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Bentley, LeCharles

LeCharles Bentley

Induction Year : 2015

Sport: Football

LeCharles Bentley always left a big impression. The standout lineman was a force throughout his playing days, from St. Ignatius High School to Ohio State to the National Football League. At 6-2 and 313 pounds as a professional, he was a true force at the highest level of the game.

Under veteran coach, Chuck Kyle (2013 Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame) at St. Ignatius, he was a two-year starter and All-Ohio selection as a senior in 1997.

At Ohio State under coaches John Cooper and Jim Tressel ( 2012 GCSHOF), he anchored the offensive Line and solidified his presence throughout the country. He was a first team All-Big Ten pick in 2000 and 2001, a consensus first team All-American as a senior. He was named the Dave Rimington Trophy winner as the best center in the country in 2001.

Drafted in the second round of the 2002 NFL Draft (No. 44 overall) by the New Orleans Saints, he started all 57 games, at guard and then center, for the team during the next four seasons. He was named by Sports Illustrated as the league’s offensive rookie of the year in 2002 and was on the Pro Football Weekly the all-rookie team.

He was signed by the Cleveland Browns as a free agent in 2006. However, the high hopes for the return to his hometown team were shattered when he tore the left patellar tendon in his left leg at the start of training camp. A subsequent staph infection and numerous knee surgeries put an end to his career, and he officially retired in January 2009.

Bentley worked in the Cleveland media and established a football training school.

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Dickenson, Frances

Frances Dickenson

Induction Year : 2015

Sport: Tennis

Frances became enchanted with tennis at the age of 10 while living in South Florida. She achieved a national junior ranking of seven and won the prestigious International Junior Orange Bowl Tennis Tournament in singles and doubles. Frances was the recipient of the Florida State Sportsmanship Award. She practiced with and competed against Billie Jean King and Karen Hantze Susman, who both went on to win major tournaments.

Marriage and children took Frances away from competing in tennis, but in her mid forties she returned to Florida to the top of the rankings. She was Florida State Champion in the 45 Singles and ranked number one for two years in a row. Still as a Floridian, she won both the 35 and 45 Western Singles Titles in Indianapolis.

Frances began bringing family members into tennis competition. She and her daughter, Farrar, finished third in the Mother and Daughter Division of the 2002 Nationals in Newport, Rhode Island. In 2012, she competed in the National Senior Games in Cleveland and won the Ladies Doubles and Mixed Doubles, the latter with her husband, David. It seems Frances found a good partner in David. They were the number one ranked Senior Husband and Wife team in the United States for both 2013 and 2014. During those years, they won four National Titles.

Frances serves on the Executive Board of the International Tennis Club of the United States and is the Women’s Captain. She has always given back to the game, helping many players and inner city children. She helped start the Eugene Scott Scholarship Fund that benefits junior players, one being Lauren Davis from Gates Mills, Ohio, ranked as high as 55 in the world.

Frances and David, who was inducted into the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame in 1992, Reside in Gates Mills, Ohio.

 

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Dolan, Larry

Larry Dolan

Induction Year : 2014

Sport: Baseball

A lifelong baseball fan, Larry Dolan bought the Cleveland Indians in February, 2000, and proceeded to make his mark not only in his hometown but within baseball. A lawyer by profession with special skills in the field of labor relations, he was largely credited with negotiating long-term labor peace between the owners and players’ union when he served on the Major League Baseball Ownership Committee and Executive Council. He also served on the MLB Diversity Committee.

His exploits as an athlete also should not be overlooked. Son of an inventor, Larry grew up in Cleveland Heights and attended St. Ignatius High School, where he played both football and baseball. He threw a touchdown pass in the Wildcats’ 13-0 victory over East Tech in the 1949 Charity Game before 30,227 at the Stadium. He was the catcher on the baseball team which also won the Senate championship in 1950.

He went on to the University of Notre Dame where he played on the freshman football team. After graduating in 1955 he remained at Notre Dame for law school. He then served as an officer in the United States Marine Corps for two years before returning home in 1958 to become an assistant prosecutor in Geauga County.

He also joined a law firm now known as Thrasher, Dinsmore and Dolan. He soon became a partner in the firm and later was named president and managing partner.

For nearly 25 years Larry managed the firm’s practice and professional development, building a reputation of excellence in general, civil and business law.

Now 83, Larry has retired from active management of the Indians. The club is now run by his son, Paul. Larry and his wife, Eva, have six children and seventeen grandchildren.

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Beutel, Bob

Bob Beutel

Induction Year : 2014

Sport: Basketball

Bob Beutel is the quintessential triple threat. He was an outstanding high school athlete. He was an outstanding collegiate athlete. Today, he is an outstanding scholastic coach.

His treble of excellence spans nearly 50 years and includes performances that earned Beutel national recognition on the football field as well as a place in the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s girls’ basketball  recordbook.

A native of Willowick, Beutel attended Eastlake North High School (Class of 1968) where he excelled in football and basketball, earning All-Ohio honors in both sports. He was recruited to play basketball at Ohio State University, but decided to play football at Big Ten rival Northwestern.

The decision worked out quite well. Beutel earned Big Ten honors as well as being named an ABC- TV National Player of the Week. He led the Wildcats in tackles in 1972 and ranked third in The Big Ten in that category in the same season.

When his playing days were over, Beutel took his bachelor’s degree in education and returned to his alma mater where he coached North’s girls basketball team for 25 years. His Lady Rangers compiled a record of 461-134 with 12 district titles and two trips to the state tournament’s final four.

Beutel considers coaching his daughters, Britt and Brooke, as one of the highlights of his career.

After spending a combined 40 years as student and a teacher in the Willoughby-Eastlake school system, Beutel retired in 2005. But not for long. A year later, he was approached and accepted the head coaching job of the girls’ basketball team at Gilmour Academy. In eight years, he has led the Lady Lancers to a record of 144-47.

Beutel’s second bite of the apple has lifted his career coaching victory total to 605, which ranks him seventh on the all-time list of Ohio girls’ basketball coaches.

Beutel and his wife Claudia live in Chardon.

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Boykins, Earl

Earl Boykins

Induction Year : 2013

Sport: Basketball

The National Basketball Association is indeed a league for big men. But the measure isn’t always for height. There is also a check for heart.

For 13 seasons, Earl Boykins displayed plenty of heart. At 5 feet, 5 inches, he is the second shortest player in NBA history. His lack of height never held him back. He mixed it with the big boys, even dunking on them.

Boykins, who played professionally at a feathery 133 pounds (yet he bench pressed 315 pounds), didn’t let the fact that he wasn’t drafted derail his dream of a big league career. He spent 13 years in the NBA, appearing in 587 games for nine teams, included the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Twice in 2007, while starring for the Milwaukee Bucks, Boykins tossed in a career high 36 points. Two years earlier, also with the Bucks, he scored 15 points in an overtime period, breaking the NBA record of 14 points that had stood for 21 years. Boykins’ mark fell the following season when Washington’s Gilbert Arenas netted 16 points in overtime.

Boykins never let his lack of height stop from excelling. Or elevating. Videos of Boykins’ NBA dunks have registered nearly a million hits on YouTube.

Boykins began his road to professional stardom at Cleveland Central High School in the city’s historic Slavic Village.

He then headed for Eastern Michigan University where he played for the Eagles from 1994 through 1998. Boykins earned All-Mid-American Conference first-team honors in both his junior and senior years. He continues to be EMU’s all-time leader in career assists with 624, more than 100 assists clear of the second ranked Eagle.

One of the highlights of Boykins’ college career came in an opening round game of the 1996 NCAA tournament when Eastern Michigan upset Duke 75-60 in a Southeast Regional game at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. Boykins scored 23 points.

Eastern Michigan honored Boykins in 2011 when it retired his No. 11 jersey and raised it to the rafters of the Convocation Center.

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Chernauskas, Larry

Larry Chernauskas

Induction Year : 2012

Sport: Basketball

After playing varsity basketball at St. Francis College of Pennsylvania and serving two years of active duty in the United States Army, Larry Chernauskas moved to Cleveland where he became a revered high school basketball coach and math teacher.

At the age of 26, after only two years as an assistant coach (Gilmour Academy and John Marshall), Larry was named head coach at West Tech, where he stayed for the next 26 years (1956-82), accumulating a long list of championships and honors coaching the boys teams.

That was barely half of his coaching resume, however. He then made a seamless transition to coaching girls. He coached the girls teams at St. Joseph Academy (1982-85), Gilmour Academy (1985-91) and Magnificat High School (1991-97).

Larry’s combined overall record is 508 wins and 280 losses. At West Tech his boys teams won five West Senate championships. His girls teams at Gilmour advanced to the regional tournament four times. His Magnificat girls reached the regional four times and the state final four twice. He was named Cleveland area coach of the year four times—twice at West Tech and once each at Gilmour and Magnificat. In a Plain Dealer contest he was voted “Favorite Coach” by the readers in 1968.

In retirement he was honored by St. Edward High School with its “Most Respected Opponent” award. He was inducted into the Ohio High School Basketball Coaches’ Hall of Fame and halls of fame of St. Francis College, West Tech, Gilmour and Magnificat. He and his wife, Janet, have been married for 55 years and still live on Cleveland’s west side.

Deceased 2024

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Crum, Dick

Dick Crum

Induction Year : 2011

Sport: Football

In a state famous for turning out great football coaches, Dick Crum ranks among the best ever from Ohio. This native of Boardman played college football at Muskingum and Mount Union Colleges. He started his coaching career as an assistant at Boardman in 1957. He moved on to Sandusky and Warren Harding before becoming the head coach at Mentor High School in 1963 where he compiled a 50-9-1 record over six years, including perfect 10-0 seasons on 1966 and 1968. Mentor opened the 1968 season with a shocking 19-0 victory over Massillon in storied Paul Brown Stadium and was ranked first in The Plain Dealer ratings and second in both state wire service polls the rest of the season.

In 1969 Dick moved on to Miami as an assistant coach under Bill Mallory and in 1974 Dick succeeded him as head coach. In four years Crum posted a 34-10-1 record with three Mid-American Conference championships and Tangerine Bowl victories over Georgia and South Carolina. In 1978 he moved on to North Carolina where over the next 10 years he became the Tar Heels all-time winningest football coach with a record of 72-41-3, one Atlantic Coast Conference title and six bowl game appearances where he registered victories over Michigan, Arkansas and twice over Texas. He was fired after the 1987 season and North Carolina has not won an ACC title since.

He finished his coaching career at Kent State from 1988 to 1990. He has received Mount Union College’s Award of Excellence and is a member of Miami University’s exclusive Cradle of Coaches Society. He is a member of six halls of fame, namely Boardman High School, Mentor High School, Ohio High School Football Coaches, Tangerine Bowl, Gator Bowl and Miami University. The Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame is proud to welcome Dick into number seven.

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Brubaker, Dick

Dick Brubaker

Induction Year : 2011

Sport: Football

Dick Brubaker was the epitome of determination.

The one-time standout at Shaker Heights High, where the Raiders won the Lake Erie League championship in 1949, he played two seasons at Ohio Wesleyan University. The Bishops won the Ohio Athletic Conference title in 1951.

Seeking a bigger challenge, Brubaker transferred to Ohio State and approached legendary coach Woody Hayes to allow him to play as a walk-on wide receiver. After sitting out a season, he was rewarded for his hard work when he made the first team midway through the 1953 season.

In 1954, Brubaker and John Borton were elected co-captains by their teammates. They helped guide the Buckeyes to the school’s first 10-0 record, a Rose Bowl victory against Southern Cal and the second national championship in school history.

In the vaunted OSU rushing game, he helped block for future Heisman Trophy winner Howard “Hopalong” Cassady. Brubaker never received an athletic scholarship.

After playing with the Chicago Cardinals in 1955, he was drafted by the navy and served 18 months. He played part of the 1957 season with the Cardinals, before setting his sights on a law degree that he obtained from Western Reserve University. He returned to the football field in 1960, playing a final season for the Buffalo Bills of the newly-formed American Football League.

He went on to a long and illustrious legal career with Calfee, Halter & Griswold in Cleveland, specializing in estates and trusts law. With his wife, Nancy, they raised three children and live in Newbury.

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Davis, Roger

Roger Davis

Induction Year : 2010

Sport: Football

A Sports Illustrated cover photo in November of 1959 focused the camera lens directly on greatness. Surging under two of those famous orange helmets of Syracuse University were All-American lineman Roger Davis and All-American running back Ernie Davis.

Roger Davis, a graduate of Solon High School where he earned 10 letters in football, basketball and baseball, and joins the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame to crown a career that saw him win championships in the NCAA and NFL.

Davis was known at Syracuse as “Hound Dog” because of his love of training coonhounds, an American hunting dog. He played three years for the Orangemen, from 1957-1959. His final year was his finest as Syracuse was unbeaten, defeating Texas in the Cotton Bowl to become national champions.

Receiving All-American recognition, Davis was much sought after by the pros. In the 1960 NFL draft, he was a first round selection of the Chicago Bears, being the seventh choice of the entire draft.

Davis played like a No. 1 selection. He was a starter at right guard on the Bears team that won the 1963 NFL title by defeating the New York Giants, 14-10 in a game played on Dec. 29 at Wrigley Field in temperatures that struggled to get out of single digits.

There were two more NFL stops for Davis. He played for the L.A. Rams in 1964 and for the New York Giants that he helped defeat in 1965 and 1966.

While at Syracuse and Chicago, Davis played for two legendary coaches. Hall of Famer Ben Schwartzwalder was his coach in college and George “Papa Bear” Halas, one of the NFL’s founding fathers, was his coach in Chicago.

In 1999, Davis was honored with a spot on Syracuse’s All Century Football Team.

Since retiring from football Roger has worked for Nationwide Insurance. He is the father of four children, grandfather of seven and makes his home in Pepper Pike.

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Dunn, Jimmy

Jimmy Dunn

Induction Year : 1980

Sport: Boxing

A fine professional lightweight boxer in the early years of the 20th century, he retired to Cleveland and opened a gymnasium on the city’s West Side which was to produce some of the nation’s best fighters under his tutelage. His first renowned pupil was Johnny Kilbane who won the world featherweight title in 1912 and retained his championship for 11 years. Two other Dunn-trained boxers, bantamweight Carl Tremaine and middleweight Bryan Downey, fought the reigning world champions and are members of the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame.

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