The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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TRACKING THE PACK time leading scorer and rebounder in school history, Beasley came to NC State from South Johnston High School in Benson, N.C., and became the first superstar player under Wolfpack coach Kay Yow. In four years, she was named a Kodak All-American and the North Carolina AAU Female Athlete of the Year. She led the Wolfpack to its first regular-season league title in 1978 and the ACC Tournament championship in 1980, and was voted to the ACC all-tournament team three consecutive years. Now living in Charlotte, Beasley is an optometrist. Genia Beasley, women's basketball: The all- final game, Brown still ranks as the ACC's all-time leading rusher and scorer with 4,602 yards and 49 rushing touchdowns. He was also the league's first ACC Rookie of the Year in football and the only player in league history to earn first-team All-ACC honors all four years. Including his 399 rushing yards in three bowl games, Brown ranks in the top 15 among Division I running backs in career rushing yards. A first-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings, Brown played eight seasons in the NFL. He still lives in Minnesota, where he is a juvenile probation officer. basketball was a secondary sport to college foot- ball when Case arrived in Raleigh in the summer of 1946, freshly released from his job as a Lt. Commander in the U.S. Navy. He quickly made basketball important, winning nine conference championships in his first 10 seasons with the Red Terrors and Wolfpack, a record that has never been matched since. He introduced many tradi- tions to the game, including cutting down the nets after winning championships, spotlighted introductions and in-game music. His immediate success forced North Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest to pay attention to basketball. He was instrumental in completing the construction of Reynolds Coliseum and brought the Dixie Clas- sic, the Southern Conference and ACC tourna- ments and NCAA regionals to Raleigh. The ACC Tournament MVP trophy is named in his memory. Case, NC State's first inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, died on April 30, 1966, of multiple myeloma. Everett Case, men's basketball: College two-time All-American quarterback for the Wolfpack, he was also an Academic All-American, a first baseman on the Wolfpack baseball team and a freshman basket- ball player. He was the first quarterback in ACC history to throw for 1,000 yards in a season and was respon- sible for an ACC-record 35 touchdowns in his career. He was the first overall pick in the American Football League Draft in 1962 and became the 1969 NFL Player of the Year for the Los Angeles Rams. After 16 years in the NFL, Gabriel retired to become a businessman and fundraiser for charitable causes. The Wilmington, N.C., native lives near his hometown. Roman Gabriel, football: Not only was Gabe a players in the history of American soccer, Ramos was a three-time All-American and a three-time All-ACC pick Tab Ramos, men's soccer: One of the greatest Ted Brown, football: Nearly 35 years after his during his playing days with the Wolfpack. He helped the Pack earn four straight NCAA Tournament berths. After his Wolfpack career, Ramos was a three-time member of the U.S. World Cup team and a member of the 1988 U.S. Olympic team. Ramos was the first over- all player ever taken in the Major League Soccer Draft when the league started in 1995. Ramos, a 2005 selec- tion for the National Soccer Hall of Fame, returned to his home state of New Jersey, where is now the coach of the Under-20 National Team. THE INDUCTEES offensive lineman in NC State history, Ritcher is one of only two Wolfpack players to win a national football Jim Ritcher, football: Considered the greatest 1990. A longtime Raleigh City Council member, Shea still lives near the Triangle and coaches young runners. as the best player in the history of ACC basketball, Thompson led the Wolfpack to a pair of ACC champi- onships and the 1974 NCAA championship, breaking UCLA's seven-year hold on the title. In his first two seasons, the Wolfpack was a remarkable 57-1. He redefined the small forward position as the league's first true above-the-rim player, even though by NCAA rule at the time he could not dunk throughout his career. He scored a school-record 57 points against Buffalo State and finished his three-year career with 2,309 points, which still ranks as the second most in school history. His No. 44 is the only jersey ever retired for NC State basketball. Thompson was the first player taken in the 1975 ABA Draft by the Denver Nuggets. He was elected into the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in 1996 and was named one of the top 10 athletes in the history of the ACC in 2003. The Shelby, N.C., native now lives in Charlotte, where he is a motivational speaker and the director of a youth basketball league. David Thompson, men's basketball: Regarded Quarterback Roman Gabriel was a two-time All-Ameri- can, as well as an Academic All-American, and he was the first overall pick in the American Football League Draft in 1962. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS award. He was the 1979 recipient of the Outland Trophy as the country's top offensive lineman. Despite being undersized his entire career, Ritcher had a 16- year career in the NFL, playing in four Super Bowls with the Buffalo Bills. His two sons played football at NC State. Ritcher, who still lives in Raleigh, is a com- mercial airline pilot. field: An All-American prep runner at Raleigh's Car- dinal Gibbons High School, Shea made an immediate impact with the Wolfpack, winning a total of seven individual national titles in cross country and track and two team cross country titles. Shea was dominant in all track distance races, winning national titles in the 3,000 meters, the 5,000 meters and the 10,000 meters in the same year. The two-time ACC cross country champion is the only woman to win the ACC Athlete of the Year, in both 1980 and '81, before the league split the award into male and female honors in Julie Shea, women's cross country/track and most dynamic figures in the history of NC State athletics and men's college basketball, Valvano guided the Wolfpack on a miraculous run to the 1983 ACC and NCAA championships. His "Car- diac Pack" — led by seniors Dereck Whitten- burg, Sidney Lowe and Thurl Bailey — won nine consecutive postseason games, culminating with the memorable victory over top-ranked Houston in the national title game. In 11 seasons, Valvano guided the Wolfpack to seven NCAA appearances, four Sweet Sixteens, three Elite Eights and a Final Four. He won two ACC tournament championships and two regular-season titles. He was named ath- letics director in 1986 and maintained his role as basketball coach. Following the end of his coaching career, he became a popular broadcaster. After his diagnosis of cancer in 1992, he and ESPN founded The V Foundation for Cancer Research, which has raised more than $90 million to give grants to young research scientists. He died of cancer on April 28, 1993, a little more than 10 years after fulfilling his dream to win a national championship. Jim Valvano, men's basketball: One of the in Wolfpack athletics, Yow won four ACC Tournament titles and five regular-season titles. She guided her team to 20 NCAA appearances, 11 Sweet Sixteens and the 1998 Final Four. Yow was hired to be the first full-time head coach at a North Carolina college in 1975, taking over the women's basketball team, starting both the volleyball and slow-pitch softball programs and serving as the women's athletics administrator. In 34 years as head basketball coach, she won 680 games for NC State and had 21 20-win seasons. She was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000 and into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002. She was first diagnosed with cancer in 1987, but still coached the United States to the gold medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. She coached for five years after her cancer reappeared in 2004. She died on Jan. 24, 2009, shortly after taking a leave of absence from her team. Kay Yow, women's basketball: A beloved figure JULY 2012 ■ 11