Sept. 24, 2008
NORMAL, Ill. -
Former Illinois State student-athlete and NFL defensive back Mike Prior will be inducted into the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame at its 12th Annual Induction Awards Dinner Oct. 15 at the Hawthorne Race Course, located at 3501 South Laramie in Stickney, Ill.
Prior, a native of Chicago Heights, Ill., was a defensive back with the Green Bay Packers from 1993-98 and participated in two Super Bowls and had an interception in Super Bowl XXXI. Before joining the Packers, Prior spent six seasons in Indianapolis with the Colts and two with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
At Illinois State, Prior was a two-sport athlete lettering with both the football and baseball teams (1981-85). He still ranks No. 1 in ISU history for career interceptions with 24, and also tops the all-time career punt return yards list with 906. Prior's owned a career batting average of .388 and a career slugging percentage of .715, both of which are still Redbird records.
A cocktail reception will begin at 6 p.m., followed by a 7 p.m., dinner in the Gold Cup Dining Room. For more information, or to purchase tickets, please call (708) 780-3679.
In addition to Prior; other honorees include: Dick Butkus (Chicago Bears); Andre Dawson (Chicago Cubs); Gale Sayers (Chicago Bears); Keith Van Horne (Chicago Bears); Dan Shannon (Notre Dame); Marv Levy (Buffalo Bills); Bill Self (Kansas); John McDonough (Chicago Blackhawks); Bob Hale (New York Yankees); Ed "Rocky" Ryan (Michigan State); Mel Thillens Sr. (Thillens Baseball Stadium); Randy Meier (thoroughbred jockey); Tamika Catchings (Tennessee); George Wilson (Cincinnati); Bill Jauss (Chicago Tribune); Don Hakes (NFL official); Nat Rosasco (Northwestern); Katie Schumacher-Cawley (Penn State); Bill Campbell (Chicago Cubs) and Tauja Catchings (Illinois).
