Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2024 Announced – Athletics – Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
THE APARTMENTS – Soccer coach Paul Johnsonlast year’s inductee into the College Football Hall of Fame and All-America women’s basketball player Tyaunna Marshall heads a group of eight former Yellow Jackets who have been elected to the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame as part of its 2024 class.
The 2024 class also includes ACC champion golfer Paulo Haley IIdiver from all over America Hannah KrimmAll-America long and triple jump James LimõesAll-America baseball hitter Daniel Palkaamerican football guard Omoregie Uzzi and All-ACC tight end Ken Whisenhunt.
“We are very proud to announce the newest inductees into the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame,” said Director of Athletics J Batt. “Georgia Tech’s athletic history and tradition make being a Tech Hall of Famer one of the most prestigious distinctions in all of college sports. These eight individuals certainly fit the bill, not only for their accomplishments as Yellow Jackets, but also for what they accomplished beyond athletics and their time on the Flats. Congratulations to these well-deserved honorees!”
Georgia Tech will officially inaugurate the classes of 2024 and 2025 during the fall of 2025 on a Friday night before a home football game, a date to be announced next year.
Below is a look at each member of the 2024 Hall of Fame class:
PAUL HALEY II, GOLF (2007-11)
A part-time starter early in his career, Paul Haley II became a stalwart in the Yellow Jackets’ lineup as a junior and senior, posting seven top-10 finishes, including two wins. One of those was the ACC Championship as a senior in 2011, one of eleven individual ACC champions in Tech golf history. He was also named to the All-ACC team that year and received honorable mention All-America honors. Haley led Tech to two ACC team titles in 2010 and 2011 and five team wins overall. A key member of the first two Tech teams to advance to match play at the NCAA Championships (2010, 2011), he tied for ninth individually in 2010 and ’20th in 2011.
PAUL JOHNSON, FOOTBALL COACH (2008-18)
Three-time Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year in 2008, 2009 and 2014, Paul Johnson was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame and the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame last year following an 11-year career in coaching Georgia. Tech to nine bowl games. Under his guidance, Johnson’s Yellow Jacket teams recorded four seasons with nine or more wins and won or tied for the ACC Coastal Division title four times. Under Johnson, Tech led the ACC and ranked in the top 10 nationally in rushing offense every season, leading the nation in rushing offense twice – 2010 (323.3 ypg) and 2014 (342.1 ypg). Tech has compiled seven of the top 10 seasons in school history in terms of rushing offense and six of the top 10 seasons in school history in terms of total offense. Tech has scored at least 30 points in a game 63 times (going 51-12 in those contests) and posted a 9-5 (.643) record at home against nationally ranked opponents, including three wins over top 10 teams. Tech has also recorded a current NCAA graduation success rate of 82 percent, the highest in Georgia Tech football history.
HANNAH KRIMM, SWIMMING AND DIVING (2007-10)
The first Georgia Tech NCAA diving All-American in school history, Hannah Krimm placed seventh in the 10-foot-15 diveth (honorable mention) at the 2008 NCAA Championship while also earning All-Atlantic Coast Conference recognition. Krimm still holds the fourth-best score in the 1-meter dive, achieved in 2010, and the third-best score in the 3-meter dive, which she achieved in 2009. With success not only in the pool, Krimm earned honorable mention CSCAA Scholar All-American in 2007 and 2009, and was selected to the 2007 All-ACC Academic Team for four consecutive years from 2007-2010.
JAMES LEMONS II, ATHLETICS AND FIELD (2003-08)
A total of four-time All-American in the long and triple jump, James Lemons achieved first-team All-America status twice in the outdoor triple jump (2007, 2008) and also in the indoor triple jump in 2008. He added a All-America performance in the long jump in 2008. Lemons was named top performer at the 2007 indoor and outdoor championships and won three Atlantic Coast Conference triple jump titles, in the 2007 indoor season as well as the 2007 outdoor season and 2008. seasons. He earned All-ACC honors a total of six times. Lemons also performed at a high level on the world stage, reaching the final of the 2008 Olympic Trials and being ranked among the top 10 triple jumpers in the United States that year. Lemons remains among Georgia Tech’s top 5 all-time track and field performers in the triple and long jumps.
TYAUNNA MARSHALL, BASKETBALL (2011-14)
One of the most decorated players in program history, Tyaunna Marshall made the All-Atlantic Coast Conference team all four years of her career at The Flats, first team as a junior and senior. She is Tech women’s basketball’s all-time leading scorer with 2,129 points, and also set team career records for most field goals (244) and field goals attempted (1,902). In addition to her ACC honors, Marshall received honorable mention All-America recognition by the Associated Press in 2013 and 2014. She excelled on both ends of the court, earning a spot on the ACC All-Defensive team as a junior and senior. In addition to his program records, Marshall remains fourth in career scoring average and free throws made, sixth in total rebounds, second in steals, sixth in games played and third in minutes.
DANIEL PALKA, BASEBALL (2011-13)
One of the greatest hitters in Georgia Tech baseball history, Daniel Palka was a first-team All-American in 2013 by both Baseball America and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers, while earning second- and third-team recognition from other organizations. the All-ACC team in 2012 and 2013. A semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy for national player of the year in 2013, Palka hit 41 home runs and drove in 165 runs in three seasons, compiling a career batting average of .314. His best season came in 2013, when he batted .342 with 17 home runs and 66 RBI, which led to him becoming a third-round draft pick by the Arizona Diamondbacks. Palka played on three NCAA regional teams and helped the 2012 team win the ACC Championship. Palka has pitched for the past two seasons, appearing in 13 games.
OMOREGIE UZZI, FOOTBALL (2008-12)
He was one of the top power forwards during the Paul Johnson era, earning second-team All-America honors as a junior in 2011 and third-team honors in 2011 and 2012. Omoregie Uzzi also made first-team All-ACC in 2011 and 2012, and second team as a sophomore in 2010. He played in 50 of Georgia Tech’s 54 games from 2009-12 and started 38 of Tech’s 40 games from 2010-12. Uzzi helped pave the way for Georgia Tech to lead the ACC and finish in the top four nationally in rushing in each of his four seasons. Tech led the nation in rushing his second season (2010) and ranked in the top 25 nationally in sacks allowed in each of his four seasons. Tech ranked in the top 20 nationally in total offense during his freshman (2009) and junior (2012) seasons. Uzzi helped lead Tech to two ACC Coastal Division championships, two ACC Championship Game appearances and one ACC Championship (2009 – later vacated due to NCAA sanctions) and four bowl appearances.
KEN WHISENHUNT, FOOTBALL (1980-84)
One of the heroes of the Georgia Tech football team that became competitive in its early years as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, Ken Whisenhunt played fullback and tight end for the Yellow Jackets. It was as a true freshman QB in 1980 that he achieved perhaps his greatest fame, entering the game against No. 1 and undefeated Notre Dame as the emergency quarterback and leading the team on its only scoring drive to force a 3-3 tie. at the final horn. Whisenhunt became one of the best tight ends in the ACC, earning first-team All-ACC and honorable mention All-America honors as a senior in 1984. Whisenhunt ranks first among Georgia Tech tight ends with 82 career receptions (18th overall) and 1,264 career yards (17th overall), and led the team in receiving yards in 1983 and 1984. Drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in 12th Round of the 1984 NFL Draft, he played nine seasons for Atlanta, Washington and the New York Jets before embarking on a long NFL coaching career with stints as head coach at Tennessee and Arizona, where he guided the Cardinals to a spot in the Super Bowl XLIII.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarships, operations and facilities support to more than 400 Tech student-athletes. Be part of the development of the Yellow Jackets who thrive academically at the Institute and compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which provides scholarships directly to Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about how you can support the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
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