Greater Lansing Area Sports Hall of Fame welcomes its 2016 class
Alan Haller was talking no more than 30 seconds before Bob Gross' names was brought up.
In front of a sold-out crowd at the Lansing Center, Haller reflected on his friendship with the former State Journal prep sports editor, who was murdered in June of 1996 at the age of 59. Gross and Haller shared many memories over the years, as the longtime State Journal sportswriter covered the former Michigan State defensive back while he was a two-sport athlete at Sexton High School in the 1980s.
Both men went into the Greater Lansing Area Sports Hall of Fame Thursday night.
"This is an incredible honor for me going in with Bob," said Haller, who was a 1992 draft pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers and one of 11 individuals and two teams to make up the 2016 Hall of Fame class. "We built a really, really good friendship. He's been over to my house and we had many, many talks."
DeWitt native and 2012 Olympic gold medalist Jordyn Wieber was one of the marquee names for this year's class. The 21-year-old former gymnast is the youngest athlete ever to enter the Hall of Fame.
The committee's rule states that someone must be at least 30 years old before they are even up for consideration, but since Wieber retired from the sport competitively in March of last year, the board decided that there was no need to wait.
"I feel very blessed to even be here tonight," said Wieber, who became a World Champion as a member of the U.S. team. "It's really special to be back here in Lansing and thank everyone who supported me. I definitely couldn't have made it to the Olympics without the support from everyone here in this room tonight and everyone else who helped me along the way."
The 2000 Waverly boys basketball team was one of the two teams - along with the 1977 DeWitt boys cross country team - inducted Thursday night. Phil Odlum, who coached the Warriors to a 25-2 record and a Class A state title, said his team didn't expect to hoist the coveted trophy that season.
He also didn't expect them to go down as one of the Lansing area's greatest basketball teams.
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"Well deserved group," Odlum said. "What great gentlemen they turned out to be. ...These gentlemen are very productive in our society, family men, and I'm very proud of them."
And while he wasn't in attendance, Waverly great and National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee John Smoltz Jr. made his presence felt. His longtime coach Carl Wagner received the Dick Letts Community Service Awards at the ceremony, and Smoltz's father, John Smoltz Sr., made the trip up from Arizona to read the note his son wrote about his youth baseball coach.
List of all inductees: Jim Brandstatter (East Lansing), Jeff Callard (Sexton/East Lansing), Michael Creaser (Eastern), Cliff Foster (Sexton), Haller (Sexton), Kristin Haynie (Mason), Mary Mauro (DeWitt), Craig Teft (East Lansing), Wieber (DeWitt), 1977 DeWitt boys cross country, 2000 Waverly boys basketball, Gross, Wagner.
Contact James L. Edwards III at jledwards@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @JLEdwardsIII.