A very relatable Hall class
Beckerman brothers lead group of inductees into the Anne Arundel County Sports Hall of Fame
History will be made in mid-October when two brothers are inducted together into the Anne Arundel County Sports Hall of Fame.
Crofton natives Todd and Kyle Beckerman will have a shared enshrinement when the 30th annual Anne Arundel County Sport Hall of Fame induction banquet is held Oct. 13 at La Fontaine Bleu in Glen Burnie.
Joining the Beckerman brothers in the Class of 2021 are a pair of retired head coaches who were among the most successful in county history for their respective sports. Clay White coached boys lacrosse for 38 seasons, including 33 at Broadneck High. Ed Purpura coached a remarkable 106 total seasons as leader of the Severna Park High boys and girls cross country and track and field programs.
South county legend George Spriggs, who enjoyed an outstanding career in the Negro Leagues before breaking through into the major leagues, will be inducted posthumously.
The Anne Arundel County Sports Hall of Fame, founded in 1991, will finally celebrate its 30th anniversary after not being able to host a banquet last year because of the coronavirus pandemic. The organization lost several Hall of Famers since its last banquet in 2019, including Mike Busch, Louis Carter, Bernie Walter, Alan Pastrana, Alex Sandusky, Jack Schofield and Paul Rusko.
The Hall of Fame has renamed its annual service award in honor of Walter, who was the second president and served in that capacity for 15 years. Fittingly, the inaugural Bernie Walter Memorial Award will be presented to Charles “Tut” O’Hara.
O’Hara, a lifelong Gambrills resident, was Walter’s assistant with the Arundel High baseball program from 1986 to 2009.
There are already two sets of brothers in the Anne Arundel County Sports Hall of Fame, but they were all inducted separately. Eric Reid was enshrined in 2005 then
was joined by his brother and fellow track and field standout Bruce Reid in 2015. Neal Herrick was inducted as a baseball player in 2015 and was followed by his brother Jeff Herrick, who was honored as a football player and coach.
Todd Beckerman
Todd Beckerman made his mark as a wrestler, enjoying a legendary prep career at DeMatha Catholic before becoming an All-American at Nebraska. Kyle Beckerman starred in soccer, playing at the professional level from 2000 to 2020 and representing the United States in the FIFA World Cup.
“We felt Todd and Kyle were both slam dunk candidates and it made sense to induct them together in front of their family, friends and supporters,” Anne Arundel County Sports Hall of Fame president Dave Cassard said.
Todd Beckerman still ranks as one of most successful high school wrestlers in Maryland history after compiling a phenomenal 208-1 record as a four-year starter at DeMatha. He had a 187-match winning streak and set a national record with 43 tournament wins.
Beckerman earned first-team All-American status and placed third at the Junior Nationals in 1994 after capturing a Cadet national championship the year before. He earned scholarship to Nebraska of the Big 12 Conference and was a three-year starter.
Beckerman became a two-time All-American at Nebraska, placing top eight at the 2000 and 2001 NCAA championships. He served as team captain and was selected as Nebraska Male Athlete of the Year as a senior. He was also named to the Big 12 Conference All-Academic team as a junior and senior.
Beckerman is entering his 10th season as head coach of wrestling at Brown University. He has coached 15 All-Ivy League wrestlers and 13 Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association place-winners. He has also coached seven NCAA qualifiers and one All-American.
Kyle Beckerman
Kyle Beckerman wrestled as a freshman at DeMatha Catholic but did not stick with the sport like his older brother. That’s because the younger Beckerman was already a soccer phenom by the time he became a teenager.
Kyle Beckerman transferred to Arundel as a sophomore and earned first team All-County honors from Capital Gazette Newspapers. The smooth midfielder was the Capital Gazette Player of the as a junior, his final season of high school soccer.
Beckerman signed with Project 40 of Major League Soccer in June 2000 and began training at Bradenton Academy as a high school senior. He was claimed by the Miami Fusion in 2000 and began his MLS career with that franchise.
After being selected by the Colorado Rapids in the 2002 MLS Dispersal Draft, Beckerman became a regular starter with that team. He was traded to Real Salt Lake in July 2007 and remained with the organization until retiring after the 2020 season.
Beckerman appeared in 350 games with RSL and served as team captain from 2008 to 2020, leading the Utah team to the MLS Cup championship in 2009. He was a six-time All-Star and holds the MLS record for most all-time appearances by a field player with 505.
Beckerman was named one of the 25 greatest players in Major League Soccer history during the 25th anniversary celebration. He was a member of the United States Senior National Team from 2007 to 2016 and made 58 appearances.
Beckerman reached the pinnacle of the sport when he was named to the 23-man roster for the United States Senior National Team that played in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. He started all three matches in the group stage as a holding midfielder for the Americans.
George Spriggs
Spriggs was born and raised in Jewell, Maryland, a tiny town in southern Anne
Arundel County. He attended Wiley H. Bates High in Annapolis during the days of segregation.
Spriggs originally signed with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues shortly after high school, but his career was interrupted by a two-year hitch in the Army. He joined the Detroit Stars in 1962 after being discharged.
Spriggs transitioned to Major League Baseball after being signed as an amateur free agent in 1963 by the Pittsburgh Pirates at the age of 26.
He batted .319 with a .452 on-base percentage and drew 107 walks with Class-A Reno, then led the Southern League with 33 stolen bases and ranked second with a .322 batting average in 1964.
Spriggs led the International League with 66 stolen bases in 1965 while hitting .300 for the Columbus Jets. He got stuck in the minors because the Pirates had a starting outfield consisting of three all-time greats in Roberto Clemente, Bill Virdon and Willie Stargell with Manny Mota and Al Oliver coming off the bench.
Spriggs had his contract purchased by the Kansas City Royals in October 1967 and wound up reaching the majors with that American League organization. He played 74 career games over two seasons with the Royals.
Spriggs, the only Negro League alumnus to wear a Kansas City Royals uniform, retired in 1974 and returned to Anne Arundel County. The Tracey’s Landing resident built a baseball field behind his house that was home to the Chesapeake Twins baseball club.
That complex is now called Geno’s Field in honor of Spriggs’ son, who was a standout baseball player at Southern High and signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Geno Spriggs died tragically in a car accident.
Ed Purpura
Purpura was the head coach of cross country and track and field at Severna Park for more than three decades. He started at Severna Park in 1988 and retired in 2016 after leading the program to five state championships.
Severna Park cross country captured 33 county championships and 30 region championships under Purpura’s direction. He led the Falcons to three county championships and four region titles in indoor track, two county championships and three region crowns in outdoor track.
Purpura was named Capital Gazette Coach of the Year a total of 35 times, Baltimore Sun All-Metro Coach of the Year five times and Washington Post All-Metro Coach of the Year twice. He was a standout cross country and track distance runner at Severna Park High and Anne Arundel Community College.
Clay White
White is the all-time winningest boys’ lacrosse coach (public or private) in Anne Arundel County history. He retired following the 2019 season after compiling an overall career record of 455-198 in 38 seasons.
Most of that success came at Broadneck High where White posted a 408-146 (.736 winning percentage) record in 33 seasons. He had spent five seasons at Southern High after serving as an assistant coach at Meade High.
White led Broadneck to four state championships, which came consecutively in 199293 and 1996-97. The Bruins suffered just one losing season under White’s direction.
White, who played lacrosse at Severna Park High under Butch Young and at Anne Arundel Community College under Mike Ballas, sent dozens of Broadneck players to the Division I or Division III ranks.