Athletics

Keydet Club Presents Spirit of VMI Award to Gray ’73

By Scott Belliveau ’83, Communications Officer

Garland Gray II ’73 receives the Spirit of VMI Award from the VMI Keydet Club at the VMI versus Chattanooga football game Oct. 9, 2021. Gray was awarded the honor for the services he has rendered VMI athletics.

Between the first and second quarters of VMI’s football game against the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga Oct. 9, the VMI Keydet Club recognized the service that Garland Gray II ’73 has rendered VMI athletics by presenting him with its highest honor, the Spirit of VMI Award. First presented in 1975, the Spirit of VMI Award recognizes outstanding service and support to VMI’s intercollegiate athletic program. In the award’s 46-year history, there have been fewer than 40 recipients. As a cadet, Gray participated in rat swimming and was involved in many other activities. A civil engineering major, he was consistently on the dean’s list and wore academic stars. He began working for his family’s company, Gray Lumber Company based in Waverly, Virginia, after he graduated from VMI. He currently serves as the president of Gray Lumber Company, which manages the family’s timberland and farmland portfolio. He also is a member of the board of directors of Grayco, which manages all the family’s assets.

Gray has served VMI ever since his graduation. He served a term on the VMI Keydet Club Board of Governors from 1979-82 and became a member of the VMI Foundation Board of Trustees in July 2021.

For almost five decades, Gray has been a consistent and visible leader in support of the Institute and the Corps of Cadets, giving generously to advance every aspect of VMI’s extraordinary education. His support of VMI’s cadet-athletes has accelerated the progress of several teams, including VMI football, and provided many young men and women the experience of representing VMI at the highest level of intercollegiate sports, an experience that prepares them for lives of honorable leadership, high professional achievement, and selfless service.

Gray’s support includes the establishment of the Elmon T. Gray ’46 Athletic Scholarship in 2015. That scholarship honors his father, who—besides being an industrialist, philanthropist, and long-serving state senator—was an enthusiastic fan and generous benefactor of VMI athletics who received the Spirit of VMI

Award in 1991. The VMI Keydet Club previously honored Gray by granting him a place on its Wall of Honor in Cameron Hall.

Asked for his reaction at being informed he was receiving the award, he replied, “I am truly humbled to be selected for the VMI spirit award, as I am keenly aware of the support and involvement of previous recipients of this award.”

As to what has motivated him to support VMI, Gray explained, “I am pleased to assist VMI because it is a vibrant example of timeless values of honor, duty, and teamwork. I am proud to see VMI be competitive in athletics without compromising its standards.” He also mentioned his family’s ties to VMI as a reason for his support. “The Institute has been an integral part of three generations of my family, and I want this excellent college experience to be available to the next generation.”

Through his philanthropy, Gray has made VMI accessible to many young people, something which has had a profound effect on their lives, just as it has added to his family’s sterling legacy of leadership in the ceaseless effort to ensure a bright future for the Institute. Andrew Deal ’12, Keydet Club chief operating officer, congratulates Gray after the Spirit of VMI Award presentation. For more information about helping VMI cadet-athletes, visit vmialumni.org.—VMI Photos by H. Lockwood McLaughlin.

Miller Appointed Interim Athletic Director

Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins ’85, superintendent, appointed Jim Miller to serve as VMI’s interim director of intercollegiate athletics.

Miller retired in 2014 as the athletic director at the University of Richmond and has more than 30 years of experience working in NCAA athletics, including a stint as an assistant basketball coach at VMI from 1979-82.

“I’m excited to welcome Jim Miller back to VMI,” said Wins. “Jim is largely responsible for recruiting me to play basketball at VMI. I know firsthand that he can compete and win at the highest levels. That’s exactly the type of leadership we want leading our coaches and cadet-athletes.”

Miller spent 12 years as athletic director at the University of Richmond.

During that time, the Spiders won an FCS national championship in football, had three NCAA appearances in men’s basketball—including a trip to the Sweet 16—and captured 44 conference titles among 12 sports. As athletic director, he was an advocate for student-athletes, an effective fundraiser, and a strong proponent of the fan experience.

Wins has asked Miller to conduct an initial assessment of the VMI athletic experience within the context of Wins’ “One Corps—One VMI: A Unifying Action Plan.”

“I am honored to answer Major General Wins’ call to serve VMI,” Miller said. “I thoroughly enjoyed my time at VMI and look forward to contributing to moving VMI athletics forward. There’s no doubt in my mind that VMI can compete and win in every sport on a regular basis. My job will be to determine what obstacles and opportunities exist to get us to that point.”

Miller began his role as interim athletic director Oct. 1, 2021.Miller

Keydet Football Posts Second Straight Winning Campaign

In fall 2021, VMI football continued to rewrite VMI football history.

Fresh off its first Southern Conference title in 43 years, which was captured the previous spring, VMI posted a 6-5 record to give the program its first back-to-back winning seasons since 1961-62.

The Keydets, picked to finish third in the 2021 fall SoCon coaches’ preseason poll, were a viable contender for another SoCon crown until week 10 of the season, when key injuries to several impactful players took their toll. VMI also returned to the FCS national rankings during the season, attaining as high as the No. 17 spot before dropping out of the Top 25 in November. 2021 will be remembered as the year of the comeback as VMI rallied to several exciting victories at Foster Stadium. The Keydets overcame two 11-point second-half deficits to dispatch No. 19 Chattanooga in overtime, 37-34, on Family Weekend Oct. 9, then pulled off an astonishing 46-45 win against Samford Oct. 30, rallying from a 21-point late second-quarter deficit for the conference win at Foster Stadium.

Here are some notable achievements of the 2021 fall season. • VMI posted at least five wins for the third consecutive season—something that had not been achieved since the 1960-62 timespan. • VMI went 4-1 at Foster Stadium for its first four-victory home season since 2008. • The Keydets posted a dominating 45-7 road victory against Mercer, a team previously unbeaten in conference play, Oct. 16. VMI rolled up 306 yards rushing on the ground for its most in a single game since 2009. • VMI, fueled by a high-performing offense that averaged 42.7 points and 524.7 yards, won three consecutive games in October for the first time since 2002. • Twelve VMI football cadet-athletes earned spots on the 2021 Southern Conference postseason squads. Landing first team all-conference honors on both the coaches and media teams were Stone Snyder ’23, linebacker, and Warren Dabney ’22, defensive lineman. Earning spots on both teams with at least a first team representation on either squad were Jerry Rice ’23, placekicker (first team coaches, second team media); Robert Soderholm ’22, long snapper (first team coaches, second team media); Nick Hartnett ’22, offensive lineman (first team media, second team coaches); and Jack Culbreath ’24, punter (first team media, second team coaches). Voted to all-conference second teams were Michael Jackson ’22 and Jakob Herres ’22, wide receivers (coaches and media); Ethan Caselberry ’22, defensive back (coaches and media); and Aljareek Malry ’23, defensive back (coaches). Hunter Rice ’25, running back, and Kandler Martin ’25, outside linebacker, earned honors on the All-Freshman team voted by the league coaches. • Snyder led the Southern Conference in tackles for the second straight season, averaging 10.9 per game. He had 49 solos and 71 assists for 120 total tackles and posted double-digit tackles in six games in 2021, giving him 12 for his career. Snyder led the team in TFL (11 for 36 yards), sacks (4), quarterback hurries (5), and fumble recoveries (3). Snyder was named SoCon Defensive Player of the Week Sept. 27 after a season-best 19 tackles and was also selected to the 2021 Buck Buchanan Top 25 Watch List for the second straight year. • Herres, returning All-American wide receiver, battled through injuries throughout the year but still caught 47 passes for 500 yards and five touchdowns. He finished his career as VMI’s all-time touchdown reception leader with 26, just eight receptions shy of school record holder Aaron Sanders ’17 (2013-16) and 85 yards behind all-time receiving yardage leader Mark Stock ’88 (1984-88). Herres had nine catches for 115 yards against The Citadel Oct. 2 for his 13th career 100-yard game. • With 525 yards total offense against Samford Oct. 30, Seth Morgan ’23, VMI redshirt sophomore quarterback, set a new VMI singlegame total offense record. Morgan completed 28 of 42 passes for 472 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 53 yards in the 46-45 win over the Bulldogs. The 472 yards were also the second-highest single-game mark by a VMI quarterback in program history—behind only Reece Udinski’s [’21] 491 yards against Western Carolina in 2018. Morgan’s 400-plus yard game against Samford was only the fifth all-time in school history, and he later added a sixth when he passed for 415 yards against Furman Nov. 13. • Rice, placekicker, converted 17 of 19 field goals on the season and was 39 of 39 in extra points and led the SoCon in most field goals made and was second in field goal accuracy (89.5%). Rice finished the year hitting nine straight field goals and had six field goals of 40+ yards, including a career-long 49-yarder against Chattanooga Oct. 9. Rice was five for five in FGs against Chattanooga and hit a 37-yarder for the game-winner in OT and was named SoCon Special Teams Player of the Week. • Jackson, wide receiver, led the team in receiving yardage (695) and touchdowns (6) and caught a career-high 13 passes for 177 yards and three touchdowns at Furman Nov. 13. He helped rally VMI from a 21-point deficit in a win over Samford with 10 catches for a career-high 211 yards (5th most in VMI history) and a game-winning touchdown with 3:14 left. • Korey Bridy ’22 had a superb senior year cut short by injury but still had 100-yard rushing games against Wofford (career-high 171 yards) and Chattanooga (165 yards).

Michael Jackson ’22 helps rally VMI from a 21-point deficit in a win over Samford with 10 catches for a career-high 211 yards (5th most in VMI history).—Photos courtesy VMI Keydets.

Women’s Soccer 2021 Season Recap

Edwards-Roberson ’22 Selected to Attend Leadership Forum

The VMI women’s soccer team continued to improve during the 2021 season and showed signs for future success under Chris HaughtThompson, third-year head coach.

The Keydets opened the season with three close losses but then won two straight, including a 2-1 overtime thriller against Winthrop Aug. 28 and then a 2-0 victory over visiting Hampton Sept. 2.

Riley Flanagan ’25 was named the SoCon Offensive Player of the Week Aug. 31 after totaling six points—two goals and two assists—between the win over Winthrop and a close 4-3 loss to Iona Aug. 26. She also scored the golden goal against Winthrop in the overtime period.

The Round Hill, Virginia, native was named to the Southern Conference All-Freshman Team after tallying eight goals for the year, which tied for fourth-most in the league. She also tallied five assists—tied for fifth in the league—for a total of 21 points, which tied for third-most in the conference. The Keydets finished the season with three wins but found other positives, including Whitney Edwards-Roberson ’22 making the All-Southern

Whitney Edwards-Roberson ’22, women’s soccer, was selected to attend the NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum in Houston, Texas. The Chesapeake, Virginia, native was chosen among Southern Conference member schools to serve as the conference’s cadet-athlete representative. The conference has seen more than 5,000 NCAA student-athletes participate in a weekend of programming aimed at developing leadership skills, understanding of the relationship among personal values, core beliefs, and behavioral styles, and the building of a personal network of like-minded peers.

This transformational opportunity allows participating studentathletes to realize their potential and return to their campuses to serve their fellow student-athletes. Edwards-Roberson has served in various leadership roles both within athletics and on post. During the 2021-22 academic year, the women’s soccer captain will additionally serve as president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, vice president of investigations for the Cadet Equity Association, and president of the Promaji Club. On the soccer field, the forward has highlighted statistical categories within the program and played in over 48 games—including 34 starts— throughout her cadetship. Attending the conference with Edwards-Roberson was former Keydet wrestler and current SoCon intern Cliff Conway ’21. During the 2020-21 academic year, Conway and Edwards-Roberson served as president and vice president, respectively, of the SAAC.

For more information on the NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum, please visit NCAA.org.

VMI women’s soccer celebrates a successful play during a home match on Patchin Field.—Photo courtesy VMI Keydets.

Conference Tournament team for her efforts in a close loss to The Citadel in the postseason SoCon tourney.

VMI earned a hard-fought 2-2 tie with Mercer on senior day, Oct. 10, in a match that recognized Maria Vargas ’22, Edwards-Roberson, Erin Kozlowski ’22, Sarah Anschutz ’22, and Gabby Criscione ’22, departing seniors.

Whitney Edwards-Roberson ’22 has played in over 48 games—including 34 starts—throughout her cadetship.—Photo courtesy VMI Keydets.

Men’s Soccer Recap

Broden Schull ’22 led NCAA Division I for the third-straight season with 99 saves.—Photo courtesy VMI Keydets.

The VMI men’s soccer team posted a 3-1 win this fall at Eastern Mennonite University Sept. 28 and played UNCAsheville to a 3-3 double-overtime tie at home on senior day, Oct. 23.

Broden Schull ’22, goalie, led the very young Keydet squad as the lone senior on the roster. He led NCAA Division I for the third-straight season with 99 saves. Schull played every minute of every game for the third-straight year and ended his stellar VMI tenure with program career records of 420 saves and 5,728 minutes.

Nathan Lam ’23, midfielder, paced the offense with four goals and one assist for nine points. A host of young Keydets earned playing time this fall, and five freshmen started 10 games or more.