Legendary sportswriter putting away his pen
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Alumni, Athletics
Legendary sportswriter Dave Campbell, creator of Dave Campbell’s Texas Football Magazine, and longtime sports editor of the Waco Tribune-Herald, announced recently that he’s retiring — for at least the second time.
Campbell spent 40 years as the Trib’s sports editor in the middle of a career that began (as a student, graduating in 1950) and ended (working for the Baylor Bear Foundation) at Baylor. He last retired in 1993, when he left the Trib; five months later, though, he accepted an offer to head up the Baylor Bear Insider, a newsletter sent out to Bear Foundation members. That job ended up lasting 15 years.
A member of the Texas Sports Hall of Fame and the Baylor Athletic Hall of Fame, Campbell founded Texas Football in 1960; he still serves as editor-in-chief for the publication, which quickly emerged as the nation’s prototype for regional sports publications and is still known as “the Bible of Texas football.” Among his many recognitions, the press box at Floyd Casey Stadium — where Campbell has spent countless hours — is named in his honor.
Sic ’em, Mr. Campbell!
Former NFL star volunteers to experience an athlete’s worst nightmare
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Alumni, Athletics
Former Baylor and NFL linebacker Ray Crockett was never a teammate of Kyle Woods, but he recently volunteered to experience some of what Woods has dealt since his 1979 accident. Crockett spent a month confined to a wheelchair for an episode of FX’s 30 Days, learning what life can be like for a paraplegic.
The show, headed up by Morgan Spurlock of Super Size Me fame, takes individuals outside of their comfort zone for one month to see how others live. Crockett, a 14-year NFL veteran, won two Super Bowls with the Denver Broncos, and he was there when Denver Lions teammate Mike Utley was paralyzed during a game in 1991.
Crockett was clearly moved from the experience, both from what he went through and from others he met who didn’t have any choice about their fate. This 30-second commercial previews the episode, and FX has clips from the show online here, here, here and here.
Sic ’em, Ray, for your willingness to help others learn, and an extra-big sic ’em to those who deal with such disabilities everyday, for your courage in the face of adversity!
Former Bear among baseball’s top rookies
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Alumni, Athletics
In 2003, David Murphy set a Baylor record for batting average when he hit .413, earning all-America honors and leading the Bears within two innings of a College World Series trip. That June, he was selected in the first round (17th overall) by the Boston Red Sox.
Three years later, he was in the big leagues, getting brief appearances with the Red Sox in ‘06 and ‘07 before a midseason trade to the Texas Rangers. Since then, he has done nothing but hit, and he is among the top candidates for American League Rookie of the Year.
As of today, Murphy is hitting .274 with 10 home runs and 51 RBI, leading all other rookies in hits, doubles and RBI. Apparently that was good enough to get the attention of President George W. Bush when the Rangers visited the White House this weekend; Bush recognized Murphy as the “Baylor boy.”
Sic ’em, David!
Bears excel at fishing
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Alumni, Athletics, Honors
I’ve never been much of a fisherman — too impatient, I suppose — but I’ve got enough outdoorsman in my blood to understand those who do. Two Baylor alums have made the news this year for their fishing exploits: Alton Jones won the Bassmaster Classic in February, while Charlie Pack was inducted into the Texas Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame earlier this month.
Jones (pictured at right) claimed the title at the world’s biggest bass-fishing tournament this spring, earning with it the $500,000 prize. Jones, who is very outgoing about his Christian faith, attended Baylor in the mid 1980s before beginning his career as a professional fisherman. His triumph even led Baylor men’s basketball coach Scott Drew — himself an avid fisher — to add Jones’ picture to a “wall of fame” at the Ferrell Center.
Pack, a 1960 graduate and three-year basketball letterwinner, hosts a weekly half-hour television show (“Fishing Country with Charlie Pack”) that airs in eastern and central Texas and western Louisiana. He also started the Tadpole Foundation, an organization aimed at giving every child a chance to go fishing. (The Waco Tribune-Herald ran a nice feature on Pack in May.)
Interestingly, after Jones won the Bassmaster Classic this year, he was invited by President George W. Bush to the White House, where the President noted that he had previously been introduced to Jones by none other than Charlie Pack. Small world!
Sic ’em, Baylor fishermen!
Young alum no Cry-Baby over role in Broadway musical
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Alumni
One of my favorite movies growing up was The Muppets Take Manhattan, in which Kermit the Frog and his friends head for New York and the bright lights of Broadway after graduating college.
Baylor alum Christopher J. Hanke’s life story might not include frogs or bears or pigs, but it does follow the general plotline, as he was starring on Broadway just a few years out of college. Hanke debuted in 2005 as the lead in In My Life, then took over the role of Mark in Rent. Today, he plays the villain in the Tony Award-nominated musical Cry-Baby, based on the 1990 movie that starred Johnny Depp. (The Dallas Morning News ran a nice feature on the Metroplex native here.)
Those who saw Hanke perform while at Baylor would not be surprised that he’s starring in musicals. As a student, he was a member of the Baylor Religious Hour Choir and Men’s Chorus and served as Sing Chairman.
Sic ’em on the Great White Way, Christopher!
Baylor family provides new home for injured former football star
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Photo Galleries, Just for Fun, Alumni, Athletics
In 1979, sophomore defensive back Kyle Woods fractured his neck and severely injured his spinal cord during football practice; the injury left him paralyzed. Thanks to help from Baylor friends and family, Woods was eventually able to go back to school, graduating from UT-Arlington in 1993. He has spent the past 13 years as a counselor at Mountain View College in Dallas.
In 2000, a former teammate recognized Woods’ need for a special van with a wheelchair lift, and funds were raised for a new Dodge Caravan that was presented to Woods during the 2000 Homecoming game. More than enough money was donated, and the overflow started what eventually became the Kyle Woods home project.
Earlier this month, Woods was presented with the keys to a new home, designed with his needs in mind. (Click here for a photo gallery.) Former head coach Grant Teaff gave a recognizable face to the project, while business professor L.M. Dyson oversaw the work. Countless former teammates and other Baylor friends stepped up to make the home happen.
This video report from Dallas’ WFAA gave me chills. For more, check out the Waco Tribune-Herald’s excellent story on Woods and the home, complete with their own photo gallery. I liked what Woods had to say about the overwhelming response to the situation: “It’s kind of mind-boggling that people still care about you after all this time. I guess there’s just a bond that hasn’t been broken.”
Teaff agreed, noting, “I told (new Baylor football coach Art Briles), ‘You’ve stepped into a place that’s unique and special and different.’ Not once in 29 years has there ever been a separation of Kyle and his teammates and his coaches. Period. Think about that.”
Sic ’em, Baylor family!
Experience abroad pays off for Fulbright scholars
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Academics, Alumni, Student life, Honors
Two of Baylor’s newest alumni will soon be teaching English in Germany as the University’s latest recipients of the prestigious Fulbright Scholarship.
Lauren Hughes and Cleyera Martin both graduated on Saturday — Hughes with a degree in international studies and Martin with a degree in German. Both students enjoyed significant study-abroad experiences while at Baylor, which they will further thanks to the Fulbright Scholarship. The flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government, the Fulbright Program is designed to “increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.”
Both students also had great things to say about their time at Baylor. “While corresponding with Baylor throughout the application process, I definitely felt that I was important and not just a number on a long list of applicants,” Martin said. “While at Baylor, I have had the chance to experience that first hand.”
“There are so many instances when Baylor faculty and staff really went out of their way to help me and to advise me on normal life challenges as well as career choices,” Hughes echoed.
Sic ’em, Fulbright scholars!
Record number of graduates walk Baylor’s stage
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Photo Galleries, Alumni, Student life
A school-record number of graduates — more than 1,900 — walked the stage at the Ferrell Center on Saturday during Baylor’s spring Commencement ceremonies, joining the approximately 135,000 others who have graduated from Baylor over the past 160-plus years. (Click here for a photo gallery from Saturday’s event.)
As a fellow alum, let me encourage you graduates not to lose touch with your alma mater. Join the Alumni Association, sign up for the Baylor Network to meet fellow Bears in your new home, and make sure your information is up to date in the online directory. Baylor’s not just a school; it’s a family, one I can personally vouch for, and one with which I think you’ll want to stay connected.
Sic ’em, Class of 2008!
Past, future Bears team up to serve Zambian orphans
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Alumni, Student life
Updating a previous story… The Waco Tribune-Herald reports that Kristin Elliott, an 18-year-old incoming Baylor freshman, has far surpassed her goal of raising $60,000 for an orphanage in Kenya Zambia. As of last week, following her appearance on ABC’s World News Tonight, more than $100,000 had poured in for the orphanage!
Thanks to the generous donations, “Kristin’s Miracle House” will now be joined by “Kristin’s Miracle Clinic for AIDS Orphans” as part of the Tree of LIFE Children’s Village outside the city of Lusaka, Kenya’s Zambia’s capital. The Village will eventually include 25 homes housing over 300 children; Kristin’s Miracle House is home number seven. Tax-deductible donations are still being accepted.
There’s another Baylor connection here, too, that I only just learned about. The Village is coordinated by Family Legacy Missions International — which was founded by 1986 Baylor alum Greer Kendall. As long as Kristin’s cancer doesn’t return, she’ll be headed back to Zambia on another trip with the organization next month. It’s truly awe-inspiring when God works like this — and great to see both past and future Baylor Bears able to work together to serve others so well!
Sic ’em, Kristin and Greer, and Baylor alums serving everywhere!
Former softball standout’s health scare rallied Baylor family
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Just for Fun, Alumni, Athletics
Baylor fans know Cristin Vitek as the softball pitcher who struck out an NCAA-record 28 batters in a 16-inning 1-0 win during the 2004 NCAA Regional — the exceptional athlete seen in this picture. But all her athletic achievements meant nothing earlier this year when she spent three weeks in the hospital, her family worried at times if she would even survive.
Thankfully, she is now on the road to recovery and was healthy enough to throw out the first pitch before Wednesday night’s softball game. The Baylor Lariat and Waco Tribune-Herald each ran nice features on what she’s been through; the Viteks shared how the Baylor family immediately sprung into action with prayers for Cristin’s health, plus phone calls, text messages and e-mails of encouragement.
It’s so great to see the Baylor community banding around a brother or sister in their time of need. And in this case, it’s great to see Cristin back up and headed towards full health.
Sic ’em, Cristin, and sic ’em, Baylor family!
