Whitworth Hall To Induct 4 Former Football Players

Four former football players, two of whom went on to successful coaching careers, will be inducted into the Whitworth College Heritage Gallery during ceremonies Sept. 23 at the school.

The Class of 1995, which will bring to 22 the number of individuals, along with one team, in the school’s athletic hall of fame, are Les Hogan, Doug Long, Dennis Spurlock and Vern Tucker. The latter two are deceased.

The induction will take place following an 11:30 a.m. luncheon. The inductees or their representatives will be introduced at halftime of the Pirates’ 1:30 p.m. football game against Central Washington in the Pine Bowl.

Hogan, who lives in Anchorage, Alaska, where he operates a fishing business, was a star tackle during the longest winning streak in football history, 20 games between 1953 and 1956, and a four-year baseball letterwinner.

But he made his mark as a wrestling coach, at North Idaho College and Alaska Pacific. He was selected national Coach of the Year at both schools. His NIC teams won two national titles and were runners-up four times. At Alaska Pacific, he was a national runner-up once and finished fourth twice.

Long, who lives in Seattle and is active in Fellowship of Christian Athletes and Pro Athletes Outreach, was an NAIA first-team All-American receiver as a junior in 1975 and second team as a senior. He caught 132 passes for 2,171 yards and 23 touchdowns in his career.

He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks and played safety for the NFL team in 1977 and ‘78, earning a game ball for his efforts in an Oct. 22, 1978 win over Oakland.

Spurlock, a Spokane native, who graduated from Whitworth in 1964 and died in 1979, was an NAIA All-American quarterback. He led the school to its only NAIA football playoff appearance in 1960.

Tucker, who played at Whitworth from 1946-49 and died at the age of 40, still holds the school record for the longest touchdown run, a 97-yard sprint against Eastern Washington in 1948. A Little All-American, he turned down pro football opportunities and started a coaching career in football, track and wrestling that included stints at Kennewick, Central Valley and North Central high schools.

, DataTimes