Colorado Sports Hall of Fame
The 45th annual Colorado Sports Hall of Fame has inducted the Class of 2009. Six very admirable individuals, including our new Director of Community Leadership Outreach, Sonny Lubick, were celebrated.
Other inductees included Ralph Backstrom, Laurice "Lo" Hunter, Jerry McMorris, Lt. Col. John Mosley, and Rod Smith. There were also six Athletes of the Year honored, including Jason Regeir (Disabled Athlete), Becca Huffer and Parker Orms (High School Athletes), Jenny Barringer and John Buchar (College Athletes) and Carmelo Anthony (Professional Athlete).
Holiday Bowl Hall of Fame
Lubick was also, along with three others, inducted into The Pacific Life Holiday Bowl of Fame. The hall of fame, in conjunction with the San Diego Hall of Champions Sports Museum, selects the inductees on a bi-annual basis. Other members include BYU linebacker and current Utah Utes Head Coach Kyle Whittingham, and long-time member of the bowl game’s board of directors, Herb Klein. There are only 23 other members.
The Pacific Life Holiday Bowl is a non-profit organization and has a mission of “generating tourism, exposure, economic benefit and civic pride for San Diego and its citizens by producing the nation’s most exciting bowl game and festival of events.”
Sonny’s Legacy
During head coach Sonny Lubick's 15 seasons with the Rams, Colorado State's football program reached extreme heights. During that time, Lubick created a standard for excellence never before seen during the 115-year history of the football program.
Lubick was the head football coach from 1993 to 2007, the 15th head coach in school history. Lubick won over 100 games, won or shared six Western Athletic Conference or Mountain West Conference titles, guided the program to nine bowl games in his previous 13 years, and was named National Coach of the Year by Sports Illustrated in 1994. Lubick also joined another elite list of coaches in 2005 as active Division I-A coaches with 100 or more career wins at their current institutions. The group includes only nine members.
Lubick's impact was felt not only in the football program or athletics department, but across the university and throughout the community. CSU supporters had come to appreciate Sonny’s hard work during the most successful era in school history. Congratulations on your great accomplishments, Sonny!
To see Sonny’s acceptance speech for the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame visit: http://tinyurl.com/SonnyLubick