Rice Inducts Hall of Famers

Three athletes who were influential in Rice’s athletic resurgence in the 1990s have been inducted into the university’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

Jose Cruz Jr., Kareem Streete- Thompson, and Valerie Tulloch became the newest members of the hall on October 5 at ceremonies in the Owl Club. Also honored were former football lettermen Dan Drake and Matt Gorges as Distinguished “R” Men. Carl Isgren received an honorary “R.”

Cruz, now the starting centerfielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, was a three-time all-American during his Rice career (1993–95), leading the Owls to their first NCAA play-off appearance in 1995. He ended his career as the Owls’ all-time leader in batting average, home runs, and runs batted in—records that all have been eclipsed in the past six seasons.

Thompson, still one of the top long jumpers in the world, won the 1995 NCAA championship in the event for the Owls. His jump of 28' 3 3/4" in 1994 stands as the Rice school record. Thompson also shares the Rice record in the 100-meter dash at 10.16 seconds, and he represented the Cayman Islands in the 1992 Barcelona and 2000 Sydney Olympics in the two events.

Tulloch was a three-time NCAA champion in the javelin, winning the event in 1992, 1994, and 1995. The four-time all-American and three-time Southwest Conference champion still holds the Rice record of 198' 9", set at the 1995 Pan American Games while competing for Canada.

Drake, a successful Houston businessman, quarterbacked the Owls in 1951–52, while Gorges was an all-SWC guard for the Owls’ 1957 conference championship team. An Edinburg, Texas, businessman, Gorges has been a long-time Owl supporter in the Rio Grande Valley. Isgren, a 1961 Rice graduate, has been an avid booster of all Rice athletic programs.