Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, July 16, 1995 TAG: 9507170044
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: STAFF REPORT
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Others who will be enshrined with Smith in ceremonies Sept.22 include: football players Waddey Harvey and Tony Paige; two-time All-America distance-runner Linda King Steel; volunteer athletic department orthopedic surgeon Louis P. Ripley; and the late Frank Teske, who coached Tech to seven Southern Conference wrestling titles.
The six honorees will be inducted officially at a dinner on the Tech campus on the eve of the Hokies' Big East Conference football game against Miami. The five living inductees and their family members will be introduced at halftime of the football game Sept.23.
Under Tech's hall of fame guidelines, an individual must have been out of school for 10 years before becoming eligible for induction. Smith and King Steel were elected in their first year of eligibility.
Smith's selection was a given. The Norfolk native helped turn around Tech's program in the early 1980s with his dominating play on the defensive line.
He capped his Hokies career in 1984 by winning the Outland Trophy as college football's top lineman. He was a consensus All-American that season after making a number of All-America squads as a junior.
In his four-year college career, Smith had 46 sacks and 71 tackles behind the line of scrimmage, accounting for 504 yards in losses. Tech compiled a 31-14 record in Smith's four seasons.
The Buffalo Bills made Smith the No.1 pick in the 1985 NFL draft. He has more than lived up to expectations, being named All-Pro six times and leading the Bills to the Super Bowl for four consecutive years.
King Steel, a native of Succasunna, N.J., still holds five individual Tech records she set in the mid-1980s. Her name is in the track record book three more times as a member of relay teams.
She has school indoor records in the 1,000, 1,500 and 3,000 meters and outdoor marks in the 1,000 and 5,000. The record-setting relay squads on which she competed were the 1,500, 400 and distance medley.
King Steel competed in the NCAA outdoor championships and earned All-America status in 1984 and '85.
Following her graduation from Tech, King Steel attended nursing school in New York and now works with a group of cardiologists in Austin, Texas.
Harvey, a huge defensive tackle from Highland Springs, helped lead Tech to Liberty Bowl appearances in 1966 and '68. He was named the team's MVP in '68, and the Hokies were 22-9-1 during his career.
He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills and played one season in the NFL. Harvey resides in Richmond, where he is regional sales manager for the Virginia Tech Sports Network.
Paige, a native of Washington, D.C., played at Tech from 1980-83, when he was regarded as one of the most versatile players in school history. The fullback could run and catch and was considered one of the greatest blockers in Tech history.
Paige took that package to the NFL, playing nine seasons with the New York Jets, Detroit Lions and Miami Dolphins before retiring in 1993. He lives in Silver Spring, Md., where he owns Agate Medical Services and also is involved in a sports management company.
Ripley, a native of Bluefield, W.Va., began working with the Tech athletic department on a volunteer basis in 1948, meeting the orthopedic needs of all student-athletes through 1988.
Ripley has spent most of his life in Roanoke, where he lives after retiring from medical practice in 1994.
Teske, who died in 1993, coached Tech's wrestlers from 1951-74, leading the Hokies to three consecutive undefeated seasons in the mid-1950s. The South Haven, Mich., native had an overall coaching record of 123-96-4.
Teske spent many years as an associate professor of physical education at Tech and later worked as an assistant in the Tech athletic ticket office.
The new inductees will give the Tech hall of fame 74 members. The hall was established in 1982 and is located in the Bowman Room of the Jamerson Athletic Center.
by CNB