Plans for Monterey High Hall of Fame
Surfing through more than a century of athletes, coaches and teams from Monterey High to find an elite list for an inaugural Hall of Fame class is a project for the ages and well overdue.
Why it hasn’t been tackled before is not open for debate. Instead, the only discussion is who will be a part of the Toreadores’ first Hall of Fame class.
Monterey has had a historic run of athletes with Olympians, NFL and Major League baseball players, not to mention high school state champions and Central Coast Section champions.
“I think there’s been pressure for a while to put this together,” Monterey Principal Tom Newton said. “It’s an alumni base that has gone on to do some incredible things, that have been wonderful ambassadors.”
The list of athletes you can make an argument for going into the Hall of Fame is endless, with names that are legendary on the Peninsula — still to this day.
The plan is to announce the inductees before the school year is over. The pandemic could delay hopes of having a ceremony later this year.
“It’s long overdue,” said Newton, a 2002 Monterey graduate. “This is an exciting development for our school. We certainly have no shortage of candidates.”
So where do you start? There would appear to be obvious choices for the inaugural class — likely more than an initial induction of names that can be accepted.
Criteria are still being laid down by a committee, headed by Athletic Director Jeff Dellis, such as the length of time since an athlete graduated or a coach retired.
What’s intriguing about the Toreadores potential list of inductees is the number of athletes who have gone on to excel at the collegiate and professional level.
It wouldn’t be difficult for the committee to put a current list together in their sleep, starting with former Arizona State head football coach Herm Edwards, who excelled in three sports while at Monterey and played for the Philadelphia Eagles.
There are former major leaguers Mike Aldrete, currently the A’s first base coach, and Pete Incaviglia, who went straight from Oklahoma State to the Texas Rangers.
You have to put three-time Winter Olympic bobsledder, Nick Cunningham, on your list, who was also a two-time state meet qualifier in track and field in the 100 and 200 meters at Monterey, and the school record holder in both events until 2019.
“There are a lot of legends out there,” said Newton, who is a member of the committee. “It’s exciting to relive some of the names from the past. It’s incredible to hear some of these stories from members of the committee.”
Newton said the list is endless. Charlie Harraway won a Super Bowl ring with the Washington Football team in the 1970s.
Nate Wright was an All-Pro defensive back for the Vikings.
Before Maurice Mann put together a decade long pro football career in the Canadian Football League, he was a state meet qualifier in the 110 high hurdles for Monterey.
Herb and Henry Lusk were multiple sport athletes for the Toreadores that had NFL careers, as did Ron Johnson. M.L. Carter spent three seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs.
On the girl’s side, Sani Roseby is arguably the best track and field athlete ever to come out of Monterey County, winning state titles in the long jump and 100 meters, qualifying for the U. S. Olympic Trials in the 100 hurdles in 2004.
Roseby, who is currently a track and field coach at Tulane University, holds county records in the 100, 200, 400, long jump and 100 hurdles.
Sabrina Lum was an Olympian for Chinese Taipei in swimming as a 17-year- old incoming senior at Monterey.