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Coach Cooper, Three Athletes and Two Special Contributors Inducted into Coyote Sports Hall of Fame

(left to right) Beanie Cooper, Bill Moats, Barry Blue, Paul Lewis, John Thompson, and John Hemenway.

VERMILLION, S.D. -- Three former student-athletes, past head coach/athletic director Beanie Cooper and special contributors Paul Lewis and John Thomson were inducted into the 2008 Coyote Sports Hall of Fame on Saturday, Sept. 20. The induction of the Class of 2008 grows the Coyotes Sports Hall of Fame membership to 251.

Inductees were honored at the ceremony which was held at the Al Neuharth Media Center on the USD campus and at the football game on Saturday afternoon at the DakotaDome.

Former athletes Barry Blue of Omaha, Neb.; John Hemenway of Mitchell, S.D.; and Bill Moats of Boise, Idaho; will join Cooper of Sioux City, Iowa; Lewis and Thomson, both of Sioux Falls, S.D., in the induction ceremony of the Class of 2008. The U will also recognize the 1978 NCC championship football team as part of the Hall of Fame’s Special Achievements recognition.

“This is an exceptional group of individuals with strong ties to The University of South Dakota,” said USD Director of Athletics Joel Nielsen. “We proudly honor their achievements both at USD and after leaving campus.”

Beanie Cooper
Cooper, who was the director of athletics and head football coach at USD from 1975-78, led the 1978 football team to an NCC title in one of the most remarkable turnaround seasons in school history. His 1978 Coyotes opened 1-3 and finished 6-1, including a 5-0-1 record in league play. During a remarkable run to the league crown, Cooper’s Coyotes won six-straight games and outscored opponents by over 100 points. He left USD after the 1978 season to take over athletic director duties at Indiana State. Prior to USD he was a high school coach in Iowa for 18 years. Cooper was the Iowa District Coach of the Year six times at Heelan High (43-11 record) and has been inducted into the Iowa Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Cooper graduated from Morningside College, where he played for legendary coach George Allen. Later Allen guided the NFL’s Washington Redskins to the Super Bowl in 1972. Two of Cooper’s sons, Tim (wide receiver) and Pat (linebacker), played for the 1978 Coyote championship team. Today Cooper is a nationally renowned public speaker from Sioux City, Iowa.

Barry Blue
Blue, who starred for the Coyotes from 1970-74, ranks as one of the greatest all-time kickers in USD football history. He was a member of head coach Joe Salem’s back-to-back-to-back conference championship football teams from 1972-74. Blue, who made a then-school record 106 extra points, ranks 12th (154 points) on USD’s career scoring chart. In 1974 he connected on 14 field goals. Blue set school records for extra points attempted and made in a game with 11 vs. Winona State in 1973. Born in Valdosta, Ga., he grew up in Lincoln, Neb. Blue received a health physical education and recreation degree in 1974 from USD and resides in Omaha, Neb., where he is the vice president at Pacesetter Corporation.

John Hemenway
From 1992-96, Hemenway was a standout point guard for the USD men’s basketball program and head coach Dave Boots. A three-year starter and two-time co-captain for South Dakota, he earned All-North Central Region honors and was a CoSIDA second-team Academic All-American in 1996. During his career he helped lead the Coyotes to a remarkable 89-25 mark, two NCC titles and two NCAA Division II Elite 8 appearances. During Hemenway’s senior season he averaged 19.6 points and 6.8 assists per game, while earning first-team All-North Central Region honors. He sits fourth all-time at South Dakota with 486 career assists, with his 197 in 1994-95 ranking as the fourth-best single season total in school history. Hemenway, a two-time All-NCC selection, scored over 30 points three times in his career. A native of the Rockton, Ill., Hemenway earned a B.S. degree in education in 1996 and a M.A. degree in health, physical education and recreation in 1998 from USD. Hemenway also spent three years (2002-05) as an assistant basketball coach at USD. Previously, he was an assistant coach and sports information director at Chaminade University (Hawaii) and an assistant coach for Jerry Schmutte at Morningside College. Hemenway recently completed his third season as the head men’s coach at Dakota Wesleyan in Mitchell, S.D. Under Hemenway’s leadership, the Tigers have won more games (62) than in any three-year stretch in Dakota Wesleyan’s 91-year basketball history. This past season, he led DWU to a second consecutive NAIA II national tournament appearance while compiling a 24-9 record.

Bill Moats
Moats, who was an all-state and record-setting quarterback (14 school marks) at Sioux Falls Lincoln H.S., helped lead the 1978 Coyote football team to an NCC championship. He was named the NCC MVP for defensive backs while earning All-NCC honors. Moats was selected as a first team defensive back on the Associated Press Little All-American and the Kodak Coaches All-American teams. He also earned selection to the Ray Scott’s Computer All-American team as a punter. A four-year letter winner at South Dakota, he was named to the All-NCC Academic team in 1978. Moats finished the season with seven interceptions while leading USD in punting with a single season school record 77 punts for 3,377 yards and a 43.9 average. When he left USD, Moats owned 10 school records and still ranks third in school history with 15 career interceptions. He owns two of the top eight interceptions totals ever with seven in 1978 and six in 1976. He also holds the all-time record for average yards per punt at 42.2 yards from 1976-78. He tied a school record with three interceptions against Northeast Missouri State in 1978, which earned him NCC Player of the Week honors. Moats placed second in the nation as a junior and first in the nation as a senior in punting. He was drafted in the 12th round by the Green Bay Packers and also received tryouts with San Francisco and New England. Moats earned his undergraduate degree from the University of North Dakota in physical therapy in 1982. He later completed a master’s degree in physical therapy from Washington University in St. Louis. Moats now works at an orthopedic and sports clinic in Boise, Idaho.

Paul Lewis
Lewis, of Sioux Falls, S.D., is a successful businessman and a long-time contributor to USD athletics. Initially attending Washington University in St. Louis where he played golf, Lewis transferred to USD and earned a B.S. in political science in 1973 and a J.D. in law in 1976. Lewis was an associate with Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith, in Sioux Falls where he drafted documents for the Dakota Dome Development Corporation under the direction of Richard Cutler. From 1978-84, he was a professional bridge player. Since 1984, he has served as vice-chairman/chairman of the First State Bank of Armour, S.D., and has been president of PAL, Inc., of Sioux Falls (property management and development company). He was president of the Bank of the Desert in LaQuinta, Calif., from 1988-91. His association with The U includes serving as the chair-elect of the USD Foundation. A member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity, he has been a USD Foundation Trustee since the 1980s. Lewis has served as chair of the USD Investment Committee since the early 1990s and a member of the USD Foundation’s Executive Committee since 2005. His father, H. Lauren Lewis, is one of the founding partners for the DakotaDome. The USD football field (in the Dakota Dome) is named for Paul’s father. Lewis, who has competed in several Ironman triathlon competitions, has also participated in four marathons.

John Thomson
Thomson and his family have been long-time boosters of Coyote athletics as well as the University. Originally of Centerville, S.D., he earned a B.S. in accounting from USD in 1950. Later, he did graduate work at the University of Wisconsin and participated in the Preshow International Study Seminars overseas. He started a lifelong banking career with the Bank of Centerville (now First Midwest Bank) in 1950. After serving with the U.S. Air Force in Europe from 1952-54, he resumed his career with First Midwest Bank, where he currently serves as chairman of the board. He also worked as a finance officer for the S.D. Air National Guard. A member of Beta Theta Pi, he has served as president of the USD Alumni Association and on the USD Foundation Executive Committee. He is a past president of the USD Bankers Education Corporation. He and his wife Nane established the Thomson-McConnell Scholarship Fund at the USD School of Business. A Boy Scouts scoutmaster, he is the past chair of the South Dakota Banking Commission, and was president of the South Dakota Banker’s Association. In addition, he was chairman of the Centerville School Board for 13 years and treasurer for the Federated Church for 30 years.

1978 Football Team
The 1978 Coyote Football team won the NCC title with an unbelievable finish. This fall will mark the 30th anniversary of that team that rallied from a 1-3 start to win an NCC title with a 7-4 record. USD won the NCC title with a 21-3 win over Nebraska-Omaha on ABC regional TV in the final league game of the season. They won six-straight games, beginning with a 17-14 win over NDSU in Fargo. During their six-game winning streak, the Coyotes outscored their opponents, 146-42. South Dakota averaged 178.3 yards rushing and 68.4 yards by passing. The U had a solid defense which recorded two safeties, 16 fumble recoveries and 19 interceptions, including seven by Bill Moats. From game 2 through 10, USD did not allow a team to score more than 14 points in a game (game 5, NDSU). Brian Barnes rushed for 576 yards and three TDs while Emmett Huston had 484 yards and four TDs. Kicker Knud Nielsen led the team in scoring with 42 points. At the end of the season, six players were named to the All-NCC team, two were named NCC MVPs (Moats, defensive back; and Mike Scherer, offensive lineman), one (Moats) earned All-American honors while two others (linebacker Ben Long and defensive tackle Dave Schwab) earned honorable mention All-American honors.

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