Weber State to retire the jersey of former men's basketball great Willie Sojourner


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OGDEN- Weber State University Athletics will retire the jersey of former Wildcat men's basketball standout Willie Sojourner. Sojourner's jersey will be retired during Weber State's Jan. 10, 2015 home game against Montana State. The honor will make Sojourner the first Wildcat men's basketball player with a jersey retired.

Sojourner played three seasons of varsity basketball at Weber State from 1968-71 and still ranks as one of the best players in school and Big Sky history. In his three seasons with the Wildcats, Sojourner led Weber State to three-straight Big Sky Conference titles and three straight trips to the NCAA Tournament. Earlier this year he was named one of the top 50 male athletes in Big Sky Conference history.

Sojourner came to Weber State out of Philadelphia where he was a multi-sport star at Germantown High School. He arrived in Ogden for the 1967-68 season under head coach Dick Motta but freshmen were not allowed to play varsity basketball at the time so he played that season with the Wildcat freshman team.

During the 1968-69 season he joined new Weber State head coach Phil Johnson in leading the Wildcats to one of the best seasons in Big Sky Conference history. He and the Wildcats finished the season 27-3 and were a perfect 15-0 in Big Sky Conference games, just one of two undefeated seasons in conference history. The Wildcats advanced to the NCAA Tournament that season and defeated Seattle in the first round, the first NCAA Tournament win ever for a team from the Big Sky. Sojourner averaged 18.8 points and 13 rebounds per game that season.

Former Weber State basketball player Willie Sojourner (Weber State Athletics)
Former Weber State basketball player Willie Sojourner (Weber State Athletics)

He came back for his junior year in 1969-70 and led the Wildcats to a 20-7 record, and another Big Sky Championship and a trip to the NCAA Tournament. He averaged 21.2 points and 15.8 rebounds per game, still the best single-season rebounding average in school history.

As a senior in 1970-71 he again led the Wildcats to a Big Sky title and a trip to the NCAA Tournament as the team finished 21-6. He averaged 17.8 points and 13.6 rebounds per game that season.

For his career Sojourner played in 81 career games at Weber State and led the team in scoring and rebounding each season. He earned First Team Big Sky All-Conference honors each season, one of five Wildcats to ever earn First Team honors three times. He still ranks first in Weber State and Big Sky history in career rebounding average at 14.1 per game. He is also Weber State's career leader and is second in conference history in career rebounds with 1,143. He still holds the school record with 25 rebounds in one game. He is also fifth in school history in scoring with 1,563 points and is sixth in scoring average at 19.3 points per game. In his three seasons, the Wildcats posted a 68-16 overall record and were 39-5 in Big Sky Conference games.

Sojourner was not only a star on the basketball court at Weber State. He was a member of the Wildcat track and field team and won three-straight Big Sky titles in the high jump. In 1970 he became Weber State's first Division I All-American in any sport as he earned All-American honors by finishing third at the NCAA Championship in the high jump. He was also the first Wildcat to ever reach the seven foot mark in the high jump.

Following his Weber State career Sojourner was drafted with the eighth pick of the 1971 ABA Draft by the Virginia Squires. He was also drafted in the second round (20th overall) in the NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls. He went on to play four years in the ABA, two with Virginia and two with the New York Nets. He played in 309 career games in the ABA, the most games played by any Wildcat in the ABA or NBA. He played the bulk of his professional career with Dr. J., Julius Erving.

He decided to continue his professional career overseas and went to Italy where he ended up spending the majority of the rest of his life. He played six more seasons professionally in Italy and had his number retired by his team in Rieti. He later returned twice to Italy as a coach. In 2005, while serving as the coach in Rieti, Sojourner was killed in a tragic one-car accident at the age of 57.

"We are thrilled to honor Willie Sojourner as the first Weber State men's basketball player to have his jersey retired," said Jerry Bovee, WSU Director of Athletics. "Willie was a terrific student-athlete and was a major part in helping put Weber State basketball on the map across the nation. He is certainly deserving of this honor."

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Paul Grua, Weber State Athletics

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