There will be a new twist to the induction banquet of the El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame that will be held April 29 in the Signature Room at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino. Board of
directors president Barnard Polk announced that a silent auction will be held on that day.
Some intriguing items have been contributed for the auction by members of the Hall’s board and others. For instance:
In 1953 a football game between two local sandlot teams was held for the benefit of Carla Johnson, a young college student who had gone into a coma during surgery. The West Texas Ramblers beat Forti’s Copperheads, 13-7, and after the game, which raised $1000, Gary Crossland, who had scored the two touchdowns for the winners, wound up with the game ball. It’s signed by some of the game participants and Crossland is donating it for the auction.
OTHER ITEMS will include programs from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame banquet signed by inductee Nolan Richardson and contributed by board member Ruben Ramirez, two basketballs signed by Nolan Richardson, four family pack tickets to Chihuahuas baseball, UTEP footballs signed by Miners’ coaches, Swarovski crystal jewelry, a hat from the 2005 Texas National Champion Longhorns, Super Bowl souvenirs, a copy of The 1966 Sports Illustrated issue featuring the Miners, gift cards to Leo’s Mexican Restaurant and more.
Lynn Polk, the board president’s wife, is in charge of the auction. Proceeds will be used for scholarships. She can be reached at 490-6579. For tickets, call Barnard Polk at 490-8156.
The auction will begin at 4 p.m. and the banquet will start at 6:30 p.m.
THE EL PASO Athletic Hall of Fame wound up with 17 nominations this year after the nomination of former UTEP and National Football League player/assistant coach Brian Young was postponed until next year. He informed the Hall that he would be unable to attend this year’s banquet because of commitments to the New Orleans Saints.
Voting for induction by the board of directors will held Monday, March 16, at First Christian Church, 901 Arizona Avenue.
TRIVIA QUESTION: Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, who made a gift of the latest Super Bowl to the New England Patriots with an interception on the opponent’s one-yard line, apparently never heard the phrase “Three things can happen when you pass, and two of them are bad.” Who coined that phrase? Answer at end of column.
ANOTHER outstanding sports banquet will be held in April: The 41st annual Dinner with the Miners awards and scholarship banquet, sponsored by the El Paso Downtown Lions Club and the University of Texas at El Paso, April 30 at the Airport Wyndham Hotel.
Jim Peak, who has worked with the project since its inception, will again chair the event. The Dinners are always fun and you get to see and meet the best and the brightest of UTEP’s athletes and their coaches. You’ll also be helping the organization’s scholarship fund.
For tickets and prices contact Jim Peak at 581-0490.
GOOD NEWS Dept: An elevator has been installed on the casino side of the building at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino to the tune of an estimated $1 million. It will be a boon not only to casino visitors but also to visitors to Ventanas Restaurant and the Signature Room where banquets are held. It’s scheduled to open this coming Monday, March 16
ANSWER to trivia question: The quote has been attributed to several people – even a sports writer. It first appeared in a story by Bud Shrake in the Dallas Morning News in 1962. Reportedly, Texas coach Darrell Royal repeated it. But later, Royal attributed the quote to Ohio State coach Woody Hayes. Others who have been credited with using it first are Tennessee coach Robert Neyland and Michigan State coach Duffy Daugherty. Take your pick.