Keith Gilbertson headlines 52nd Idaho Hall of Fame class

Five people will be inducted into the Idaho Athletic Hall of Fame during the 52nd annual North Idaho Sports Banquet April 12 in Coeur d’Alene. The inductees are former University of Idaho coach Keith Gilbertson, former Idaho football player and current Kansas State assistant Mike Cox, former Idaho football player Ryan Phillips, Dr. James “Doc” Lynn Jr. and late Coeur d’Alene High teacher and coach Gary “Big Daddy” Rasmussen. The banquet will be held at the Coeur d’Alene Inn, beginning at 6:30. Tickets will be available starting March 15. Gilbertson’s coaching resume reads like a Rand McNally map. He coached at six different colleges including multiple stops at Idaho and Washington. He also coached in the NFL including two stops at Seattle. He was the head coach at Idaho from 1986-88 and for a year at Washington (2003-04). Cox, a Coeur d’Alene High graduate, has been coaching for 26 years and just finished his second year at Kansas State. Much of his coaching career has been spent on various coaching staffs of John L. Smith. At Idaho, Phillips was the team’s most valuable player as well as the defensive MVP in 1995 and 1996. He was a third round pick in the 1997 NFL Draft and played five seasons with the New York Giants and Colts. Lynn grew up in Wallace where he played football, basketball and ran track. He practiced dentistry from 1963-1999. In 2000, he became executive director of the Idaho Athlete Hall of Fame and North Idaho Sports Banquet. Rasmussen, a Montana native, spent most of his teaching and coaching years at CdA.