George Woodard, eight others honored by A&M Letterman's Association
The 41st Burgess Banquet inducted seven new members into the Letterman's Association Hall of Fame, added one to the Wall of Honor, and gave out one Lifetime Achievement award. Devin Chanse was there to get some thoughts from a few of the honorees.
Award recepients include new Hall of Famers Bronson Burgoon ’09 from men’s golf, Kip Corrington ’87 from football, A’Quonesia Franklin ’08 from women’s basketball, Laura Jones Hahn-Conti ’06 from volleyball, Claude Riley ’84 from men’s basketball, Kati Jo Spisak ’06 from soccer and George Woodard ’79 from football. R.H. “Steve” Stevens ’62 was inducted into the Hall of Honor. David Heath '76, lettermen student athletics trainer under the legendary Billy Pickard, received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Editor's note: As you can see from the photos, Devin conducted these interviews on video. We had some technical issues with the audio that rendered the video unusable, but we wanted to get them out in some form, so we transcribed them.
George Woodard - Football
On how he feels to be back in Aggieland:
“It’s different. Everything has changed big time, but it’s good.”
On what it means to be inducted into the Hall of Fame:
“Well, I know that I did something right. I played with perfection. I played with a bunch of guys who care. That meant a lot to me.”
On how he feels about this football team:
“I watched the Clemson game, and they looked good. They just have to do some things...they have to do some more homework and get themselves together. They’ll be ok.”
Laura Jones Hahn-Conti - Volleyball
On how it feels to be back in Aggieland:
“It feels awesome. It’s such a huge change to see everything that’s being built, and it’s so different from when I was here. It’s cool to be a part of Aggieland now as opposed to 12 years ago when I felt like we were cool then.”
On how she feels about the current state of Aggie volleyball:
"Optimistic, for sure. I think they have a lot of potential. I’m excited about their new coach, and I’m excited to she what she does with the program.”
On what this honor means to her:
“It means that I used to be somebody and that I’m still holding on to the idea that I can bring my kids here sometime and show them where I played, the things that are special to me, and the places that are special to me. It’s really exciting and a huge surprise.”
Claude Riley - Basketball
On how he feels to be back in Aggieland:
“It’s always a pleasure to come back here. Every once in a while I get a chance to come back. This just happens to be one of those special occasions, being inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame. It’s very special and I’m glad to be back.”
On what it means to have his accomplishments recognized:
“After so many years it brings back feelings that I’ve always had playing basketball. It really brings back those special feelings – gifts that have been given to me from family. That’s what it feels like. I’m back home receiving gifts.”
On how he feels about the success of Aggie Basketball:
“This is a great feeling because back when I came here in 1979 – you don’t really know what to expect, but you start getting accomplishments and start winning important games. We won the 1980 Southwest Conference Championship; that’s very special. So when I start seeing other teams that are successful, work hard, and are consistent, it’s something very special to always be proud of.”
Bronson Burgoon - Golf
On how it feels to be inducted into the Hall of Fame:
“It’s really humbling. For me, it’s more of a team effort. We won the national championship and it was an awesome team effort. It’s a dream come true obviously. This is my second home, so to be on the wall with people who are so accomplished is really cool.”
On how he feels to be back in Aggieland:
“I love it. I haven’t been here in 2 years, but we came back for the Clemson game and it’s grown so much. I’ve fumbled around the idea of moving here with my wife. We just love it here.”
Kip Corrington - Football
On what this honor means to him:
“It’s a great honor. With the sports traditions at A&M, it’s amazing to be in the Hall of Fame. What it means more than anything – in a team sport, it’s about your teammates, so this is actually an honor for my teammates.”
On his opinions of the current Texas A&M football program:
“They looked really good last week against Clemson, so I’m very hopeful. It was nice too to see them really come together in the fourth quarter and almost pull it out, so I’m excited about the future.”
On how he feels to be back in Aggieland:
“It’s a different place than it used to be. It’s quite a big production here, but I’m really enjoying the weekend. Everyone’s been so nice, and we’re staying at the new hotel on campus, so that’s really cool.”