UC Riverside Athletics Hall of Fame
Jack Smitheran was the head coach of the UC Riverside Baseball Team for 31 seasons guiding the evolution of the program from an unknown Division II school into a Division II NCAA Champion (1977, 1982) and eventually into a Division I postseason qualifier (2003). A dozen of the student-athletes who played for Smitheran reached the major leagues including Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim closer Troy Percival.
Smitheran was named to the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2002, and in 2006 he had his jersey number two placed on UC Riverside’s Wall of Honor out in centerfield at the Riverside Sports Complex.
