Syracuse To Honor Five at 50th Annual LetterWinners of Distinction Event

Five of Syracuse University's former athletic standouts be honored during the annual LetterWinner of Distinction banquet. Syracuse University and the Varsity Club of Syracuse University will honor the former student-athletes who have left their mark on the athletics program and in their lives after graduation at the annual celebration on Friday, November 7 at the Turning Stone Event Center in Verona, N.Y. The 2014 honorees include Gerald Everling '65 (football and wrestling), Michael Hopkins '93 (basketball), Robert Stem '65 (football), Dwayne 'Pearl' Washington '98 (basketball) and Betsy Zaplin '80 (tennis).

Tickets are $125 per person and a table of 10 is $1,200. A reception begins at 6 p.m. followed by a dinner at 7 p.m. Tickets are available online.

Gerald Everling '65 (Football and wrestling)
A two-sport student-athlete, Gerald Everling played in the 1965 Sugar Bowl and earned All-America honors as a wrestler in 1963. The Binghamton, NY native won the Eastern wrestling championship in 1965 after finishing third in 1963.

After his standout career for the Orange, Everling transferred his skills to the sidelines as a football and wrestling coach for Rush Henrietta Central Schools, Notre Dame High School and Union College. At Rush Henrietta, he was an assistant coach for both sports from 1965-67 before becoming the head football and wrestling coach at Notre Dame HS in Elmira for two years. In 1969, Everling moved to the college ranks where he was the head wrestling coach, football defensive coordinator and football head coach during the next six years. Everling's final coaching stop was back where he started at Rush Henrietta, where he posted a record of 120-83-1 as the head football coach from 1975 through 1999. After he retired as head coach in 1999, he continued to assist the program through 2001.

Everling's football teams won four Monroe County Championships and one Section V title. He was the 1997 Division I Football Coach of the Year and was inducted into two Halls of Fame, including the Section 5 Football (2006) and the Section 4 Hall of Fame (1974).

In addition to his coaching accomplishments, Everling is active in his community as a speaker at local high schools, a volunteer coach for pop warner wrestling and a sponsor for the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging. He founded the annual Punky Hallow Football clinic and was instrumental in designing and implementing the "lifetime" physical education programs in fishing, hiking and orienting.

Michael Hopkins '93 (Basketball)
One of the most popular players in Syracuse University basketball history, Mike Hopkins has forged a new following as an assistant coach on the staff of Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim. He is in his 19th season as a coach for the program that has advanced to postseason play every season of his tenure.

Born in San Mateo, Calif., where he played on the 1987 California state championship team at Mater Dei High School, Hopkins enrolled in Syracuse in 1989. A two-year starter at shooting guard and a team captain as a senior, Hopkins led the 1991-92 SU team to the BIG EAST Championship. He was a. Hopkins played professional basketball in the Continental Basketball Association with the Rochester (Minn.) Renegades and in Europe with teams in Turkey and Holland following his graduation.

In 1995, Hopkins joined the SU coaching staff. He has continuously played an intricate role during his tenure in the development of many NBA draft picks including Johnny Flynn, Gerry McNamara, Andy Rautins and Fab Melo. In addition, he has assisted the Men's USA Basketball coaching staff, including for the 2012 gold medalist team at 2012 London Olympics.

Hopkins is active in the Syracuse community organizing many service events, including the annual 'Legends Against Hunger' three-on-three basketball tournament and is active in "Coaches vs. Cancer," a partnership between the American Cancer Society and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). He earned his undergraduate degree in speech communications.

Robert Stem '65 (Football)
A three-year starter at center and linebacker, Robert Stem was an integral member of the 1959 Syracuse National Championship team. A co-captain of the 1961 squad that beat Miami in the Liberty Bowl, Stem played in two bowls for the Orange, including 1960 Cotton Bowl win against #4 Texas to cap the 1959 Championship run.

After his career at Syracuse University, Stem transferred his playing success to the sidelines as a high school football coach. During 34-year coaching career, Stem's teams were 285-96-6, including four New Jersey state championships and two Pennsylvania state championships and included 17 Associated Press All-State student-athletes. From 1973 through 1981, Stem coached at his alma mater, Phillipsburg (NJ) High School, leading the Stateliners to a 56-13 record. He returned to lead the Phillipsburg program from 2005 through his retirement in 2010. From 1983-2001 he was the served as the head coach of the Bethlehem Catholic High School.

Stem, who earned his degree in elementary education, is an active member of his community. He has been associated with the McDonald's All Star Charity for more than 20 years, delivers meals to the homebound through Meals on Wheels, and has been a motivational speaker at many events, including local schools and educational programs. He is a member of the Palmer Moravian Church and served as Head Sacristan for five years.

Dwayne "Pearl" Washington '98 (Basketball)
Dwyane "Pearl" Washington left his legacy at Syracuse for eternity. The Brooklyn, NY native and Boys and Girls High School graduate was the number one high school basketball recruit in the country during his senior season. At Syracuse, he played in 95 games in three seasons, averaging 15.6 points, 6.7 assists and 2.3 steals per game for head coach Jim Boeheim. The 1986 All-American earned the 1984 BIG EAST Rookie of the Year honor and was a three-time All-BIG EAST First Team selection. He led the Orange to the 1984 BIG EAST Championship.

The 13th overall pick in the 1986 National Basketball Association Draft by New Jersey, Washington played for two seasons with the Nets and then moved to Miami when the Heat selected him in the 1988 NBA Expansion Draft. He averaged 8.6 points and 3.8 assists in 194 games in the NBA.

Washington has worked in special events for Thuzio, providing motivational speaking and celebrity coaching, and coached basketball at Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn.

Betsy (Gottlieb) Zaplin '80 (Tennis)
One of the first females to receive an athletics scholarship to Syracuse University, Betsy (Gottlieb) Zaplin played both basketball and tennis as a freshman, while on a basketball scholarship. In her second year, Zaplin elected to focus on tennis, registering 82 career singles victories and won the 1977 New York State Championship. Four years after earning her public relations degree from the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications, Zaplin was elected to the Orange Plus Hall of Fame.

Zaplin's family has a strong ties to the sport of basketball, including her uncle, Leo Gottlieb, who played in the first NBA game in 1946 for the New York Knicks, and her cousin, Ron Rothstein, who has coached in the NBA and the WNBA since 1983 and is currently an assistant coach for the Miami Heat.

Zaplin, who is an active member of the University's Northern New Jersey Alumni Board, manages her own advertising specialty business, Zapgo LLC, a company that provides promotions products such as T-shirts, mugs and hats to corporate advertisers which she founded more than 20 years ago. Zaplin began her career as a ticket sales and marketing representative for World Championship Tennis after earning her Master's degree in sport management from the University of Massachusetts in 1982. She is a member of Women in Sports and Events (WISE) and is participated in Hats for Hope for Kids and Kilometers for Karyn, an organization that is committed to finding a cure for childhood leukemia.

Syracuse University Athletics

Syracuse To Honor Five at 50th Annual LetterWinners of Distinction Event

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