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Vanderbilt to Retire Perry Wallace’s Jersey Feb. 21 2/7/2004
Vanderbilt to Retire Perry Wallace’s Jersey Feb. 21 Perry Wallace, who made history becoming the first African-American basketball player in Southeastern Conference history, will have his basketball jersey retired by Vanderbilt University February 21 prior to the Commodores’ game with LSU. Wallace becomes only the third Vanderbilt student-athlete to have a jersey retired and displayed in Memorial Gym. All-Americans Clyde Lee and Wendy Scholtens each had their jerseys retired at the end of their Commodore careers. “Perry Wallace is a Vanderbilt hero,” said Chancellor Gordon Gee. “It took great courage for him to come here, and he represented the university with great dignity and skill during a turbulent time. Perry’s accomplishments — in the classroom, on the basketball court and throughout his life — are an inspiration to us all, and are more than worthy of this long-deserved honor.” Wallace attended Nashville’s Pearl High School and was a star on its undefeated state championship basketball team, the first year Tennessee integrated its high school tournament. He was sought by approximately 80 universities, mostly located in the north, but Vanderbilt Coach Roy Skinner was able to convince Wallace that both the timing and the Commodores were right for him. Wallace arrived on Vanderbilt’s campus in the fall of 1966 and overcame the adversity associated with social trail-blazers to become one of the Commodores’ finest student-athletes and, later, one of its most distinguished alumni. Thirty-four years later, he still is the school’s second leading rebounder and ranks 35th in scoring, playing just three years from 1968-70. Freshmen were not eligible to play with the varsity during that era. Wallace was named all-Southeastern Conference his senior year and went on to a law career in Washington D.C. area. After graduating from Vanderbilt with a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical Engineering and Engineering Mathematics, he earned his J.D. degree in 1975 from the School of Law at Columbia University. Wallace has served as a professor of law at The American University in Washington, D.C. since 1991. He was on the faculty of the University of Baltimore and was an attorney with the United States Department of Justice. Wallace also served as a legislative analyst for Mayor Walter Washington of the District of Columbia and was a field representative for the National Urban League. Wallace won the SEC Sportsmanship Trophy after a vote by the league players in 1970 and has been honored many times since leaving Vanderbilt. In 1996 the National Association of Basketball Coaches named Perry to its five-man Silver Anniversary All-America team. Wallace returned to the sports headlines a year ago a 2003 inductee into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame. He will also be representing Vanderbilt at this year’s SEC Basketball Tournament in Atlanta as an “SEC Living Legend” honoree. Perry and his wife Karen, a professor at Howard University, have a 12-year old daughter, Gabrielle. Vanderbilt students have been very engaged in the process to honor Wallace and recommended retiring his jersey as a unique tribute to the former star. |
