Posey, Thornton Among Nine for FSU’s 2018 Hall of Fame Class

Florida State’s Athletic Hall of Fame will add nine new members in 2018, according to a release.

Perhaps the two most recognizable names on the list include former FSU baseball catcher Buster Posey and men’s hoops standout, Al Thornton. The class will be formally inducted at 5:30 p.m. EST on Sept. 8, just before FSU’s football contest with Samford.

Posey played baseball for the Seminoles form 2006-08 and was the winner of the Golden Spikes Award as a junior. Posey hit .463 that season with 26 home runs and 93 RBIs while also recording six saves as the team’s closer.

Posey once played all nine positions in a win over Savannah State. Posey has gone on to play in five All-Star games and win three World Series as a member of Major League Baseball’s San Francisco Giants.

Arguably the greatest player of the Leonard Hamilton era, Thornton was an All-ACC performer and an All-American for the Seminoles as a senior during the 2006-07 season. Thornton led an upset over No. 1 Florida and scored a career-high 45 points in an overtime win over Miami to conclude the regular season.

Thornton averaged 19.7 points and 7.2 rebounds during the 2006-07 season before going on to be drafted 14th overall in the 2007 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. Thornton spent four seasons in the NBA, averaging in double-figures scoring in three of them.

An assistant since 1994, defensive tackles coach Odell Haggins is the longest tenured member of the coaching staff. (Jeff Romance/FSU athletics)

Former FSU defensive tackle and current defensive tackles coach Odell Haggins will also be enshrined. A player from 1986-89, Haggins was named an All-American by multiple publications in 1989. An assistant since 1994, Haggins is the longest tenured member of the coaching staff.

Teresa Bundy was a women’s track and field star for FSU from 1998-2002. Bundy won an individual national championship in the triple jump in 2002.

On the men’s side, Walter Dix dominated for the Seminoles as a sprinter from 2005-08 and served as a member of the 2008 U.S. Olympic team. Dix set FSU records in multiple events and led the Seminoles to three straight outdoor national championships from 2006-08, with the middle one later being vacated. This year, Dix became the first FSU track and field athlete to have his jersey retired.

Former football assistant Jim Gladden coached for 26 years under the legendary Bobby Bowden as an outside linebacker and defensive ends coach from 1976 until 2001. Gladden helped guide the Seminoles to two national championships while coaching numerous award winners, All-Americans and NFL draft picks.

FSU softball star Veronica Wooten was a 2-time All-American for the Seminoles from 2004-07. Wooten was named ACC Rookie of the Year in 2004, helping FSU capture an ACC title before reaching the Women’s College World Series. Wooten finished her career with a .322 batting average, 29 home runs, 137 RBIs and 79 stolen bases.

Mami Yamaguchi starred for FSU on the soccer field from 2005-07, helping the Seminoles reach the College Cup in each of those years. Yamaguchi won the MAC Hermann Trophy in 2007 and became the program’s first Consensus All-American.

The winner of this year’s Moore-Stone Award is Bob Perrone. A high-jumper for the Seminoles in the 1970s, Moore’s efforts to preserve FSU’s athletic history are unmatched. Perrone operates the FSU’s database NoleFan.org — a friend and partner of The Daily Nole. The efforts of Perrone and his organization make our job a lot easier.

Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson