WSU Athletics is preparing to honor its five new Hall-of-Famers this weekend with a reception, and on the field during the football game Saturday night. Alissa Brooks-Johnson (track-and-field), Micaela Castain (soccer), Don Collins (basketball), Mike Leach (football coach) and DeWayne Patterson (football player) will be honored for their athletic achievements as Cougars.
For the late Coach Leach, this weekend would have certainly been an emotional one. Mike Leach served as the head football coach for both Texas Tech and WSU. He will now be honored and remembered as his two former squads square off. As a Cougar, Leach was a two-time Pac-12 Coach of the Year and led the Cougars to six bowl games.
The pinnacle of his career with WSU came in 2018, when he led WSU to victory in the Alamo Bowl, finishing with an 11-2 record and being ranked No. 10 by the Associated Press. His combined record is 158-107, but his legacy goes far beyond the record books. Leach’s air raid offense is still being used by teams across the country, including at both WSU and Texas Tech.
DeWayne Patterson was a member of the ‘Palouse Posse,’ the nickname for the Cougars defense in the early 1990’s. Patterson’s 52.5 tackles-for-loss and 37.5 sacks remain school records to this day. He was twice named to the All-Pac-10 First Team, a testimony to his skills and respect within the conference. He went on to play professional football in Canada.
Alissa Brooks-Johnson was a recent WSU graduate (2018) who dominated on the track. Her best event was the heptathlon, which includes running (200m, 800m), hurdles (100m), high jump, long jump, javelin and shot put. Brooks-Johnson was named an All-American for the heptathlon in 2017 and 2018 and is second all-time for WSU.
Don Collins is the first and only Cougar to win Pac-10 MVP for basketball. In 1980, his 442 points set a Pac-10 single-season scoring record. He was picked 18th overall by the Atlanta Hawks in the 1980 NBA Draft and went on to play seven years in the NBA with the Hawks, Wizards, Warriors and Bucks. He averaged 9.8 points per game in the NBA, primarily as a sixth man off the bench.
Micaela Castain was a soccer captain who, like Collins, was the first and only Coug to win Pac-12 Player of the Year in her sport. Her 33 goals and 80 points placed her third on the WSU all-time list. In 2013 she was an NCAA All-American, leading the Pac-12 with 33 points (11 goals, 11 assists).
All five inductees hold a part of WSU history, and their legacy will not be forgotten. They will be honored with a banquet at Beasley Coliseum Friday night and will be recognized at Gesa Field Saturday when the Cougars host Texas Tech at 7 p.m.
