Southwest Conference HOF Inductees Named

SOUTHWEST CONFERENCE HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES NAMED

​Waco - - The Texas Sports Hall of Fame (TSHOF) is proud to announce nine new members into its 2014 class of inductees for the newly reinitiated Southwest Conference Hall of Fame:  Marci Bozarth (TCU), Regina Cavanaugh (Rice), Chris Gilbert (Texas), Jacob Green (Texas A&M), Chuck Hixson (SMU), David Klingler (Houston), Coach John McDonnell (Arkansas),  Coach Dutch Schroeder (Baylor) and Carolyn Thompson (Texas Tech).

​The Southwest Conference (SWC) Hall of Fame is sponsored by the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. There will be an induction ceremony and luncheon recognizing this second class to be inducted since 1995 on Monday, April 7th, at 11:30 AM in Houston at the Royal Sonesta Hotel.

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​The inductees include:

Marci Bozarth of Texas Christian University
Marci Bozarth played golf for TCU from 1979 to ‘83.  During her career, Bozarth captured individual titles at both the 1981 Minnesota Invitational and the 1982 Susie Maxwell Berning Tournament.  She was recognized as a first-team All-American in 1982 and 1983 and an All-Southwest Conference performer in 1983. She led her team to the National Championship in 1983 and finished fifth in the nation individually.

Regina Cavanaugh of Rice University
Regina Cavanaugh is regarded by many as the greatest female athlete in the history of Rice. She is a nine-time All-American, earning three consecutive NCAA indoor shot put titles from 1984-86 and three straight NCAA outdoor crowns from 1985-87.  In 1987, she received the Honda Broderick Award as the nation’s top female student-athlete in track and field. She was also a four-time SWC outdoor discuss champion

Chris Gilbert of University of Texas
Chris Gilbert ran for 3,231 yards in 29 games for the University of Texas from 1966 to ‘68. He was the first player in NCAA history to record three straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons—rushing for 1,080 as a sophomore, 1,019 as a junior and 1,132 as a senior. He averaged 5.4 yards per rushing attempt. Gilbert was All-Southwest Conference three times and a consensus All-American in 1968. In his career he returned 20 kickoffs, averaging 22.7 yards on each and scored 28 touchdowns in 29 games.

Jacob Green of Texas A&M University
Jacob Green was an outstanding defensive end at Texas A&M University.  Green was an All-American selection in 1979 after compiling 134 tackles and a school-record 20 quarterback sacks. Green’s 37 career sacks still ranks second in A&M history. He owns school records for career fumbles caused (12) and fumbles caused during one season (6 in 1978).  Green was a first-round pick in the 1980 NFL Draft.

Chuck Hixson of Southern Methodist University
Chuck Hixson had a record-setting career at SMU from 1968 to ’70.  After leading the nation in passing as a sophomore, he was awarded the Sammy Baugh Trophy in 1968. Hixson was the first SWC quarterback to pass for more than 3,000 yards in a single season and the first player in SWC history to surpass 7,000 yards in career.  During his college career, Hixson completed 642 passes in 1,115 attempts for 7,179 yards and 40 touchdowns. All of these numbers, except touchdown passes, stood as SMU school records until the 2012 season.

David Klingler University of Houston
David Klingler is a record setting quarterback from the University of Houston.  He rewrote numerous college passing records for the Cougars from 1988 to ’91. On November 17, 1990, Klingler threw 11 touchdown passes in one game and on December 2 set the NCAA (Division 1) record for most yards gained in a single game, 716. In his four seasons at Houston, he completed 726 of 1,262 passes for 9,430 yards and 91 touchdowns, all of which were school records at the time.  Klingler set the NCAA record for touchdown passes in a season with 54 in 1990.

Coach John McDonnell of University of Arkansas
John McDonnell was hired as the cross country coach at the University of Arkansas in 1972 and added the entire men's track and field program in 1978. He led the track team to their first national championship at the 1985 NCAA Indoor Championships.  Under his leadership, Arkansas has won 42 NCAA championships, including 11 cross country, 19 indoor track and 12 outdoor track. McDonnell's 42 national championships are more than any coach in any sport in the history of college athletics.  McDonnell retired after the 2008.

Coach Dutch Schroeder of Baylor University
Dutch Schroeder's association with Baylor athletics spans nearly six decades. He enrolled at Baylor in 1948 and went on to letter for the baseball team in 1948 and 1949.  He became Baylor's Head Baseball Coach in the fall of 1961 and coached the varsity through 1973. Between 1960-1965 he had one of the best winning percentages in the country.  In 1966 Baylor tied for the SWC championship. Schroeder continued to work in Baylor's PE Department until his retirement in 1999.

Carolyn Thompson of Texas Tech University
Carolyn Thompson played basketball for Texas Tech from 1980 to ‘84. With a career total of 2,655 points, Thompson is the all-time leading scorer for the Lady Raiders and is ranked second in points per game with 21.9. She set a total of eighteen records at Tech, including field goals made (1,013), field goal attempts (1,944), and rebounds (1,247). In each of her four seasons at the school, she scored at least 600 points. Her best scoring season was during her senior year when she recorded 707 points.

“This is another great group of individuals to include in the SWC Hall of Fame,” said TSHOF President Carroll Dawson.  “Without a doubt, these are some of the great names of the Conference.  We are delighted that the Texas Sports Hall of Fame can honor former Southwest Conference greats, both publicly and within the museum.” 

The Southwest Conference Hall of Fame is one of four separate halls of fame housed within the Texas Sports Hall of Fame’s physical structure.  They include the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame, the Texas Tennis Hall of Fame, the Texas Sports Hall of Fame and now, the Southwest Conference Hall of Fame.

Media interviews with the inductees will be available before and after the luncheon.