Eight FAU athletes, coaches selected for 2019 FAU Athletics Hall of Fame class
The class of 2019 includes three coaches and five former student athletes.
Coaches Howard Schnellenberger and Joan Joyce join six others in the class of 2019 FAU Athletics Hall of Fame. Photos respectively by Michelle Friswell and Alexander Rodriguez
July 2, 2019
After an eight year hiatus, the FAU Athletics Hall of Fame is back, and this year it inducts eight of the schools legends in the department including former football head coach Howard Schnellenberger.
The class of 2019 includes coaches Schnellenberger, current head coach of the baseball team John McCormack and softball coach Joan Joyce. The player inductees are former quarterback Rusty Smith, running back Alfred Morris, baseball outfielder Jeff Fiorentino, speed skater and basketball player Brittany Bowe, and softball pitcher Chris Sutcliffe.
“This is a tremendous Hall of Fame Class,” FAU vice president and director of athletics Brian White said in a statement. “The success of these individuals laid the foundation for all that we do as a department today. Their hard work, dedication and determination to make FAU Athletics great are commendable and we are proud to honor and celebrate them this fall.”
Schnellenberger and Joyce were the first coaches of their respective programs. While head coach for FAU, Schnellenberger led the Owls to bowl wins in 2007 and 2008. The FAU stadium bears his name.
Joyce is still the softball coach and has guided the Owls to more than 950 wins, 12 conference championships and 11 NCAA Regional appearances.
McCormack is also still the head coach for the baseball team and earned his 400th win this past season. Thirty players under his coaching were selected in the MLB Draft.
Sutcliffe ranks among the program leaders in nearly every pitching category, tallying 67 wins, a 1.47 ERA from 1997 to 2001. In men’s baseball, Fiorentino hit 44 homers and 168 RBIs for the Owls from 2002 to 2004.
The basketball standout Bowe scored 1,062 points in total from 2006 to 2010, became an Olympic skater, and won a bronze medal at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics in South Korea.
In football, Smith not only became the first FAU player selected in the NFL Draft but is FAU’s all time leader in passing yards with 10,112 and touchdowns with 62. Morris was once the leader in rushing yards with 3,529 and touchdowns with 27, but Devin Singletary has passed those records.
The induction ceremonies are scheduled for October 11 and the class will be honored when FAU takes on Middle Tennessee the day after.
Zachary Weinberger is the sports editor of the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @ZachWeinberger.
