Six new members of Idaho Hall of Fame

The 2011 Idaho Athletic Hall of Fame class includes six, the hall of fame committee announced. Chosen for induction are Jake Plummer, Irene Matlock, Jeff Robinson, Ray Faraca and Ed Cheff. The induction takes place at the 49th annual North Idaho Sports Banquet April 9 at the Best Western Coeur d’Alene Inn. Plummer, who lived in Coeur d’Alene during the summers growing up, was a three-sport standout at Capital High in Boise. He went on to play quarterback at Arizona State University, where he led the Sun Devils to the Rose Bowl following the 1996 season. Plummer, who now lives in Sandpoint, played 10 years in the NFL, six with the Arizona Cardinals and four with the Denver Broncos. He finished with 29,253 passing yards, 161 touchdowns and 161 interceptions. Matlock coached Sandpoint High to four state volleyball championships from 1982-85, finishing with a 101-7 career record. She moved on to Community Colleges of Spokane where her teams won 715 matches and four NWAACC championships. She also coached Eastern Washington University to a 12-4 record in the Big Sky Conference as the school’s interim coach in 2007. Robinson was a three-sport athlete at Ferris before a standout career as a defensive end at the University of Idaho. He was a defensive end and tight end before transitioning into being a long snapper in the NFL, playing for five different teams. He was selected in the fourth round of the NFL draft by the Denver Broncos. He had 57.5 sacks at Idaho, a school record. He played four seasons with Denver, six with the St. Louis Rams, three with the Dallas Cowboys and parts of three seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. Faraca, a Kellogg native and prep standout, coached 34 years at Kellogg High. He was a head coach in football and track. His boys track teams won 16 straight district titles. He played football at Idaho where he started at right guard and nose guard for three years. Waltz, who was a two-sport standout at Post Falls and went on to compete in track and field at Washington State University, was a two-time Olympian in the discus. He was the 2008 Olympic Trials champion and a two-time USA Track and Field champion. At WSU, Waltz was an eight-time All-American. He remains the Idaho state high school record holder in the discus with a throw of 203 feet, 9 inches. He set the record in 1995. Cheff, the Lewis-Clark State College baseball coach for 34 years, posted an eye-opening record of 1,705-430. He coached 16 teams to NAIA World Series titles before retiring after the 2010 season. LCSC qualified for the NAIA World Series 28 times under Cheff, more than double any other NAIA school. LCSC finished fourth or higher in the World Series 25 times.