Sports Hall of Fame Inductees, 2011

September 16-17, 2011 will be a very special weekend for five outstanding ISU alumni.
Sylvia PapenbergKaren TharpWillie HumesWayne HillBoyd Hall That weekend, Boyd Hall, Wayne Hill, Willie Humes, Karen Tharp, and Sylvia Papenberg will be inducted into the ISU Sports Hall of Fame.

Below are this year's inductees.

Boyd Hall

Growing up 12 miles from Pocatello, playing high school football at Marsh Valley High school, Boyd Hall became one of the most explosive fullbacks in Idaho State football history. Recruited by Head Coach Babe Caccia, Boyd played for ISC from 1957 through 1960, setting records as he went. Leading the Rocky Mountain Conference in both rushing and scoring in 1959- 1960, he was named to the All-Conference team and received honorable mention All-American honors.

In 1959, Boyd set a school record of 12 touchdowns, 76 points and 898 yards rushing which stood until broken by Merril Hoge in 1985. Boyd’s records however, were achieved when the season consisted of only 8 games compared to Hoge’s 11 games. Boyd was considered the “go to” guy when crucial yardage was needed, not only by his teammates but by his coaches as well.

Following his collegiate career, Boyd was drafted and played professional football for the Toronto Argonauts. His professional career was cut short due to injuries in his 2nd year. Boyd returned to Pocatello and has never left. Boyd and Bonnie have raised their six children in Pocatello and three attended ISU. Boyd owns Hall Enterprises and Bonnie retired from the ISU, having worked in the Graduate School for 27 years.

Boyd has continued his commitment to ISU athletics, student athletes at every level and his support for higher education. His son Rick stated, “If you were to ask around town, you would find many people Boyd has helped who would willingly say, he’s one hell of a nice guy.”

 

Wayne Hill

Called “The General” by his teammates due to his leadership qualities both on and off the field, Wayne embodied the spirit and heart of the game of football. This 4-year starter at inside linebacker from 1973-1977 is also described as hard-nosed, physical, instinctive, disruptive, fast, a loyal teammate who played with “controlled fury.”

Wayne had a career total of 339 tackles, was a 2-time unanimous selection first-team All Big Sky Conference and once second-team all conference at his position. He was ISU’s first linebacker to be named twice first-team all league. He received 2nd team AP All-American and Honorable mention and was selected to play in the North-South Shrine Football game, a post-season honor not many others have received. Wayne was an undrafted free agent, selected by the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the CFL.

Wayne and his wife Donna live in Boise but ISU is never far from their thoughts. All of their children (John, Spencer, Michael and Mary) have attended ISU and Spencer was an All Big Sky track athlete. Wayne truly knows the value of education, not only for himself as the first in his family to attend and graduate from a university, but the encouragement and support he provided to his own children to obtain their education.

Professionally, Wayne is an IBI therapist and has taken a lead role in the creation of the autism and behavior program at Idaho State University. Obviously, Wayne had exhibited leadership in all he has done and continues to do. Teammates of his, who stepped up in large numbers to support his selection to the ISU Sports Hall of Fame all tell their own stories of how he lead by example, played hard on every down and at an extremely high level and one of the hardest hitters ever seen in an ISU football uniform. Former Sports Information Director Glenn Alford stated, “Wayne played as if opposing ball carriers had something of his and he wanted it back.”

 

Hailing from the college basketball capital of the world, Indiana, Willie chose a different path and headed West, landing at Idaho State University in 1969. The first game he played at ISU he had 51 points and had to be carried off the court! That performance and Willie’s scoring abilities continued throughout his career at ISU.

Willie is the Bengal’s all-time career scoring average leader, averaging 31.5 points per game. He ranks #10 all time in NCAA career scoring average. He is sixth all-time in total points scored by a Bengal and has the top five all-time single game scoring marks, including three games of 51 points or more. All of these games were against Big Sky opponents- Montana State (53 points), Northern Arizona (51 points) and Boise State (51 points). For his career at ISU, Willie scored 1,510 points!

Willie was named to the Big Sky Conference’s Silver anniversary team in 1987 and was a two-time all conference player. He was drafted in the sixth round of the 1971 NBA draft by the Atlanta Hawks. Willie obtained his BS in Physical Education from ISU in 1972.

Things have come full circle for Willie. Just this past June, he was named Women’s Basketball coach at his own high school in Indiana. Willie is married and has one grown child.

 

 

Karen obtained her BA in Social Work from ISU in 1979. She has spent her life and career helping others so it’s no surprise that when she stepped onto the basketball court at ISU, she gave 110%. After almost 30 years, Karen still holds two single season records of 171 assists (1974-79) and 6.58 assists per game (1974-79). During this same time, she had 65 steals and had a free throw percentage of 81.4%. An all around great player, Karen was team captain all four years, from 1975-1979. She received the MVP award in both 1976 and 1979.

Not content with just excelling on the court, Karen also served as the student director of the NCAA in 1978-1979 and co-founded the local AAU basketball team, the Rocky Mountain Suns.

For the past 30 years, Karen has worked with the State of Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. As a licensed social worker since 1979, she has moved up the ranks beginning her career as a social worker, to supervisor for multidisciplinary treatment team in 1983 and in 2010 became DD supervisor overseeing 24 counties within the state of Idaho.

Karen credits her experiences in athletics for teaching her how to be a team player and gave her the skills and experiences to work effectively within the team and yet be a leader. She credits athletics for also allowing her to develop her own commitment, diligence and perseverance that have lead to such a successful career and life. Nancy Graziano, Associate Athletic Director at ISU indicated “Aside from Karen’s contribution to ISU athletics, she has utilized her education in helping others within her community. I rely deeply on her professional expertise as a licensed social worker and graduate of the ISU Social Work program.”

 

In the Papenberg family, there are now two members of the ISU Sports Hall of Fame. Sylvia’s late husband, Don Papenberg was inducted in 1992. Now Sylvia joins him as the 2011 recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. Many would argue, Sylvia was the better athlete of the two and likely Pappy would agree. Growing up in the shadow of the Teton Mountains, riding her horse and being a bit of a tomboy as a child, Sylvia excelled in athletics at Teton High School. While at ISU, she played softball, volleyball and basketball and was also a cheerleader along with her future husband. She was also a member of the only women’s football team ever fielded at ISU- and it wasn’t flag football!

Sylvia’s and Pappy’s support for Idaho State University has never waned. Sylvia can be found cheering her Bengals at every home football and basketball game and excitedly watching the women’s softball team. This year, due to Sylvia’s generosity, the women’s softball team has a new and permanent home, Miller Ranch Stadium. Sylvia gifted 40 acres of her beloved family property in the Teton Valley as well as considerable cash to insure that women’s softball has a home and facility that will enhance the overall program and the development of the student athletes who participate.

Retired since 2003 after teaching and a successful 20 years in the banking industry, Sylvia remains active participating in the Idaho Senior Games (and a three-time gold medalist), plays tennis, participates in line dancing and of course, attends ISU sporting and cultural events.

 

 

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