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PROVO, Utah (Sept. 17, 2008) - Four former All-Americans, a hall-of-fame coach and a founding member of the Cougar Club will be inducted into the BYU Athletic Hall of Fame Friday, Sept. 19, at a ceremony in the Cougar Room at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
Volleyball coaching legend Elaine Michaelis and former administrator and co-founder of the Cougar Club Ray Beckham will be recognized along with athletes Tiffany Lott Hogan (track and field), Amy Christiansen Palmer (track and field), Byron Shefchik (swimming) and Shawn Knight (football) at the dinner hosted by the Cougar Club at 7 p.m.
"Each year we have the opportunity to pay tribute to the finest student-athletes and coaches in BYU's storied past," said BYU director of athletics Tom Holmoe. "We are proud to honor the 2008 Hall of Fame class for their achievements in athletics and in the classroom, and for being great ambassadors of the university."
The inductees will also be honored on Saturday at halftime when BYU faces the Wyoming Cowboys at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
Since its inception in 1975, more than 150 athletes, coaches and administrators have been inducted into the BYU Athletic Hall of Fame. Among the criteria to be considered for induction are All-America status, university graduation, professional accomplishments and community service. Hall of Fame induction is one of the most prestigious honors given by the BYU Athletic Department.
ABOUT THE INDUCTEES
Elaine Michaelis
Elaine Michaelis spent 44 years with BYU athletics as a volleyball coach. She had 886 wins and won numerous coaching awards from organizations like the Western Athletic Conference, US Olympic Committee, NCAA, American Volleyball Coaches Association, and Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference and International Association of Coaching. She personally helped developed the female athletic program at BYU and across the nation.
She was inducted in the Utah Sports Hall of Fame in 2005 and is the namesake for the volleyball court in the George Albert Smith Fieldhouse. Under her watch, 18 players earned 51 All-America awards and six earned major national player honors.
Michaelis coached volleyball, among other sports, at BYU from 1961 to 2002. When she retired from coaching, she was ranked No. 2 all-time in Division 1 volleyball victories and with the most wins by a female coach in collegiate volleyball at any level, even without counting her first eight seasons, which had no records kept.
Michaelis served simultaneously as both a head coach and the Cougars' top administrator for seven seasons. Consistently ranked among the top-10 women's programs in the country, women's athletics at BYU thrived under her direction from 1995 to 2004.
She worked to not only influence the students, but intercollegiate volleyball as a whole - serving as NAGWS and NCAA clinician, chair of the AIAW Volleyball Committee and chair of the Volleyball Rules Committee. She was also a member of AIAW's Executive Committee and chair of the AIAW National Ethics and Eligibility Committee, where she worked to further opportunities for women in the athletic community.
Ray Beckham
Raymond E. Beckham was the first person to hold the title of BYU Sports Information Director starting in 1949, served as the chief statistician for football and basketball for seven years, was a member of the Athletic Council for 15 years and was the Alumni Director for 10 years.
Beckham also had a direct influence on the fundraising campaigns for what are now LaVell Edwards Stadium, the Marriott Center and the Smith Fieldhouse.
With Dr. Roger Parkinson, Beckham co-founded the Cougar Club in 1963 and has been a member every year since, including this year as a Legacy member. Beckham was also a member of the search committee culminating in the hiring of head football coach Tom Hudspeth and director of athletics Floyd Millet.
Beckham is a Professor Emeritus of Communications and taught advertising and public relations for 21 years; served as the director of development and public services for five years each; founded the Aspen Grove Family Camp and worked for the travel studies department, evening school and the New York City Internship Program.
BYU has awarded Beckham with the Man of the Year Award, the Presidential Medal and the Alumni Distinguished Service Award. He has also earned Provo's Abraham O. Smoot Outstanding Citizen Award, Rotary Club's Service-Above-Self Award, Scouting's Silver Beaver award, the Red Cross Clara Barton award and the Sons of Utah Pioneers "Modern Pioneer" award.
In his business and professional career, he is a retired vice president of corporate communications for Nu Skin International, Inc., former chairman and board member of Deseret Federal Savings and Loan and former president of National Resources and Deseret Villages.
Beckham joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the age of 19 while serving in the U.S. Coast Guard and hasn't quit serving since. His Church service includes that of stake president, bishop, member of the high council, scoutmaster, mission president, regional representative of the Twelve, member of the adult curriculum committee, chairman of the home teaching committee, member of the Melchizedek Priesthood committee, minority committee, temple sealer and member of the Provo Temple Presidency. He also served nine years as a full-time missionary in the Church Public Affairs Department, the last four of which were on the Church Olympic Committee for the 2002 Winter Games.
Shawn Knight
Shawn Knight was a defensive tackle from 1983 to 1987, when the New Orleans Saints drafted him in the first round as the 11th pick overall.
As a sophomore, he was part of the 1984 national champion Cougars. His junior year he was second on the team with 11.5 quarterback hurries and 2.5 sacks, and his senior year he led the team with 16 sacks and was second on the team with eight quarterback hurries.
He was voted to the All-America Third Team by The Associated Press, received All-America honorable mention by United Press International, and was a member of the All-Western Athletic Conference First Team. He also was a participant in the Senior Bowl and the East-West Shrine Game.
His first year playing professional football with the Saints landed Knight on the 1987 NFL All-Rookie Team. He also played for the Denver Broncos, St. Louis Cardinals and Minnesota Vikings.
Knight also later played for the Sacramento Surge of the World League of American Football, where he was named to the 1991 All-World Team of the WLAF.
After his football days slowed, Knight got his master's degree and began a physical therapy practice. Eventually he worked into medical sales and is currently living in Park City with his four children.
Tiffany Lott Hogan
Tiffany Lott Hogan was an All-American in track and field and later an Olympian.
In high school, Hogan won seven state titles, was a three-time winner of the heptathlon at the Great Southwest track meet and three-time All-American, competed in the USA Jr. National track meet three times and won the 100m hurdles and javelin at the National Junior Olympic track meet.
At BYU, she set school, collegiate and world records, was a 10-time All-American, NCAA National Champion in the 55m hurdles, two-time NCAA Champion in heptathlon, National Champion in heptathlon at USA Junior Championships, and competed in the World Junior Championships for the heptathlon and World University Games for the Javelin.
Off the field, Hogan was presented with numerous awards including Female Athlete of the Year by Track & Field Magazine, the Dale Rex Memorial Award at BYU, Female Athlete of the Year (Utah) by the Girl and Women in Sports Foundation and Collegiate Female Athlete of the Year (Utah) by the Multiple Sclerosis Society.
Graduating from BYU won two USA Indoor National titles, set and reset world records for the pentathlon, was named the Pan American Champion in the heptathlon and competed and placed in numerous other national competitions.
She went on to compete in Athens where she placed 20th in the heptathlon and was later inducted into the Utah Summer Games Hall of Honor.
Amy Christiansen Palmer
Amy Christiansen Palmer was an All-American athlete at BYU as well as an Olympian.
She won 10 Utah State titles in high school.
At BYU Palmer won the Western Athletic Conference shot put three times, placed eighth and fifth in the NCAA shot put, won the USA Junior shot put, placed 11th in the World Junior shot put, placed sixth in the shot put at USA Outdoors and was ranked No. 6 in the U.S. in shot put by Track & Field News.
She placed second in the NCAA hammer throw, second in the USA Outdoors hammer throw, third in the Commonwealth Games hammer throw and was ranked first nationally and fourth internationally in the hammer throw by Track & Field News.
Palmer also set the American record in the hammer throw and placed second at the Goodwill Games.
In 2000, she placed second at the Olympic trials in Sacramento and went on to compete in the Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, where she placed eighth. She later carried the Olympic torch, was named the Tooele County Citizen of the Year in 2000 and 2001 and again competed in the Olympic Trials in 2004.
Byron Shefchik
Shefchik was a five-time All-American and a three-time Academic All-American. He was a two-time Western Athletic Conference Champion in the 100 and 200 breaststroke, Richards Building pool record holder in the 200 breaststroke and 400 medley relay and also finished fourth at NCAA Championships in the 200 breaststroke.
In his first college swim meet, Shefchik took first place in the breaststroke over the defending Western Athletic Conference champion.
He came in third at the World University Games, bringing home the bronze medal in spite of a sprained foot and infection.
His senior year he was awarded the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship and early in the season made the hard cuts for the NCAA in the 200 breaststroke. He was ranked first nationally during the remainder of the season.
Shefchik got his MBA in 2000, the same year he had the opportunity to compete in the Olympic Trials.
