EDMOND – Six former standouts and two national champion teams highlight the UCO Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2024, which was announced Tuesday.
Jeremiah Constant (wrestling), Josh Creel (men's golf), Pinkey Hurley (football), Pat Koerner (baseball), Taylor Neidy (women's golf), and Dean Shinault (football) will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this fall. The 2001-02 and 2002-03 wrestling teams, which claimed back-to-back NCAA Division II national championships, are also heading to the Hall of Fame.
The 2024 UCO Athletics Hall of Fame Banquet is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 11 at 6 p.m. at the George & Donna Nigh University Center on campus. The class will also be recognized at the Hall of Fame game Saturday, Oct. 12 when Central Oklahoma takes on Northwest Missouri at 1 p.m. at Chad Richison Stadium.
More details for the banquet and football game, including tickets and registration, will be shared in the coming months.
Constant is a former national champion member of the wrestling team and a two-time All-American. Originally from Yukon, Oklahoma, he came to Central ahead of the 1998-99 season as a junior and in his first go-around with the Bronchos, captured the 197-pound national title. Constant won the regional championship prior to that and was named Regional Wrestler of the Year. In his second and final season at Central, Constant once again won the regional title, this time at heavyweight, and was also named Regional Wrestler of the Year for the second year in a row. He earned a third-place finish at the national championships to earn his second All-American honor as a Broncho.
Constant's 23 falls during the 1998-99 season are still a school record a quarter century later. His 35 career falls rank fifth to this day. He finished his career with a 46-5 record, going 31-4 during his national title campaign and 15-1 the following year.
Creel, like Constant, spent two years at Central and is also a former national champion for the Bronchos as a member of the men's golf team. From Cheyenne, Wyoming, he joined the program as a junior in 2010-11 and won two tournaments in earning First Team All-Lone Star Conference, First Team All-Region, and Second Team All-American honors. Creel's 71.9 scoring average that season still ranks eighth in school history.
In 2011-12, as Central competed as an independent program, Creel won two more tournaments, and the two biggest tournaments of the year. He claimed top honors at the Midwest/South Central Regional Championship before winning the NCAA Division II National Championship. Creel was First Team All-Region and First Team All-American honors following the season.
Creel's four career wins are the fifth-most in school history. His 71.8 career scoring average is still the second-best mark in school history, and his 34 career rounds of par or better also ranks seventh in school history to this day.
Hurley was a three-time all-conference selection for the Bronchos during his four-year career from 1987-90 and the running back put together one of the best careers in school history. From Fox, Oklahoma, Hurley still ranks 10th in career rushing yards (2,628) and third in career all-purpose yards (4,438) at Central.
Hurley rushed for 509 yards as a freshman in 1987, scoring three touchdowns. In 1988, he improved up to 633 yards and scored three more touchdowns, along with one receiving TD, in earning First Team All-District 9 honors. Hurley raced for 701 yards and six touchdowns in 1989, and finished his career with 785 yards and seven touchdowns in 1990, earning First Team All-Lone Star Conference honors both seasons.
Koerner, a two-year standout and All-American baseball player for the Bronchos, put together a career that still ranks as one of the best in school history during his time at Central in 1996 and 1997. From Blanchard, Oklahoma, Koerner led the Bronchos to the NCAA Division II national championship game in 1997 – the best season in school history.
Koerner burst onto the scene in 1996, leading the Bronchos in several categories. He hit .391 in 48 games played, with 61 hits, 46 runs scored, and 40 RBIs. He led the team with 15 stolen bases as well. In 1997, he played in a school record 63 games as the Bronchos nearly captured a national title. Koerner hit .445 with 101 hits, 87 runs scored, and 71 RBIs to go along with 30 more stolen bases.
Koerner still owns the Central record for runs scored in a single season (87, 1997) and for career batting average (.423). His name appears in the UCO Baseball record book eight times including the two records. He still today ranks second in single season hits (101), fifth in single season doubles (23) and single season RBIs (71), seventh in single season at bats (227), and ninth in single season batting average (.445) and career runs scored (133).
Neidy was a four-year standout for Central Oklahoma's women's golf program, earning All-American honors in leading the Bronchos through one of the most dominant stretches in school history. The Clinton, Oklahoma native played in 47 tournaments for UCO and still ranks as one of the best players in school history following her playing career from 2010-14.
Neidy found her way into the starting lineup as a true freshman in 2010-11, helping the team to the first of five consecutive national championship appearances. She earned All-Region honors following the 2011-12 season that included one win, four par or better rounds, and a career-low 68 at the regional championships. Neidy earned All-MIAA honors in Central's first year in the league in 2012-13, posting another four par or better rounds.
In 2013-14, Neidy finished her career in style, capturing MIAA Player of the Year honors, First Team All-Region and All-American honors. Her career-best 75.43 scoring average still ranks fourth in school history. She posted six par or better rounds and won two individual titles. Neidy's name appears in the UCO women's golf record book 16 times 10 full seasons following her career. She owns the school record for the lowest 54-hole score (214) and lowest 72-hole score (295) in school history. She is also one of just four women's golfers to compete in four consecutive NCAA Division II national championship tournaments with Central Oklahoma.
Shinault spent four years frightening opponents as one of the best defensive linemen to ever play for the Bronchos from 1985-88. Originally from Ponca City, Oklahoma, Shinault had a brilliant debut for Central in 1985, setting the tone for his career. He recorded three sacks in his first collegiate game against defending national champion Carson-Newman, helping the Bronchos to victory and earning national defensive player of the week honors. He recorded a school-record 12 sacks that fall.
Shinault had four sacks during an injury-shortened sophomore campaign but returned in a big way in 1987. He continued his onslaught on opposing quarterbacks with five more sacks his junior season. In 1988, Shinault dropped the quarterback eight more times.
Shinault owns the UCO record for sacks in a single season (12) and sacks in a career (29). He made 191 tackles in his career, including 107 solo stops. He also recovered three fumbles and had one interception.
The 2001-02 Central Oklahoma wrestling team returned to the top with authority in winning the 13th national title in program history, and the fifth in Division II. Central did it with four individual national champions – the second most in program history and the most in school history during the DII era.
Cole Province won the second of four straight national championships and Shawn Silvis won the first of his back-to-back national titles. Matt Dodgen and Muhammaed Lawal also claimed top honors. The Bronchos had seven All-Americans, with Chris Saferite (second), Jeff Henning (third), and Michael Barreras (fourth) joining the champs on the podium.
Central Oklahoma beat out national runner-up, North Dakota State, 128 – 116.5, for the title. That capped off an illustrious season for the Bronchos, who won what was then a school record 15 duals. UCO took the NWCA DII National Duals title, beating NDSU in the final, and claimed a 13th consecutive Midwest Regional Championship with seven champions. Central Oklahoma's 15-1 dual record included a 15-match win streak following a season opening loss at OU.
The 2002-03 made it back-to-back national championships for Central Oklahoma, a common theme in program history, earning the 14th title for the Broncho wrestling program. UCO edged out runner-up and DII rival Nebraska Kearney, 87.5 – 73.5, to take the title. The Bronchos had three individual national champions and five All-Americans.
Province won his third straight title at 133 pounds, Silvis added his second in a row at 165 pounds, and Mark Dodgen, who won in 2000 and finished third in 2001, got back to the top with a national title at 125 pounds in 2003. Henning finished third for the second year in a row to earn All-American honors and Jerod Goodwin took seventh to claim the title of All-American.
The 2002-03 season included another school record with 18 dual wins, topping the previous season's mark. The 18-1 season included only a loss to Kearney, which was avenged at nationals. Central Oklahoma won the Lone Star Duals and took third at the National Duals before winning a 14th regional title.
The UCO Athletics Hall of Fame was founded in 1990 and includes 175 individuals and 14 national championship winning teams from Central's storied history.
