PITTSBURG, Kan. – Former Pitt State running back Caleb Farabi will enter the Pitt State Athletics Hall of Fame this fall.
“I’m super excited. It’s something I’ve been waiting for and something I had hoped for when I was a child,” Farabi says, “Finally, just one more dream came true.”
Farabi was a 2X All-American for the Gorillas, playing for Pitt State from 2005-2008.
He rushed for 3,292 yards in his college career, which is 7th most all-time for Pitt State football. He also racked up 46 total touchdowns, and was the MIAA’s Ken B. Jones Award winner for the 2008-2009 academic year.
“With an individual award comes sacrifice from other guys. I think of all the friends I made and the coaches and mentors that were there for me,” Farabi adds on playing at Pitt State, “My linemen Travis Greer, Shane McGinnis, Martin Burke, Marcus Nelson and our quarterback Mark Smith, who we all know… They could have thrown the ball a lot more, and they were asked to do different things sometimes. I’m just fortunate to have those guys on my team.”
Entering the Pitt State Hall of Fame means a little more to Farabi – who is a Pittsburg product – playing his high school ball at St. Mary’s Colgan.
“I was just so happy to have the opportunity to do it in my hometown. I’m happy for my parents and my family,” Farabi says, “I think I would speak for all of the guys on the team that it’s a grind every day. I’m just proud that I was able to make it through it, and in the end, I was able to meet my wife here, too.”
Farabi is one of eight individuals who will enter the PSU Athletics Hall of Fame this fall.
Pittsburg State’s 35th class of inductees will be honored at a special Hall of Fame Induction Banquet on Friday evening, Sept. 30. The group also will be honored at halftime of the Gorillas’ football game against Missouri Southern the next day (Oct. 1).
FULL RELEASE FROM PITTSBURG STATE ATHLETICS:
Pittsburg State University is pleased to announce its 2022 induction class into the Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame. The diverse group – comprised of eight individuals – will be formally inducted during ceremonies on campus the weekend of Oct. 1.
PSU’s Class of 2022 is headlined by a cast of decorated athletes and coaches: Caleb Farabi (2005-08), a two-time NCAA Division II All-American running back in football; Chris Grantham (1981-84), an All-America offensive lineman in football; Steve High, the Gorillas women’s basketball coach from 1990 to 2007 and the winningest coach in program history; Kiara Jones (2008-12), an eight-time All-America performer in the horizontal jumps for the Gorillas in track & field; Tommy Myers (1996-98), an NCAA-II All-Region and record setting outfielder in baseball; and Sammie Williams (2005-08), the first two-time All-America performer in the history of the Pitt State volleyball program.
Ed Nealy (1956-57), a first-team All-CIC men’s basketball performer who helped lead Pitt State to a 27-2 record and a third-place finish at the 1956 NAIA National Tournament, and Dennis Watson (1963-66), an All-America offensive lineman in football for the Gorillas, will be inducted in the Hall of Fame’s “Legacy” category.
The Legacy category, created in 2005, focuses solely on individuals who completed their athletic eligibility 50 years from the current calendar year in an attempt to bolster the school’s rich heritage from earlier years.
“Once again PSU Athletics is blessed with the opportunity to pay tribute to a handful of elite individuals representing the proud history and tradition of Gorilla intercollegiate athletics,” said Dan Wilkes, associate athletic director/communications and chair of the PSU Athletics Hall of Fame Committee. “We are tremendously proud of this group that comprises the Class of 2022 and we are excited to honor and celebrate their stories and accomplishments on campus this fall.”
2022 Hall of Fame Inductee Profiles
Caleb Farabi, Football, 2005-08
~ NCAA-II All-American, 2007-08 (3rd, AP, FB Gazette, ’08; HM, RB, FB Gazette, ’07)
~ MIAA All-Conference, 2007-08 (1st, RB, ’07-08)
~ Rushed for 3,292 yards & 43 TDs – 7th highest rushing total in PSU history;
also caught 101 passes for 945 yards & 3 TDs
~ A two-time CoSIDA Academic All-America selection (2007-08)
~ 2008-09 MIAA Ken B. Jones Award Winner (Male Student-Athlete of the Year)
Chris Grantham, Football, 1981-84
~ NAIA All-American, 1984 (1st, OL)
~ CSIC All-Conference, 1982-84 (1st, OL, ’82-84)
~ Member of 1981 NAIA National Runner-up Team
~ Joined the U.S. Navy in May 1985, retired Petty Officer First Class, 1991
Steve High, Women’s Basketball Coach, 1990-2007
~ Served for 18 years as the Gorillas head coach, compiling a 296-201 (.596) overall record
~ Led PSU to the school’s first MIAA title in 1992 – won MIAA titles in 1992 & 1996
~ Led the Gorillas to the school’s first NCAA National Tournament appearance in 1992,
and five overall berths in the national tournament
~ The longest-tenured and winningest women’s basketball coach in PSU history
Kiara Jones, Track & Field, 2008-12
~ Seven-time NCAA-II All-American in the triple jump:
3rd, 51-7.25 (O), 2012; 6th, 48-6.25 (I), 2011; 2nd, 51-8.5 (I), 2010; 5th, 49-11 (O), 2010;
3rd, 50-1.75 (I), 2009; 3rd, 50-4.5 (O), 2009; 7th, 49-3.25 (O), 2008
~ NCAA-II All-American in the long jump (4th, 23-6.75 indoor, 2011)
~ 10-time All-MIAA performer; two-time MIAA Champ, triple jump
~ Set PSU record in the indoor triple jump (51-11.25), currently 2nd
~ Set PSU record in the outdoor triple jump (52-2), currently 2nd
Tommy Myers, Baseball, 1996-98
~ NCAA-II All-Region, 1998 (1st team, OF, ABCA, ’98)
~ MIAA All-Conference, 1997-98 (H.M., OF, ’97; 1st, OF, 98)
~ .340 career batting avg. with 21 HRs and 121 RBIs in 126 games
~ .405 BA with 72 runs scored, 14 HRs and 59 RBIs in 1998
~ Set PSU record for career runs scored (142), single-season runs scored (72, ’98),
single-season HRs (21, ’98); ranked 2nd in career HRs, 21 (now 7th); ranked 2nd
in career stolen bases, 42 (now 3rd); ranked 2nd in career walks, 85 (now 2nd);
ranked third in career RBIs, 121 (now 6th)
~ Served as PSU head coach, 2017-18
Sammie Williams, Volleyball, 2005-08
~ Two-time NCAA-II All-America: 2007, HM, AVCA; 2008, 3rd, AVCA
~ PSU program’s first two-time All-America performer
~ Four-time All-MIAA selection (2005-08)
~ 2005 MIAA Freshman of the Year
~ Set PSU career record for kills (1825), currently 2nd
Legacy Category
Ed Nealy, Men’s Basketball, 1956-57
~ CIC All-Conference, first-team, 1956-57
~ Scored 663 points in 53 career games (12.5 ppg)
~ Scored 375 points in 24 games his senior year (15.6 ppg)
~ Helped PSU to a 27-2 record and a third-place finish in the NAIA Nat’l Tourn. in 1956
~ Also a member of PSU’s 1957 NAIA National Champion football team
Dennis Watson, Football, 1963-66
~ NAIA All-American, 1966 (H.M., end)
~ CIC All-Conference, 1966 (1st, end)
~ Baseball squad member, 1964-67
~ Long-time high school teacher & coach at Pittsburg HS (1968-98), Frontenac and Girard
2022 Hall of Fame Ceremonies
Pittsburg State’s 35th class of inductees will be honored at a special Hall of Fame Induction Banquet on Friday evening, Sept. 30. The group also will be honored at halftime of the Gorillas’ football game against Missouri Southern the next day (Oct. 1).
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