 1983 and the Bronze
Medal at the World Cup in 1985.
She placed ninth in the Summer
Olympic Games in 1984, won the championship at the TAC National Outdoor in
1982, 1983 & 1985, and the TAC National Indoor in 1983, 1984 & 1985, won the
championship at the NCAA Outdoor in 1983 & 1985, and placed third at the
U.S. Olympic Trials in 1980 & 1983.
In August 1985, Carol broke the
American Record twice in the same Long Jump competition, 7.01M, and 7.04M,
and became the first American to legally surpass the 23-foot barrier.
She is currently and expert analyst
and interviewer (track & field) for CBS Sports, NBC Sports for track & field
1996, 2000 & 2004 Olympic Games, ABC Sports (expert analyst and interviewer
for track & field), FOX Sports Net reporter/interviewer (track & field), and
sidelines reporter for 1997 PAC-10 season.
Carol is fluent in Italian, an avid tennis player and the
Executive Director of the Carl Lewis Foundation.
ZINA GARRISON
When I was 10, I had the chance to
participate in a program that changed my life. The program was at Macgregor
Park in Houston. It was there that I learned the fundamentals of the game of
tennis, which paved the way to my professional tennis career. Looking back,
I realize that the program was more than just about tennis..it was about
life. That program and the professionals who were a part of it made me
committed to tennis, and most importantly, to myself.
The Garrison All Court Tennis
Program is an opportunity to give that same “life” opportunity to other
inner-city youths. This program is more than a cause to me..it’s a dream.
It’s about giving a kid a chance, and possibly a future. This program is
structured to provide each individual with the necessary support and
guidance to become a productive and confident person. In the program our
primary goal is to produce great kids. Hopefully, some will become great
tennis players as wall.
Very few people realize their
dreams of becoming a professional athlete. But everyone has the opportunity
to fulfill the dreams of becoming a great person. The academy is a way to
make those dreams come true.
Zina’s professional career
(1982-1997) included: 37 titles: 14 singles, 20 doubles, three mixed
doubles. WTA highest ranking, # 4 in the world, WTA top 20 ranking, 14
years, Gold Medal, 1988 Olympics doubles, Bronze Medal, 1988 Olympics
singles, 14 career singles titles, 20 career doubles titles, finalist in
1990 Wimbledon Championship. Zina recently was chosen to head the United
States Fed Cup team next season. She will become the country’s first African
American Fed Cup caption in the event’s 40-year history. Zina was the
assistant coach to Billy Jean King since 1999. She was the head coach of the
USA National Team in 1999.
She is the president and player
development coach for the Zina Garrison All Court Tennis Foundation,
Partner, Women’s Sports Legend, Adult Training Camps and Clinics, and
Co-Founder, Ace Player Development Program, Minority Excellence Training
Camps.
Zina has appeared on ESPN’s “Sports
Century”, 2002 & A&E Biography, “After The Game", October 2001. She was a
commentator for HBO (Wimbledon), TNT Women’s Indoor Championship, 2001, TNT
Wimbledon, 2001.
Zina has received numerous service
and community awards. And is a member of the Texas Tennis Hall of Fame,
1998, Texas Women’s Hall of Fame, 1997, Zina has received numerous service
and community awards.
J.R. RICHARD
J.R. Richard had no problem
knocking Willie Mays and Henry (Hank) Aaron on their cans. If he could throw
a 103-mph fastball, shatter strikeout records and become one of baseball’s
most fearsome, highest-paid pitchers for the Houston Astros in the ‘70s.
If he could suffer a stoke at age
30, watch his fortune be wiped out by scam artists he thought were his
friends, and find himself homeless living under a bridge downtown Houston,
what are the chances he’s going to take any back talk from a 14-year old kid
who thinks he knows everything about life, and more important, throwing a
baseball?
“Kids today don’t care what I
accomplished, I do insist, however, that they listen to me and learn to
pitch the right way,” Richard has put his life back together and now coaches
children at the Sports House athletic facility in Houston (He happened to
drive by the Sports House and stopped in to talk over an idea with the
owner). He began coaching kids last year.
“I wanted to teach the kids how to
pitch.” The kids may not know that Richard struck out 15 Giants, including
Willie Mays three times, in his big-league debut in 1971. They probably
don’t care that he struck out 300 batters in 1978 and 1979. Or that he put
together the best winning streak in Astros history. He won 20 games in 1976
and 18 games each year 1977-79
His students can plainly see that
he’s 6 feet 8 inches tall, wears a sleeveless T-shirt that shows off` his
muscles, has hands the size of skillets and, at age 53, can still throw a
fastball 90 mph. And he still has that glare. He was perhaps the most
frightening pitcher ever. A batter would have been crazy to dig in against
Richard. He once walked 10 batters in a game..and still pitched a shutout.
Richard was the starting pitcher
and wears a ring from the 1980 All-Star game and struck out Reggie Jackson.
Only weeks later, Richard felt numbness in his neck. His pitching arm went
weak. He told the Astros and went on the disabled list. He had 10 wins and
only four losses at the time.
On July 30, 1980, at age 30 and in
the middle of his most glorious season, he suffered a stroke. Doctors
performed surgery to remove a blood clot in his neck. Richard never pitched
in the big leagues again. He finished with 107 wins and 71 losses.
His life turned tragic without
baseball. He lost his money, his house, his car and his family. When he was
found living homeless under the bridge in 1995, he had $20 to his name.
“You get to a point in life where you decide to get up and live, or lay down
and die. I think life is great. Dying was never an option for me.”
LLOYD C. WELLS
Lloyd Wells is an African American
trailblazer in the NFL. He turned 76 on March 2, 2000. Muhammad Ali and many
of his friends from the sports and entertainment world were with him to
celebrate his birthday. He was the commissioner of one of the semi pro
football leagues that was organized by Hank Stram, the legendary coach of
the Kansas City Chiefs, who considers him one of his best friends. Lloyd has
been featured in Sports Illustrated (1983) and many other publications for
his work with the NFL and boxing.
The appearance in Sports
Illustrated came about when Lloyd was hired by the National Football League
to lure Gary Anderson away from the United States Football League. He
attended Texas Southern University after the war and played football,
basketball, and ran track. His love for sports led him into the newspaper
field, and he also became an award-winning photographer.
Lloyd Wells worked for the Kansas
City Chiefs during their Super Bowl season, and he was credited with
recruiting players like Otis Taylor, Jim Kearney, and Tank Homes. After his
Kansas City days, Lloyd worked for Muhammad Ali for 15 years. Lloyd has also
worked with boxers like Thomas Hearns and Mustafa Muhammad. Lloyd was
responsible for Warren McVea attending the University of Houston, and if you
know anything about the history of basketball, if it had not been for Lloyd
Wells, David Lattin would not have gone to Texas Western College.
Wells, a virtual godfather for legions of Houston’s black youth, took him to
El Paso to meet the coach. “If not for Lloyd,” Lattin said, “I might have
never played anymore.” Texas Western College, now call Texas-El Paso,
defeated Kentucky for the NCAA basketball championship in 1966 with David
“Daddy D” Lattin making shots over Pat Riley, recently of the Miami Heat.
CLYDE DREXLER
(Inductee)
One of the game’s all-time great
guards, Clyde “The Glide” Drexler, a former charter member of the
University of Houston’s famed Phi Slamma Jamma roundball squad of the
early 80s, Drexler teamed with Hakeem Olajuwon to comprise one of the most
exciting collegiate units in history. It didn’t end there for the Houston
native; he went on to star for the Portland Trial Blazers. And putting his
name all over the franchise records books. A perennial All-Star and a
member of the 1992 U.S. Olympic Dream Team, Drexler twice led the NBA
Finals. It wasn’t until he joined the Houston Rockets however, that he
earned a championship ring.
The Blazers selected Drexler with
the 14th overall pick in the 1983 NBA Draft. Looking back, it
seems a mystery how such a great player slipped so low in the draft,
especially in light of the careers of many of the players chosen ahead of
him. But as a rookie, Drexler did not have an immediate impact. He did not
make the NBA All-Rookie Team and averaged just 7.7 ppg. But he only played
a little over 17 minutes per game.
However, after the inaugural
season, Drexler reeled off 10 straight seasons as one of the top scorers
in the league. In his second season, Drexler’s scoring jumped to 17.2 ppg.
And by his third year, 1985-86, he became an All-Star, averaging 18.5
points and ranking third in the NBA in steals (2.63 per game) and assists
(8.0 apg).
In 1986, Clyde began to find
himself. He joined Magic Johnson and Larry Bird as the only players in the
league to score more than 21 points (21.7 ppg), 6 rebounds (6.3 rpg), and
6 assists 6.9 (apg). He also finished fifth in the league with an average
of 2.49 steals per game.
His next season was one of his
best. In 1987-88, he placed fifth in balloting for the NBA Most Valuable
Player Award, after averaging 27.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, 5.8 assists and
2.51 steals. He also claimed a spot on the NBA Second Team. In his second
NBA All-Star Game, that season, he totaled 12 points and 5 rebounds.
In 1989-90 Clyde averaged 23.9
ppg, 6.9 rpg and 5.9 apg, made a third straight appearance in the All-Star
Game and made the All-NBA Third Team. More importantly, he was a vital cog
in the Trail Blazers NBA Finals. Drexler scored 33 points in Game 2 of the
Finals, including the winning free throws in the second overtime.
Clyde became one of the 50
Greatest NBA Legends, earned 10 All-Star appearances, won a gold medal on
the original “Dream Team,” and was an integral part of the Houston Rockets
1995 world championship.
He resides in Houston and owns Drexler’s World Famous Bar BBQ Restaurant
and Grill.
CLIFFORD BRANCH
(Inductee)
Clifford Branch born in Houston
and was the state champion in 100 and 200-yard dash and star receiver in
football at Worthing High School. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in
the 4th round in 1972 out of Colorado. His 501 career
receptions rank 14th on the NFL all-time list. He also ranks 10th
in yard gained receiving with 8,685 and 12th in touchdowns with
67.
Branch is the all-time leading
receiver in post-season history with 73 catches for 1,289 yards (17.7
average) and five touchdowns. He became only the seventh receiver in NFL
history to play 14 or more years. His career totals is second only to Fred
Bilentnikoff (589 receptions, 8,974 yards, 76 touchdowns) in Raider
history.
He has more than 100 yards
receiving in 22 games, a team record, one more than Biletnikoff. His best
game ever was 167 yards at San Diego in 1976. Branch ranked fourth among
active NFL receivers. He has twice gone over 1,000 yards receiving in a
season, with 1,092 in 1974 and 1,111 in 1976.
Raiders’ fourth-leading all-time
scorer with 402 points, behind only George Blanda (863), Chris Bahr (543)
and Biletnikoff (462). Branch has caught two or more touchdowns in a game
15 times. Scored three touchdowns against Atlanta in 1975. Caught 10
passes (109 yards) against Seattle in 1979 for career high.
He tied NFL record
with 99-yard touchdown reception against Washington in 1983. Had 88 and
86-yard receptions earlier in his career. Outstanding in Super Bowl XVIII
(six catches, 94 yards, one touchdown. He averaged amazing 24.2 yards per
catch on 46 receptions in 1976. Was selected to Pro Bowl four times. Voted
to All-Pro teams three straight years, 1977-77. Led team in scoring in
1974 (78 points) and 1976 (72). He also had 11 rushing attempts for 70
yards in 13 seasons. Branch is one of the NFL’s all-time great receivers.
He ended his career with 17.3 yards average per catch, 17.7 in post season
games.
KEN
HOUSTON
(Inductee)
The Redskins once referred to Houston as “pro
football’s most underrated player.” He won all-league acclaim with the
Oilers in 1969 then was either All-Pro or All-NFC with the Redskins every
year from 1973 to 1979.
He was selected for either the
AFL All-Star game or the AFC-NFC Pro Bowl 12 straight years. With a long,
fluid stride, he had excellent speed and quickness. His frame made him an
ideal pass defender. Yet his lean, muscular body helped him to be a
punishing tackler.
Once he got his hands on
the ball, he was a talented runner. Even before he finished with the
Oilers, Houston had assured himself of a spot in the NFL record book by
returning nine touchdowns. He also tied two other records with four TDs on
steals in one season. Altogether, he stole 49 passes and returned them 898
yards and recovered 21 fumbles and scored 12 touchdowns, nine on
interceptions and one each on a fumble return, and blocked field goal
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