Clemson 2002 Hall of Fame Class Will Include Six New Inductees

May 11, 2002

Clemson, SC – Former Clemson football great William “Refrigerator” Perry highlights the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2002. The group of six new inductees was announced Saturday by Charlie Bussey, executive director of the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame.

In addition to Perry, the 2002 class includes former football star Gary Barnes (1959-61), former women’s basketball All-American Mary Ann Cubelic-Grant (1979-83), former baseball All-American Bert Heffernan (1985-88), former golf All-American Kevin Johnson (1985-89), and current Athletic Director Bobby Robinson.

The induction ceremonies will be held at the Madren Center on the Clemson campus Friday, September 13, 2002. The inductees will also be honored at halftime of the Clemson vs. Georgia Tech game at Death Valley the following day.

In addition to the six former Tiger greats listed above, former men’s basketball coach Bill Foster (1975-84) will also be inducted in September. Foster was voted into the Hall of Fame last year, but was unable to attend the ceremony when it was moved to the winter from the fall due to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

Perry was an All-American at Clemson in 1982-83-84, the first three-time All-American in Clemson history. The three-time All-ACC middle guard led the nation in tackles for loss per game in 1984 with 27. He was named ACC Player of the Year in 1984 when he was a Lombardi Award Finalist.

A starter as a freshman on Clemson’s 1981 National Championship team, he is the seventh member of that squad to be elected to the Clemson Hall of Fame. He was a first-round draft choice of the Chicago Bears in 1985 and was a member of the Bears World Championship team that year. He played nine years in the NFL with Chicago and Philadelphia.

Barnes was a first-team All-ACC receiver in 1959, his sophomore season, when he helped the Tigers to a 9-2 record He will always be remembered for his 68-yard touchdown reception from Harvey White in the fourth quarter of the 1959 Bluebonnet Bowl win over seventh ranked TCU. That remains the longest touchdown reception in Clemson bowl history.

Barnes was a three-year starter, and played in the East-West All-Star game at the conclusion of the 1961 season. He was then was a third-round pick of the Green Bay Packers in the 1962 draft and went on to a five-year NFL career. He scored the first points in the history of the Atlanta Falcons franchise in 1966. He is now a judge in the city of Clemson.

Heffernan was a first-team All-American by the American Baseball Coaches Association in 1988, his senior year. One of Coach Bill Wilhelm’s favorite players in his 36 years at the helm of the Clemson program, Heffernan hit .337 as a senior and for his 259-game Clemson career. The all-around catcher hit 27 home runs, stole 54 bases and socked out 335 hits.

The native New Yorker is still Clemson’s career leader in games played, at bats, runs scored and walks. The two-time first-team All-ACC catchers is third in career hits at Clemson. At the conclusion of his Clemson career, he was a ninth-round draft choice of the Milwaukee Brewers. He played in the Major Leagues with the Seattle Mariners in 1992.

Cubelic earned first-team All-ACC honors in 1981-82 and 1982-83, and was an honorable mention All-American as a senior in 1982-83. The native of Columbia, SC finished her career with 1501 career points, fifth on the all-time Clemson list. Her 651 career field goals rank fourth best in Clemson history.

Cubelic teamed with all-time great Barbara Kennedy in leading the Lady Tigers to their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 1982. Cubelic averaged a career best 17.1 points per game that year. She was voted the team’s top defensive player that year.

Johnson was Clemson’s first three-time All-American in golf. He was a third-team choice in 1987 as a sophomore, then made first-team as a junior and second-team as a senior. He was the ACC champion in 1988 as a junior and was a three-time first-team All-ACC selection. He went on to play in the World Cup and the Walker Cup in 1989. He won the United States Public Links Championship in 1987 and was the runnerup in 1988.

Professionally, Johnson is currently a member of the BUY.com Tour. He was a member of the PGA Tour in 2001 when he won $205,242. He has won three career BUY.com events, more than any other former Tiger.

Robinson has been Clemson’s athletic director since March of 1985. He has worked in the athletic department for nearly 30 years and has worked for the University since 1970. During his tenure as athletic director Clemson won 57 ACC championships. All 19 of Clemson’s sports programs have been ranked in the top 20 at one time or another and 12 different programs have been ranked in the top five nationally. Nine times Clemson has ranked in the top 25 nationally in the All-Sports rankings.

Robinson was honored by the state of South Carolina this past April 17 when he was presented the Order of the Palmetto for his service to the state. Robinson opened Vickery Hall in 1991. It was the first stand-alone facility for student-athlete enrichment in the nation, a concept many schools have copied.

Robinson also served as Clemson’s golf coach from 1974-83. He brought the program its first ACC championship in 1982, then delivered the program’s first number-five national finish in 1983. He will retire from his post as Clemson Athletic Director on July 1.