At the historic Florida Theatre, Florida Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2023 shared their lives
At the historic Florida Theatre, which has hosted entertainers and artists for 96 years, athletic royalty got their time in the spotlight on Thursday.
Make no mistake — they gave the state of Florida, the U.S. and in two notable cases, the world, their own brand of artistry.
And it was a night for Duval to feel the pride: four of the seven inductees in the Florida Sports Hall of Fame have Jacksonville ties that last to this day and beyond.
Riverside High graduate and Pro Football Hall of Fame safety LeRoy Butler, Raines graduate and Black College Hall of Fame punter Greg Coleman, former Jacksonville Jaguars coach Tom Coughlin and Olympic gold medal gymnast Shannon Miller joined NBA legend Vince Carter, veteran Chipola College baseball coach Jeff Johnson and jet dragster pilot Elaine Larsen in swelling the ranks of the state's sports Hall of Fame to 307 members.
Tom Coughlin 'humbled:' Former Jaguars coach embraces entry into Florida Sports Hall of Fame
There are Halls of Fame for all of the major sports and in many cases, Florida Sports Hall of Fame inductees reached those pinnacles before they were enshrined by their own home state.
But Butler said this particular honor, coming 16 months after he entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame, has a different, more intimate feel.
"The Pro Football Hall of Fame is NFL heaven," Butler said. "The state of Florida is heaven for Friday night high school [football]. It's the culture of my family. This [the Florida Hall of Fame] is my DNA because I represent so many people [in my family]. It's a big night for me. Maybe it won't be the big headlines or get the big crowd for it's very emotional."
Former Jaguars offensive tackle Tony Boselli, a native of Colorado who played college football at USC, is in the Pro Football and Florida Sports Hall of Fame. In brief remarks to open the evening's proceedings, Boselli said being honored among the best athletes in Florida carries its own measure of greatness.
"Florida has the best athletes and the best teams," Boselli said. "To be a part of this Hall of Fame is quite an honor."
Coleman, who is in the Black College Hall of Fame, the Florida A&M Hall of Fame and the Track Hall of Fame, echoed those sentiments.
"Do you know how many great athletes have come out of Florida," he asked. "To be part of this great fraternity is amazing."
The induction ceremony followed a novel format. Instead of each inductee standing at a podium, thanking everyone in their life and perhaps fumbling for the right words, They accepted their crystal trophy and then sat at a table on the Florida Theatre stage with master of ceremonies and Jaguars radio voice Frank Frangie for an intimate question-and-answer session.
They even had their own walk-up music. Butler's was "Jump," by Van Halen, in honor of his invention of the "Lambeau Leap" at Green Bay. Johnson's was "Small Town," by John Mellencamp.
And for Coughlin?
What else could it be for the man who, as Frangie noted, invented his own time zone ("Coughlin Time") but "My Way" by Frank Sinatra.
Clearly more at ease with the evening's script, each person entering the Hall of Fame brought the crowd to laughter and tears with their stories:
LeRoy Butler
"I grew up in Blodgett Homes. Growing up in poverty you don't know you're poor. My mom and grandmom had me thinking we were rich."
On having to wear leg braces at an early age: "I watched kids go to the Jefferson pool and I'd smile at them through the window because I knew how my life would be in the future."
Tom Coughlin
Coughlin told about one of his players at Boston College in 1993 who asked if prospective employers could call his coach for a reference. "I got a call and my assistant said it was the Jaguars," Coughlin said. "I thought it was a car dealership."
Coughlin said he wanted to share his induction with the Jaguars players and employees who went through the first season in 1995. "All of those wonderful people who stood side-by-side with me when it was not going well ... there seemed to be an adverse factor every day. I accept this on behalf of everyone who was part of that 1995 team. The work that went into that was just amazing."
Vince Carter
"I wanted to play [in the NBA] 15 years," said Carter, who played a record 22 years and joins Miller in possessing an Olympic gold medal. "After 15 years I felt good, so I said, 'two more.' Two more became two more, which became two more. It was a willingness to do whatever it took to last that long."
Jeff Johnson
On coaching junior college baseball in a small panhandle town for 27 years and nearly 1,500 games, 986 victories and three national championships: "You can have such an impression on these young guys and what they're doing. Chipola is a special place. It's a small town. It's my life."
Elaine Larsen
"I met a boy [Chris, her husband of 34 years]," said Larsen, a two-time world jet dragster pilot. "Daddy warned me about those boys. He took me to a drag race. He unleashed a beast that day."
Greg Coleman
On why he wanted to be to be a punter: "I watched the Colts play on TV one day. They had all white uniforms and everyone was dirty, muddy and bloody execpt one guy — the punter. I knew I wanted to be that guy."
On being coached by area legends such as Jimmie Johnson and James Day, and the support of his family: "I stand on the shoulders of so many people."
Shannon Miller
On getting her first USA uniform for an international competition at the age of 11: "It's about representing something bigger than your club or your state. It's the USA."
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Duval has the spotlight at Florida Theater for Florida Sports Hall of Fame
