The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/406183
22 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY TIM PEELER T he smiles and the tears collided somewhere halfway down the face. That's what happens when you see the Hall of Fame exploits of a not- so-young parent for the first time. For newly elected NC State Athletic Hall of Famer Steve Rerych's wife and daugh- ter, seeing a youthful version of their hus- band and dad was what the joy and emotion of the third-annual induction ceremony was all about. And they drank in every moment when the last of the 10-member classes was added to the three-year-old Hall on Oct. 10 in a sold-out ceremony at NC State's Talley Student Union, adjacent to Reynolds Coliseum. The hall, begun in 2012 by athletics di- rector Debbie Yow, now has a total of 30 members. All future classes will be lim- ited to a total of five former athletes and one coach or special contributor. The new inductees were also treated to a glimpse of where their permanent home will be, since the school is getting ready to begin an 18-month renovation of the 65-year-old Reynolds Coliseum. "This is a unique opportunity to make more room for members of our Hall of Fame," Yow told the new inductees. "It will be something special to highlight our history, our All-Americans, our Olympics, all the people who made NC State athletics special. "There will be nothing like it in the country." Work on the $35 million project — which will create a new court to seat about 5,000 spectators and an athletic Walk of Fame in what is now the lobby and con- courses — will begin immediately after the Wolfpack women's basketball team concludes its 2014-15 season. A grand-re- opening of the building, which first opened its doors in December 1949, is slated to be done in August 2016. During that time, the women's basketball team and volleyball team will play their home games and practice at Broughton High School. For now, the new Hall of Famers took their place at an unveiling of their plaques at the Weisiger Brown Athletics Building. It was both a solemn and joyful ceremony, since three of this year's inductees — mul- tisport star Jack McDowall, football de- fensive lineman Dennis Byrd and four- time basketball All-American Dick Dickey — were deceased, and veteran baseball coach and assistant basketball coach Sam Esposito was unable to attend because of health reasons. The Class of 2014, the third group to enter the NC State Athletic Hall of Fame, was honored on Oct. 10 in a sold-out ceremony at NC State's Talley Student Union, adjacent to Reynolds Coliseum. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS HIGHEST HONOR The Class Of 2014 Enters The NC State Athletic Hall of Fame