Seven to Be Inducted Into Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame
July 16, 2004 | General News
Seven former student-athletes will be inducted into the University of Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame on Sept. 3.
Kathy Butler (women's track/cross country), Michael Finley (men's basketball), Randy 'Jabo' Jablonic (men's rowing), Steve Lacy (men's track/cross country), Dennis Lick (football), Oscar Osthoff (football, swimming, gymnastics and track), and Bob Rennebohm (football, baseball) make up the class of 2004.
The Hall of Fame reception begins at 5:30 p.m. in GAR Park, located just east of the Camp Randall Memorial Sports Center (Shell). The induction ceremony will begin at 6:30 p.m. With the class of 2004, there are now 134 members of the UW Athletic Hall of Fame.
Butler was a five-time NCAA champion in track and cross country from 1994-97. She won three straight national titles outdoors at 3000 meters and also won the 1995 NCAA cross country title. Butler was a 13-time All-American and 17-time Big Ten champion for the Badgers. She was the 1996 and 1997 UW Female Athlete of the Year and was named the co-Big Ten Female Athlete of the Year in 1997. A 1996 and 2004 Olympian, Butler has competed in World Championships in both track and cross country.
Finley, who played from 1992-95, is the UW's all-time leading scorer in basketball with 2,157 points. He was a three-time honorable mention All-American and a two-time first-team All-Big Ten selection. Finley ended his career as the UW's leader in points, field goals, field goal attempts, free throws, and three-point field goal attempts. A 1995 first-round draft pick (21st overall) of the NBA 's Phoenix Suns, Finley was named to the 1996 NBA All-Rookie First Team as a member of the Dallas Mavericks. He was selected to the 2000 and 2001 NBA All-Star teams and was a member of Team USA at the 2002 World Championships. Finley has scored more than 5,000 points and tallied more than 1,000 assists in his NBA career to date.
Jablonic rowed for the Badgers from 1957-60, earning three letters. He was a member of the UW's national championship crew team in 1959. Following graduation, Jablonic served as Wisconsin's freshman rowing coach from 1960-68. He took over as the head coach of the Badger program in 1968 and served the UW in that capacity until 1997. Jablonic's crews won a total of 28 national titles while his varsity eight boats won the Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) Championship titles in 1973, 1974, 1975 and 1990. Wisconsin also won 10 Ten Eyck trophies, for the most points at the IRA regatta, under Jablonic. He has served as a coach with the U.S. National Team twice as well as serving on numerous boards of directors and was also an officer with a number of national associations. Jablonic also started the Midwest Rowing Championships, one of the largest regattas in the region.
Lacy was a seven-time All-American in track and cross country from 1975-78. He was a member of the NCAA championship two-mile relay in 1976 and won the mile at the 1975 USTFF National Championships. Lacy was a six-time Big Ten champion in track and cross country, including three titles in the indoor mile. The McFarland, Wis., native was a member of the U.S. Olympic team in 1980 (1500 meters) and 1984 (5000 meters).
Lick was a two-time All-American in football in 1974 and 1975, earning consensus honors his second season. A four-year letter winner from 1972-75, Lick was a two-time first-team All-Big Ten selection and earned second-team honors in 1973. As a senior, he played in the East-West Shrine Game, Hula Bowl, Japan Bowl and the last College All-Star Game. Lick was the No. 1 draft pick of the Chicago Bears and the eighth overall pick in the 1976 NFL draft. He played for the Bears from 1976-82 and was named to the NFL All-Rookie team in 1976 in addition to being a second-team All-NFC pick in 1979.
Osthoff won 10 letters competing in football, swimming, gymnastics and track. He served as the team captain for swimming, track and gymnastics. Osthoff won the Big Ten shot put title in 1908 while also placing in the broad jump and discus. Later that fall, he earned All-Big Ten honors in football. Osthoff was also a Big Ten champion in gymnastics winning the 1908 title in the flying rings. He was also an Olympic gold medalist in weight lifting at the 1904 games in St. Louis.
Rennebohm was a three-year letter winner in football and a letter winner in baseball competing in both sports during the 1942-43 season before entering World War II as a Marine Officer candidate. He played football at the University of Michigan in 1943 and 1944 before competing as a member of the Marine's Pacific All-Star team in 1945. Rennebohm returned to Wisconsin in 1946 and played for the Badgers for two more seasons. He was a second-team All-American by the Chicago Daily News in 1947 and was selected for the East-West Shrine Game and the North-South All-Star Game. Rennebohm was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the NFL draft and also by the San Francisco 49ers in the All-American Football Conference draft. From 1955-93, Rennebohm served as the executive director of the UW Foundation. He was instrumental in building University Ridge Golf Course and securing the site for the Kohl Center.
