As part of its centennial celebration, the Middle Atlantic Conference announced the inaugural class for the brand new MAC Hall of Fame this month. Two Albright alumni, NFL all star Dick Riffle and NCAA high jump champion Grant Krow, were included among the illustrious group of honorees.

The MAC Hall of Fame, an initiative of the MAC 100, is an honor to recognize student-athletes, coaches, administration, faculty, or staff from the Middle Atlantic Conferences who have demonstrated success in athletics, academics, and in the community. Thirty-six individuals were inducted into the Inaugural MAC Hall of Fame, representing 25 schools and 13 different sports.

Richard “Dick” Riffle, a 1938 graduate, earned 12 varsity letters in football, basketball, baseball and track. He was a two-time Little All-American in football, and was selected to play in the East-West Shrine Game. In three seasons, he scored 26 rushing touchdowns and led his Albright teams to a combined record of 20-2-2. The 1937 team (7-0-1) was the first undefeated squad in school history, and was ranked fourth in the nation among small colleges.

Riffle scored 13 rushing touchdowns in 1936, which remained a school single-season record until 1991. He also rushed for four TDs in a game vs. Muhlenberg, which is still tied for first in school history. In his senior season (1937), he totaled six rushing touchdowns and two interception return TDs, while also throwing for one score. He had a 65-yard TD run and a 102-yard INT return, which is still a school record. He was later an assistant coach at Albright for two seasons.

Riffle went on to play five seasons in the NFL- two with the Philadelphia Eagles and three with the Pittsburg Steelers. He was selected to the NFL All-Star game in 1941 after totaling 388 rushing yards, one rushing TD, one receiving TD, one TD pass, and six interceptions.

For his career, Riffle had 15 total touchdowns (10 rushing, two receiving, three passing). He rushed for 1381 yards on 388 carries, caught 19 passes for 189 yards and threw for 332 yards. He intercepted 10 career passes and punted 39 times for an average of 37.1 yards. In 1941, he ranked sixth in the NFL in rushing yards, sixth in all-purpose yards, fifth in kick return yards and third in interceptions.

Outside of football, Riffle was an Army veteran of World War II. He was a Corporal and served from May of 1943 through December 1945 in the Philippines, New Guinea and Korea, earning a Bronze Star. He was a member of the American Legion, VFW and Masons organizations, and also served as president of the Berks Athletic Club.

Albright's only NCAA champion, Grant Krow won the College Division high jump national championship in 1963 (6'3”). That same year, he was third in the College Division for the triple jump, and then placed fifth in the University Division (which included all NCAA schools, across all divisions). At the NCAA Eastern Regional championships he was first in the high jump, second in the long jump and second in the triple jump.

In 1962, he qualified for the NCAA University championships in the high jump. He tied for second in the high jump at the IC4A meet (behind world record holder John Thomas), and tied for first in that event at the Penn Relays. He was fourth in the University Division in the triple jump as a sophomore in 1961, and placed second in the event at the IC4A championships.

Krow was a five-time MAC champion, and set school records in the high jump (6'6”), long jump (23'1”) and triple jump (49'5”). He also set an IC4A record in the triple jump in 1963, a mark that was broken later that same meet.

Post graduation, he won the 1964 Open high jump at the Penn Relays and jumped 6'9” that year. He was also the 1983 Indoor National Masters champion in the triple jump, with a meet record for the 40-44 age group. In 1989, he competed in the triple jump at the World Masters Track & Field championships, taking 10th place overall. Krow won North American Masters titles in the long jump and triple jump in 1981, and three years later took second place in the triple jump at the US National Masters meet.

Krow earned his bachelor's degree from Albright in 1963 (where he was one of 12 winners of the 1963 Chemical and Engineering News National Merit Award) and his Ph.D. from Princeton University in 1967. He then earned a juris doctor degree from Temple in 1978, and is licensed to practice law by the Pennsylvania Bar Association.

Krow is now a professor emeritus of organic chemistry at Temple University, where he has taught since 1969. He earned the Temple Mentoring Award in 2008, was twice elected to the Faculty Senate Personnel Committee, served as chair of the Chemistry Department, and was on the Temple University Faculty Union Executive Committee.

A column editor for the Journal of Chemical Education from 1997-2009, Krow recently published featured papers in the Journal of Organic Chemistry and the Journal of the American Chemical Society. He has published over 100 scientific articles with grant support from the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health and the American Chemical Society.

Krow was selected by Temple students for the Golden Key National Honor Society, and also won the Temple College of Sciences Teaching award in 1994. He has taken great pride in mentoring his students and has worked with numerous Temple graduates who went on to accomplish great things in the world of science and medicine.

Albright's inaugural MAC Hall of Fame members will be recognized on campus at some point during the 2012-13 academic year; that date will be announced when it is finalized.

2012 Inaugural MAC Hall of Fame Class
Grant Krow, Albright, Track & Field, 1963
Richard (Dick) Riffle, Albright, Football/Baseball/Basketball/Track & Field, 1938
Robert Odell, Bucknell, Football Coach, 1958-1964
Ted Cottrell, Delaware Valley, Football/Track & Field, 1969
David Freysinger, Dickinson, Basketball, 1982
Denise Shotwell Hubley, Dickinson, Field Hockey/Track & Field, 1989
Yvonne Kauffman, Elizabethtown, Basketball/Field Hockey/Tennis Coach, 1966-Present
Simone Edwards, FDU, Basketball, 1993
Robert Shields, FDU, Athletic Director, 1976-1989
William Marshall, Franklin & Marshall, Squash Coach, Athletic Director, 1974-1991, 1971-1998
Arif Husain, Gettysburg, Track & Field, 1993
Robert Kenworthy, Gettysburg, SID, 1959-1999
Dick Voith, Haverford, Basketball, 1977
Bill Milne, Johns Hopkins, Swimming, 1974
William (Bill) Stromberg, Johns Hopkins, Football, 1982
Larry Bock, Juniata, Volleyball Coach, 1977-2010
Mary Beth Bowler, King's, Basketball, 1983
Al Cantello, La Salle, Track & Field, 1955
Tom Gola, La Salle, Basketball, 1955
Lou Sorrentino, Lebanon Valley, Basketball/Baseball/Football SA, Basketball/Football/Baseball/Golf Coach, Athletic Director, 1971-2010
Frank Girardi, Lycoming, Football Coach/Athletic Director, 1972-2007
Budd Whitehill, Lycoming, Wrestling/Football/Baseball Coach, 1956-93
Carol Fritz, McDaniel, Basketball/Volleyball/Softball Coach, Associate Athletic Director, 1967-2007
Rebecca Martin, McDaniel, Basketball/Volleyball/Track & Field/Softball SA, Basketball Coach, 1980, 1981-Present
David Brandt, Messiah, Soccer Coach, 1996-2008
Rocco Calvo, Moravian, Football/Basketball/Baseball Coach, Athletic Director, 1955-1992
Harold "Gil" Gillespie, Moravian, Baseball Coach, Basketball Coach, Athletic Director, 1937-1974, 1939-1957, 1937-1975
Bobby Smith, Rider, Soccer, 1972
Bob Bessoir, Scranton, Basketball Coach, 1951-1955
Cory Mabry, Susquehanna, Football/Track & Field, 1991
Guy Rodgers, Temple, Basketball, 1958
Edward Athey, Washington, Football/Basketball/Baseball SA, Coach, Athletic Director, 1947, 1948-1997
Billy Johnson, Widener, Football, 1975
Bill Manlove, Widener, Football Coach/Athletic Director, 1969-1991
John Reese, Wilkes, Wrestling Coach, Athletic Director, 1953-1995
Joseph Wiendl, Wilkes, Football/Wrestling/Baseball, 1969