The Hillsdale College Athletic Hall of Fame is celebrating its Silver Anniversary in 2024, as it prepares to induct its 25th class this October.
In 24 previous classes, Hillsdale College has honored 92 individuals and 16 teams with induction into the program's Hall of Fame, and on Oct. 11, 2024, four more worthy individuals and one legendary team will join those ranks. All of these inductees helped to define excellence at Hillsdale College with feats that had never been seen before in the program's history, and, in many cases, have not been equaled since.
The Hall of Fame Ceremony will take place in the Searle Center on the Hillsdale College campus. The event is set to begin at 5 p.m. with a cocktail hour, with dinner and the ceremony to follow.
This year's inductees are:
Ian Redpath '72
One of the greatest sprinters in Hillsdale College track and field history, in four years Redpath made four NAIA national meets and set the program's 100-meter dash record. He ran a 9.48 100-yard dash at the 1971 Pan Am Games trials, while also running on a Canadian national record-setting sprint medley relay in 1969. While helping lead Hall of Fame coach Doug Hansen's track and field teams to unprecedented success, he also played for Muddy Waters' football team, showcasing enough skill despite injuries to earn a tryout with the NFL's Chicago Bears after graduation. After Hillsdale, Redpath graduated from law school at the University of Detroit-Mercy and went on to become a tenured professor at Canisius College and a state-championship winning junior high school soccer coach in New York.
Steve Rentschler '78 (Posthumous)
From his time as a student in the 1970s through his work as a football coach in the early 1980s and as a major contributor to Chargers Athletics until his passing in 2023, Steve made a huge impact on Hillsdale College Athletics. As a receivers coach for the football team from 1979 to 1984, Rentschler was a part of Dick Lowry's turnaround of the program that culminated in Hillsdale's 1985 NAIA national title. Leaving coaching for a long and successful business career with Sterling Cut Glass, Rentschler continued to give back to his alma mater in a variety of ways, helping to run Hillsdale's Varsity Alumni Association, the Charger Club and the Gridiron Club as well as organizing Hillsdale's branch of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Rentschler also was a generous financial supporter of Hillsdale College Athletics and a regular presence at a variety of Chargers sporting events over the years.
Al Huge '88
A player honored by Hall of Fame coach Dick Lowry as "the best defensive player I ever coached," Huge was a one-person wrecking crew on some of the greatest teams in Hillsdale College football history. In three seasons as a starter for the Chargers, Huge put up monster numbers for a defensive tackle, recording sack totals for a season and career that still rank second in Hillsdale history. As a sophomore in 1985, Huge finished with 19 sacks to pace a Chargers defense that led the nation in total and scoring defense, and brought Hillsdale to its only team national championship in school history. In 1986 Huge was named a first-team All-American and helped secure a repeat GLIAC title and NAIA playoff appearance for the Chargers. In 1987, he became one of only six defensive linemen in Hillsdale history to win team MVP honors.
DeShawn Meadows '95
A five-time NAIA All-American, Meadows was one of the greatest in Hillsdale College history at track and field's toughest event: the decathlon. He was the leading scorer at every GLIAC championship meet from 1992 to 1994, leading Hillsdale to six consecutive GLIAC indoor and outdoor titles in a stretch of team success for the Chargers men that has never been equaled since. He's best remembered for his legendary performance at the 1994 GLIAC Outdoor Championships, when he scored 44 points across seven events in a single day of competition to help the Chargers clinch a third straight title. Meadows graduated in 1995 with school records in both the indoor and outdoor triple jump. Also a football player for Hall of Fame coach Dick Lowry, he contributed to Hillsdale's 1992 MIFC title team.
2006 Hillsdale College Volleyball Team
A breakthrough squad for legendary Hillsdale College coach Chris Gravel, the 2006 Chargers volleyball team recorded a series of historic firsts that put the program on the map, both regionally and nationally. The 2006 squad is still the only volleyball team in school history to achieve a perfect regular season record, finishing 27-0. The team also secured the program's first GLIAC regular season championship, earned the right to host the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional for the first time, and recorded the Hillsdale volleyball program's first NCAA Tournament victory. Led by middle hitter Taryn Rudland, the program's first GLIAC Player of the Year, Midwest Region Player of the Year and NCAA DII All-American, and outside hitter Melissa Bartlett (who would also win all those awards as well a season later), the Chargers were one of the best offensive teams in the country. During the 2006 season, Hillsdale was ranked as high as third in the nation, a mark that wouldn't be surpassed by a Chargers volleyball team until 2021.
For more information on the Hillsdale College Athletic Hall of Fame, please visit our Hall of Fame web page. If you have a worthy candidate you believe should be considered for the 26th class that will be inducted in 2025, you can complete and return this form to [email protected] by Dec. 1, 2024 for the Hall of Fame committee's review.
