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Three other athletes in this year\u2019s class were stellar three-sport athletes \u2013 Matt Holliday of Oklahoma, Dave Logan of Colorado and Michele Smith of New Jersey \u2013 and all believed their participation in other sports and activities propelled them to success in their primary sport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Holliday, who opted for a career in professional baseball, was one of the top quarterbacks in the country and a three-year starter in basketball at Stillwater High School (SHS). After he retired from a 20-year career in pro baseball, Holliday returned to Stillwater and donated $350,000 to SHS for artificial turf at his home field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Logan\u2019s favorite sport at Wheat Ridge (Colorado) High School? \u201cWhatever one I was doing at the time. When I was playing football, that\u2019s my favorite sport. When playing basketball, that\u2019s it. In the spring, it\u2019s baseball. I just played for the sheer fun of it.\u201d And if that wasn\u2019t enough, Logan was a trombone player in the school band for all three years of high school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And he loved high school sports so much that after his NFL career concluded, Logan returned to the Denver area as a high school football coach. In the past 28 years, he has coached at four schools and won nine state titles and 290 games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Smith was one of the nation\u2019s top softball pitchers at Voorhees High School in New Jersey, and she also excelled at field hockey and basketball. And the perseverance and determination she learned playing high school sports helped her rebound from a serious car accident after high school and excel at the highest level \u2013 leading the U.S. softball team to gold medals in 1996 and 2000 and becoming an analyst at ESPN.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The other two athletes in the class were involved in numerous other activities as well. Maicel Malone was one of the best track and field participants in Indiana history during her days at North Central High School in Indianapolis, but she was also involved in student government, junior prom, various clubs and was runner-up for homecoming queen. In short, her motto was, \u201cget involved and stay involved.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nAlex English<\/strong> was one of the top basketball players in South Carolina history at Dreher High School before his storied NBA career, but he also played football and was highly involved in many aspects of school life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He was a three-time all-state selection and Player of the Year at Dreher High School in Columbia, and he was the leading scorer in University of South Carolina history. English played 16 years in the National Basketball Association, including 10 years with the Denver Nuggets when he scored 2,000 points in eight consecutive seasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The three coaches who were inducted collectively have been leading high school athletes for 139 years!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rickey Baker led Hopi High School to 27 consecutive Arizona state boys cross country championships, but more importantly, he has positively affected the lives of hundreds of boys on the Hopi reservation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Charles Berry coached boys and girls basketball in Arkansas for 57 years, including the final 51 years at Huntsville High School. And while Terry Michler has won more soccer games at Christian Brothers College High School in Missouri than anyone else, his impact goes much deeper than mere numbers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of Michler\u2019s former players noted the following: \u201cIt is by no exaggeration to say that I would not be where I am today without his influence. I would have ended up in a very bad place if not for Mr. Michler. . . A giant to so many young men and a personal hero of mine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The other two inductees in the class \u2013 Bill Farney of Texas and Robert Littlefield of North Dakota \u2013 have made major contributions to high school sports and performing arts for almost 50 years each. Farney directed the Texas University Interscholastic League after serving as a teacher, coach, principal and superintendent, and Littlefield has been a speech and debate educator for more than 45 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After a year unlike any other in high school sports and performing arts, this year\u2019s class of the National High School Hall of Fame will truly be a celebration of why the value of these programs extends far beyond the playing fields and performance halls.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Dr. Karissa Niehoff Add patience to the list of benefits attributed to high school activities participation \u2013 at least that would be the case with the latest inductees in the NFHS National High School Hall of Fame. After being named in March 2020 to the 38th class of the NFHS Hall of Fame that …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3252,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[105,76,82],"tags":[],"calendar":[],"yoast_head":"\n