UW Hall of Fame Class of 2011: 7 Inductees in 7 Days

In honor of the newly inducted members of the University of Wyoming Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame, we will provide the seven inductees over a course of seven days.

Day 1: Mike English, Volleyball, 1986-1990, 1992-1993

One of the most respected and admired coaches in the athletic history of the University of Wyoming, Mike English began his tenure as head volleyball coach at UW in 1986. That very same year, he led the Cowgirls to their first ever NCAA tournament birth. English would go on to lead two more Cowgirl teams to NCAA tournaments in 1989 and 1990. In the 1989 tournament, Wyoming upset a favored Stanford team on their way to an Elite Eight appearance where they fell to UCLA, at UCLA's home court.

English would coach the Cowgirls squad for seven seasons, where he would become the leader in UW volleyball history for wins (124) and winning percentage (59%). His coaching record at Wyoming was 124-86 and his career coaching record was 253-161 including six years leading the volleyball program at the University of Missouri from 1980 to 1985.

English was honored as High Country Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 1987 and 1989 and was additionally named Co-Coach of the Year by the West Region in 1989.

On December 12, 1993, Mike English was critically injured in a car accident between Laramie and Fort Collins. English suffered a traumatic injury in the accident and was unable to return to coaching. English died on November 20, 2000.

Less than two years later after the devastating accident, on August 16, 1995, the UW Athletics Department, along with Nancy English, announced the establishment of the Mike English Women's Volleyball Scholarship, an annual scholarship to a volleyball student-athlete at UW.

Be sure to join us tomorrow on kowb1290.com for Day 2 of our series of 7 inductees in 7 days!