| INSPIRATIONAL SPECKMAN, PAIR OF PROS HEAD HOF CLASS Jun 04, 2009 ATHERTON, Calif. – A groundbreaking group of six former Menlo College student-athletes was selected to enter the Menlo College Athletics Hall of Fame it was announced Thursday by Athletic Director and Hall of Fame Selection Committee member Keith Spataro. The Class of 2009 includes football standout Mark Speckman, who was born without hands and travels the country as a motivational speaker; Heather Hoffman-Galuteria, the first ever women’s basketball inductee; record-breaking football pass-and-catch combo Zamir Amin and Nate Jackson; Brooke Richardson, the only volleyball player to have her jersey retired; and former PGA Tour golfer Al Geiberger. The impressive six-member class will be inducted during a ceremony as part of Menlo’s Homecoming festivities Friday, Oct. 2 and Saturday, Oct. 3, and will be presented during halftime of the Oaks football game versus Northwest Conference foe Linfield. This year’s class will raise the number of inductees to 140 with the trio of gridiron stars increasing the number of football players or coaches in the Menlo College Athletics Hall of Fame to 59. Geiberger will be the seventh golf hall of famer and Richardson the sixth volleyball selection. With so many accomplished individuals among the class one wonders where to begin. Mark Speckman’s inspirational story, however, separates the one-time Oaks linebacker from the rest of the 2009 pack, if ever so slightly. Despite being born without any hands, Speckman overcame the perceived handicap to play his way into the starting lineup at Menlo, where he excelled for two years (1972-74). After transferring from the junior college to Azusa Pacific University, he was named an Honorable Mention All-American in 1976. Speckman joined the coaching ranks after wrapping up his playing career, eventually landing at Willamette University. Over the past 11 seasons he has accumulated a 63-48 record as the Bearcats head coach, including an 11-1 mark, No. 4 final ranking in the D3football.com Poll and Northwest Conference title in 2008. Speckman the coach has followed the same trailblazing path he set as a player, coaching the first female college football player and becoming one of the founding experts of the fly offense. In addition to his coaching duties, Speckman spends time each year giving motivational speeches across the country. Speckman’s inspirational story has reached corporate giants such as Nike and Blue Cross, middle schools, high schools, youth organizations, church groups, law enforcement, as well as legal and medical professionals. Heather Hoffman-Galuteria’s (1998-2002) induction may start a new trend of women’s basketball players joining the hall of fame. Hoffman-Galuteria was one of the program’s first recruits, played on the Oaks inaugural team and helped them to their first NAIA Tournament appearance in 2000. As a senior, Hoffman-Galuteria was named First Team All-California Pacific Conference to wrap up a record-setting career. She remains in Menlo’s career top 10 in free throw percentage, games started, field goals, steals, 3-point field goals and rebounds. Hoffman-Galuteria helped the Oaks to four consecutive Cal Pac Tournament appearances as the program established itself as one of Menlo’s finest. The inclusion of quarterback Zamir Amin (1999-2001) and wide receiver Nate Jackson (1999-2001) was a foregone conclusion by the time the duo graduated from Menlo. During the 2000 and 2001 seasons the tandem put Menlo football on the map, setting national records as the Oaks earned their highest national ranking ever. Amin still holds the all-time NCAA record for passing yards in a game with 731 against California Lutheran in 2000 when he led NCAA Div. III in total yards for the season. Entering last season, Amin was ranked in the top 10 in 10 different game, season and career categories at the Div. III level while among the top 30 in the NCAA in six categories. The star signal-caller closed out his career by being named an All-American in 2001 with a vise grip on Menlo’s passing records. Jackson played a key role in Amin’s success – and vice versa – as the main recipient of the quarterback’s tight spirals. As a wide receiver, Jackson was a two-time All-American before spending the last six years as a tight end with the National Football League’s Denver Broncos. In addition to a number of school records, Jackson led all NCAA Div. III players in receptions and receiving yards per game in both 2000 and 2001. He ranks in the top 15 in 12 different game, season and career receiving categories in the Div. III record books while coming in at 6th in career receiving yards per game and 7th in career receptions per game for all NCAA players. If Brooke Richardson’s (1999-2001) dominance on the volleyball court wasn’t enough to convince everyone that she’d eventually earn a spot in the hall of fame, the fact that she is the first and only player in program history to have her jersey retired definitely foreshadowed the inevitable. Richardson was huge in the middle for the Oaks, earning First Team All-Cal Pac honors all three years at Menlo and setting a number of school records. As a senior, Richardson set the top single-season marks in kills, attempts, solo blocks and total blocks, and still holds career records in solo and total blocks by a wide margin. Richardson is in the top 10 in seven career categories and appears nine times in the single-season records lists. Al Geiberger (1955-57) was the first member of the Class of 2009 to leave his mark on the Menlo campus. Geiberger starred on the links for two years as an Oak before moving on to the University of Southern California and a successful career on the PGA and Senior PGA Tours. During his professional career, Geiberger won 11 PGA Tour events, including the 1966 PGA Championship, and 10 Senior Tour competitions. Geiberger was twice a member of the United States Ryder Cup team and was the first person to ever shoot a round of 59 at a PGA event, which remains the lowest ever. |
