Wildcat Chronicle

Wildcat Chronicle Wildcat Club Member Spotlight

Above: Athletic Director Jerry Bovee and Wildcat Club Director Becky Thompson give Ken and Vivian Schoonmaker an honorary signed basketball before the game against BYU on Dec. 13.

Ken and Vivian Schoonmaker Ken and Vivian Schoonmaker have been in the Wildcat Club for over 40 years. Ken attended Weber State College for eight years shortly after he returned from WWII. “Weber State helped me so much,” Ken said. “It was very beneficial to me at that time in my life.”

He and his wife quickly became some of the first season ticket holders when the games were held at the Swenson Gym. When the Dee Events Center opened, Vivian got up at six in the morning to get seats and have sat in those same seats ever since.

Ken’s favorite memory at Weber State was in February of 1971 when WSU played and beat Utah State for the first time.

“Everyone kept saying there was no way Weber State could beat Utah State in Logan,” Ken said. “We beat them up there and proved everyone wrong.”

The Schoonmakers are proud to be lifetime Wildcats and to donate to the Wildcat Club Athletic fund.

Happy Holidays from Jerry Bovee Dear Wildcat Fans, With the holiday season upon us I would like to extend a warm holiday greeting to you and yours. The student-athletes, coaches and staff in our athletics program continue to work toward representing the Weber State faithful with dignity and class. During the past year we celebrated three conference championships and had numerous athletes earn All-Conference and All-Conference Academic honors. Sustained success in all these areas continues to be our mission.

We are certainly appreciative of all our great fans for the support shown to our amazing student-athletes.

We hope that you’ll enjoy a safe and happy holiday season with family and friends.

May the coming year bring you continued success!

Best wishes!

Jerry Bovee Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Weber State University

Wildcats become santas helpers

Weber State University student-athletes became Santa’s helpers this year as they participated in The Christmas Box’s 15th Annual Project Elf. Project Elf offers a fun and meaningful opportunity for groups to make a difference by fulfilling Christmas wishes for children who have been abused or neglected and are in foster care or temporarily living at the shelter.

The Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) helped organize the donations for 17 children ranging in age from three months to 17 years old. Each team was assigned at least one child and some teams took on up to four children.

Each child had a three item wish list.

“Project Elf was a great way to give back to

our community,” Associate Athletic Director, Amy Crosbie said. “It was a large project that could not have happened without the support and enthusiasm of the student-athletes. Engaging in community service is an important part of their experience and I am amazed everyday by how willingly they give of their time.”

The student-athletes raised over $1,500 amongst themselves and then shopped for their assigned child. They gathered scooters, Frozen toys, Hot Wheels, gift cards, arts and crafts kits, etc. to be donated to Project Elf in time for Christmas. For more information on Project Elf visit: thechristmasboxhouse.org.

Weber State Wildcats pose in front of the Christmas tree with some of the toys they collected for Project Elf.

women’s basketball

regina okoye

Weber State basketball junior guard Regina Okoye is in her third season for the Wildcats.

Okoye, a native of Albuquerque, N.M. is the leading scorer for Weber State. She leads the team

in steals having 43 on the season.

Okoye is currently second in school history with career steals having 203 and is on track to beat the record by the end of her time at WSU. She currently holds the record for most steals in a game having 10 against the University of San Diego.

Okoye has put up three double doubles already this season.

The first against Bristol with 18 points and 11 rebounds and the second against Air Force with 21 points and 12 rebounds and the third against San Diego with 10 points and 10 steals.

Okoye is pursuing a degree in Electronic Engineering and has earned Big Sky Academic All-Conference honors.

men’s basketball

James hajek

James Hajek is the only senior on this year’s men’s basketball team. Hajek, a native of Omaha, Neb. has appeared in 58 career games in his first three seasons as a Wildcat.

Hajek was part of the 201314 Big Sky Championship team that advanced to the NCAA tournament and saw action against Arizona.

Hajek’s favorite part of being a Weber State Wildcat is how supportive the community and fans are. He loves the fans and appreciates that they come out every game.

Hajek is majoring in Business Administration at Weber State and has earned Big Sky Academic All-Conference honors.

Hajek is a big Nebraska Cornhusker football fan and Kansas City Royals and Chiefs fan.

jamie martin first to have jersey retired Weber State retired the jersey of Jamie Martin, former Wildcat quarterback and former All-American at halftime of the final home football game of the season.

“This is such a great honor for me to have my jersey retired by Weber State,” Martin said. “When I look back on my time at Weber State I feel very grateful for the opportunity to have played college football at such a beautiful place with so many great players. This honor is a great reflection on the players and coaches who were there during my time. The quarterback always gets too much credit when things go well. I’m proud of

this honor because it represents all of us who played and coached at Weber State at that time.”

In 1989, Jamie Martin signed to play quarterback for the Wildcat football team. During this time as a Wildcat he became a Walter Payton Trophy winner, a two-time All-American and set numerous passing records before going on to a 16-year career in the NFL. As a freshman Martin played as a reserve for the first eight games of the season under new head coach Dave Arslanian, before being named the starter for the last three games of the year. He would start every game the rest of his career. In

those final three games, he threw for 837 yards and seven touchdowns. He threw for more than 3,700 yards and 23 touchdowns as a sophomore and earned All-American honors.

His crowning season came during his junior year of 1991. He once again led the nation in total offense, throwing for more than 4,000 yards and 35 touchdowns and helped Weber State to an 8-4 mark and a trip to the Division I-AA playoffs. During the season, he set a I-AA record with 624 passing yards in a win over Idaho State. That record stood as a national record until 2012 and still ranks fourth in FCS history.

He repeated as the Big Sky MVP and the crowning honor came when he was named the recipient of the Walter Payton Trophy, the top player in Division I-AA football.

He was the first underclassman to ever win the Payton Award and is still the only Wildcat to ever win an individual national Player of the Year honor.

His playing career didn’t end after Weber State, despite going undrafted in the 1992 NFL Draft.

He went on to a 16-year career in the NFL. He was a member of sev-

en different teams in the NFL, St. Louis Rams, Washington Redskins, Jacksonville Jaguars, Cleveland Browns, New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers. He saw action in 53 career games in the NFL and started in eight games at quarterback. He was part of the 2001 St. Louis Rams team that advanced to Super Bowl XXXVI. Martin threw for nearly 4,000 yards and had 20 career touchdowns in his NFL career.

Following retirement from professional football, he found he still wanted to be involved in the game and moved into the coaching ranks. He is currently the offensive coordinator at a high school in the St. Louis area, where his son Jack is a sophomore. Martin and his wife Kelly have three children, Jack, Ally and Andrew.

“We are very thrilled for the opportunity to honor Jamie Martin and retire his jersey at Weber State,” said WSU Director of Athletics Jerry Bovee. “He was a terrific player and did so much for the university and the football program. This is the first athlete to have a jersey retired at Weber State and he is very deserving of this honor.”