SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State athletic department has revealed its 2020 class for the Aztec Hall of Fame. The group of six inductees for this year's class includes former softball star Erin Floros, the late men's volleyball coach Jack Henn, running back Ronnie Hillman, women's tennis standout Linda Howell, men's basketball player Jack Shawcroft and assistant football coach Ernie Zampese.
The six Aztec legends were scheduled to be enshrined in the fall of 2020; however, the class could not be honored appropriately due to COVID-19 protocols.
Consequently, the festivities were postponed, and a formal induction ceremony is now planned for January 2022, with specific details, including date, time and location, to be announced later this fall.
Since its launch in 1988, the Aztec Hall of Fame has honored 159 individuals and six teams (not including this year's enshrinees), welcoming a new group of legends each year through 1999. Inductions encountered a two-year hiatus while the Aztec Athletics Center (now Fowler Athletics Center) was under construction and the permanent home of the Hall of Fame was established. The ceremonies resumed in 2002 once the building was completed and continued annually through 2019.
Below is a quick look at the newest Aztec Hall of Fame class:
Erin Floros – Softball
2006-07-08-09
National Honors: 2006 NFCA All-American (third team) and 2006 Easton-Bell Sports All-American (first team); 2007 USA Softball Player of the Year Watch List; 2006 NFCA all-West Region (first team)
Conference Honors: Mountain West Freshman of the Year; Three-time all-Mountain West (2006, 2008-09)
Became SDSU's first-ever All-American in 2006 when she was named a third-team NFCA All-American and first-team Easton-Bell Sports All-American as a freshman … Also earned a spot on the 2006 NFCA all-West Region First Team … Became the first Aztec ever on a USA Softball Player of the Year Watch List in 2007 … Garnered all-MW accolades on three occasions (2006, 2008-09) and was named MW Freshman of the Year in 2006 … Received Mountain West all-academic distinction in all four years on The Mesa (2006-09) … Twice merited MW Player of the Week honors over her career … Batted .331 over her career with 12 home runs, 101 RBIs, 53 runs, 26 doubles, 62 walks, a .458 slugging percentage and a .408 on-base mark … Despite missing 43 games over her career due to a torn ACL and appendicitis, left SDSU ranked second in slugging percentage (.458), third in batting average (.331), third in on-base percentage (.408), third in RBIs (101), third in fielding percentage (.993), third in putouts (936), tied for third in home runs (12) and tied for third in walks (62) … As of 2020, she is ranked third in fielding percentage (.993), fifth in putouts (936), sixth in chances (1,059), ninth in batting average (.331) and on-base percentage (.408) and is tied for 10th in RBIs (101) and in walks (62).
Jack Henn – Men's Volleyball
Player (early 1960s)
Coach (1966-1974, 1985-2000)
Served two stints as head coach of the San Diego State men's volleyball program, highlighted by the University's lone NCAA Division I championship in 1973 … Coached two All-Americans on that squad in Chris Marlowe and Duncan McFarland, who were later enshrined into the Aztec Athletics Hall of Fame … Also guided San Diego State to the USVBA national collegiate championship in 1968, two years before the sport was sanctioned by the NCAA … Was the catalyst behind the Aztecs' return to national prominence during his second tour of duty on The Mesa in the 1990s, as the Scarlet and Black earned a No. 3 AVCA ranking for four weeks during the 1991 campaign before finishing the year at No. 5 … Played collegiately at San Diego State in the early 1960s, collecting eight All-America honors from USA Volleyball nationals and the collegiate championships before receiving his bachelor's degree in physical education … Also excelled on the international stage … Was selected as an alternate for the United States Olympic team in 1964, before competing as a setter-hitter for the American squad at the 1968 Summer Games in Mexico City, where the U.S. was the lone team to defeat the Soviet Union, which later advanced to win the gold medal … Also participated in the 1966 World Championships in the former Czechoslovakia and served as captain of the U.S. team that captured the gold medal at the 1967 Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada … In between stints as SDSU head coach, he taught physical education at the high school level in India and worked as manager of a bank in Ojai, Calif. … Returned to the Aztec men's volleyball program as a volunteer coach in 1985 and served as co-coach of the team in 1987 and 1988 … Recipient of USA Volleyball's All-Time Greatest Players Award in 2011… Passed away on March 22, 2020 after a battle with cancer … Was part of the 2020 class inducted into the Southern California Indoor Volleyball Hall of Fame.
Ronnie Hillman – Football
2010-11
Earned third-team All-America recognition by the Associated Press and Phil Steele in 2011 and received All-America honorable mention by Sports Illustrated … Was a 2011 Doak Walker Award semifinalist … Also was on watch lists for Walter Camp (national player of the year) and Maxwell Award (college player of the year) … 2010 first-team Freshman All-American by FWAA and Phil Steele … 2010 MW Freshman of the Year … Two-time first-team all-MW (2010-11) … Seven-time MW Offensive Player of the Week (three times in 2010, four times in 2011) … Won the Simcox Trophy as the Aztec MVP in 2011 … Rushed 573 times for 3,243 yards (5.7 avg.) with 36 touchdowns over his career while adding 33 receptions for 338 yards (10.2 avg.) and two additional scores … As of 2021, his SDSU career ranks include fourth in 100-yard rushing games (15), tied for fourth in rushing touchdowns (36), fifth in rushing yards (3,243), and fifth in rush attempts (573) … Among the single-season leaders, his 2011 campaign has him ranked in a tie for second in rushing attempts (311), tied for fourth in 100-yard rushing games (9), fifth in rushing yards (1,711) and sixth in rushing touchdowns (19) … Helped the Aztecs play in their first bowl game in 12 years (2010 Poinsettia Bowl) … Selected in third round in 2012 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos with whom he was a Super Bowl champion.
Linda Howell – Women's Tennis
1982-83-84-85
A two-time All-American player from the most productive era of the San Diego State women's tennis program … Earned singles and doubles All-American honors for the 1984 campaign … The Aztecs posted a 96-33 record (74.4 percent), winning a school-record 26 matches three different times during her career on The Mesa … The final ITA national team rankings during her four seasons at SDSU were fifth, fifth, fourth and seventh … The Aztecs advanced to the NCAA tournament in all four of her years, including a program-best fourth-place finish in the 1984 finals … Won three matches in the 1985 NCAA singles tournament to advance to the quarterfinal round … Played in the main draw of the Grand Slam at the 1984 U.S. Open … Also competed at Wimbledon in 1985 in both women's doubles and mixed doubles.
Jack Shawcroft – Men's Basketball
1963-64-65
Won three letters for the Scarlet and Black … Garnered all-CCAA accolades in 1963 and 1964 … Was named the Aztecs' most valuable player in all three seasons he played … Also served as team captain during the 1963-64 campaign … Led Aztecs in scoring in '62-63 (11.7 ppg) and 63-64 (14.0 ppg) … Helped SDSU to three consecutive winning seasons, as the team posted records of 17-9, 15-11 and 14-11 in his career … The Aztecs' CCAA finishes in those years were T-2nd, 3rd, T-3rd.
Ernie Zampese – Football
San Diego State DB coach, 1967-75
Was hired by head coach Don Coryell as the Aztecs' defensive backfield coach in June 1967 … Zampese replaced Madden, who resigned to join the Oakland Raiders staff … Remained an assistant coach at San Diego State from 1967 to 1975 and was one of two assistant coaches to retain his job after Coryell stepped down in 1973 to become head coach of the St. Louis Cardinals.
SDSU Athletics Announces Newest Hall of Fame Class
