Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 9 No. 1 | August 2016

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8 Inside Hokie Sports
Former Tech great inducted into another hall of fame
Former Tech receiver André Davis added another accolade to an already
impressive resume when he was inducted into the Capital Region Football
Hall of Fame—a Hall of Fame that honors those with upper New York
state ties who have excelled in football. The induction ceremony took
place on July 30 in Albany, New York.
Davis attended high school in Niskayuna, New York, not far from
Albany. He played mostly soccer growing up, but decided to go out for
the football team before his junior season at Niskayuna High School and
that decision paved the way for an unbelievable career.
Davis enjoyed a record-setting career at Virginia Tech from 1998-2001.
His 962 receiving yards and nine touchdown receptions in 1999 were
single-season records that lasted until 2015 and his 27.5 yards-per-catch
average still stands as a school record. He also holds or shares three punt
return records at Tech.
Following a career in which he caught 103 passes for 1,986 yards and
18 touchdowns, Davis spent nine seasons in the NFL. He recently made
an undisclosed financial gift to the Virginia Tech Athletics Department to
help support the Hokies’ Leadership Institute, which focuses on helping
student-athletes become future leaders in society.
The hall of fame induction marked the third for Davis. In 2012, he was
inducted into the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame. In 2014, he was
inducted into his high school’s hall of fame.
Six set for induction into the
Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame
Three former football players, a women’s basketball standout, a track
and field national champion and a former athletics director comprise the
2016 class set for induction into the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame.
The six new honorees will be inducted during a hall of fame dinner on
the Tech campus on Friday, Sept. 16, the evening before Tech’s home
football game against Boston College. The inductees will be introduced
to fans at halftime of the football game. The new inductees will bring the
total number enshrined to 187.
The late JimWeaver arguably headlines the class, as he will be inducted
a little more than a year after passing away. He served as the AD at Tech
for more than 16 years from 1997-2013 and played in instrumental
role in getting the school in the ACC. He also committed nearly $200
million toward facilities—while also keeping the athletics department on
solid financial footing.
Other inductees include:
• DeAngelo Hall, who earned All-America honors in 2003 and still
holds or shares three punt return records;
• Kevin Jones , who broke the school’s single-season rushing record at
the time with 1,647 yards in 2003 and still ranks as the second-leading
rusher in school history (3,475 yards);
• Ashley Lee , who has held the NCAA record for interception return
yardage in a game since 1983;
• Spyridon Jullien, a four-time national champion and a seven-time
All-American as a thrower in track and field; and
• Kerri Gardin, who holds or shares six single-game school records and
two single-season school records in women’s basketball.
Former Tech assistant coach passes
Former Virginia Tech football assistant coach Buddy Bennett passed
away in mid-July in his hometown of Jesup, Georgia. The 78-year-old
Bennett coached at several schools during his career, including stints at
Georgia Tech under Bobby Dodd, at South Carolina (his alma mater), at
East Tennessee State, at Tennessee and at Arkansas.
Bennett coached in Blacksburg from 1974-77 under then-head coach
Jimmy Sharpe, who came to Tech in 1974 after working with Bear Bryant
at the University of Alabama. The Hokies went 8-3 in 1975 and 6-5 in
1976, but Sharpe was dismissed after a 3-7-1 season in 1977.
Bennett returned to Georgia after his tenure at Tech and coached high
school football for several years before retiring. He founded a pest control
service and ran his farm.
Bennett is survived by his wife of 51 years (Jayne) and four sons,
a daughter, and 16 grandchildren.
by
Jimmy
Robertson