January 11, 2013 - CNU Athletics Hall of Fame Inductions (from CNUsports.com)

Post date: Jan 11, 2013 4:51:43 PM

Christopher Newport Athletic Hall of Fame to Induct Four New Members

1/10/2013 4:42:00 PM

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The Christopher Newport University Athletic Hall of Fame will induct four new members with the Class of 2013. Induction ceremonies will take place at halftime of the CNU/Greensboro men's basketball game on Saturday, February 2, 2013. The game will begin at 4 p.m. at the Freeman Center.

The members of the 2013 induction class were announced by the CNU Athletic Department today, This year's inductees include two former football standouts, Rob Rodriguez and Roland Hilliard, as well as Sherwin Green (men's basketball) and longtime assistant track and field coach Louis Johnson.

“We are honored to have these four CNU family members as our 2013 Hall of Fame class,” Interim Director of Athletics Jon Waters said. “These three student-athletes have all made such an impact for their respective sports, and Coach Johnson has influenced an entire generation of CNU track athletes through his leadership and desire to make his students better every single day. We congratulate them for their excellence.”

Rob Rodriguez was a first team All-American selection by both the American Football Coaches Association and D3football.com. He also earned pre-season All-American honors from D3football.com. He is the Captains' all-time leader on special teams, with over 1,000 kickoff return yards on 134 career attempts. He holds the school mark for single game and career kickoff return average. Rodriguez finished his career with 10 blocked kicks, among the best marks of all-time in Division III. He also graduated as the all-time leader in interception returns, with 110 yards on nine picks, which currently ranks second, and maintains sole possession of the all-time record for total interceptions with nine. Rodriguez currently ranks in the Top 10 all-time in total tackles as well with 156.

Roland Hilliard was named honorable mention All-American by D3football.com and first team All-Region also by D3football.com. Hilliard virtually re-wrote the CNU record book in his senior year, gaining 1,215 yards to break his own record, finishing his career as the all-time leading rusher with 3,149 yards. He also set marks for rushing TD's in a season (15) and career (28), and set new records for the most 100+ yard games in a season (7) and career (16). His scoring marks of 16 touchdowns in a season and 32 in his career also were record-breaking, and nearly all of these marks still rank second in CNU's history. Hilliard was a three-time All-Conference selection including first team selections twice. He was selected the Offensive Player of the Year in the USA South in 2004. He is also CNU's all-time leader in all-purpose yards by a significant margin, with 4,477.

Sherwin Green was an early standout in the history of the Christopher Newport men's basketball program, leading the Captains from 1972-75. He was the second CNU player to ever earn All-Conference honors twice in his career. Green was the third all-time leading scorer in program history at the time of graduation. He registered 814 points and 404 rebounds in just 74 career games before an injury ended his playing career prior to his senior year.

Louis Johnson began his association with the CNU track program in 1987 as a volunteer assistant coach while still serving actively with the Newport News Police Department. In 2005-06, he served as interim head coach after the retirement of former coach Vince Brown. During his years with the Captains he has coached 15 national champions in the sprints and 400-meter relay. Johnson was the first sprint coach ever to have athletes win the 55-meter titles in the same year, at any level, when Ed Milling and Sheila Trice, both CNU Hall of Famers, accomplished the feat in 1990.

The Christopher Newport Athletic Hall of Fame has been in existence since 1989, and 2013 marks the 25^th induction class. The four new members will bring the Hall of Fame to 109 total members.