|
Clarence "Mickey" McDade
|
Basketball/Administration |
2004 |
McDade earned his bachelor’s degree from Miami University in 1949 and his master’s in 1952. After serving in World War II and completing his undergraduate studies, he began his basketball coaching career at Franklin High School. From 1952 to 1962, he compiled a 155-84 record, the most wins in school history, and led his teams to eight league titles. |
|
Jerry Angelo
|
Football |
2011 |
A three-year football letterwinner for Miami from 1968 to 1970, Angelo graduated in 1971 and served that year as a graduate assistant. He spent the next eight years coaching in college football, including roles as part-time defensive line coach at Colorado State University in 1972, defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Tampa from 1973 to 1974, and defensive line coach at Syracuse University from 1975 to 1979. Angelo began his NFL career as a scout with the Dallas Cowboys in 1980, followed by a one-year stint as linebackers coach with the Canadian Football League’s Calgary Stampede. He returned to the NFL as a regional scout for the New York Giants from 1982 to 1986, then served as director of player personnel with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1987 to 2000. From 2001 to 2011, Angelo was general manager of the NFL’s Chicago Bears. During his tenure, the Bears won four division titles and made their first Super Bowl appearance in 21 years in 2006. |
|
Bill Arnsparger
|
Football |
1994 |
After serving one year as an assistant under Woody Hayes at Miami, Arnsparger followed Hayes to Ohio State in 1951. From 1954 to 1961, he was an assistant under Blanton Collier at the University of Kentucky and worked alongside Don Shula. After two years as an assistant at Tulane University, he joined Shula with the Baltimore Colts from 1964 to 1968. After 1976, Arnsparger returned to Miami, where he helped develop the “Killer B’s” defense. |
|
Randy Ayers
|
Men’s Basketball |
2012 |
Ayers spent more than three decades coaching men’s basketball at the collegiate and professional levels. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Miami University following a standout playing career. Ayers went on to serve as an assistant coach at West Point (1982–84) and Ohio State (1984–89) before being named head coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes in 1989, a position he held for eight seasons. |
|
Earl Blaik
|
Football |
2001 |
Blaik graduated from Miami in 1918 after earning three letters in football and one in baseball. He then enrolled at West Point, where he became the first cadet to play against Navy in football, basketball, and baseball in the same season. Blaik was elected to the National Football Foundation's Hall of Fame in 1964 and received the foundation’s Gold Medal Award in 1966. In 18 seasons coaching at West Point, he compiled a 121-33-10 record, coached 26 All-America players, had six undefeated teams, and was named Coach of the Year in 1946. |
|
Peggy Bradley-Doppes
|
Volleyball |
2002 |
Bradley-Doppes became Miami’s third head women’s volleyball coach in 1979. Over five seasons, she compiled a 160-67 record and led the program to its first two Mid-American Conference championships. In 1981, her team went 41-10, won the MAC title, and earned Miami its first trip to the NCAA Tournament and its second straight berth in a national tournament. |
|
John Brickels
|
Football |
1996 |
A 1930 graduate of Wittenberg, where he earned All-Ohio honors in football, Brickels began his coaching career at New Philadelphia High School from 1930 to 1938. He served as assistant football and basketball coach for two years, then as head football coach for six. He later moved to West Virginia, where he coached Huntington High School’s basketball team from 1938 to 1944. His teams reached the state tournament four times, played in the finals twice, and won the title in 1944. He also led state championship teams in football and track. After serving as head basketball coach at West Virginia University during the 1944-45 season, he began coaching at Miami in 1949 and served as the university’s athletic director from 1950 to 1964. |
|
Paul Brown
|
Football |
1993 |
Brown starred as quarterback before graduating from Miami in 1930. In 1945, he assembled the Cleveland Browns, who played for the world championship in each of their first 10 seasons. In 34 seasons of coaching high school, college, military, and professional teams, Brown compiled a 361-133-16 record and a .725 winning percentage. He won seven division titles, three NFL championships, and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967. That same year, he became head coach and part-owner of the Cincinnati Bengals. |
|
Steve Cady
|
Hockey |
2015 |
Steve Cady was a driving force behind the growth of the Miami University hockey program in 1976 and has remained synonymous with the program ever since. Over his 48-year tenure at Miami, Cady served in numerous roles, including senior associate athletic director beginning in 1998, the same year he was named assistant vice president for finance and business services. He was head coach of the Miami ice hockey team for nine seasons, including its first seven years as a varsity program (1978–85). Cady also served as the men’s soccer team head coach from 1978 to 1980. |
|
Carol Clark Johnson
|
Golf |
2004 |
Johnson, a 1950 Miami graduate, devoted her career to imparting the game of golf, securing her place in the Cradle of Coaches. A member of the Ladies Professional Golf Association for more than 40 years, she continued to share her expertise through her own clinic and at local golf clubs. |
|
Joe Codiano
|
Football |
1995 |
Codiano, a 1952 graduate of Miami, served as head football coach at Brookville High School for 25 years. He also coached track and baseball, served as the freshman basketball coach, and was Brookville’s first wrestling coach. Codiano was named conference coach of the year seven times and was inducted into the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 1980. |
|
Charlie Coles
|
Men’s Basketball |
2016 |
Coles enjoyed a basketball coaching career that spanned nearly five decades at the high school and collegiate levels, with almost half spent in the Mid-American Conference. He began his career in 1967 as an assistant at Sycamore High School before becoming head coach at Shawnee High School the following year. He later led Yellow Springs High School (1969–72) and Saginaw High School (1972–82), guiding the Trojans to two state championship appearances. After a stint as an assistant at the University of Detroit, Coles became head coach at Central Michigan University from 1985 to 1991, and later led the Miami University program from 1994 to 2012. |
|
Carolyn Condit
|
Volleyball |
2025 |
Condit led the Miami University volleyball program for 40 years during her legendary coaching career. She took over in 1984 and compiled a 682-554 record at Miami, earning 781 career wins overall. Condit retired as the winningest coach in Miami Athletics history across all sports. At the time of her retirement, she was also the longest-tenured active Division I head coach in the nation. |
|
Carmen Cozza
|
Football |
1998 |
A standout athlete at Miami, Cozza played football under Woody Hayes and Ara Parseghian and baseball under Woody Willis. He served as an assistant coach at Miami and Yale from 1956 to 1964 before becoming Yale’s head coach for the next 30 years. Cozza compiled a 179-119-5 record, won 10 Ivy League titles, and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2002. |
|
Rodger Cromer
|
Golf |
2004 |
Cromer, who earned a master’s degree from Miami University in 1963, served as the head coach of Miami Golf from 1965 to 2001. During his tenure, he guided the team to 11 Mid-American Conference titles, including six straight from 1987 to 1992, and was named MAC Coach of the Year eight times, four of them consecutively, from 1987 to 1990. |
|
Dick Crum
|
Football |
2001 |
After serving five years as an assistant under Bill Mallory, Crum became Miami’s head football coach in 1974. He guided the team to three Mid-American Conference titles, two Tangerine Bowl championships, and compiled a 34-10-1 record. Crum’s first Miami team went 10-0-1 and was ranked No. 10 in the final football polls by both the Associated Press and United Press International. He was named Ohio Coach of the Year in both 1974 and 1975. |
|
George Dales
|
Track/Cross Country |
2006 |
Dales, a 1942 Miami University graduate, retired in 1970 as Western Michigan University’s head track and cross country coach after an impressive career. He led the Broncos to NCAA cross country championships in 1964 and 1965 and captured 12 Mid-American Conference titles in track and field and eight more in cross country. During his tenure at WMU, he coached 25 All-Americans — 11 in track and 14 in cross country. |
|
Leann Davidge
|
Tennis |
2001 |
Davidge, a nationally ranked tennis player from Middletown, Ohio, won four Big Ten titles before graduating from Ohio State in 1978. She coached the women’s tennis team from 1979 to 1985, leading the program to four straight Mid-American Conference titles. As coach, she had a five-year record of 92-50, including a 25-1 mark in the MAC, and was named MAC Coach of the Year in 1981 and 1983. She became the first woman inducted into Miami University's Athletic Hall of Fame. |
|
Paul Dietzel
|
Football |
1994 |
Dietzel arrived on Miami’s campus in 1946 and was named captain of the football team. He later served as head coach at Louisiana State University, the U.S. Military Academy, and the University of South Carolina. At LSU, he won two Southeastern Conference titles and led the team to two Sugar Bowl appearances and one Orange Bowl. In 1958, he guided LSU to a national championship and was named Coach of the Year. |
|
Jack Faulkner
|
Football |
1995 |
After graduating from Miami, Faulkner spent 20 years in the National Football League as a coach with the Los Angeles/San Diego Chargers (1955–61), Denver Broncos (1962–64), Minnesota Vikings (1965), New Orleans Saints (1968–69), and Los Angeles Rams (1979). Faulkner was named the American Football League coach of the year with the Broncos in 1962. |
|
George Gwozdecky
|
Hockey |
2006 |
Gwozdecky, who served as Miami hockey’s head coach from 1989 to 1994, was the first hockey coach inducted into the Cradle of Coaches Association. He became the first person in college hockey to win national championships as a player at the University of Wisconsin–River Falls, as an assistant at Michigan State University, and as a head coach at the University of Denver. In just four seasons, he led Miami to its first Central Collegiate Hockey Association title and its first NCAA Tournament appearance from 1992 to 1993. |
|
Danny Hall
|
|
2006 |
After graduating from Miami University, Hall became head baseball coach at Kent State University in 1988, winning two Mid-American Conference titles and earning conference Coach of the Year twice over six seasons. He then took over at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he led the Yellow Jackets for 32 seasons. As of 2024, his teams had won seven Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season championships, five ACC Tournament titles, and made 24 NCAA Tournament appearances. |
|
Jerry Hanlon
|
Football |
1997 |
After graduating from Miami, Hanlon began his coaching career as an assistant at Central Catholic High School from 1957 to 1960. He went on to serve as head coach at Ursuline High School from 1961 to 1963 and at St. Edward High School in 1964. He later held coaching positions at the University of Dayton in 1965, Miami University from 1966 to 1968, and the University of Michigan from 1969 to 1991. From 1993 to 1995, he served as the radio announcer for Michigan Wolverine football games. |
|
John Harbaugh
|
Football |
2014 |
As a former varsity defensive back at Miami University, Harbaugh received the Football Scholar-Athlete Award. He spent 13 years coaching in the college ranks before joining the Philadelphia Eagles, where he spent nine seasons. He was named head coach of the Baltimore Ravens in 2008, led the team to win Super Bowl XLVII, and was named Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year in 2019. |
|
Woody Hayes
|
Football |
2001 |
Hayes compiled a 238-72-10 record as a collegiate football coach. After three seasons at Denison University, he returned to Miami and led the team to 14 wins in 19 games over two seasons. He then spent 28 years as head coach at Ohio State University. Hayes won three consensus national championships (1954, 1957, 1968) and shared two others (1961, 1970). He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983. |
|
Darrell Hedric
|
Men’s Basketball |
2001 |
Hedric returned to Miami as the program’s first full-time assistant coach in 1960. He served in that role under Richard Shrider and later Tates Locke before becoming head coach in 1970. Over 14 seasons, Hedric won 216 games, more than any other basketball coach in Miami history. His 216 victories are the third-most in Mid-American Conference history, and his .579 winning percentage ranks No. 7 on the MAC’s all-time list among those who have coached at least five years. |
|
Fritz Heisler
|
Football |
2016 |
Heisler coached football at the high school, collegiate, and professional levels, spending the majority of his career with the Cleveland Browns. A standout guard at Miami University, Heisler began his coaching career as an assistant at Massillon High School (1938–40) under Paul Brown, his former coach. He followed Brown to Ohio State University in 1941 to coach the freshman team, then enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War II, coaching the V-5 team at DePauw University in 1943. In 1946, Heisler joined Brown’s staff with the Cleveland Browns, marking the start of a 30-year tenure. He coached the offensive and defensive guards during the Browns’ four consecutive All-America Football Conference championships (1946–49), then helped the team win four NFL titles in 1950, 1954, 1955, and 1964. He transitioned to primarily coaching the offensive line in the 1950s and remained in that role until 1971. He then served as a scout for five seasons before retiring in 1976. |
|
Terry Hoeppner
|
Football |
2008 |
Hoeppner spent 19 seasons with the Miami football program, including six as head coach from 1999 to 2004, the longest tenure of any coach in program history. As head coach, he led the RedHawks to two Mid-American Conference East Division titles and back-to-back bowl appearances in 2003 and 2004, the program’s first in 30 years. |
|
Ron Hunter
|
Men’s Basketball |
2018 |
A former standout player for Miami University men’s basketball, Hunter earned his bachelor’s degree in 1986 and his master’s in 1987. Over 31 seasons as a head coach, he has compiled 534 wins, 11 20-win seasons, and eight postseason appearances. Hunter is the all-time winningest coach at both IUPUI and Georgia State. |
|
Dave Jennings
|
Swimming and Diving |
2011 |
Jennings led the Miami women’s swimming and diving program for 31 seasons, setting a standard of excellence in the Mid-American Conference. Under his leadership, the RedHawks won 16 MAC titles. His final team, in the 2012 to 2013 season, posted a 10-0 dual meet record and won the MAC championship despite not capturing a single individual or relay title, the first team in conference history to do so. The graduating classes of 1986, 1987, 1988, 1999, and 2005 each won the MAC championship in every season they competed. |
|
Lou Kaczmarek
|
|
2001 |
Kaczmarek served as an assistant coach at Avon High School, Elyria Catholic High School, Cleveland Benedictine High School, Toledo Whitmer High School, Garden City High School, and Hanover College in Indiana. He later became head coach at Green Springs and Delta high schools. His career took him throughout the tri-state area. Beginning in 1964, Lou became head coach of the Franklin High School Wildcats for six years. In 1965, his team won the Mid-Miami League. |
|
Bob Kappes
|
Football |
2006 |
Kappes played football at Miami from 1946 to 1949, competing under coaching legends Sid Gillman, George Blackburn, and Woody Hayes. He helped Miami win its first Mid-American Conference championship in 1948. After graduation, he began his coaching career at Western Hills High School as an assistant football coach. In 1958, he joined Ohio University, where he spent the rest of his career. As a longtime assistant, he helped the Bobcats win a share of four MAC titles in 1960, 1963, 1967, and 1968, and appear in two bowl games, the Sun Bowl in 1962 and the Tangerine Bowl in 1968. He also served as Ohio’s interim head coach in 1978. Over his 36-year career at Ohio, his teams earned 150 victories and 15 winning seasons. |
|
Don Knodel
|
Men’s Basketball |
2018 |
Knodel was a two-sport standout at Miami University, excelling in men’s basketball and baseball, before earning his bachelor’s degree in 1953. He began his coaching career at the high school level, compiling a 76–31 record at Talawanda and Marion Harding. Knodel spent the 1955–56 season as an assistant basketball coach at Miami, then served five years as an assistant at Vanderbilt University, helping the Commodores win the Southeastern Conference title in 1964–65. |
|
Mel Knowlton
|
Football |
1993 |
Knowlton played baseball and basketball at Miami, earning varsity letters in each sport for three seasons and being named All-Buckeye Conference in both. After graduation, he coached under Paul Brown in Massillon before leading Alliance High School’s football program from 1946 to 1969. Over 24 seasons, he was named Ohio Coach of the Year in 1954 and won the state championship in 1958. He served as president of the Ohio High School Football Coaches Association and was inducted into that group's Hall of Fame in 1972. |
|
Vicki Korn
|
Synchronized Skating |
2025 |
A three-time national coach of the year and originator of the nation’s first collegiate senior-level synchronized skating program, Korn spent 25 years at Miami University before retiring in 2009. She helped shape the landscape of collegiate synchronized skating, guiding her teams to 15 national championships, including 14 at the varsity level. Her teams won senior titles in 1999, 2006, and 2009, and collegiate titles in 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009. |
|
Bobby Kramig
|
Soccer |
2018 |
Bobby Kramig was synonymous with Miami soccer for more than three decades, amassing a combined 356 victories between the men’s and women’s programs during his 34-year tenure. He joined Miami in 1983 as head coach of the men’s team and later helped launch the women’s program, which he coached for its first 20 seasons. During that time, the women’s team posted a 218-153-32 record (.581 winning percentage), made four NCAA Tournament appearances (2000-02 and 2012), and won four Mid-American Conference leading four MAC Tournament titles in those corresponding seasons. The RedHawks also captured regular-season MAC titles in 2002 and 2012, with the latter squad setting a program record with 20 victories. |
|
Bob Kurz
|
Football |
1992 |
Kurz, a 1958 Miami University graduate and former Miami sports information director (1958–65), wrote the book "Miami of Ohio: The Cradle of Coaches," which originated the nickname Cradle of Coaches. He and his wife, Marian ’58, provided a gift to Miami University prior to the 2004 season to construct the Cradle of Coaches Plaza on the south side of Yager Stadium. |
|
Paco Labrador
|
Volleyball |
2016 |
Labrador has established himself as one of the top coaches in collegiate volleyball. He began his career as an assistant coach at Miami University (1999–2002) before becoming head coach at Wittenberg University in 2003. He took over the U.S. Naval Academy program in 2019 and recently completed his seventh season. Under his leadership, the Navy has earned seven of its 19 all-time Patriot League Tournament wins. Across 22 seasons as a head coach, Labrador holds a 553–146 record and a .791 career winning percentage, ranking among the top 25 active NCAA coaches across all divisions. |
|
Dona Layman
|
Women’s Basketball, Softball, Volleyball |
2015 |
Layman was an exceptional three-sport athlete at Miami University during the early years of women’s intercollegiate athletics. From 1973 to 1977, she was a four-year standout in women’s basketball and softball and competed for three seasons in volleyball. Following her undergraduate career, Layman stayed involved with Miami Athletics as a graduate assistant, helping coach the volleyball, women’s basketball, and softball teams. She went on to have a decorated high school coaching career at Valley View High School, where she served as head softball coach for 35 years and recorded more than 400 wins. She also held head coaching roles in basketball and volleyball. In 1986, Layman played a key role in founding the Ohio High School Fastpitch Softball Coaches Association. Her legacy has been honored through multiple hall of fame inductions, including Miami University, Valley View High School, Ohio High School Fastpitch Softball Coaches Association, Western Brown High School, and Brown County Athletics halls of fame. |
|
Jason Lindsey
|
Cross Country & Track |
2016 |
Lindsey began his coaching career at Lakota High School in 1977, launching a tenure that spanned more than 30 years and included coaching or co-coaching 120 teams at Lakota and Lakota East. He started with the freshman football team in his first year, but primarily coached boys' and girls' cross country and track and field. Lindsey led two teams to state championships and remains the only coach in Lakota history to lead two teams to state titles. |
|
Jack Llewellyn
|
Football |
1994 |
Llewellyn, who graduated from Miami University in 1937, enjoyed a 25-year career as head football and baseball coach at Bay High School in Bay Village, Ohio, leading his teams to 10 championships and earning Coach of the Year in Cleveland twice. In 1970, he was inducted into the Ohio High School Coaches Hall of Fame. From 1972–1980, he coached at Venice High School in Florida, scouted for the New York Yankees, and worked with a men’s softball team that won the district and advanced to the state tournament. |
|
Phil Lumpkin
|
Basketball |
2016 |
Following a standout playing career at Miami University and in the NBA with the Portland Trail Blazers and Phoenix Suns, Lumpkin spent 25 years coaching high school basketball. He began as an assistant at Bellevue High School (1984–88), before becoming head coach at Seattle Prep (1988–91). In 1992, he took over as head boys basketball coach at O'Dea High School, where he led the Fighting Irish for 18 seasons through 2007–08. During his tenure, Lumpkin guided O'Dea to 15 state tournament appearances, reaching the finals seven times and winning five state titles (1993, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2007). Though his career was cut short, Lumpkin’s legacy is lasting. He was inducted into the Miami University Athletics Hall of Fame in 1983, the Washington Interscholastic Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009, and was named to the O'Dea Wall of Honor in 2003. O'Dea High School named its basketball court in his honor. |
|
Bill Mallory
|
Football |
1995 |
After serving as an assistant football coach at Bowling Green State University, Yale University, and Ohio State University, Mallory became head coach at Miami from 1969 to 1973. In his final season, he guided Miami to its seventh perfect season with an 11-0 record and earned coaching honors in the Mid-American Conference, the state of Ohio, and NCAA District 5. Mallory then left for Colorado, where he led the Buffaloes from 1974 to 1978 to postseason appearances in the Orange Bowl and Bluebonnet Bowl. In 1984, he accepted a position at Indiana University. In 11 seasons with the Hoosiers, he led the team to six postseason bowl games and was twice named Big Ten Coach of the Year. |
|
Denny Marcin
|
Football |
2002 |
After graduating from Miami, Marcin became one of the NFL’s top defensive line coaches. He joined the New York Giants in 1997, where he worked with Michael Strahan, who earned four Pro Bowls and set an NFL single-season record with 22.5 sacks in 2001. Marcin finished his career with the New York Jets from 2004 to 2006. |
|
Thad Matta
|
Men’s Basketball |
2012 |
Matta served two seasons on the Miami University men’s basketball staff during a coaching career that has spanned more than two decades and six schools. Over 20 seasons as a head coach at Butler University (2000–01, 2022–present), Xavier University (2001–04), and The Ohio State University (2004–17), he has compiled a 486–207 record (.701 winning percentage). His teams have won eight regular-season titles and seven conference tournament crowns. Matta has led all 17 of his eligible teams to postseason appearances, including 13 appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Notably, he guided Ohio State to the national championship game in 2007, a Final Four berth in 2012, and an Elite Eight run in 2013. |
|
Marvin McCollum
|
Basketball |
2002 |
McCollum, a 1948 Miami graduate, is one of southwestern Ohio’s legendary high school boys basketball coaches. He compiled a 485-143 record without a single losing season. In 1962, he led an undefeated Hamilton Taft team to the Class AA championship and was named the Associated Press Ohio Coach of the Year. |
|
John McVay
|
Football |
1997 |
Following his graduation from Miami, McVay coached Canton Central Catholic High School to a nine-year record of 41-7-2. He then spent three years as an assistant at Michigan State. McVay served as head football coach at the University of Dayton for eight years. After leaving Dayton, he coached the Memphis Southmen of the World Football League to a 24-8 record. In 1976, he was promoted from assistant to head coach of the New York Giants midway through the season and was awarded a multiyear contract at its conclusion. He led the Giants through the 1978 season before joining the San Francisco 49ers, where he served as vice president and general manager for 17 seasons. McVay was part of five Super Bowl championship teams with San Francisco and was named NFL Executive of the Year in 1989. |
|
Bud Middaugh
|
Baseball |
2016 |
Middaugh amassed an 824–319–1 record as a collegiate head coach during his tenures at Miami University and the University of Michigan. After one season as an assistant, he took over as Miami’s head coach from 1968 to 1979, leading them to a 359–173 record over 12 seasons. His .673 winning percentage remains the highest among Miami baseball coaches who led the program for 100 or more games. |
|
Marvin Moorehead
|
Football |
1998 |
As Upper Arlington’s high school football coach from 1955 to 1969, he compiled a record of 115-23-3, winning three state championships, eight league titles, and six undefeated seasons. His success earned him the nickname “Marvelous Marv.” |
|
Nick Mourouzis
|
Football |
2002 |
Mourouzis played quarterback at Miami, helping lead the Red and White to Mid-American Conference championships in 1957 and 1958, with undefeated conference records both seasons. After graduating in 1959, he coached at Northwestern University, Indiana University, Ball State University, Ohio University, and DePauw University. He served as head coach at DePauw for 23 years, compiling a 138-87-4 record and becoming the winningest coach in school history. |
|
Ron Niekamp
|
Basketball |
2004 |
Niekamp, a 1953 Miami graduate, used the basketball expertise he developed at Miami to lead the University of Findlay basketball program for 26 seasons, first at the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) level and later in NCAA Division II. Before coaching at Findlay, he spent 13 years in the high school ranks with stops at Lima Senior, Ottawa-Glandorf, and Parkway. Niekamp led Findlay to a 36-0 perfect season and the NCAA Division II national championship in 2008–09, earning multiple National Coach of the Year awards. |
|
Joe Novak
|
Football |
2012 |
Novak spent 40 years coaching football at the high school and collegiate levels. He served a combined 22 seasons as an assistant coach at Miami University, the University of Illinois (1977–79), Northern Illinois University (1980–83), and Indiana University (1984–95). In 1996, he was named head coach at Northern Illinois, where he led the Huskies for 12 seasons. Under his leadership, Northern Illinois captured four Mid-American Conference West Division titles (2001, 2002, 2004, and 2005) and made two bowl appearances. The Huskies won the Silicon Valley Bowl in 2004 and earned a berth in the Poinsettia Bowl in 2006. |
|
Ara Parseghian
|
Football |
1993 |
After graduating in 1949, Parseghian played one season with the Cleveland Browns before an injury ended his pro career. He returned to Miami in 1950 to assist Woody Hayes and later became head coach, leading the team to a 39-6-1 record and two Mid-American Conference titles in five seasons. After eight years at Northwestern, he took over at Notre Dame in 1964 and won two national championships in five years. |
|
Rob Patrick
|
Volleyball |
2011 |
Patrick, a 1983 Miami graduate, served as head volleyball coach at the University of Tennessee for 21 seasons from 1997 to 2017, leaving as the program’s all-time wins leader with 409 career victories. His teams qualified for the NCAA Tournament nine times, including five consecutive seasons from 2008 to 2012, and advanced to the Final Four in 2005. Patrick was named National Coach of the Year twice, by CVU.com in 2004 and VBall Magazine in 2005. |
|
Hal Paul
|
Football |
1996 |
Paul embarked on a 22-year career of teaching and coaching. Although he coached many sports, his main love was high school football. He turned around the Big Red football program of Steubenville, Ohio, in the late 1950s before moving to Findlay in 1960, where he led the Findlay High School football program for the next eight years. Paul’s final coaching assignment was at Van Buren High School, where at one point he served as athletic director, teacher, and coach of football, basketball, and track. He also oversaw the renovation of campus facilities during his time there. |
|
Sean Payton
|
Football |
2025 |
Payton has 17 years of head coaching experience and has been involved in the game of football for over 30 years. Payton began his coaching career as an offensive assistant at San Diego State, eventually serving as Miami's offensive coordinator in 1994 and 1995. Following his time with Miami, Payton transitioned to the NFL, serving as an assistant with the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants, and Dallas Cowboys. Payton was named head coach of the New Orleans Saints in 2006, a job he maintained for 15 years, highlighted by a Super Bowl title in the 2009 season. Payton recently completed his second season as head coach of the Denver Broncos. |
|
Ernie Plank
|
Football |
1998 |
Plank began his football career under Paul Brown as an end at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center in 1944. He then earned three letters as a defensive tackle at Miami under Sid Gillman, George Blackburn, and Woody Hayes. After graduating in 1950, he spent five years as head football coach at Grove City High School in Ohio. He then joined John Pont as an assistant coach and spent the next 22 years in collegiate football at Miami University, Yale University, Indiana University, and Northwestern University. |
|
Iñako Puzo
|
Field Hockey |
2025 |
Puzo recently completed his 14th year as head coach of the Miami field hockey team. He holds a 171-124 career record and became the program’s winningest postseason coach in 2019. His teams have compiled a 22-11 record in postseason play. Under Puzo’s leadership, the RedHawks have captured 10 regular-season championships, nine tournament championships, and made 10 NCAA appearances. A five-time Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year, he has coached 73 All-MAC selections, eight MAC Players of the Year, and five MAC Freshmen of the Year. |
|
Gary Quisno
|
Football |
2011 |
Quisno, a 1976 Miami graduate, has compiled a 271-110 career record over 36 seasons as head football coach at Danbury, Oak Harbor, Perkins, and Margaretta high schools through the end of 2024. His teams have won or shared 11 conference titles, qualified for the state playoffs 12 times, and made two state semifinal appearances, in 1999 and 2006. |
|
Sue Ramsey
|
Women’s Basketball |
2012 |
Ramsey led the Ashland University women’s basketball program for 20 seasons, highlighted by a 37–1 record and the NCAA Division II national championship in 2012–13. The year prior, she guided Ashland to the national title game, finishing as the runner-up. Under her leadership, the Eagles won their first Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship in 2011–12, going undefeated in conference play and winning 33 consecutive games, the longest active winning streak in Division II at the time for both men’s and women’s basketball. |
|
Raymond Ray
|
Swimming and Diving |
2001 |
Before joining Miami, Ray spent 12 years as the first swimming coach at Fenn College (now Cleveland State). Ray served as Miami’s first swimming coach from 1952 to 1974, compiling a 148-89-2 record and leading the team to three Mid-American Conference championships. Over 22 seasons, he coached one Olympic gold medalist, Bill Mulliken, five All-Americans, and 88 MAC champions. He played a key role in hosting the 1955 NCAA Swimming Championships at Billings Natatorium. He retired after receiving the Distinguished Coach Award from the College Swimming Coaches Association of America. |
|
Dr. Richard Ceronie
|
Cross Country & Track |
2018 |
Ceronie served as Miami University’s head women’s cross country and track and field coach for 24 years, launching the cross country program in 1984. During his tenure, he coached three U.S. Olympic Trials qualifiers, four conference athletes of the year, more than 60 conference champions, and 13 NCAA All-Americans. Ceronie was also the first Mid-American Conference coach to guide an athlete to an NCAA Championship and a No. 1 world ranking. |
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George Rider
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Track and Field |
2001 |
George Rider was associated with Miami University for 39 years as a coach and athletic administrator. He coached five sports, compiling a combined record of 317-96-5 for a .764 winning percentage. After graduating from Olivet College in 1914, Rider joined Miami’s staff and coached football, basketball, and baseball from 1917 to 1919. |
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William Rohr
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Men’s Basketball |
2001 |
Rohr, a member of the Athletic Hall of Fame at both Ohio Wesleyan and Ohio University, coached Miami’s men’s basketball team from 1951 to 1957. In six seasons, his teams won 91 of 138 games, captured four Mid-American Conference championships, and made three NCAA Tournament appearances. |
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Jim Rose
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Basketball |
2002 |
One of the most accomplished high school basketball coaches in Ohio history, Rose graduated from Miami University in 1951. That fall, he began his coaching career at his alma mater, Oxford McGuffey High School, leading the junior varsity boys basketball team. Over the next 20 years (1951–72), he compiled a 255-134 record as head coach at Lemon Monroe High School (1952–53), Urbana High School (1954–56), and Bedford High School (1956–72). |
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Bo Schembechler
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Football |
2004 |
At Miami, Schembechler earned two letters in football as an offensive tackle and two in baseball as a pitcher. He returned as head coach in 1963, leading Miami to co-championships in the Mid-American Conference in 1965 and 1966, and was named Coach of the Year in 1965. In 1969, he became head coach at the University of Michigan, where he spent 21 seasons, won or shared 13 Big Ten titles, appeared in 17 postseason bowl games, and was named National Coach of the Year by both the American Football Coaches Association and the Football Writers Association. |
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Frank Shands
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Football |
1997 |
Through a football scholarship, Shands attended Miami University and graduated in 1946. He was deeply involved in athletics, participating in football, boxing, and track. Shands went on to coach football, basketball, and track at DePorres, Purcell, Princeton, and Winton Woods high schools. In 1971, he was awarded the Bishop Medal by Miami University in recognition of his extraordinary career as an educator and coach. Established in 1936, the Bishop Medal honors individuals who have distinguished themselves in service to humanity. |
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Dick Shrider
|
Football |
1996 |
Shrider served 32 years at Miami University, nine as head basketball coach from 1957 to 1966 and 25 as athletic director from 1964 to 1988. Under his leadership, Miami’s intercollegiate athletics program expanded to 11 men’s sports and eight women’s sports. He helped lead Miami to 16 Reese Cups and one Jacoby Cup — both symbols of athletic excellence in the Mid-American Conference. His teams captured four MAC championships and compiled a league record of 76-34, including a winning mark against every other team. |
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Tracy Smith
|
Baseball |
2015 |
Smith began his head coaching career at Miami University Middletown, where he revived the baseball program in 1991–92. From 1988 to 1991, he also served as an assistant coach for the men’s basketball team, helping lead the ThunderHawks to the Ohio Regional Campus Conference Championship in the 1988–89 season. At Miami University in Oxford, Smith led the baseball program to eight consecutive 30-win seasons, two NCAA Regional appearances, and six trips to the Mid-American Conference Tournament finals over a nine-year span. |
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Todd Spohn
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Diving |
2016 |
Spohn began his coaching career in 1986 following a standout diving career at Miami University. He guided the RedHawks’ men’s and women’s diving programs for two decades, earning 11 Mid-American Conference Diving Coach of the Year honors. Under his leadership, nine of his divers were named MAC Diver of the Year, including eight who swept both events, and his athletes captured 18 individual MAC titles. During his tenure, he contributed to 13 MAC team championships. After Miami, Spohn served as head coach of the Mission Viejo Nadadores (2006–11), helping the team climb 30 spots to a fourth-place finish at Junior Nationals. In 2011, he was named interim head coach of the USA Diving National Training Center, where he coached three Junior National champions and two Olympians. He later took over as head coach at Santa Clara Diving, where his program has produced multiple Junior National finalists, three age group national champions, and numerous regional and gold medalists. |
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Dr. Stephen R. Strome
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Tennis/Basketball |
2006 |
A former Miami basketball standout under Dick Shrider and later an assistant coach for Tates Locke, Strome made his biggest impact on Miami as head men's tennis coach from 1969 to 1979. In 11 seasons, he led Miami to seven Mid-American Conference championships, and a 167-64 record. During that span, the program posted a 46-match conference winning streak. A five-time MAC Coach of the Year, Strome coached 27 singles and 14 doubles champions. After leaving Miami, he served as head coach at Louisiana State University from 1979 to 1982 and at Duke University from 1982 to 1991. He later became director of athletics at Capital University, then spent 10 years at the U.S. Military Academy, where he led the men's tennis team to a 178-97 record and five Patriot League championships. |
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Dan Stimson
|
Cross Country & Track |
2015 |
With a collegiate coaching career spanning more than 40 years, including nine seasons at Miami University, Stimson spent the final 28 years at William & Mary, serving 25 as head coach and director of track and field. He remained with the program for six more years, including three as throws coach and three as a volunteer assistant. Under his leadership, William & Mary’s cross country and track and field programs won 49 Colonial Athletic Association championships. If counted separately, his teams would rank third all-time in total CAA titles. His athletes earned 64 All-America honors, produced one Olympian, and received 90 individual CAA awards, including MVP, Athlete of the Year, and Rookie of the Year. In 2003–04, William & Mary became the first school in CAA history to win all four conference titles in a single academic year. |
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Wendy Sweney
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Tennis |
2025 |
Sweney led Miami to five straight Mid-American Conference tennis titles from 1985 to 1989, compiling an 87-20 overall record and a perfect 33-0 conference record during her time as head coach of the tennis program. Named the 1988 MAC Coach of the Year, she coached 29 MAC champions in singles and doubles. Sweney won at least 17 matches in all five seasons of her Miami career and never lost more than five matches in a single season. |
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Jim Tressel
|
Football |
2018 |
Tressel brought five national titles to the state of Ohio during his 25-year career as a head coach, becoming the only coach to win a national title at both levels of Division I college football. He led Youngstown State from 1986 to 2000, leading the Penguins to 10 postseason appearances and four Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) national titles in six title-game trips. Tressel took over at Ohio State in 2001 and led the Buckeyes to a Bowl Championship Series (BCS) national title the following year. |
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Rich Voiers
|
Basketball |
2001 |
While at Miami, Voiers helped the track and field program to four Mid-American Conference titles from 1954 to 1957. After graduating, he began teaching and coaching track at Bay High School, where he later served as head basketball coach for 31 seasons starting in 1963. Voiers guided the team to 14 league titles, 13 sectionals, three district championships, three regional appearances, and a regional runner-up finish in 1989. His teams had undefeated regular seasons in 1977 and 1989. He was named Coach of the Year 13 times in the Southwestern Conference, four times in Cleveland, twice in Northeast Ohio, and earned state recognition as Ohio Coach of the Year in Division II in 1989. |
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Randy Walker
|
Football |
2008 |
During his nine seasons as Miami’s head coach, Walker revitalized a struggling program and laid the foundation for future success. He closed his tenure with five consecutive winning seasons, including a 10-1 record in 1998, highlighted by an upset of No. 12 North Carolina. Named head coach at Northwestern in 1999, Walker departed as Miami’s winningest coach at the time, compiling a 59-35-5 record (.621). |
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Randall Whitehead
|
Wrestling |
2006 |
Whitehead was an accomplished wrestler at Miami from 1963 to 1966, earning three varsity letters. After his collegiate career, he spent the next 30 years giving back to the sport as a coach. He guided nine individual state champions in Massachusetts, six New England champions, and one All-American. He was named Coach of the Year by both the Massachusetts Interscholastic Wrestling Coaches Association and The Boston Globe. He was later inducted into the Massachusetts Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame. In 2011, he was honored by the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame for his Lifetime Achievement in Wrestling. |
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Ron Zook
|
Football |
2002 |
Since his playing days at Miami, walk-on Ron Zook has found success at both the collegiate and professional levels. A mainstay defensive back on Miami’s 1973–75 teams that went 34-1-1, Zook went on to coach in the NFL with Pittsburgh, Kansas City, New Orleans, and Green Bay. He contributed to division championships with the Steelers, Saints, and Packers as a coordinator. |
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Walter Alston
|
Baseball |
2001 |
The dean of professional baseball managers, “Smokey” Alston, coached the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers for 15 seasons. A multi-sport athlete at Miami, he quickly proved himself by guiding the Dodgers to a National League pennant and their first World Series championship in 1955. He went on to win five more pennants — in 1956, 1959, 1963, 1965, and 1966. He added three World Series titles in 1959, 1963, and 1965. |
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Weeb Ewbank
|
Football |
1992 |
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Bill Narduzzi
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Football |
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John Pont
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Football |
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Pam Wettig
|
Basketball/Softball/Administration |
2011 |
Wettig served as Miami’s first full-time women’s coach and the first in the state of Ohio. During her tenure, she coached both basketball and softball and was named assistant athletics director in the 1978–79 academic year. From 1975 to 1984, Wettig compiled 131 wins on the hardwood and led three straight teams to 20 or more victories from 1981 to 1983. She was named Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year in 1982 and 1983 after winning back-to-back conference titles. |
