Anytime you have an inaugural class in a Hall of Fame, it's bound to contain the best of the best. The first class of the Greater Binghamton Sports Hall of Fame was just that. Sixteen of the area's biggest names in the world of sports were at the DoubleTree in downtown Binghamton Monday night. All ten living inductees were on hand, and family members of the six deceased were also present.


The inductees were U-E football coach Fran Angeline, former Pittsburgh Steeler Bob Campbell, Press & Sun columnist John W. Fox, STAC Director Carl Gaffney, BU and international basketball start Bess Greenberg, Whitney Point basketball coach Jack Holloran, 7-year NFL vet Isaiah, Kacyvenski, Karate Master Hidy Ochiai, BHS and UNC grad and Monmouth head basketball coach King Rice, TC Jets owner and coach Ray Stanton, Sr. and inducted posthumously BC Open Founder Alex Alexander, BCC and BU coach Richard Baldwin, Vestal football coach Dick Hoover, MLB All-Star Johnny Logan, MLB Umpire Ron Luciano, and Broome Dusters Founder Jim Matthews, Sr.


For Rice and Kacyvenski, this trip home was one of their most memorable.


"It's a great honor for me," said Rice. "It makes you really excited because I'm a person that carries Binghamton everywhere he goes with him. I truly, truly do that. I've done that ever since I left here. So when people at home, this is still home for me, like some of the things that you did in the past and more importantly what you're set up to do in the future, it's really cool."


"It's amazing, to be next to, side by side with guys I grew up idolizing - King Rice, Fran Angeline, the teams he churned out when I was a little kid, wanting to be on that stage playing against King Rice," Kacyvenski said. "The many other people - Hidy Ochiai... obviously it goes above and beyond football to other sports. It's amazing, it's an honor to be mentioned with them."


The Hall of Fame plaques will be on display at the Oakdale Mall while a location is selected for a permanent home.